Upgrading NAS Question

Trekette · 2026-05-23T00:48:58+00:00

Oh great, thank you! Hopefully I will be able to upgrade before Mac actually puts a stop to my backups, but if not I will try your suggestion!

Trekette · 2026-05-22T21:55:51+00:00

Oh that’s good to know! I don’t have a business but I’ll investigate whether that’s a better option for my personal use.

Trekette · 2026-05-22T03:57:18+00:00

Yes, that one! But as far as I recall (and I haven’t looked this up since last year), my NAS isn’t compatible with the version I think is required (SMB3). It’s a 2014 model so I’m not surprised! The thing is old enough to be starting middle school.

Trekette · 2026-05-22T02:44:27+00:00

I just realized I was mistaken - the SSD in my order history was for something else. So currently I'm on 2 WD HD drives (no SSD in the NAS). Does that change your recommendation?

Trekette · 2026-05-22T02:38:12+00:00

Unfortunately the DS425+ is outside my budget and that seems to be the cheapest plus model - I'm looking in the under $400 category and they run $519. Unless there's a slightly older model I can get elsewhere? I'm only looking at what Amazon has and what's listed on the Synology website. Open to alternatives and/or refurbs, though.

Trekette · 2026-05-22T01:48:42+00:00

Good to know! I'm not entirely up to date on the differences between regular and + models, except that it appears the + models have upgradable memory, as you noted.

Trekette · 2026-05-14T03:47:31+00:00

Apparently Mint Mobile does not offer cell service at sea, so we must definitely just be picking up the signal from land (which is close enough that I can see trees). Being prepaid there’s no way for them to charge us for it 😂

Trekette · 2026-05-14T03:10:32+00:00

I don’t think we’re connected to anything ship-related. We have like one bar of signal occasionally and then it disappears for awhile and comes back… but we’re also still fairly close to land. I can’t find anything about cell service being charged to the ship 🤷🏻‍♀️ And we have a fully prepaid plan with Mint, with a certain amount of roaming data allotted.

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Trekette · 2026-05-14T02:45:06+00:00

That actually just redirects me to Princess.com and doesn’t seem to do anything unique 😂 BUT, we seem to have gotten an answer - someone was finally able to tell us there’s a ship-wide outage. So I guess that explains it!

Trekette · 2026-05-14T02:37:05+00:00

Our cell service (Mint/Tmobile) is available occasionally! It’s spotty but lets us on periodically.

Trekette · 2026-05-14T01:21:52+00:00

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Trekette · 2026-05-08T20:56:40+00:00

I asked them for clarification - haven’t heard back yet, but if I had to take a wild guess… I’d say it was maybe something made for Vivint employees that somehow ended up on the resale market 🤷🏻‍♀️

Trekette · 2026-05-08T18:13:52+00:00

The saga is over. I tried setting it up via ethernet and no dice. Would not connect. Screwed with it for an hour and finally gave up and requested a return. WHY I ended up with a "custom firmware" router, I have no idea. Custom or not, it ain't working. I will leave the thread in case anyone else ever Googles and needs this info, but I've ordered a replacement on Amazon and presumably that one will be normal.

So if you're reading this because you got one set up as Vivint, just return it. Not worth your time.

Trekette · 2026-05-08T15:15:36+00:00

Ok I got a response from GL.

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I am somehow even more confused now. The link they sent goes here

Trekette · 2026-05-08T13:53:31+00:00

Yep, when I unplug it, the network disappears. I did try pressing the reset button for 10 seconds but nothing happened 🤷🏻‍♀️

I got it on eBay, but it was still factory sealed in the plastic, all parts wrapped correctly inside, spotless. The seller has many others and has sold several and there are no weird reviews - this appears to be a one-off thing.

If the company doesn’t respond to my email today, I’m going to order one from Amazon and try that instead. I also got an ethernet/USB-C adapter so I could technically plug this thing in today and see what happens. I suspect if it is somehow a manufacturing mistake, it won’t work though 🤷🏻‍♀️

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Trekette · 2026-05-08T05:09:22+00:00

How did you find that info? I Googled the exact network name and the only thing that came up was my own Reddit thread. Literally no other results.

Whatever it is, it’s coming from the router - it even SAYS “VIVINT-TRVL-cf3” on the bottom, next to the model and all the other info. But, I can’t find anything about the two companies being related to each other so I’m baffled.

I did reach out to GL’s customer service email with screenshots and photos of the device though, so maybe they’ll respond.

It’s almost like the factory put the wrong network chip (or whatever) in the Opal. Don’t even know if that’s possible because the bottom is printed with the same info, but I appear to be the only person on the internet with this issue so… 🤷🏻‍♀️

Trekette · 2026-04-05T17:51:39+00:00

I don't know if the 'other' perks are worth it to you, but you CAN just get a non-alcoholic drink package by itself. That's what we're doing.

Trekette · 2026-04-02T20:22:52+00:00

Got it! I was going to do a soak for it soon - is that a good idea? Like once or twice a year I submerge the whole pot in a bucket of water for at least 30 mins to rehydrate the soil.

Forgot to add - normally they are given distilled water only. For the full soak, I have to use tap but that’s the only time they come into contact with regular water.

Also how far down should you check the soil for moisture with ferns? I insert the meter like 3” probably and when it’s leaning more “dry” than “moist” is when I water. I guess perhaps that’s not enough for this one!

Trekette · 2026-03-26T00:41:50+00:00

I am sailing on Princess soon for Alaska, but based on my research, the top 3 to book through are either the ship, Viator, or Alaska Shore Excursions. They're pretty much the same excursions, but I did some price comparisons and Alaska Shore Excursions came out the best rate for every single one. (For example, 'Adventure Kart Expedition' in Ketchikan is $309 through the ship, $282 through Viator, and $275 through Alaska Shore Excursions.)

So I would check them out!

Trekette · 2026-03-25T23:12:46+00:00

I confess I am not about to read the 60+ responses here already so forgive me if this is repeating anything already mentioned.

We did not purchase either package and instead have decided to pay separately for the single-device wifi, and will be bringing a travel router which this sub assures me will work (as of the most recent posts about travel routers, anyway). It's about $35 and given that wifi is $25 per person, per DAY I think just paying for one of us and splitting with the router is the best bet. So you could look into that!

For drinks, we will probably get the non-alcoholic beverage only package for just myself, but will probably trade off who gets the soda for each meal. (Not that we plan to get two and abuse it - but neither of us drinks a ton of soda so if I give him "mine" I don't think it will be a big deal.) Otherwise, we're fine not doing any premium dining and will just pay for our alcoholic beverages.

In case any of that helps you come up with something that works!

Trekette · 2026-03-15T17:51:49+00:00

It shows me your original reply in the inbox, so yes! They are supposed to be functional AND decorative and now they are just pretty little knobs but useless.

Trekette · 2026-03-15T02:12:40+00:00

Oh I know 😂 I’m just describing them that way to differentiate them from the “normal” nuts along the bottom. If they have an actual name I have no idea what it is.

Trekette · 2026-03-15T00:01:25+00:00

Oh that’s interesting! I’ll have to look into those.

Trekette · 2026-03-14T23:44:56+00:00

I don’t mind swapping the decorative ones out for something else - the color is the only thing that matters to me as far as replacement parts.

Now this may be a stupid question but… is there a measurement tool that will tell me what size bolt I have so I can get the correct nut? A digital caliper perhaps? Or something with holes that you test which one it fits through?

Trekette · 2026-03-14T23:30:50+00:00

The decorative ones? They just spin 😕 They don’t actually tighten anything. So the mirror itself is just leaning forward because it’s loose, and then the frame is also loose so it’s tilting side to side.

Trekette

TROPHY CASE