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The dependable way to back up a NAS to cloud storage is to create a scheduled, multi-version task in a NAS backup application, store the data in a separate cloud account, and protect the credentials and encryption key needed for recovery. This guide uses Synology Hyper Backup as the concrete example. Menu names and requirements differ on other NAS platforms, so treat the procedures here as Synology-specific rather than a universal recipe.
What a NAS cloud backup should accomplish
A cloud backup is a separate recovery copy of NAS data, not a live synchronization job. A versioned backup lets you retrieve an earlier state after accidental deletion, ransomware, an unwanted edit, hardware failure, theft, fire, or another event that affects the NAS. Synchronization or mirroring can reproduce a deletion or corruption quickly; retained backup versions give you older points in time to choose from.
Synology Hyper Backup can send NAS data to another device or medium, including a cloud service, another NAS, an external hard drive, or an rsync server. The examples in this guide use cloud object storage reached through Hyper Backup’s S3 Storage option. Backblaze B2 and Wasabi both document Synology Hyper Backup procedures, but their endpoints, credentials, and account requirements are different.
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- Backup application: Hyper Backup, which creates and maintains the backup repository and its versions.
- Destination: a cloud bucket in an account separate from the NAS.
- Recovery material: the cloud credentials, Hyper Backup task information, and any client-side encryption password or key.
A task that was created successfully, or objects that are visible in a bucket, do not prove that the data can be restored. Plan and perform a test restore of representative files before you rely on the task for a disaster.
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Choose what to protect before choosing a cloud destination
Shared folders and application data
List the NAS data that would be difficult or impossible to recreate. Select the shared folders containing documents, photos, project files, and other irreplaceable content. Hyper Backup can also include supported packages. Package data can be essential even when the visible files are present, because an application may store its database, settings, or metadata separately.
System configuration
Decide whether the task should include system configuration. Configuration backup can make rebuilding a replacement NAS easier, but it is a different recovery scope from restoring a few files. Record which option you selected so that a future restore has a clear purpose.
Recovery objectives
Write down how much recent work you can afford to lose and how far back you may need to go. Those decisions determine the schedule and the number of retained versions. A daily task with only one retained version is not equivalent to a multi-version task that keeps historical points in time.
Compare cloud destinations on recovery details, not marketing claims
The documented examples below show two different S3-compatible setups. They are useful patterns, not a guarantee that every NAS model or every S3 service will work identically.
| Decision point | Backblaze B2 example | Wasabi example |
|---|---|---|
| Hyper Backup path | Data backup task, then Cloud Service > S3 Storage | Data backup task, then Cloud Service > S3 Storage |
| Endpoint | Enter the custom B2 S3 endpoint for the bucket | Enter the service URL for the bucket’s region |
| Authentication | Signature Version 4, key ID, and application key | Access key and secret key |
| Account preparation | Create a B2 bucket and an application key | Create an account and bucket, then obtain access and secret keys |
| Documented software requirement | Not stated in the cited setup material | DSM 6.2 or later and Hyper Backup 2.1.8 or later |
| Versioning and schedule | Configure in Hyper Backup according to the task’s retention choices | The documented procedure explicitly sets a schedule and version-rotation policy |
| Encryption | Use the encryption choices offered by the Hyper Backup task and retain the recovery secret | The documented procedure considers client-side encryption and compression; save the encryption password if enabled |
The available material does not establish like-for-like prices, upload times, restore speeds, capacity limits, or regional performance. Compare each candidate using the controls that affect recovery:
- Whether your NAS model and Hyper Backup version support the destination.
- The exact regional endpoint and credential format required.
- How the application creates and retains versions, and whether rotation can match your recovery objectives.
- Where encryption occurs and who controls the decryption secret.
- How you browse versions and restore individual files or an entire repository.
- What happens if an account key is lost, rotated, disabled, or exposed.
Prepare the cloud account and recovery secrets
Backblaze B2 preparation
For the documented B2 route, create the bucket first and then create an application key with the permissions needed by the backup task. Hyper Backup uses the S3 Storage destination. You enter the custom B2 endpoint, choose Signature Version 4, provide the key ID and application key, and select the bucket.
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The application key is displayed only once when it is created. Save it in a secure password manager or another protected record before leaving the creation screen. Do not place a real key in a script, screenshot, ticket, or article that could expose it.
Wasabi preparation
The documented Wasabi example requires a Wasabi account, a bucket, access and secret keys, DSM 6.2 or later, and Hyper Backup 2.1.8 or later. Identify the bucket’s region and use that region’s service URL in Hyper Backup. A URL for another region can cause an authentication or connection failure even when the keys are correct.
Protect the encryption password or key
Client-side encryption can keep the cloud provider from seeing the contents, but it makes your recovery secret a hard requirement. Store the password or key separately from the NAS and separately from the cloud account credentials. Keep a controlled offline copy if your security policy permits it. If the only copy of an encryption password or key is lost, the documented restore procedure cannot decrypt the encrypted task.
Set up a scheduled, versioned Hyper Backup task
These steps describe the Synology interface. Labels can vary slightly by DSM release, but the sequence is the documented workflow.
- Open Hyper Backup. Sign in to DSM with an account allowed to create backup tasks and confirm that the NAS has enough local working space for the task’s metadata.
- Start a data backup task. Choose the option to create a new Data backup task rather than a one-time file copy.
- Select the cloud service category. Choose Cloud Service > S3 Storage. This is the path used by the documented B2 and Wasabi examples.
- Enter the destination details. Supply the provider’s correct endpoint, Signature Version 4 when required, access credentials, and bucket name. For B2, use the custom B2 endpoint and application key. For Wasabi, use the bucket’s regional service URL and access and secret keys.
- Select the source. Check the shared folders you need, then choose supported packages and system configuration if those are part of your recovery plan.
- Choose encryption and compression deliberately. Enable client-side encryption only after deciding where its password or key will be stored. Compression can reduce transferred data for some content but changes the task’s processing requirements; use the options appropriate to this task.
- Set the schedule. Pick a time that does not conflict with heavy NAS workloads. The schedule should reflect how much recent data you can lose, not merely what is convenient.
- Set version rotation. Enable multi-version retention and define how versions are removed. Confirm that the rotation policy preserves enough historical points to cover accidental deletions and delayed discovery of corruption.
- Review and apply. Check every source folder, package, endpoint, bucket, encryption choice, schedule, and rotation setting before saving the task. Start the first run and monitor its result in Hyper Backup.
Keep a written record of the task’s name, selected sources, destination bucket, schedule, rotation policy, encryption status, and the location of the recovery secrets. That record helps another authorized administrator recover data when the original NAS operator is unavailable.
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Retention and the difference between backup and mirroring
Why rotation matters
Version rotation determines how long an older state remains available. If a file is silently damaged today and the task immediately replaces the only copy, the backup offers no useful earlier state. A deliberate rotation policy keeps multiple recovery points and removes them only according to rules you understand.
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What a versioned task does not do
Hyper Backup’s versioned repository is not a second live working folder. You browse a version and restore selected data when needed. Changes on the NAS are incorporated at scheduled runs, while prior versions remain available until rotation removes them.
Use a local copy as an additional layer
Synology identifies an external HDD as a supported Hyper Backup destination. A USB drive can provide a convenient local copy for a quick recovery or for a situation in which the internet connection is unavailable. It does not replace the off-site cloud copy: a theft, fire, power event, or other incident affecting the NAS and nearby drive can remove both.
How to restore individual files from Hyper Backup
You can restore selected files or folders rather than replacing an entire system. The exact labels depend on the task and DSM release, but the recovery flow is version-oriented.
- Open the restore function for the backup task. Select the Hyper Backup task that contains the needed data.
- Browse the timeline or available versions. Choose a point before the deletion, corruption, or unwanted change. If you are unsure when the problem began, inspect more than one version before selecting data.
- Select files or folders. Browse the repository and mark only the items required for the recovery. Confirm the path and filename so that a similarly named folder is not restored by mistake.
- Provide the encryption secret when prompted. An encrypted task requires its password or key. Hyper Backup cannot complete the documented restore without it.
- Choose the destination. Restore to the original location only when replacing the current data is intentional. A separate quarantine or recovery folder is safer for inspection and comparison.
- Confirm the operation. Check the selected version, source items, and destination. Proceed, then open the restored files and verify that they are usable.
Restoring a few files is materially different from restoring an entire system. A full-system or broad configuration restore can overwrite data on the destination and may change settings. Narrow the selection whenever the incident affects only a few items.
Restore from an existing or downloaded repository
Synology’s restoration documentation also describes restoring from an existing repository, including a downloaded .hbk repository imported from a local folder or USB device. This is useful when the original NAS is unavailable or when you have moved the repository to another system.
- Make the repository available to the replacement or recovery NAS through the local folder or USB device containing the
.hbkdata. - Open Hyper Backup’s restore workflow and choose the option to restore from an existing repository.
- Point Hyper Backup to the repository location and allow it to read the task metadata.
- Select the required version and files or folders.
- Enter the encryption password or key if the repository is encrypted.
- Choose a destination, review whether existing files could be overwritten, and start the restore.
Do not assume that downloading repository objects alone makes them usable. The recovery NAS must be able to interpret the repository, and you must have the associated task information and encryption secret.
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Test the restore before an emergency
A completed backup run is evidence that data was processed, not proof that your chosen files can be recovered. Perform a controlled test while the NAS and cloud account are healthy.
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- Choose a small, representative set of files from different shared folders.
- Restore them to a temporary destination rather than overwriting production data.
- Open the restored files, check filenames and permissions that matter to your workflow, and verify that application data is usable where applicable.
- Record which version you used, how long the operation took in your environment, and which credentials or keys were required.
- Repeat the test after changing the Hyper Backup version, cloud credentials, encryption password, bucket, or rotation policy.
Keep the test record with the recovery instructions. It tells you and any substitute administrator exactly which task and destination were proven, without implying that every future restore will be identical.
Troubleshoot common setup and recovery failures
Authentication or endpoint errors
- Recheck the bucket name, endpoint spelling, and region-specific URL.
- For B2, verify that the custom S3 endpoint, Signature Version 4, key ID, and application key are entered in the intended fields.
- For Wasabi, confirm that the endpoint matches the bucket’s region and that both access and secret keys are current.
- Check whether an application key was restricted to a different bucket or set of permissions.
The task runs but expected data is absent
- Open the task settings and confirm that the shared folder, package, or system-configuration option was selected.
- Check the task log for excluded files, permission errors, or skipped package data.
- Remember that a scheduled task only includes changes when it runs; a newly created file will not appear in an earlier version.
The needed version has disappeared
Review the rotation policy and the date on which the problem was discovered. An aggressive policy may have removed the older version. Adjust retention to match the time it can take to notice corruption, while recognizing that retaining more versions consumes more destination storage.
The restore asks for a password or key you cannot find
Stop before deleting or reinitializing the repository. Search the protected password manager, offline recovery record, and organizational key escrow designated when the task was created. If the client-side encryption secret is genuinely lost, the documented restore cannot decrypt that encrypted task.
A restore would overwrite live data
Cancel and repeat the selection with a temporary destination. Compare the recovered files first, then copy only the intended items into the production location. For a system or configuration restore, schedule downtime and make a separate current backup before replacing settings or data.
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- Document the NAS model, DSM version, Hyper Backup version, task name, and destination bucket.
- List every shared folder, package, and configuration category included.
- Write down the schedule and version-rotation rules in plain language.
- Store provider credentials and the encryption password or key outside the NAS.
- Restrict cloud keys to the permissions needed by the task and replace them through a controlled process if exposure is suspected.
- Keep an additional local copy on an external HDD when a rapid offline recovery path is valuable.
- Perform and document a file-level test restore.
- Re-test after major DSM, Hyper Backup, bucket, endpoint, credential, or encryption changes.
What to expect during a disaster recovery
If the original NAS is lost, obtain a compatible Synology system, install the required DSM and Hyper Backup versions, and make the cloud account or repository available. Recreate the destination connection with the correct endpoint and credentials, then use the restore workflow to select a version and destination. If the repository is encrypted, the recovery process cannot proceed without the corresponding password or key.
Recover the most urgent files first to a controlled location. Restore system configuration or broad datasets only after confirming that the target NAS is the intended replacement and that overwriting its current contents is acceptable.
Bottom line for a reliable NAS cloud backup
Use Synology Hyper Backup to create a scheduled, multi-version Data backup task, select the shared folders and supported packages that matter, and send it to a separately controlled cloud bucket through the provider’s documented S3 settings. Set rotation intentionally, protect provider credentials and any client-side encryption secret, and keep an optional external-HDD copy for local recovery. Most importantly, restore representative files to a non-production destination and document the result; only that exercise demonstrates that your particular task, credentials, versions, and keys form a usable recovery path.
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