Here is a complete guide with video walkthrough on how to install Synology DSM on non Synology hardware either baremetal or via ESXi. This guide uses Nanoboot and will install Synology DSM version 5.0
Published Date:
23rd February 2016
Difficulty: 

Requirements

  • X64 Hardware (X86 may work with the X86 images available from here)
  • Your data backed up if you have any (I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR LOST DATA).

If you plan on using VMWare ESXi instead of directly installing DSM to your hardware you will need to have already set up ESXi as this guide will not cover installing ESXi.

Preparation (Both Methods)

So now that you have got all the requirements we are going to need to download a few files.

ESXi users download the following files;

  1. Nanoboot-5.0.3.2 DSM 5.0-4493 X64 VMDK
  2. Synology DSM 5.0 (4493)

Non ESXi users download the following files instead;

  1. Nanoboot-5.0.3.2 DSM 5.0-4493 X64 IMG
  2. Synology DSM 5.0 (4493)

That's all we need to install DSM with Nanoboot.

Time to begin with the actual tutorial. The first bit is different depending on whether your using ESXi or not but the rest of it after the initial setup is the same.

Please skip to the appropriate section below.

Option A: ESXi Preparation

OK so the first step is of-course to create a virtual machine for the new DSM install.

  1. Connect to your ESXi hypervisor using the vSphere client.
  2. Open the "Create New Virtual Machine" window.
  3. Select "Custom" then "Next".
  4. Name it whatever you want and press "Next".
  5. Select your "Datastore" then press "Next".
  6. Select "Virtual Machine Version: 8" and press "Next".
  7. Select "Linux" then select "Ubuntu Linux (64-bit)" and then press "Next".
  8. Select the appropriate settings here depending on your hardware and your requirements and then press "Next".
  9. Again select the appropriate amount of RAM for your hardware and requirements then press "Next".
  10. Select your NIC and keep the "Adapter" at "E1000" then press "Next".
  11. Select "VMware Paravirtual" then press "Next".
  12. Now since this guide isn't going to cover RDM (Raw Disk Mapping) select "Create a new virtual disk" and then press "Next".
  13. Leave it at the default of "16 GB", "Thick Provision Lazy Zeroed" and "Store with the virtual machine" then press "Next".
  14. Leave the "Virtual Device Node" on "SCSI (0:0)" and leave "Independent" unchecked then press "Next".
  15. Press "Next" to finish the creation.

Now we need to upload the files to our "Datastore".

  1. Click on your new VM from the left hand menu then select the "Summary" tab.
  2. Under the "Resources" panel right click your "Datastore" and select "Browse Datastore...".
  3. Navigate to the folder your new VM is in and then click the "upload icon" and select "upload file".
  4. Navigate to the "NB_x64_5032_DSM_50-4493_Xpenology_nl.rar" file which i will assume you have already extracted using 7zip or winRAR then select one of the two files and press "Open"
  5. Repeat the above step for the other file (note the flat file won't show in the file list when uploaded).
  6. Close the "Datastore" window.

Next we need to add the newly uploaded VMDK to our VM.

  1. Right click on your new VM using the list on the left panel and select "Edit Settings...".
  2. Press "Add..." then select "Hard Disk" and press "Next".
  3. Press the "Use an existing virtual disk" radio button then once again press "Next"
  4. Press "Browse..." and then navigate to where you uploaded the "NB_x64_5032_DSM_50-4493_Xpenology_nl.vmdk" file in the previous step and then press "Next".
  5. Make sure the "Virtual Device Node" is set to "IDE (0:0)" and leave the other option alone and then press "Next" and then "Finish".
  6. Close the "Virtual Machine Properties" window.

OK now we are done with the ESXi only preparation. Skip below to the "Installation" section to continue this guide.

Option B: Non ESXi Preparation

Since you decided to not use ESXi you will only be able to run one OS at once. To begin we need to download a tool called "Win32DiskImager".

  1. Install "Win32DiskImager".
  2. Insert a USB Drive (always connected when you boot DSM)
  3. Launch "Win32DiskImager" (Make sure you have admin privileges and run it as admin).
  4. Click the folder icon and navigate to your "NB_x64_5032_DSM_50-4493_Xpenology_nl.img" file you downloaded earlier then press "Open".
  5. Change the "Device" drop down to the drive letter corresponding to your USB Drive.
  6. Press "Write".
  7. Once it is finished writing remove the USB and insert it in the system you wish to install DSM.

OK now we are done with the Non ESXi only preparation. Follow the "Installation" section to continue this guide

Installation

At this stage the instructions are the same regardless of whether your using ESXi or not.

  1. ESXi users turn on your VM and open a console / Non ESXi users boot to your USB.
  2. At the menu select "Nanoboot (5.0.3.2) DSM 5.0-4493 Install/Upgrade" and press the "Enter" key.
  3. Leave it on the default option for the second menu.
  4. After a little while it will boot and you should see "DiskStation login:" at the bottom of the page.
  5. Go to find.synology.com in your browser on your other system then wait for it to scan for your new DSM (requires both devices to be on the same subnet e.g 192.168.0.X).
  6. Press the "Connect" button for the appropriate device.
  7. Press the "Next Arrow" then select "Install DSM from my computer...".
  8. Then press "Choose File" and select the downloaded PAT file (DSM_DS3612xs_4493.pat) and press "Open".
  9. Press the "Next Arrow" again and then choose a password and server name then uncheck the "Hybrid Raid" checkbox.
  10. Press "Install Now" and accept the "DATA LOSS" Warning (you shouldn't have data as this is a clean install).
  11. After a little while it should be installed and the system will reboot.
  12. When the system is rebooting do not change the menu options and just leave it default.
  13. Once you see "DiskStation login:" at the bottom of the page your installation of DSM 5.0 4493 is done.

DSM is now installed. It's not quite the latest version yet though so now we shall upgrade it to update 4.

Updating

This is the final stage, Updating to Update 4.

  1. Log in to the control panel of DSM by going to the IP of the device (use find.synology.com if you have issues).
  2. Skip the "quickconnect" stuff as it doesn't work on un-official DSM devices.
  3. Go to "Control Panel" then "Terminal & SNMP" then check the "Enable SSH Service" check box and press "Apply".
  4. Next SSH to the same IP using root as the username and your password you created earlier as the password (use PuTTY if on windows).
  5. Next on the Web UI go to "Control Panel" then "Update & Restore" and then press "Download" (This update method will only work for updates for 4493 not new major versions).
  6. Once the download is complete do not press "Install" but instead go back to your SSH connection and type the follow 2 commands.sed 's/flashupdateDeb/flashupdateDeb1/' /[email protected] > /[email protected]
    mv /[email protected] /[email protected]
  7. After pressing "Enter" go back to the Web UI and press the "Update Now" button then press "Yes".
  8. After the update is complete and the system has rebooted you are done.

* Please note you may need to reboot a few times after the update is complete. This is especially true if you have no volumes mounted after first reboot.

[Image: GYzASUB.png]

So guys that was a complete guide on installing DSM 5.0 4493 using nanoboot either on ESXi or without ESXi. Any questions please let me know below.

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