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Synology adds TV recording and more to its NAS with DSM 4.1 operating system

Synology announces the release of version 4.1 of the Disk Station Manager operating system for NAS servers, which adds improvements and features to existing DiskStation NAS servers.

Dong Ngo SF Labs Manager, Editor / Reviews
CNET editor Dong Ngo has been involved with technology since 2000, starting with testing gadgets and writing code for CNET Labs' benchmarks. He now manages CNET San Francisco Labs, reviews 3D printers, networking/storage devices, and also writes about other topics from online security to new gadgets and how technology impacts the life of people around the world.
Dong Ngo
2 min read

A brand new Video Station with the ability to record TV using a supported USB tuner is just one of the many new features and improvement that DSM 4.1 has to offer.
A brand-new Video Station with the capability to record TV using a supported USB tuner is just one of many new features and improvements that DSM 4.1 has to offer. Dong Ngo

After more than a monthin beta state, Synology's final latest version, version 4.1, of the DiskStation Manager operating system for its NAS server, was released today.

Synology is one of a few NAS vendors that regularly releases new versions of the operating system, which improves and adds features to its existing NAS servers. DSM has been by far the most advanced operating system for network-attached storage servers, which offers not just a vast amount of features and ease of use, but also the most robust user interface that resembles a native operating system. Like all NAS operating systems, DSM is accessed via a Web interface using a connected computer.

DSM is one of the main reasons Synology NAS servers, such as the DS1511+, or the DS412+, have been the best on the market, for both home and small business environments.

The new version offers some major additional features to the already feature-rich OS, including a Video Station and mobile apps for Windows Phone 7. The Video Station allows users to organize their movies and adds support for USB digital TV tuners. Users can also stream videos and recorded TV programs to standard network media streamers. Synology's mobile apps, including DS Audio, DS Photo +, and DS Finder, have been available for iOS and Android devices. Version 4.1 of the OS will bring this support to Windows 7 Phone users.

The new DSM 4.1 version will also include improvements for the Audio Station (better design), the Cloud Station (now supporting two shared folders), the Photo Station (now supporting timeline and faster thumbnail creation), and the Surveillance Station (refreshed design).

In addition, version 4.1 also refines and adds more business features to the server, such as making the NAS compliant with VAAI (vStorage APIs for Array Integration) and offering RAID Fast-Rebuild Technology, Mail Server Enhancements, and support for authentication security with NTLM v2 and Kerberos v5.

You can check out the complete list of added features and improvements at Synology's Web site. The new version is a free upgrade to all Synology DiskStation NAS servers released in the last few years and will be used in all new NAS servers from the company.