Quick answers to common questions about syncopioâ„¢.

General How It Works Performance Data Integrity Reliability Getting Started Migration Scenarios Compatibility
What is syncopio?

An enterprise tool for migrating data between storage systems.

It provides a web UI, distributed workers, and built-in verification to move millions of files between network-attached storage with confidence.

What storage protocols does syncopio support?

NFS (v3/v4), SMB/CIFS, and S3-compatible object storage.

Cross-protocol transfers are fully supported. For example, migrate from NFS to SMB or from on-premises NFS to S3-compatible cloud storage.

What operating systems does syncopio run on?

Workers run on Linux and Docker. The Controller deploys via Docker Compose.

Workers support all major Linux distributions and Docker containers. The Controller, Web UI, and database deploy via Docker Compose for easy setup.

What is the Controller?

The central server that hosts the web UI, APIs, scheduler, and work queue.

It coordinates all Workers, stores state in PostgreSQL, and pushes live updates to the web UI via Server-Sent Events. You typically run one Controller per environment.

What is a Worker?

A lightweight agent that mounts storage, scans directories, transfers files, and computes checksums.

Workers run on or near the storage being migrated. They receive work from the Controller and report progress in real time. Run one or dozens depending on throughput needs.

What are the phases of a migration?

Four phases: Discovery, Assessment, Transfer, and Verification.

Discovery scans and catalogs files. Assessment analyzes risks and composition. Transfer moves the data. Verification confirms everything arrived intact. Each phase runs independently and can be repeated.

What is the difference between Mirror, Sync, and Copy?

Mirror = exact replica (deletes extras). Sync = add/update only (no deletes). Copy = transfer everything.

Use Mirror for exact replicas, Sync for safe incremental updates, and Copy for one-time bulk transfers.

How does syncopio distribute work?

Workers automatically balance work across the fleet. Idle Workers pick up tasks from busy ones.

This ensures all Workers stay busy and no single bottleneck slows the migration, even when directories vary widely in size.

How does syncopio handle millions of small files?

Adaptive batching, efficient scan caching, and parallel processing keep throughput high.

Progress reporting is batched to minimize overhead, and the work queue distributes load across Workers to avoid single-thread bottlenecks.

What is the incremental scan cache?

Cached scan results that make repeat scans orders of magnitude faster.

Only changed data is rescanned. Everything else is served from cache.

How does syncopio ensure no data is lost or corrupted?

Checksums during transfer, a dedicated post-transfer Verification phase, and detailed pass/fail reports.

Multiple verification depths available depending on your assurance requirements, from fast metadata checks to full cryptographic checksums.

What verification options does syncopio offer?

From fast metadata comparison to full checksum verification, with multiple levels in between.

All levels verify permissions, ownership (UID/GID), and extended attributes. Higher levels add checksum computation for every file to guarantee bit-level integrity.

What metadata is preserved during transfer?

Timestamps, ownership (UID/GID), POSIX permissions, extended attributes, ACLs, hard links, and symlinks.

Hard links are detected during scanning and recreated at the destination to preserve file relationships and save storage. Symlinks are preserved with target validation and broken-link detection.

What happens if a Worker crashes mid-transfer?

Its work is automatically re-queued and another Worker picks it up. No data loss, no manual intervention.

Each work item has a time-limited lease. If the Worker stops renewing it, the lease expires and the item returns to the queue.

Can I resume a failed migration?

Yes. Completed work items are skipped, only remaining or failed items are reprocessed.

You never have to start from scratch because of a transient failure.

What happens if the Controller goes down?

Workers pause until it comes back, then automatically reconnect and resume.

In-flight work items are protected by the lease mechanism. They get re-queued if the lease expires while the Controller is offline.

What is an Endpoint?

A reusable storage connection. Protocol, address, and credentials for an NFS server, SMB share, or S3 bucket.

Define once, reuse across multiple jobs.

What is a Dataset?

A specific directory path on an Endpoint, like /projects on an NFS server.

Jobs can include multiple source-destination Dataset pairs, each tracked independently for progress and verification.

Can I schedule recurring migrations?

Yes. Built-in cron-style scheduler. No external cron needed.

Set daily, weekly, or custom schedules. Status is visible on the Dashboard, Jobs list, and Operations pages.

Does syncopio send notifications?

Yes. Email notifications (SMTP) for scan, transfer, failure, and cutover events.

Configure recipients and event types per job. Failures are always notified by default.

How do I deploy syncopio?

Deploy via Docker Compose. The Controller, Web UI, Workers, and PostgreSQL all start together.

A single docker-compose.yml brings up the entire stack. Workers can also be deployed on separate hosts using the same Docker image.

How do I add remote Workers?

Deploy a Worker on any Linux or Docker host. Point it at your Controller URL with an API key.

The Worker auto-registers with the Controller and begins accepting work. No Controller-side configuration changes needed.

What export formats are available?

PDF, CSV, and Excel. Plus an interactive report viewer in the web UI.

PDF for stakeholders and compliance, CSV for spreadsheets, Excel for detailed analysis.

What tool migrates NFS to SMB?

syncopio handles cross-protocol NFS-to-SMB migrations with automatic permission mapping and case collision detection.

NFS and SMB use different permission models (POSIX vs ACL) and case sensitivity rules. syncopio maps permissions automatically, detects case collisions before transfer (e.g., Report.pdf and report.pdf would overwrite each other on SMB), and preserves timestamps, ownership, and extended attributes across protocols.

How do I migrate data from S3 to NAS?

syncopio supports S3-to-NFS and S3-to-SMB migrations, also known as cloud repatriation.

Connect your S3-compatible bucket (AWS S3, MinIO, Wasabi, Backblaze B2) as a source Endpoint and your NFS or SMB share as the destination. syncopio handles the protocol translation, preserves object metadata as file metadata where possible, and verifies every file with checksums after transfer.

How do I migrate from NAS to S3 cloud storage?

syncopio migrates from NFS or SMB shares to any S3-compatible object storage with checksum verification.

Use syncopio for NAS-to-cloud migrations, hybrid storage tiering, or archival workflows. Files are transferred with integrity verification, and the discovery scan gives you a full inventory of your data before you move anything.

What is the best rsync alternative for enterprise NAS migration?

syncopio replaces rsync for large-scale NAS migrations with a web UI, parallel workers, cross-protocol support, and built-in verification.

rsync works great for simple copies, but it runs single-threaded, has no GUI, cannot migrate across protocols (NFS to SMB), and provides no checksum verification report. syncopio distributes work across multiple workers, supports NFS, SMB, and S3, and produces auditable verification reports. For migrations over 10 TB or across protocols, syncopio is significantly faster and safer than rsync.

How do I verify file integrity after a NAS migration?

syncopio includes a dedicated Verification phase that compares checksums, permissions, timestamps, and ownership between source and destination.

After transfer, run Verification at the level you need, from fast metadata checks to full cryptographic checksum comparison. The result is a detailed pass/fail report per file, exportable as PDF, CSV, or Excel for compliance documentation.

How do I detect case collisions before migrating from NFS to SMB?

syncopio's Discovery scan automatically detects files that would overwrite each other on case-insensitive targets like SMB/NTFS.

On NFS (case-sensitive), Report.pdf and report.pdf are two different files. On SMB/NTFS (case-insensitive), the second file silently overwrites the first. syncopio detects these collisions during the pre-transfer scan and flags them before any data moves, preventing silent data loss.

Can I migrate between different NAS vendors?

Yes. syncopio is vendor-agnostic. It works with any NAS that exposes NFS, SMB, or S3.

Migrate from Dell Isilon to Huawei, NetApp to Synology, QNAP to Pure Storage, or any other combination. syncopio connects via standard protocols, not vendor-specific APIs, so it works with any storage hardware or software-defined storage.

How do I migrate a large NAS with millions of files?

syncopio's distributed architecture scales horizontally. Add more Workers to increase throughput.

The work-stealing queue splits directories across all available Workers. A Discovery scan first catalogs the entire file tree, then the transfer processes directories in parallel. Incremental updates after the initial copy only process changed files, making cutover windows short even for datasets with tens of millions of files.

Can syncopio migrate data from NetApp ONTAP or NetApp XCP environments?

Yes. syncopio connects to any NetApp filer via NFS or SMB, just like any other storage system.

If you're migrating away from NetApp, or between NetApp and another vendor, syncopio handles it via standard protocols. No NetApp-specific agents or licenses required. This also works for migrations that XCP doesn't cover, like NFS-to-SMB cross-protocol transfers.

Can syncopio migrate data from Dell PowerScale or Isilon?

Yes. Connect to your Isilon or PowerScale cluster via NFS or SMB and migrate to any destination syncopio supports.

Dell's built-in tools are designed to move data into PowerScale. syncopio works in any direction: into, out of, or between PowerScale clusters and other vendors like NetApp, Huawei, Pure Storage, or Synology.

Does syncopio work with Huawei OceanStor?

Yes. Any storage system that exposes NFS, SMB, or S3 works with syncopio, including Huawei OceanStor.

Huawei's built-in migration tools only move data into OceanStor. syncopio lets you migrate in any direction and across protocols.

Does syncopio work with VAST Data Platform?

Yes. VAST Data exposes NFS, SMB, and S3, so syncopio connects and migrates without any vendor-specific setup.

Whether you're migrating into VAST Data, out of it, or between VAST and another vendor, syncopio handles it via standard protocols. Cross-protocol transfers (e.g., NFS source to S3 on VAST) are fully supported.

What if my storage vendor doesn't offer a migration tool?

Many vendors (Pure Storage, HPE, Nutanix Files) have no dedicated file migration tool and recommend rsync or robocopy. syncopio fills that gap.

syncopio is vendor-neutral and protocol-based. It works with any NAS that speaks NFS, SMB, or S3. No vendor-specific agents, no destination restrictions, no lock-in.

Can I migrate between QNAP, Synology, or other consumer NAS devices?

Yes. syncopio works with any NAS that exposes NFS or SMB shares, including QNAP and Synology.

Built-in migration tools from QNAP and Synology only work between devices of the same brand. syncopio migrates between any combination of vendors and protocols.

How is syncopio different from rsync, robocopy, or rclone?

syncopio adds a web UI, distributed workers, cross-protocol support, and auditable verification on top of what CLI tools offer.

rsync, robocopy, and rclone are excellent CLI tools for file copying. syncopio is purpose-built for enterprise migrations: it distributes work across multiple machines, handles NFS/SMB/S3 protocol translation, detects migration hazards like case collisions, and produces verification reports for compliance.

Do I need syncopio if I already have rsync?

For small, same-protocol copies, rsync is fine. For cross-protocol migrations, large datasets, or compliance requirements, syncopio saves significant time and risk.

rsync cannot migrate NFS to SMB. rsync runs single-threaded. rsync has no verification reports. rsync has no web UI for monitoring. If your migration is under 1 TB and same-protocol, rsync works. For anything larger or cross-protocol, syncopio handles the complexity that rsync leaves to you.

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