Dell Data Protection Advisor vs Synology DSM comparison

Dell Technologies and Synology are both solutions in the Backup and Recovery category. Dell Technologies is ranked #37 with an average rating of 8.3, while Synology is ranked #22 with an average rating of 10.0. Dell Technologies holds a 0.7% mindshare in BRS, compared to Synology’s 1.4% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of Dell Technologies users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Synology users who would recommend it.

Dell Data Protection Advisor

Read 14 Dell Data Protection Advisor reviews

1,824 Views
1,788 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Synology DSM

Read 10 Synology DSM reviews

2,683 Views
2,656 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Dell Data Protection Advisor

Synology DSM

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 11, 2024

Dell Data Protection Advisor and Synology DSM compete in data protection. Synology DSM has the upper hand due to its user-friendly interface and lower pricing, appealing more to budget-conscious users while offering effective features.

Features: Dell Data Protection Advisor supports various storage systems, robust reporting tools, and extensive system support. Synology DSM offers intuitive management features, modern capabilities, and strong integration options.

Room for Improvement: Dell Data Protection Advisor needs a more intuitive design, streamlined processes, and simplified interface. Synology DSM could improve in scalability, advanced feature integration, and enhanced performance.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Dell Data Protection Advisor's deployment is comprehensive but complex, with responsive customer service needing enhancement. Synology DSM's deployment is straightforward, with effective and well-received customer service.

Pricing and ROI: Dell Data Protection Advisor has higher setup costs, justified by its features and long-term benefits. Synology DSM offers competitive pricing with quicker ROI, appealing to budget-conscious users seeking effective protection.

To learn more, read our detailed Dell Data Protection Advisor vs. Synology DSM Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Dell Data Protection Advisor vs. Synology DSM

December 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Dell Data Protection Advisor

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

37th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Synology DSM

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

22nd

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of Dell Data Protection Advisor is 0.7%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Synology DSM is 1.4%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Backup and Recovery Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Synology DSM	1.4%
Dell Data Protection Advisor	0.7%
Other	97.9%

Backup and Recovery

Featured Reviews

CanBolat

Solution architect at GlassHouse

Has provided centralized monitoring for backup operations and reduced deployment times

The benefits of Dell Data Protection Advisor are that deployment and enablement are very easy. You can see everything in the backup infrastructure centrally. The real-time data gathering and monitoring process is robust. The predictive analytics feature in Dell Data Protection Advisor provides predictions about backup size and capacity for future periods.

Read full review

Michael Adejoh

Solutions Manager at Excel Connect Ventures

Reliable and cost-effective

One area where Synology DSM could improve is in enhancing its ability to detect and respond to security threats during backups and replication. Currently, it lacks the capability to automatically stop backups if it detects a virus or suspicious network activity, as some third-party solutions can. Having AI-driven analytics to identify anomalies and halt backups during potential attacks, along with notifications to administrators, would be valuable. Additionally, providing a dashboard for monitoring the backup environment's security would be a beneficial feature. These improvements would help address security concerns and make Synology more competitive in this aspect.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The reporting feature and the Dell's continuous improvement of the solution are the most valuable features. The solution not only supports Dell Power Products but also other products."

"This is a stable solution."

"The platform's most valuable features are data protection and retention."

"The solution is easy to use, flexible and has a lot of out-of-the-box functionality. You can configure the dashboards or you can use a script. However, to fully utilize its capabilities you will want to use a lot of scripts which you will need advanced training. The reports can be customized for many things, such as chargeback billing."

"I can increase the tool's licensing as per my requirement with no conditions applied."

"The deduplication is probably the most valuable feature of that requirement."

"The initial setup is very straightforward. Deployment typically takes about one hour. You just need one person to handle the deployment process."

"I have never found any glitch in any Dell solution to date."

More Dell Data Protection Advisor pros

"Synology DSM is very easy to work and operate."

"The most valuable aspect is its ability to handle multiple disks."

"The solution's most valuable feature stems from its ease of use, making it the tool's most interesting part."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it serves as a backup for our company's virtual machine."

"The most valuable features are the basic storage, file management, Btrfs file system, and built-in backups that come with the solution."

"The product performs well. It is easy to use and implement."

"It offers a variety of software options through its package center, allowing users to customize their NAS device to serve multiple purposes."

"Because of its simplicity and the wide array of features it offers, I would recommend DSM for both tech-savvy individuals and those who prefer a straightforward file-serving solution."

More Synology DSM pros

Cons

"The solution requires more integration with our other solutions. I know that they have full integration with VMware because it is also from EMC. However, we have to have better integration with Microsoft and Nutanix as well."

"There is a steep learning curve to use the interface and to create new reports, this could be made easier. If the solution could provide more drag and drop functionality to build more advanced reports that would be very helpful."

"We have encountered issues where we were unable to pull data from the database server. It should also improve the backward compatibility."

"Dell Data Protection Advisor's feature for data domain protection needs enhancement."

"Customization of reports or creating new reports can be difficult. Users need to have a deep knowledge of SQL. 70-80% of customers can't seem to understand how to do it. They don't know how to address reporting. If Dell EMC could simplify it, it would benefit the end-user."

"Dell Data Protection Advisor is somewhat complicated, but this depends on the software limitations."

"From a service perspective, improvements are needed at Dell because when customers call, it takes a long time to get a response for calls or emails. Response time is the main problem that needs addressing."

"The stability of the solution needs improvement for stand alone users."

More Dell Data Protection Advisor cons

"The only bothersome aspect is that the device is aging."

"Users may lose their data if they don't configure the solution properly."

"Even though Synology provides a backup solution, it does not recognize the VM movement across cluster hosts."

"There's a surveillance application that allows you to connect IP cameras and stream footage to Synology and it is a great feature, but it's not always clear that adding more cameras may require purchasing additional licenses."

"The product's only shortcoming is pricing, as it is an expensive solution."

"The platform could be much more cost-effective and flexible for integrating third-party products."

"Synology DSM's user interface is not quite intuitive."

"One area where Synology DSM could improve is in enhancing its ability to detect and respond to security threats during backups and replication."

More Synology DSM cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"You need to make an upfront payment for three, five, or seven years and renew the licenses for support. We can do an annual maintenance contract with Dell. I would rate the product's pricing a six out of ten."

"It's not very expensive — I think the price is fair."

"The product pricing has been satisfactory, particularly with the economy of scale in our agreement."

"If the customer has huge lineup of Dell Products then they receive discount on the pricing."

"You have to procure the license when you are ordering or quoting for Dell Data Protection Suite (DPS). DPS is bundled with the suite and comes with a license. However, if you purchase NetWorker separately then you will have to procure the license for DPS separately."

"For pricing, I would rate Dell 2 out of 5. It's affordable."

"The product is affordable."

"The solution’s pricing is neither cheap nor expensive."

"The pricing varies widely, catering to a broad range of needs."

"The licensing part of the solution is free. The hardware is more expensive than the other solutions in the market, but it's okay in the long run."

"Synology DSM is a free tool."

"Synology DSM is a cheap solution."

"It is quite an affordable solution."

"The price of the solution is very good."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Performing Arts

14%

Energy/Utilities Company

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

14%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	7

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	8
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	1

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell Data Protection Advisor?

The platform's most valuable features are data protection and retention.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell Data Protection Advisor?

The pricing of Dell Data Protection Advisor is very competitive among other vendors, and the license model is more economical than other vendor products.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Dell Data Protection Advisor?

Dell Data Protection Advisor is somewhat complicated, but this depends on the software limitations. However, you can scale it if you work on the virtualization platform. There are no limitations re...

See all answers

What do you like most about Synology DSM?

The most valuable features of Synology DSM are its security and connectivity.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Synology DSM?

The solution’s pricing is neither cheap nor expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Synology DSM?

Users may lose their data if they don't configure the solution properly.

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

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Compared 8% of the time

Dell PowerProtect Data Manager vs Dell Data Protection Advisor

Compared 8% of the time

Commvault Cloud vs Dell Data Protection Advisor

Compared 8% of the time

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Veeam Data Platform vs Synology DSM

Compared 7% of the time

UrBackup vs Synology DSM

Compared 6% of the time

NetApp SnapCenter vs Synology DSM

Compared 6% of the time

GoodSync For Business vs Synology DSM

Compared 6% of the time

NAKIVO Backup & Replication vs Synology DSM

Compared 4% of the time

More Synology DSM Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Dell Data Protection Advisor

January 2026

Download Dell Data Protection Advisor product report

Buyer's Guide

Synology DSM

January 2026

Download Synology DSM product report

Also Known As

DPA

Synology DiskStation Manager (DSM)

Overview

Effectively managing your data protection environment can be labor intensive and complex. It requires knowledge of backup applications, replication technologies, and the entire supporting infrastructure, yet it is critical in keeping your data secure.

With Dell Data Protection Advisor, you can automate and centralize the collection, monitoring and reporting of this data and get a single, comprehensive view of your environment, no matter where your data resides. This includes monitoring data on AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

With clear visibility, you can gain actionable insight and effectively manage service levels while reducing costs and complexity. You can also collect and report on that data to help other stakeholders make the best decisions for your organization.

Data Protection Advisor is available as part of Dell Data Protection Suite.

Dell Technologies

Synology DSM (DiskStation Manager) is a comprehensive software platform designed for Synology NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices. It serves as the operating system for these devices, providing a wide range of features and functionalities.

The primary use case of Synology DSM is to centralize and manage data storage for organizations. It allows businesses to store, access, and share files securely across multiple devices and platforms. With its intuitive user interface, DSM simplifies the management of data, making it easy to create shared folders, set access permissions, and monitor storage usage.

One of the most valuable functionalities of Synology DSM is its robust data protection capabilities. It offers various RAID configurations, including SHR (Synology Hybrid RAID), which ensures data redundancy and safeguards against drive failures. DSM also supports advanced backup and disaster recovery solutions, such as Snapshot Replication and Hyper Backup, enabling organizations to protect their critical data effectively.

Furthermore, Synology DSM provides a wide range of productivity and collaboration tools. It offers applications like Synology Drive, which allows seamless file synchronization across devices, and Synology Office, a web-based suite for document editing and collaboration. DSM also supports various third-party applications, including popular cloud services like Dropbox and Google Drive, enabling organizations to integrate their existing workflows seamlessly.

Synology

Sample Customers

Nielsen, Trek Bicycle, Cal-Israel Credit Cards

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Dell Data Protection Advisor vs. Synology DSM

December 2025

Free Report: Dell Data Protection Advisor vs. Synology DSM

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