Best NAS for a photographer with 10 TB of RAW files in Lightroom (2026)
Updated 2026-11-12 · Pick: UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus: $619.99 on ai.ugreen.com (checked 2026-11-03): https://dealectric.com/go/ugreen-nasync-dxp4800-plus
Short answer. The best NAS for photographers with 10 TB of RAW files who edit in Lightroom Classic is the UGREEN DXP4800 Plus. Its built-in 10GbE gave one computer 500–600 MB/s from hard drives in RAID 5, about 2× the 295 MB/s one 2.5GbE port carries, the cap on a Synology DS925+.
Searched as: Synology DS1525+ 10GbE optional specifications QNAP TS-464 2.5GbE Lightroom Classic catalog network drive Adobe
How this table was made: each figure comes from the maker's own US product page or manual, or from the reviewer named next to it, checked 2026-11-08. Dealectric does not test units itself. Rows with a Buy link are products Dealectric lists: the links are affiliate links, and their codes are re-tested in the brand's own cart every day (last check 2026-11-13).
| Model | Speed to one editing computer | Network ports | Route to 10GbE | Processor | Bays | Price | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Plus | 500–600 MB/s measured, HDD RAID 5 over 10GbE (MightyGadget) | 1× 10GbE + 1× 2.5GbE | Built in | Intel Pentium Gold 8505, 8 GB DDR5 | 4 SATA + 2 M.2 NVMe | $619.99 on ai.ugreen.com, 2026-11-03 | Buy |
| Synology DiskStation DS925+ | 312.5 MB/s link cap (2,500 Mb/s ÷ 8); the 522 MB/s rating uses both ports | 2× 2.5GbE | None: no PCIe slot | AMD Ryzen V1500B, 4 GB DDR4 ECC | 4 SATA + 2 M.2 NVMe (Synology-verified SSDs for pools) | $869.99 on Amazon (checked 2026-11-12) | Buy on Amazon |
| QNAP TS-464-8G | 295 MB/s on 2.5GbE; 1,181 MB/s with a 10GbE card (QNAP lab) | 2× 2.5GbE | Card in the only PCIe slot (Gen 3 x2); QXG-10G1TD is $99 at QNAP's store | Intel Celeron N5095, 8 GB | 4 SATA + 2 M.2 (PCIe Gen 3 x1) | $639 on Amazon (checked 2026-11-12) | Buy on Amazon |
| UGREEN NASync DXP4800 GT | 1,250 MB/s link cap per 10GbE port; the hard drives set the real rate | 2× 10GbE | Built in (two ports) | AMD Ryzen Embedded R2514, 8 GB DDR4 | 4 (bays 1–2 also take U.2 SSDs) | $559.99 on Amazon (checked 2026-11-12) | Buy on Amazon |
| UGREEN NASync DXP4800 Pro | 1,250 MB/s link cap per 10GbE port; the hard drives set the real rate | 10GbE built in (Fstoppers) | Built in | Intel Core i3-1315U, DDR5 (Fstoppers) | 4 + 2 M.2 NVMe | $679.98 on Amazon (checked 2026-11-12) | Buy on Amazon |
| TerraMaster F4-425 Pro | 625 MB/s link cap per 5GbE port (5,000 Mb/s ÷ 8) | 2× 5GbE | None: tops out at 5GbE | Intel Core 3 N350, 16 GB DDR5 | 4 SATA + 3 M.2 NVMe | $799.99 on Amazon (checked 2026-11-12) | Buy on Amazon |
What the differences mean
- The network link sets the upper limit. One 2.5GbE port carries at most 2,500 Mb/s ÷ 8 = 312.5 MB/s. QNAP measured 295.31 MB/s on one, which is 94% of that. One 10GbE port carries at most 10,000 ÷ 8 = 1,250 MB/s.
- Over 10GbE, the hard drives set the real speed. MightyGadget measured 500–600 MB/s from a RAID 5 array of WD Red Plus drives in the DXP4800 Plus. That is 500 ÷ 295 to 600 ÷ 295 = 1.7–2.0× a 2.5GbE port, not the 4× the port speeds suggest.
- Copying a 100 GB shoot. 100,000 MB ÷ 550 MB/s = 182 s, about 3.0 min over 10GbE. 100,000 ÷ 295 = 339 s, about 5.6 min over 2.5GbE.
- Loading the 10 TB library. 10,000,000 MB ÷ 295 MB/s = 33,900 s, about 9.4 h over 2.5GbE. At 550 MB/s it is 18,200 s, about 5.1 h on the DXP4800 Plus.
- Synology's headline figure. 522 MB/s ÷ 312.5 MB/s = 1.67 links' worth, so the DS925+ rating needs both ports and several computers. Synology tested with all onboard ports and 8 clients. One Mac or PC on one cable gets one link.
- Cost of 10GbE at the NAS. The DXP4800 Plus is $619.99 with 10GbE built in. The TS-464-8G is $639.00, plus $99.00 for a card, so $738.00 in total. That is $118.01 more, and QNAP listed the card with a 2–4 week lead time. The DS925+ cannot be upgraded to 10GbE at all. Your computer also needs a 10GbE port or adapter.
| How you work | Fits |
|---|---|
| You edit RAW files straight from the NAS and run big imports, preview builds and exports from one computer | UGREEN DXP4800 Plus $619.99: https://dealectric.com/go/ugreen-nasync-dxp4800-plus |
| You edit from the computer's SSD and use the NAS for archive and backup, and software matters more than speed | Synology DS925+ buy on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F43SZHWV?tag=dealectric-20 |
| Two computers, each on its own 10GbE cable | UGREEN DXP4800 GT (2× 10GbE, $40 more than the Plus) |
| You want QNAP's QTS software and don't mind using the only PCIe slot for a 10GbE card | QNAP TS-464-8G plus a 10GbE card (check QNAP's compatibility list) |
What one computer actually gets from each NAS
Makers measure throughput with several computers using every port at once. A photographer editing on one Mac or PC uses one link. QNAP's own lab results for the TS-464 show what one link gives: 295.31 MB/s read and write over one 2.5GbE port, and 1,181.04 MB/s read over one 10GbE port with a QNAP card (RAID 5 for 4-bay units, MTU 9000). QNAP's lab drives produced that 10GbE figure, not a home array of hard drives. With hard drives in RAID 5, MightyGadget measured the DXP4800 Plus at 500–600 MB/s and named the drives, not the network, as the limit.
File size changes the result. When copying 10,000 files of 1 MB each, QNAP measured 274.94 MB/s read over 10GbE. That is 23% of its large-file figure (274.94 ÷ 1,181.04). Over 2.5GbE it measured 177.98 MB/s. RAW files of tens of MB fall between the two cases. So 10GbE pays off when you import a shoot, build previews or export in batches. Scrolling and editing one image at a time depends mostly on the catalog and previews, which belong on the computer's SSD.
That catalog rule comes from Lightroom Classic: the catalog can't be on a network drive, but the photos can. Lightroom Classic 15.4 and 15.4.1 also could not save catalog backups to SMB NAS shares on macOS 26. Adobe's August 2026 release fixed this, so update Lightroom Classic before you point backups at the NAS. The cloud-based Lightroom app keeps its library in Adobe's cloud, and the Lightroom and Photography plans include 1 TB, a tenth of a 10 TB library. With that app, a NAS works as a backup target, not as the working library.
Sources
- UGREEN DXP4800 Plus price $619.99, in stock (2026-11-08) — nas.ugreen.com
- UGREEN DXP4800 GT price $659.99 (DXP4800 Pro $799.99 on the same store, 2026-11-08) — nas.ugreen.com
- DXP4800 Plus measured at 500–600 MB/s from HDD RAID 5 over 10GbE; Pentium Gold 8505, 8 GB DDR5, 10GbE + 2.5GbE (MightyGadget) — mightygadget.com
- QNAP TS-464 SMB throughput: 295.31 MB/s on 2.5GbE, 1,181.04 MB/s on 10GbE, 274.94 MB/s with 1 MB files (QNAP lab) — www.qnap.com
- TS-464 ports, single PCIe Gen 3 x2 slot, M.2 slots, warranty — www.qnap.com
- TS-464-8G price $639.00 at QNAP's US store (2026-11-08) — store.qnap.com
- QXG-10G1TD 10GbE card $99.00, 2–4 week lead time (QNAP US store, 2026-11-08) — store.qnap.com
- DS925+ 522/565 MB/s rating and test note, 2× 2.5GbE, no PCIe slot, M.2 pool rule, warranty — www.synology.com
- Processors, ports and bays for the DXP4800 Plus, DXP4800 GT, DS925+, TS-464 and F4-425 Pro (Camera Lookout) — cameralookout.com
- DXP4800 Pro: Core i3-1315U, built-in 10GbE, same chassis as the Plus (Fstoppers) — fstoppers.com
- TerraMaster F4-425 Pro price $629.99, dual 5GbE (2026-11-08) — www.terra-master.com
- Lightroom Classic catalog must be on local storage; photos may be on a network drive — community.adobe.com
- LrC 15.4/15.4.1 catalog backups to SMB NAS shares failed; fixed in the August 2026 release — community.adobe.com
- Lightroom and Photography plans include 1 TB of cloud storage (Creative Cloud Pro for individuals: 100 GB) — www.adobe.com
Published 2026-11-03; updated 2026-11-12. The buy links are affiliate links; see the disclosure. Corrections welcome at [email protected] or /feedback.