Best SSD for the Synology DiskStation DS923+
By Devin Chua · Data checked by Owen Nakamura · Updated The 4 bays of the Synology DiskStation DS923+ take 2.5-inch SATA SSDs as well as hard drives, but over 2 × 1GbE, expandable to 10GbE with the E10G22-T1-Mini add-in card it rarely pays: even 10-gigabit is fed by a four-drive array, and per TB an SSD costs several times more. An all-SSD DS923+ makes sense for silence in a living space, or for the many small parallel reads of virtual-machine storage — not for a file-and-backup NAS.
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SATA SSDs for the DS923+, live from Amazon.ca
What sets the DS923+ apart
The predecessor many bought for the drive policy, and still the only four-bay DiskStation with a genuine 10-gigabit upgrade slot. The Ryzen R1600 has only two cores: strong as a file store with ECC RAM, weak for many containers.
When SSDs make sense in the DS923+
A SATA SSD reads about 550 MB/s, a good NAS drive 200 to 280 — but the DS923+'s 2 × 1GbE, expandable to 10GbE with the E10G22-T1-Mini add-in card only carries part of that anyway, and per terabyte the SSD costs several times more. For file storage, backups and media on the DS923+, hard drives are the sensible choice by every measure.
Two cases flip it. Silence: if the DS923+ lives in a living room or bedroom, an all-SSD build is the only thing that truly quiets it. And many small parallel reads — virtual- machine storage, a busy photo database — where the SSD's access times, not its data rate, are what you are buying. On a capable box like the DS923+, that VM-storage case is a real one.
The Synology drive policy on the DS923+
unrestrictedOpen. The 2025 drive restriction explicitly does not apply retroactively: Synology confirms it applies “only to new models from 2025.” In the DS923+ every NAS drive runs without restriction.
The DS923+ at a glance
| Bays | 4 × 3.5-inch SATA and 2.5-inch SATA SSD |
|---|---|
| Maximum raw capacity | 96 TB 4 × 24 TB: the largest drive on Synology's compatibility list for this model. With a DX517 expansion the figure rises accordingly. |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen R1600 (2 cores, 4 threads) |
| Memory | 4 GB, DDR4 ECC SO-DIMM (2 slots) 32 GB official (2 × 16 GB ECC). In practice 64 GB (2 × 32 GB ECC SO-DIMM) also runs; Synology does not endorse it. |
| M.2 NVMe | 2 slots 2 × M.2 NVMe. NVMe cache is unrestricted; an NVMe storage pool requires a Synology-approved drive (that has always been the case here). |
| Network | 2 × 1GbE, expandable to 10GbE with the E10G22-T1-Mini add-in card |
| Operating system | DSM 7.x |
| RAID types | SHR, SHR-2, Basic, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6, RAID 10 SHR also makes use of mixed drive sizes. |
Keep calculating
To see how much capacity is left after parity, the DS923+ capacity calculator is preset to its 4 bays and RAID types. For the DS923+, the wider basics of choosing a drive are in the buying guides, where we also explain why CMR rather than SMR is mandatory in any RAID array.
Frequently asked questions
Can I put third-party drives in the DS923+?
Yes, without restriction. The 2025 Synology drive lock covers only the 2025 models, so the DS923+ takes any NAS drive and has always done so.
Which drives fit the DS923+?
The DS923+ takes any 3.5-inch SATA and 2.5-inch SATA SSD drive; use a CMR NAS family rated for 24/7 duty such as IronWolf, WD Red Plus or Toshiba N300. On its 2 × 1GbE, expandable to 10GbE with the E10G22-T1-Mini add-in card, a 7200 rpm Pro drive is worth the premium in the DS923+.
How much capacity is usable in the DS923+?
In the DS923+, 4 × 8 TB in SHR gives about 21.83 TiB usable and survives 1 drive failing; the balance is parity.
Can the DS923+ run Plex with hardware transcoding?
No hardware transcode. The DS923+'s AMD Ryzen R1600 (2 cores, 4 threads) has no integrated GPU, so Plex must transcode in software — fine for direct play and one light stream, not for multiple 4K streams. For hardware transcoding at this level, an Intel-based NAS with Quick Sync is the better choice.
Is a Pro drive worth it in the DS923+?
Yes. The DS923+'s 2 × 1GbE, expandable to 10GbE with the E10G22-T1-Mini add-in card can carry the extra throughput of a 7200 rpm Pro drive, and in a 4-bay array that speed is real, not theoretical.
Devin Chua works out which drives, RAM and NVMe cache fit which NAS model at nasdrives.ca, and what the RAID choice means for usable capacity, checked against what is in stock on Amazon.ca.
Data checked by Owen Nakamura, Technical editor (data checking)