IBM Spectrum Protect vs Synology DSM comparison

IBM and Synology are both solutions in the Backup and Recovery category. IBM is ranked #17 with an average rating of 7.2, while Synology is ranked #18 with an average rating of 9.0. IBM holds a 2.2% mindshare in BRS, compared to Synology’s 1.8% mindshare. Additionally, 86% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Synology users who would recommend it.

IBM Spectrum Protect

Read 149 IBM Spectrum Protect reviews

4,073 Views
3,133 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

Synology DSM

Read 10 Synology DSM reviews

1,810 Views
1,510 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM Spectrum Protect

Synology DSM

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 11, 2024

IBM Spectrum Protect and Synology DSM are key players in the data protection and storage solutions market. Synology DSM appears to have an edge due to its user-centric design and affordability, making it more attractive to small to medium-sized businesses.

Features: IBM Spectrum Protect offers extensive data protection capabilities, scalability for large enterprises, and robust support. Synology DSM provides ease of use, seamless integration with other systems, and flexible backup options.

Room for Improvement: IBM Spectrum Protect could simplify complex configurations, improve performance speed, and enhance its user interface. Synology DSM can improve its enterprise-level capabilities, increase technical support availability, and enhance security features.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM Spectrum Protect deployment is complex and time-consuming, but customer service is highly rated. Synology DSM offers a straightforward deployment process that requires minimal technical expertise, though its customer service is satisfactory but less highly rated.

Pricing and ROI: IBM Spectrum Protect has higher setup costs but delivers significant returns due to its advanced features. Synology DSM has a more economical setup, providing excellent ROI, particularly for smaller environments.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM Spectrum Protect vs. Synology DSM Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IBM Spectrum Protect vs. Synology DSM

April 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

IBM Spectrum Protect

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

17th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

149

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Synology DSM

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

18th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Spectrum Protect is 2.2%, down from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Synology DSM is 1.8%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Backup and Recovery

Featured Reviews

Syed Habib

Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd

Manageable and comprehensive and integrates robust backup features for core banking

It's adequate for my core banking, however, I am looking for another solution for all systems. It is not compatible with other operating systems like Windows or Linux, and lacks a consolidated dashboard from Browser Spectrum. This is why I am searching for another solution. The product also lacks any centralized graphical user interface (GUI), such as Jarek Pod, and I am limited to using a console-based text user interface, which my local partner handles completely.

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

"It is very stable after deployment and will perform in a steady state."

"In general, the solution is quite user-friendly. The GUI is very nice."

"The backup is very good. In other backup systems, you need a lot of storage to gain the same backup policy."

"We can freeze and start databases for consistent backups."

"The solution can back up every kind of workload in the environment."

"IBM Spectrum Protect is a scalable solution."

"The backup on real-time, especially for the virtual machine, archiving, and retrieving the reader from the backup repository and getting it online, getting it validated, then performing the data consistency check over the backup."

"Data reduction definitely reduces costs, not only software costs, but from the infrastructure needed."

More IBM Spectrum Protect pros

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

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

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

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

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

"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."

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

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

More Synology DSM pros

Cons

"We are having a balance issue between the reclamation and the backup function. It has to take the space back from the tapes before it can record to those tapes, but sometimes those two processes are overlapping."

"It does what we need it to do, but it could be better with VM backups. It could be better integrated with virtual machines or VM backups, but that's why they have their Plus out now. Plus version is more geared toward VM backups. The regular version is more for endpoint clients."

"We need everything cloud. Strong support for cloud services. S3 connectivity, which is mandatory for us in the future along with this integration of Spectrum Copy Data Management or Spectrum Protect services together with these Spectrum Protect Plus functionalities, e.g., hardware, snapshots, and Copy Data Management. They should come together in one solution."

"There were scalability issues only in the brand new features which were recently released."

"If IBM could provide a partial module, that would be great."

"When it comes to virtualization in IBM it's not perfect."

"In a future release, it would be a benefit to have the ability to add an application as a storage target, as a storage pool. Additionally, they should add more functionality to the administration for the Operation Center."

"In the next version of the solution, I would like to see cloud support."

More IBM Spectrum Protect cons

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

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

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

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

"Synology DSM is a good enough solution for small and medium companies, but I have not seen a big configuration of the solution for a big organization."

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

"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."

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

More Synology DSM cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the pricing a four on a scale of one to ten, where one is not cost-effective, and ten is cost-effective."

"It can be perceived as expensive since it is designed for enterprise use."

"It's very complicated. Licensing is a pain."

"Some of the new advanced features are definitely more into cost savings, e.g., dedupe compression, so doing more with less."

"We worked our licensing into a capacity model, which is nice. Now, everything is much simpler to manage from a licensing perspective."

"Customers need to pay for licensing in order to use IBM Spectrum Protect. The customers that have been using it for a long time are okay and happy with it. From a cost point of view, it's better for them to renew their licenses than to go through the difficult process of changing a backup product in their environment, and migrate from one product to another."

"The license model that they have at IBM, which is due to volume, from a certain volume onward is not the right license model."

"That's a hard estimate. It depends on the licensing, the hardware, and other stuff, but it is fairly expensive. It is generally more expensive than other solutions."

More IBM Spectrum Protect pricing and cost advice

"Synology DSM is a cheap solution."

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

"Synology DSM is a free tool."

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

"The price of the solution is very good."

"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."

"It is quite an affordable solution."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

17%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

University

Computer Software Company

14%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Spectrum Protect?

IBM Spectrum Protect is stable.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Spectrum Protect?

It's expensive. I acknowledge the cost associated with it.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Spectrum Protect?

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

Veeam Data Platform vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 18% of the time

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 17% of the time

Commvault Cloud vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 11% of the time

Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain) vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 11% of the time

Rubrik vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 6% of the time

More IBM Spectrum Protect Competitors

Veeam Data Platform vs Synology DSM

Compared 19% of the time

NetApp SnapCenter vs Synology DSM

Compared 9% of the time

UrBackup vs Synology DSM

Compared 7% of the time

ExaGrid Tiered Backup Storage vs Synology DSM

Compared 6% of the time

SyncBack Pro vs Synology DSM

Compared 5% of the time

More Synology DSM Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Spectrum Protect

April 2025

Download IBM Spectrum Protect product report

Buyer's Guide

Synology DSM

March 2025

Download Synology DSM product report

Also Known As

IBM TSM, IBM Tivoli Storage Manager

Synology DiskStation Manager (DSM)

Overview

IBM Spectrum Protect (Tivoli Storage Manager) is a data protection platform that gives enterprises a single point of control and administration for backup and recovery. It is the flagship product in the IBM Spectrum Protect (Tivoli Storage Manager) family. It enables reliable, cost effective backups and fast recovery for virtual, physical and cloud environments of all sizes.

IBM

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

CERN, Einstein Healthcare, Nyherji, Allianz Australia, TZM, ABT Online, NCT, Kindred Healthcare Inc., Cobalt Iron, TransGrid, Baptist Health of Northeast Florida, Cash America, Piedmont Healthcare, RWGV, Arkansas Tech University, British Columbia Institute of Technology

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

IBM Spectrum Protect vs. Synology DSM

April 2025

Free Report: IBM Spectrum Protect vs. Synology DSM

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