With the arrival of DSM 7 – the operating system on which Synology’s NAS run – file manager File Station has also been given a makeover. Control everything that concerns files on your NAS via the browser!
What makes Synology NAS particularly popular is the sleek and user-friendly web interface. It runs in any modern browser and the whole thing looks like the desktop of an average operating system, which in fact it is, of course. Several utilities are included by default, including File Station. This is a very comprehensive file manager including viewer capabilities on board.
A file manager is nothing but what the Explorer does in Windows or Finder in macOS. In other words: you can use it to browse folders, copy or move files and much more. And all this simply via an app that runs in the browser on the desktop of DSM. Where DSM stands for Disk Station Manager.
Open File Station
You will find File Station after a standard installation of your NAS on the desktop, but also in the start menu. You can open the latter by clicking the start button on the far left of the menu bar at the top of the screen. Whichever way you choose: after a click on the icon File Station launch the app.
Anyone who uses the Windows Explorer or the Mac Finder can quickly get to grips with the Synology variant. You browse folders by left clicking on a folder in the tree structure. Subfolders can be reached by clicking on the triangle pointing to the right. It is also possible to double click on folders on the right side of the panel.
You can also drag files and folders to another folder to copy or move them. A matter of dragging with the left mouse button and releasing it on the desired folder.
It is important to realize that by default it is moved and not copied. So make sure to remember where you are moving a file, because otherwise you won’t be able to find it again.
Select multiple files at once
If you want more control over that move or copy, it’s better to right-click on a file or folder. In the context menu that opens, choose the desired action under Copy to / Move to† Then choose the destination folder in the opened window and you’re done.
By the way, you can select multiple files and folders at once, just hold down the Control or Command (macOS) key while clicking. The trick with the Shift key also works, ie: click on the first desired file (or folder) in a list and then on the last. All intermediate files and folders are then selected at once.
Compress files on NAS
Right-click on a selected file (or files) again and check out what else you can do. It is nice that File Station has a fairly extensive compression tool. Click in the context menu on Add to archive and you can set everything to your liking.
Keep in mind that the .zip format officially has a size limit of up to 4 GB. If you want to zip more, it is wiser to switch to the .7zip file format. You select that in the menu behind Archive format† choose that 7z† Now you can create archives up to 16 Exabytes in size. And that seems more than enough for even the most enthusiastic user for the time being.
An additional advantage of .7Zip is that it has strong encryption. And now this archive format has become so well established that almost every self-respecting unpacker can handle it.
Open files
As promised, File Station also has built-in viewers for various file formats. The right mouse button is once again your best friend. Click on a file you want to view and then in the context menu on something like Play in case of a video file or Preview in case of a photo.
It is nice that there is also a PDF viewer available within DSM, click again with the right mouse button on a PDF and then under To display on Open in PDF viewer† A new browser tab opens with an extended viewer.
Link Remote Folder
The advantage of the browser-based file manager is that every user has direct access to all folders to which he or she has permissions and that folders for which this is not the case are automatically hidden. At the same time, a user with administrative rights can quickly access all folders on the system.
File Station can continue via the button Tools and then Link Remote Folder also connect to other shares on the network. All in all, a very versatile and practical piece of equipment.
DS File on smartphones
Although File Browser will run effortlessly via the web interface in most mobile browsers, the small screen of a smartphone can quickly cause a cramp in the fingers. A tablet is already a big improvement, but especially if a mouse and keyboard are linked. If that’s not the case, then it’s still a bit of work.
Synology saw that of course, which is why a mobile app has been released for iOS, iPadOS and Android called DS File† After installation and start, enter the IP address and your login details.
After that, you’ll be presented with a ‘finger-friendly’ version of Filebrowser with virtually the same capabilities, plus the option to transfer files, photos, and movies to and from your NAS from your mobile. A must have app for every Synology NAS user.
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