Versatile monitoring platforms: Surveillance Station web-based interface, the desktop utility Synology Surveillance Station Client, the PC-less surveillance solution VisualStation, the network video recorder (NVR) application Local Display, and the mobile app DS cam
Comprehensive integration with 8,300 IP cameras, Synology Live cam, I/O modules, door controllers, IP speakers, and POS systems
Event detection with powerful video analytics and instant notifications
Centralized management for 5,000 cameras on 300 multi-site Synology servers
Recording backup and archiving to remote servers with customized setting
The supported video formats may vary according to the specifications of each client device (Learn more)
The supported audio codecs may vary according to the specifications of each camera
Application component
Live Monitoring
Specifications
Available on web browsers, Synology Surveillance Station Client, Local Display, VisualStation, and DS cam (Learn more)
Supports Monitor Center as the centralized interface for viewing live video from multiple cameras
Monitor Center layouts:
Supports customizable layouts with up to 100 channels
Sequential layout: Rotates layouts in a set order periodically
Alert layout: Automatically jumps to the layout when an event is triggered
Camera group layout: Displays all cameras in the group
Supports dynamic stream adjustment by display size or event detection
Supports instant display of motion detection, advanced events, digital input, tampering detection, audio detection, Face Recognition, and Deep Video Analytics events
Supports an I/O widget channel to display device statuses and manually trigger events
Supports interactive maps that provide quick access to devices and alerts, and allows integration with OpenStreetMap, Google Map, and custom tile servers
Supports an alert panel for camera, I/O module, door controller, and transaction device event recordings
Supports on-screen display (OSD) buttons to control drag and zoom, manual recording, camera information display, and audio/digital output for external devices
Supports snapshots with instant blur, mask, and download features
Supports camera operation buttons to control zoom, focus, iris adjustment, auto-pan, show/hide PT control cursor, and auto object tracking
Supports Privacy Masking that covers sensitive areas in camera views
Supports overlaying text watermarks on live camera feeds to prevent data leakage
Supports GPU acceleration that can reduce the CPU loading to provide a smoother display
Supports Live View Analytics and Smart Search features for motion detection, missing object, foreign object, camera occlusion, focus lost, and no-idle zone events
Supports Fisheye Dewarping to display fisheye footage in a rectilinear or panoramic view
Supports Joystick control for an alternative operation method
Supports Live Broadcast to send live camera streams to YouTube
Limitations
Monitor Center cannot display footage if the total camera resolution exceeds the capacity of the graphics card of the client computer
Web browsers and DS cam do not support Joystick, Fisheye Dewarping, Smart Search, and Live View Analytics
Drag-and-drop map uploading is only supported on Google Chrome and Firefox
A Google Maps API key is required to use Google Maps in Surveillance Station (Learn more)
Recordings with privacy masking can only be downloaded from Synology Surveillance Station Client
GPU acceleration:
Only supports H.264 and H.265 formats (Depending on the graphics card of the client device)
Only compatible with Synology Surveillance Station Client running on macOS, Windows 7, and Windows 10
Audio output is only available over HTTPS connection via web browsers
Live Broadcast only supports streaming in H.264 format
Recording
Specifications
Supports recording timeline features in Monitor Center
Supports recording playback, label, and bookmark features
Supports pre/post-recording time settings that include footage of the 5 to 300 seconds before or after events into event recordings
Supports recording truncating that saves 1 to 240-minute clips
Supports Dual Recording that saves an extra set of camera recordings with different resolution, FPS, schedule, and retention settings
Supports Edge Recording that ensures uninterrupted recording on SD-card-supported cameras when they are disconnected
Supports Smart Time Lapse that condenses long recordings into 60-second clips
Recording Player:
Supports buttons to control play/pause, next/previous frame, forward/reverse, fast forward/rewind 10 seconds, next/previous event, fast forward/slow motion
Supports image enhancement options to adjust the brightness, contrast, saturation, and sharpness
Download:
Supported download formats: MP4 and AVI
Supports merging and downloading separate recordings into one file
Supports overlaying text and image watermarks when downloading recordings
Supports password protection to lock downloaded recordings
Supports recording encryption to secure recording access in Surveillance Station
Backup:
Supports using Hyper Backup to back up Surveillance Station system configurations and recordings to external devices or remote servers
Supports using Archive Vault to archive recordings to remote servers with customized time range, camera, and event-mode settings
Supports using C2 Backup for Surveillance (formerly C2 Surveillance) to upload recordings to Synology C2 cloud storage
Storage:
Supports customizing the recording storage with encrypted shared folder options for each camera
Supports recording rotation triggered by retention time or storage size
Supports recording indexing that synchronizes the recordings listed in Surveillance Station with the actual files in File Station
Supports share links that allow non-Surveillance Station users to view and download recordings
Limitations
Encrypted shared folders cannot be accessed via NFS
Videos cannot be locked during the recording process
Pre/post-recording times:
Settings over 10 seconds may affect the system performance due to increased memory consumption
300-second settings are only available on Synology models with a memory capacity of 4 GB and above
Watermark:
Watermarks are only available on Synology Surveillance Station Client
Recordings with watermarks cannot be authenticated by Synology Evidence Integrity Authenticator
Watermarks cannot be overlaid if the recordings selected to merge and download are in different resolutions
Encrypted recordings cannot be accessed via SMB or File Station
Notification
Specifications
Provides instant notifications via SMS, email, and mobile devices
Supports Action Rule triggered notifications
Allows customization of the notification contents of each event
Supports notifications of IP cameras, I/O modules, Surveillance Station Client, VisualStation, CMS recording servers, and external devices
Provides notification combination options to reduce excessive messages
Provides notification muting options to prevent interruption
Supported email providers include Gmail, Outlook, QQ, and customized SMTP servers
Allows 10 email notification recipients
Event snapshots can be attached to notification emails
Supports push service on DS cam
Limitations
Only administrators can modify notification settings
Event snapshots cannot be attached when the notification combination function is enabled
CMS
Specifications
Supports using a host server as the centralized platform to manage Surveillance Station features on paired recording servers
Supports up to 300 recording servers and 5,000 IP cameras in one system (Learn more)
Supports QuickConnect ID, IP address, and FQDN connection
Supports batch updating servers on-line and off-line
Supports migrating IP cameras and their recordings between servers
Grants host servers full management over the device licenses of recording servers
Failover:
Supports automatic failover protection from recording servers to multiple failover servers (Learn more)
Supports migrating device licenses to failover servers during failovers
Supports restoring recordings, snapshots, and archived recordings from failover servers back to recording servers
Limitations
Failover servers must support the same number of cameras as the recording servers
All servers under CMS must run the same version of Surveillance Station (The same DSM version is not required)
CPU performance may be affected if more than one-third of the recommended number of supported cameras are installed on the host server (Learn more)
Failover downtime is determined by the number of cameras to be transferred and the CPU computing power of the failover server
Camera migration can only function via SMB services
The default licenses of Synology products running as failover servers cannot be used
Management
Specifications
Supports high performance/high quality video scaling options in Monitor Center
Supports automatically signing out inactive accounts to ensure security
User:
Supports customizing user permissions to servers, IP cameras, I/O modules, and applications (Monitor Center, Maps, Recording, Log, Snapshot, and Home Mode)
Manager privileges grant users full control over all functions
Spectator privileges only allow users to view and operate authorized functions
Supports customizing account activation schedules for each user
Log:
Supports system logs that record all Surveillance Station system operations
Supports event logs that record camera, I/O module, Face Recognition, Deep Video Analytics events and corresponding recordings
Supported download formats: HTML and XLSX
Supports rotation by day, size, or log number
Supports sending logs to syslog servers
Supports Action Rule that links multiple surveillance devices and automates actions by trigger or schedule
Supports Dual Authorization with up to 20 supervisors (Learn more)
Supports using the built-in NTP server to synchronize the time across devices
Supports domain and LDAP services
Supports muting the beep sound temporarily on NVR Local Display
Limitations
Only administrators can manage privilege profile settings
Users can only be added to groups from DSM Control Panel
Synology NVR servers do not support domain/LDAP service
License
Specifications
Each Synology server comes with two or more default device licenses (Please refer to the datasheet of your model for the exact number)
Allows scalable surveillance deployment with extra licenses
Device License Packs are sold separately with 1, 4, or 8 licenses (Learn more)
Grants CMS hosts servers full management over the licenses of recording servers
Supports offline license management via Surveillance Station Client and DS cam
Supports license migration between different Synology servers
Limitations
Default licenses cannot be deleted or migrated
Certain surveillance devices may require more than one license (Learn more)
The default licenses of Synology products running as failover servers cannot be used
Home Mode
Specifications
Allows users to set recording, notification, stream, and action rule settings that activate according to their Home location
Supports Geofence triggering via DS cam device locations with a GPS radius of 100-500 meters
Allows manual and scheduled (one-time/recurring) activation
Supports GPS and Wi-Fi assistance for higher positioning accuracy
Supports trigger-delay to prevent unnecessary activations when users enter and leave the Home radius repeatedly within a short time
Limitations
Home Mode is not supported on servers in a CMS structure
Geofence can only be set up via DS cam
The power consumption of mobile devices may increase if GPS and Wi-Fi assistance are enabled
Comprehensive Camera Support
Specifications
Complete ONVIF integration with Profile S for video streaming, Profile G for edge storage, and Profile T for H.265 video compression
Compatible with over 8,300 IP cameras from 140 brands (Support List)
Supports up to 128 IP cameras on a single Synology server (NVR selector)
Supports HTTPS and SRTP connection
Supports batch adding cameras on-line and off-line by importing pre-filled .xlsx lists and configuration files, or by scanning an IP range
Supports multi-streaming with individual resolution, frame rate, bitrate, and image quality settings
Supports versatile event detection types, including motion detection, tampering, and PIR
Supports PTZ controls on compatible cameras
Supports automatic camera patrol triggered by schedule, detected events, or I/O alarms
Supports customizing information display settings, including timestamp, format, and camera position
Supports exposure mode settings that reduce image noise caused by light exposure or day-night mode switching
Supports Field of View (FOV) settings for cameras to capture images with wider angles
Integrated AXIS ACAP VMD and ACAP applications (Perimeter Defender, Cross Line Detection, Digital Autotracking, Tailgating Detector, and Object Analytics)
Integrated Hikvision Smart Events
Integrated DAHUA IVS (Intelligent Video System)
Supports camera groups for easy management of large numbers of cameras
Limitations
IP addresses in IPv6 format are not supported
Certain event detection types, PTZ controls, day-night mode, and FOV adjustments are only available if the camera supports the features
Intelligent Video Analytics
Specifications
Face Recognition:
Supports registering up to 10,000 user profiles with customized members, local DSM, domain, and LDAP users
Supports detecting covered/uncovered faces
Supports ignoring faces smaller than a set size
Supports recognition result playback, download, and locking
Available on CMS recording servers and failover servers
Deep Video Analytics (DVA):
Supports four task types: People and Vehicle Detection, Intrusion Detection, People Counting, and Vehicle Counting
Supports detection result playback, download, and locking
Supports DVA task, detection result, and archive features on CMS recording servers
Supports Smart Tags that automatically mark object types and specific behaviors
People and Vehicle Detection:
Supports License Plate Recognition that identifies global license plates that consist of alphanumeric characters (Enhanced the accuracy in specific regions)
Supports registering up to 10,000 customized license plates (4 to 12 characters)
Supports detecting vehicles traveling at a speed lower than 40 km/hr
Supported report download formats: HTML and XLSX
Supports loitering detection that triggers events when people or vehicles stay over a set time
Supports crowd detection that triggers events when the occupancy in detection zones exceeds the limit
Intrusion Detection:
Supports detecting specific targets
People Counting & Vehicle Counting:
Supports crowd detection that triggers events when the occupancy in detection zones exceeds the limit
Supports merging counting tasks to combine the numbers of multiple tasks
Supported report download formats: HTML and XLSX
Limitations
Face Recognition and Deep Video Analytics are only supported on DVA series models (Learn more)
The number of available intelligent video analytics tasks depends on the model of your Synology server (Learn more)
The detection accuracy depends on the actual surroundings and task deployment
Affiliated Utility
Synology DS cam
Features
An intuitive mobile application on Android and iOS devices for viewing live streams, recordings, and snapshots from IP cameras connected with Surveillance Station
Provides real-time notifications for events triggered by surveillance devices
Specifications
System requirements
iOS: 14.0 or above
Android: 8.0 or above
Multi View
Multi-channel live views and synchronized playback with multiple layout choices (1×2, 1×3, 2×2, and 2×3)
Allows users to choose display cameras and change the display order
Flexible playback speed control (from 0.25x to 5x), with key frame playback at maximum speed available
Shortcut panel with buttons for the following functions: playback controls, event switching, quick seek, snapshots, PTZ controls, optical zoom, timescale, two-way audio, manual access, and fixed aspect ratio
Supports dragging the timeline bar to an earlier moment to view recordings at the time
Supports pinching the timeline to adjust the scale or enabling Smart Timeline to automatically adjust the timescale according to your scroll speed
Single View
Available in both Multi View and Cameras tabs
Flexible playback speed control (from 0.25x to 5x), with key frame playback at maximum speed available
Shortcut panel with buttons for the following functions: playback controls, event switching, quick seek, snapshots, PTZ controls, optical zoom, timescale, two-way audio, manual access, and fixed aspect ratio
Supports dragging the timeline bar to an earlier moment to view recordings at the time
Supports pinching the timeline to adjust the scale or enabling Smart Timeline to automatically adjust the timescale according to your scroll speed
Mute/Unmute button to turn on or off sounds in the videos
Manual recording and camera setting adjustments available in the single view mode, including stream quality, digital output, preset position, patrol, auto-pan, etc. (Available options vary by device)
Supports PiP mode for Android devices
Cameras
Allows users to manage all available cameras and view live streams, recordings, and event recordings from a single camera
Supports switching the display mode between List-view and Thumbnail-view and changing the camera display order
Provides camera basic information
Cameras can be enabled and disabled
Supports searching for cameras by keywords, sources, or statuses
Floating player to continuously play recordings without having to stay on the page
Recordings
Allows users to view all recordings stored on Synology NAS/NVR
Flexible playback speed control (from 0.25x to 5x), with key frame playback at maximum speed available
Mute/Unmute button to turn on or off sounds in the videos
Supports searching for recordings by date, time, source, camera, lock status, and recording mode
Delete, lock, unlock, and download actions of recordings
Supports taking snapshots of the current video frame
Supports the downloading of an video file by specifying a time duration, and allows you to preview the video clip
Floating player to continuously play recordings without having to stay on the page
Snapshots
Allows users to view all snapshots stored on Synology NAS/NVR
Supports searching for snapshots by date and lock status
Delete, lock, unlock and download actions of snapshots
Notifications
Sends push notifications when predefined events are triggered, with available notifications including system, camera, I/O module, speaker, VisualStation, server, access control, external device, Deep Video Analytics, Archive Vault, and clients related events
Notifications can be muted for a given period (20 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours, 8 hours, or mute until today ends)
Do Not Disturb mode mutes all notifications within a specified time frame
Thumbnails for quick accesses to the single view page of cameras
Supports searching for notifications by keywords and read status
Home Mode
Supports the automatic activation of Home Mode on Surveillance Station based on the device's location or the connected Wi-Fi
Supports the use of GPS for better Home Mode location detection accuracy
Supports setting the Home location by using the current location, entering an address in the search bar, or dragging and dropping the location pin on the map
Supports adjusting the Home location radius to reduce possible detection errors (Available options range from 100 meters to 500 meters)
Supports pairing multiple mobile devices, activating and deactivating Home Mode when a paired device enters and leaves the set Home location (When there are multiple paired devices, Home Mode will be activated by the first device that enters the Home location and deactivated by the last device that leaves)
Adjustable trigger delay time to reduce possible miscalculations if users enter or leave the Home location range within a short time (Available options include 30 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes)
Supports manually entering/leaving Home Mode
Licenses
View, add, and delete actions of licenses
Offline license management for Surveillance Station without an Internet connection or within an isolated local network
Others
Supports signing in with a QuickConnect ID over the Internet (Network latency may be higher than usual if the connection to Surveillance Station is made via the QuickConnect relay service)
"Remember me" option and login history for quick logins
Hardware decoding for system performance optimization
Passcode lock supporting fingerprint/Touch ID or Face ID unlock and passcode re-authentication settings for data security
Screen Mirroring (AirPlay) with options to cast the entire screen or play videos only (Only available on iOS devices)
Administrators can assign privilege profiles to users to allow only users with sufficient permissions to perform certain actions on DS cam or access certain devices (Privilege profiles must be configured on Surveillance Station)
Supported video codecs: MJPEG, H.264, H.264+, H.265, H.265+, MPEG4, and MxPEG
Supported audio formats: G711, G726, PCM, and AMR
Limitations
Timeline in the Multi View page only supports Sync-mode
Preset positions and patrol paths can only be created on Surveillance Station
Enabling GPS and Wi-Fi assistance may increase device power consumption
The mobile devices are required to be connected to the Internet for users to add or delete licenses
Maximum supported resolution may vary by device
DS cam does not support multi-window mode/Split View
Synology LiveCam
Features
Turns your Android or iOS mobile devices into an IP camera and pairs it with Surveillance Station
Records seamlessly even when disconnected from the Internet or paired Surveillance Station
Files can be downloaded and stored locally on the mobile devices
Specifications
System requirements
iOS: 12.0 or above
Android: 8.0 or above
Camera
Portrait and landscape orientations for video streaming and recording
Controls LED flashlight of mobile devices for better illumination (LED flashlight can also be controlled from paired Surveillance Station and DS cam)
Power-saving minimizes device display brightness
Supports taking snapshots and stores the snapshots in Surveillance Station
Two-way audio to receive/send audio from/to paired Surveillance Station
Recording
Access to all Synology LiveCam recordings stored on paired Surveillance Station and mobile device
Supports searching for recordings by date, time, lock status, and upload status
Delete, lock, unlock, and download actions of recordings
Supports taking snapshots and stores the snapshots in Surveillance Station
When recording continuously without interruptions, the system automatically truncates recordings every 30 minutes; recordings in the seamless recording mode are truncated every 10 minutes
Snapshot
Supports viewing all snapshots, including snapshots taken by Synology LiveCam, paired Surveillance Station, or DS cam
Supports searching for snapshots by date, time, and lock status
Delete, lock, unlock, and download actions of snapshots
Settings
HTTPS-secured connection
Supports selecting device front camera as the streaming source
Supports recording without sound
Adjustable resolution and FPS (The available options vary by your device)
Adjustable video quality: low, medium, high
Video Stabilization feature (Only available on supported devices)
On-screen display information, including date, time, and custom texts, can be shown on the top or bottom of the video
Auto screen lock: 1, 2, 5, 10 minutes, or never
Motion Detection with adjustable sensitivity and threshold
Recording rotation by day/size
Recordings can be stored in any existing shared folders on paired Surveillance Station
Records seamlessly when the Internet or paired Surveillance Station connection is lost and uploads the videos temporarily stored locally once the connection resumes
Passcode lock that supports fingerprint/Touch ID or Face ID unlock and passcode re-authentication settings for data security
Synology LiveCam requires Android 7.0 or iOS 9.0 and above
Only user accounts belonging to the administrators group on DSM or with sufficient permissions can pair Synology LiveCam with Surveillance Station
Users cannot view live streaming without recording the videos
Video orientation cannot be changed once the recording starts
Video streaming consumes a certain amount of mobile device power
Video streaming may be interrupted by other system operations, such as launching another camera app or entering power saving mode, which block apps from running in the background
Video streaming is not available if your connection to Surveillance Station is made via QuickConnect relay service
Synology Transactions Simulator
Features
A desktop application that simulates a Point of Sale (POS) user interface, allowing users to test all features of Transactions in Surveillance Station
Specifications
System requirements
Windows 7 or above
Simulates a transaction device connected through TCP
Supports processing transaction data by a list of predefined items
Supports deleting or canceling transactions
Supports checking-out transactions by the total amount or payment amount
Limitations
The predefined items of the transaction data list cannot be modified
Transaction data cannot be saved
Synology Transactions Compatibility Tool
Features
A desktop application that checks the compatibility between Surveillance Station and Point of Sale (POS) software
Specifications
System requirements
Windows 7 or above
Checks the compatibility through TCP and COM connections
Displays transaction data
Allows users to set rules for starting and ending transactions
Allows users to add filters to ignore certain characters or replace characters with line breaks/other characters to mark the data
Synology Evidence Integrity Authenticator
Features
A desktop application that validates that recordings and screenshots produced by Surveillance Station have not been tampered with
Specifications
System requirements
Windows 7 or above
macOS 10.12 or above
Validates files uploaded individually or in batch
Shows the exact production time and the serial number of the Synology server that produced the images
Limitations
Recordings with watermarks, even ones added via Surveillance Station, cannot be authenticated
Synology Video Converter
Features
A desktop application that converts videos to a format compatible with Surveillance Station