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How to install the BOBcloud Server software on a Synology NAS

Published: 11 September 2018Updated: 26 October 2026
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Definitions

Server software is our backup software for servers and NAS devices. This guide installs it on a Synology NAS, where its package folder is serverbackup.
Desktop software is our backup software for desktops and laptops.

Which Synology NAS models are supported?

See the Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) for Synology NAS.

How to create a Synology backup account on BOBcloud

  1. Create a server account in the Reseller Portal. The Synology module only works on a Server account, not a Desktop account.
  2. Add the Synology module from the customer’s page in your portal, under manage backup account settings ».
    Manage backup account settings on the customer's page
  3. Download the Synology module directly from the backup server. To find which cluster the backup account is on, check the right-hand side of the customer’s page.
    Backup cluster shown on the customer's page
    Enter that cluster URL in a web browser and, on the Server page, find the Synology DSM module that suits your NAS, for example https://b23.data-stor.net/cbs/system/ShowDownload.do.

Make a note of the backup cluster’s URL (for example https://b23.data-stor.net). You will paste it into the URL field during installation.

Online installation: SPK online installer

  1. In a web browser, go to your Synology NAS: http://<NAS IP address>:5000 (or https://<NAS IP address>:5001).
  2. Log in to DiskStation Manager (DSM) with the admin account.
    Synology DSM login screen
  3. Click the Package Center icon on the desktop.
    Package Center icon
  4. If you get permission errors when installing the module, change the trust level first: in Package Center, click Settings, and on the General tab set Trust Level to Any publisher (“Allow installation of any package regardless of publisher and integrity”).
  5. Click Manual Install.
  6. Click Browse, select the Server software SPK file you downloaded (for example obm-synology-443-10.121.100.16-https-0O.spk) and click Next.
    Manual Install window with the SPK file selected
  7. When the warning message appears, click Agree.
    Third-party package warning
  8. Read the licence agreement, tick I accept the terms of the license agreement and click Next.
  9. In the install window, paste the backup cluster URL you noted earlier and click Next.
    URL field in the install window
  10. Review the summary and click Done to start the installation.
    Installation summary
  11. When the installation has finished, the Server software is listed under Installed packages.
    The Server software in the Installed packages list
  12. To open the Server software, click the Main Menu icon at the top left of the desktop, then click the Server icon.
    The Server software in the DSM main menu

To make it easier to find, right-click Server and click Add to desktop.
Add to desktop option

FAQs

The backup is running, but no data is backed up

The backup user needs permission to read the source folders:

  1. Log in to DSM.
  2. Open File Station from the desktop or the main menu.
  3. Select the source folders you want to back up.
  4. Right-click the selected folder and choose Properties.
  5. On the Permissions tab, make sure the user account running the Server software has Read/Write permissions, and tick Apply to this folder, sub-folders, and files.
  6. Click OK or Apply to save the changes.

What can be backed up on a Synology NAS?

Only folders and files shown in File Station can be backed up by the Server software on a Synology NAS.

Folders shown in File Station

Which backup destinations are supported?

All predefined storage destinations, other cloud storage you have configured, network storage, and local or removable storage on the NAS.

Where are the encryption keys for the backup sets stored?

The encryption keys are saved in /volume1/@appstore/serverbackup/.obm/config/settings.sys. volume1 is the default volume. If the package is installed on another volume, use that instead.

You must also keep a copy offline.

How do I stop a scheduled backup job?

  1. Connect to the Synology NAS over SSH.
  2. Run this command, replacing %backupset_id% with the ID of the backup set:
touch /volume1/@appstore/serverbackup/.obm/ipc/BackupSet/%backupset_id%/stop

Backups on the Synology NAS are slower than on other platforms

Backups on a Synology NAS can be slower because a NAS usually has less memory and processing power than a desktop or server for compression, encryption and delta generation.

The default Java heap size for the Server software on Synology NAS is 256 MB. You can increase it to improve backup performance (see below).

How to change the Java heap size for the Server software on Synology NAS

  1. Connect to the Synology NAS over SSH.
  2. Open this file in a text editor: /volume1/@appstore/serverbackup/obm/bin/WuiService.sh
  3. Change the -Xmx value on the JAVA_OPTS line. For example, change: 
    JAVA_OPTS="-Xrs -Xms64m -Xmx256m -Dsun.nio.PageAlignDirectMemory=true"
    to: 
    JAVA_OPTS="-Xrs -Xms64m -Xmx512m -Dsun.nio.PageAlignDirectMemory=true"
    Leave the other lines, such as JNI_PATH, unchanged.
  4. Save the file and exit the text editor.

Advanced backup settings are missing from the Synology app

Backup Filter, Continuous Backup, Retention Policy, Command Line Tool, Reminder and Bandwidth Control aren’t in the Server software interface on Synology NAS, because the interface is simplified there. Configure these settings in the Reseller portal, or ask Support to help.

Backup set settings in the Reseller portal