🔍 Read the full analysis: The 6-Bay UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro In Our AI Setup on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
Thorsten Meyer says his AI and publishing operation bought a UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro after duplicate cloud-sync files nearly filled a server and backup cleanup stalled. The NAS has four 16 TB hard drives and an NVMe SSD, but has not yet been connected or tested; the planned storage and backup setup remains a proposal.
Thorsten Meyer says his AI and publishing operation has bought a six-bay UGREEN NASync DXP6800 Pro after duplicate files from a cloud-sync backup nearly filled a database server. The hardware has been delivered with four large hard drives and an SSD, but it is not yet connected or configured, and the proposed backup system has not passed its planned tests.
Meyer recounts that on September 17, two machines uploaded database dumps with the same name to an iCloud folder. The service retained conflict copies, producing 29 duplicates and leaving the server with 2% free disk space. On October 29, a separate nightly backup job reported an error when cleanup of old copies timed out while iCloud was busy. Meyer says the database dump itself was intact; managing its copies was the problem.
The operation’s measured storage needs are relatively small: on October 6, Meyer recorded about 2.6 TB in use on the main desk machine, 744 GB on the database server, and 3.2 TB on the model server. He estimates current backup needs at 6 to 8 TB. The model files account for much of the model server’s use and, he says, can be downloaded again.
The planned layout uses four Seagate IronWolf Pro 16 TB drives in RAID 6 for backups, which Meyer estimates would provide about 32 TB of usable capacity. A separate NVMe SSD would hold containers and test databases. The plan also calls for individual, non-administrator accounts and storage quotas for each Mac, daily snapshots, and an encrypted offsite copy sent with restic to Backblaze B2 with Object Lock. These are plans, not operating features verified in use.
Infographic 01 · The box
Six bays, two fast slots, two 10GbE ports
What UGREEN lists for the NASync DXP6800 Pro, and how we plan to fill it.
How we fill it
Delivered and equipped; the setup is our plan (1 Nov 2026)
Bays 1–4: Seagate IronWolf Pro 16 TB, RAID 6, Btrfs → ≈ 32 TB usable, any two drives may fail. Bays 5–6: free for growth. M.2 slot 1: the NVMe SSD (ordered: Samsung 990 Pro 1 TB) as its own fast pool. Slot 2: free. Six 16 TB drives in RAID 6 would give ≈ 64 TB.
What else UGREEN lists
From the product page, not measured by us
- Separate 128 GB SSD for the operating system, UGOS
- RAID: JBOD, Basic, 0, 1, 5, 6, 10
- 1× PCIe x4 · 2× Thunderbolt 4 · 8K HDMI · SD card reader
- Power: 43.07 W drives in use · 24.91 W drives in hibernation
- Stated maximum: 208 TB with 32 TB drives · 3-year warranty
Why six bays: with RAID 6, two drives always hold parity. In four bays that leaves half the raw space usable; with all six bays filled it becomes two thirds.
Sources: UGREEN DXP6800 Pro product page, checked 1 Nov 2026; Seagate IronWolf Pro data sheet DS2129.4; our setup plan, 6 Oct 2026.
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Why Local Backups Matter Here
The purchase is meant to change where the operation’s first backup copy lives. A network storage device on the local network could make large restores faster than retrieving them over an internet connection, while keeping a separate on-site copy from the working machines. Meyer says a NAS would not prevent the server’s recurring crashes, but could shorten recovery after one.
The account also shows why synchronization and backup are not interchangeable. Sync can replicate a deletion or a mistaken file as well as a useful change. A separate backup system needs a way to retain recoverable versions and protect those copies from routine account access. Whether this NAS setup will do that reliably remains to be tested.
Meyer says disk-heavy work is intended to run between 20:00 and 06:00, with drives expected to sleep during the workday. That choice reflects a practical constraint for a small office: storage capacity and recovery speed matter, but so do noise and the disruption of running a group of hard drives nearby.
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From Sync Conflicts to NAS
The operation consists of several Macs: one runs the main Postgres database for its publishing system, another serves local AI models, and others handle content pipelines and tests. Meyer says the database server has also experienced recurring kernel panics since August, at its worst about every five days. A crash on August 8 caused 2¼ hours of database downtime. The NAS is not presented as a fix for those crashes.
Before the purchase, backups relied on local Time Machine disks for two Macs and an iCloud copy of the nightly database dump. Meyer says a test database in Docker had also grown to about 30 GB on his laptop. He chose the six-bay model over a cheaper four-bay alternative because he wanted room to add drives without replacing the existing ones. UGREEN’s published specifications list six SATA bays, two M.2 slots, a 10-core Intel Core i5-1235U, two 10GbE ports, and 8 GB of DDR5 memory expandable to 64 GB.
Meyer says he paid for the NAS, drives and SSD himself. He reports that UGREEN did not supply a review unit or sponsor the article, and that the company had not seen it. He describes the piece as a setup plan, not a product review or long-term test.
“That was the day I stopped treating a sync service as a backup.”
— Thorsten Meyer, describing the September 17 incident
Setup and Safeguards Still Untested
The NAS has been delivered and equipped, but Meyer says it is not yet on the network. The proposed Time Machine workflow using a non-admin account and the daily snapshots that those accounts should not be able to access or delete have not been tested. He says either test failing would mean returning the device.
It is also unknown how quickly restores will run, whether the drives will sleep as planned, or whether the full configuration will work reliably for this operation. Meyer says no live database change log will be stored on spinning drives, AI agents will not receive administrator credentials, and the NAS will not be exposed to remote internet access. He also says a UGREEN cloud mirror will not serve as the offsite backup. Those decisions describe the intended policy; the system is not yet running under it.
Acceptance Tests Before Rollout
Meyer says the next step is to connect and configure the NAS, then run the two acceptance tests: a Time Machine backup through a non-admin account and snapshots protected from that account. The source does not give a rollout date. If the tests pass, the planned next stage is to use the NAS for local backups and storage, while sending an encrypted copy offsite to Backblaze B2.
He says he will report results once the system is running. Until then, the drive arrangement, capacity estimates, snapshot controls and backup workflow should be read as a plan rather than a demonstrated performance result.
Key Questions
Has the UGREEN NAS been set up and tested?
No. Meyer says the NAS has been delivered and equipped with four hard drives and an NVMe SSD, but it is not connected to the network. The planned acceptance tests have not run.
Why did Meyer buy a six-bay model?
He says he chose the DXP6800 Pro over a cheaper four-bay model to leave room to add drives without replacing the ones already installed.
What storage layout is planned?
The plan is to put four 16 TB Seagate IronWolf Pro drives in RAID 6 for backups, with a separate NVMe SSD for containers and test databases. Meyer estimates the hard-drive pool would offer about 32 TB usable capacity.
What caused the original backup problem?
According to Meyer, two machines uploaded database dumps with the same filename to an iCloud folder. Conflict copies accumulated until 29 duplicates had left the database server with 2% free space.
What remains to be confirmed?
The Time Machine account setup, snapshot protections, restore performance and drive-sleep schedule are not yet verified. Meyer says he will report back after the NAS is operating and the planned tests are complete.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
