Best NAS for Immich and Family Photo Backups

Quick Summary (TL;DR):
For Immich, do not choose a NASAliExpress price only by drive capacity. Immich currently requires at least 6GB RAM and recommends 8GB, while thumbnail generation, Smart Search, facial recognition, video transcoding and PostgreSQL create a much more application-heavy workload than simple photo file storage. Our strongest all-round choice is the UGREEN DXP4800 PlusAliExpress price: Intel 8505, 8GB DDR5 expandable to 64GB, Intel Quick Sync, two M.2 slots, four HDD bays and built-in 10GbE. The TerraMaster F4-425 Plus is an excellent value alternative because it starts with 16GB DDR5, uses the newer Intel N150, has three M.2 slots and dual 5GbE. The QNAP TS-464 is attractive if you prefer the mature QTS/Container Station ecosystem and Intel Quick Sync, although its 16GB official RAM ceiling limits very large application stacks. The Synology DS925+ is our backup-first choice because DSM, Btrfs, ECC RAM, Hyper Backup, Snapshot Replication and DX525 expansion are excellent for protecting a family archive—but its stock 4GB RAM is below Immich’s current minimum, so upgrade it before running Immich, and its Ryzen V1500B lacks Intel Quick Sync. For irreplaceable family photos, the NASAliExpress price itself is not the backup: Immich explicitly recommends a 3-2-1 strategy and requires both the database and original photo/video files for a complete restore.

Best NAS for Immich and Family Photo Backups: Shortlist

NAS	Why it fits Immich	Main limitation	Best for
UGREEN DXP4800 Plus	Intel 8505, 8GB→64GB, Quick Sync, 2 M.2, 10GbE	Younger NAS software ecosystem	Best all-round Immich + Docker server
TerraMaster F4-425 Plus	Intel N150, 16GB→32GB, 3 M.2, dual 5GbE	Less CPU headroom than 8505	Best value / strong out-of-box RAM
QNAP TS-464	N5095, 8GB→16GB, Quick Sync, Container Station, 2 M.2	16GB official RAM ceiling	Mature Docker/NAS platform
Synology DS925+	ECC RAM, Btrfs, snapshots, Hyper Backup, 4→9 bays	4GB stock RAM is below Immich minimum; no Intel iGPU	Backup-first family archive

Immich Is Not Just a Folder of JPEGs

A traditional photo NAS can be extremely light on CPU. You copy files to a shared folder, browse them occasionally and back them up.

Immich does much more:

• PostgreSQL database operations.
• Thumbnail generation.
• Video transcoding.
• Smart Search.
• Facial recognition.
• Metadata extraction.
• Mobile uploads.
• Background jobs after large imports.

That means the best Immich NAS is partly a storage appliance and partly a small application server.

Current Immich Hardware Requirements

Immich currently lists:

• Minimum RAM: 6GB.
• Recommended RAM: 8GB.
• Minimum CPU: 2 cores.
• Recommended CPU: 4 cores.
• Architecture: amd64 or arm64.
• Recommended production deployment: Docker Compose on a Linux/*nix-style system.

Those are minimum/recommended requirements for running Immich—not a promise that 8GB is ideal for a huge library while the same NAS runs ten other containers.

How Much RAM Should an Immich NAS Have?

For a dedicated or lightly shared Immich NAS, 8GB is the sensible floor because it matches Immich’s current recommendation.

We would size more generously when the NAS also runs:

• Nextcloud.
• Plex or Jellyfin.
• Home Assistant services.
• Several PostgreSQL databases.
• Virtual machines.
• Large Docker stacks.
• Other machine-learning applications.

For that type of combined server, 16GB is much more comfortable and 32GB+ can be useful. Immich’s machine-learning service can also consume additional memory as models are loaded; Immich specifically cautions that increasing machine-learning workers duplicates models in memory.

Photo Library Size: Start with Your Originals

Do not start by asking “How many terabytes does Immich need?” Start with your existing photo/video archive.

required capacity
≈ current originals
+ future annual growth
+ generated Immich data
+ free-space headroom
+ RAID overhead

A simple example:

80,000 photos × average 7MB
≈ 560GB

2,000 videos × average 300MB
≈ 600GB

Current originals
≈ 1.16TB

Those file sizes are only an illustration. Your phone’s HEIC photos, DSLR RAW files and 4K/8K videos can make the real number much smaller or dramatically larger.

Video Usually Drives Photo-Library Growth

Modern smartphone video grows much faster than still-photo storage.

A household that takes a lot of 4K video can add more storage in one year than many years of JPEG/HEIC photos.

When forecasting five-year capacity, separate:

• Phone photos.
• RAW camera files.
• Phone videos.
• Action-camera/drone video.
• Scanned family archives.

Then add realistic free-space headroom rather than buying a NAS that starts at 90% full.

Immich Originals and Generated Data Are Different

Immich stores the uploaded originals plus generated content such as thumbnails and encoded videos.

The original photos and videos are irreplaceable. Generated thumbnails and encoded videos can be regenerated if necessary, although doing so may take substantial time on a large library.

This distinction matters for backup design: originals and database metadata deserve the highest protection, while generated content can be treated differently if storage budget is tight.

The Database Is Critical

Immich stores file paths and user metadata in PostgreSQL. The project explicitly warns that it does not simply rescan the main library folder to reconstruct all application state.

A proper backup therefore needs:

• The original assets.
• The Immich database backup.
• Configuration required to recreate the deployment.

Immich’s built-in database backups do not contain the photos and videos themselves.

Immich Explicitly Recommends 3-2-1 Backup

For family photos, this should be treated as a requirement rather than an optional optimisation.

3 copies of important data
2 different storage media / systems
1 copy off-site

A four-drive RAID 5 or RAID 6 array is still only one copy.

RAID protects availability after a drive failure. It does not protect you from accidental deletion, filesystem corruption, ransomware, theft, fire or a catastrophic NAS failure.

Best Overall: UGREEN DXP4800 Plus

The DXP4800 Plus is our strongest all-round Immich NAS because it combines a modern Intel application platform with conventional four-bay bulk storage.

• Intel Pentium Gold 8505.
• 5 cores / 6 threads.
• Intel Quick Sync Video.
• 8GB DDR5 included.
• Up to 64GB RAM.
• 4 SATA bays.
• 2 M.2 NVMe slots.
• 1 × 10GbE.
• 1 × 2.5GbE.
• Docker support in UGOS Pro.

The 8GB factory configuration already meets Immich’s current recommended RAM level.

The main benefit is headroom: if the photo server later becomes an Immich + Nextcloud + Plex + Home Assistant + database machine, 32GB or 64GB memory remains possible.

Why Intel Quick Sync Helps Immich

Immich supports Intel Quick Sync Video for hardware-accelerated video transcoding.

This can reduce CPU load when Immich creates compatible versions of uploaded videos.

Immich currently describes hardware transcoding as experimental and notes that hardware-encoded output may be larger and lower quality than software encoding at similar settings. Treat acceleration as a useful performance feature, not a requirement for every library.

Machine Learning Acceleration Is Separate from Video Acceleration

Smart Search and facial recognition use Immich’s machine-learning service.

Immich currently supports several experimental hardware-acceleration backends including CUDA, ROCm and OpenVINO for supported Intel GPUs.

Do not assume that every NAS Intel iGPU will automatically accelerate every Immich machine-learning model. Verify the exact GPU, container access and current Immich backend support.

If local ML is too slow, Immich also supports running the machine-learning service on a separate remote machine. This can be a better architecture than replacing a perfectly good storage NAS.

Best Value: TerraMaster F4-425 Plus

The F4-425 Plus is unusually well configured for Immich out of the box:

• Intel N150.
• 4 cores / 4 threads.
• Intel Quick Sync Video.
• 16GB DDR5 included.
• Up to 32GB RAM.
• 4 SATA bays.
• 3 M.2 PCIe 3.0 x1 slots.
• 2 × 5GbE.
• Btrfs / EXT4.
• Docker-based Container Manager in TOS 7.

Sixteen gigabytes of factory RAM means there is no immediate memory upgrade for a normal Immich deployment, and the three M.2 slots give you useful flexibility for application/database storage.

The N150 is not as powerful as UGREEN’s 8505 for heavy mixed workloads, but it is a very sensible low-power photo-server platform.

Best Mature Intel/Docker Platform: QNAP TS-464

The TS-464 remains attractive because QNAP combines Intel graphics with an established container/storage platform.

• Intel N5095.
• 4 cores / 4 threads.
• Intel UHD Graphics / Quick Sync.
• 8GB DDR4 on current 8G model.
• Up to 16GB officially supported.
• 4 SATA bays.
• 2 M.2 PCIe Gen3 x1.
• 2 × 2.5GbE.
• PCIe expansion slot.
• Container Station.

The current 8GB version matches Immich’s recommended memory level.

The 16GB official ceiling is enough for Immich plus a moderate set of containers, but it is the main reason we prefer UGREEN for a NAS expected to become a much larger home-lab server.

Best Backup-First Platform: Synology DS925+

The DS925+ is not our fastest Immich application server, but it may be the most attractive storage platform for a family archive.

• AMD Ryzen V1500B, 4 cores / 8 threads.
• 4GB ECC DDR4 included.
• Up to 32GB ECC RAM.
• 4 SATA bays.
• 2 M.2 slots.
• 2 × 2.5GbE.
• Btrfs.
• Hyper Backup.
• Snapshot Replication.
• Expansion to 9 total bays with DX525.

There is one immediate Immich problem: the stock 4GB RAM is below Immich’s current 6GB minimum. Upgrade the DS925+ to at least 8GB before considering an Immich Docker deployment.

The Ryzen V1500B also lacks Intel Quick Sync, so video transcoding will not have the same Intel hardware path as UGREEN, TerraMaster or QNAP.

Why Synology Can Still Be the Best Family-Photo Choice

If protecting the family archive matters more than maximising Immich indexing speed, DSM provides an excellent surrounding storage ecosystem.

• Btrfs snapshots.
• Snapshot Replication.
• Hyper Backup to local, remote and cloud destinations.
• ECC memory.
• Storage expansion.
• Synology Drive/Photos as separate first-party tools.

You can also separate the roles: use the Synology as the protected photo repository and run Immich’s application or machine-learning compute elsewhere.

The Best Architecture May Be Mini PC + NAS

Immich supports remote machine learning, which makes split compute/storage particularly attractive.

NAS
├── originals
├── database storage / backups
└── snapshots

Mini PC / server
├── Immich application
├── Quick Sync video
└── machine learning

This architecture lets the storage array remain stable for many years while compute hardware is upgraded independently.

It is especially sensible when you want NVIDIA CUDA or a faster Intel GPU for machine learning without buying a completely new NAS.

Put PostgreSQL and Immich Application Data on SSD Where Practical

The original photo files are mostly large sequential data. PostgreSQL, thumbnails and application metadata are much more random-I/O heavy.

A useful hybrid layout is:

HDD RAID pool
├── Immich originals
├── family archive
└── backups

NVMe / SSD pool
├── PostgreSQL
├── Docker data
├── thumbnails
└── application data

This can make Immich feel much more responsive without paying to store every original photo and video on flash.

Do You Need 10GbE for Immich?

Usually not for day-to-day family use.

Photo browsing and mobile uploads do not need 10GbE.

Faster networking becomes useful when:

• Importing a multi-terabyte existing library.
• Backing up large RAW/video collections.
• Several users upload large video files simultaneously.
• The NAS also serves workstation storage.
• You restore the entire library after a failure.

For most homes, 2.5GbE is already comfortable. Do not choose a NAS purely because its Ethernet number is larger.

Four Bays Are Usually Better Than Two for a Growing Photo Archive

A two-bay RAID 1 system is simple and perfectly valid for a smaller family library.

Four bays provide more options:

• RAID 5 for more capacity efficiency.
• RAID 6 for dual-drive tolerance.
• More incremental growth.
• Larger usable capacity without buying the biggest available HDDs.

If you expect a large photo/video archive to grow for five or more years, four bays are usually the more comfortable starting point.

RAID Is Not the Photo Backup

This deserves repetition because family photos are irreplaceable.

RAID protects against a failed disk. It does not protect against:

• Deleting the wrong album.
• Malware/ransomware.
• Application/database corruption.
• NAS theft.
• Fire/flood.
• Power-event damage.
• Administrator mistakes.

The NAS needs another backup.

A Practical Immich 3-2-1 Layout

Copy 1
Primary NAS
Immich originals + database

Copy 2
USB HDD / second NAS
versioned local backup

Copy 3
off-site NAS / cloud / rotated external drive
irreplaceable originals + database backup

You do not necessarily need to back up generated thumbnails and encoded videos to every tier because Immich can regenerate them, but backing up the complete upload location makes recovery faster.

Back Up the Database Before the Filesystem When Live

Immich recommends stopping the server while making a consistent backup where possible.

If the service must remain online, Immich recommends backing up the database first and filesystem second. This avoids a restored database referencing files that are missing from an older filesystem copy.

That ordering detail is easy to miss and is exactly why a generic “copy the photo folder” backup is not enough.

Test a Restore Before Trusting the Backup

A backup job that reports “success” is not the same as a tested recovery.

At least periodically verify that you can:

• Read the backup media.
• Locate a recent database dump.
• Recover original files.
• Recreate the Docker configuration.
• Restore into a test environment.

Immich now provides database restore workflows through the web interface and onboarding process, which makes recovery easier—but the asset files still need to exist.

External Libraries Need Their Own Backup Plan

Immich can index external libraries stored outside its normal upload structure.

That is useful when you already have an organised photo archive on the NAS.

However, Immich metadata such as album membership or descriptions for external assets is still stored in the Immich database rather than written back into every source file.

You therefore need both the external photo files and the Immich database to recover the complete application state.

Do Not Edit Immich’s Managed Files Directly

Immich’s current backup documentation explicitly warns against manually changing/removing files inside its managed storage folders except for backup purposes.

Use the Immich application/API for normal photo changes. Otherwise the database and filesystem can become inconsistent.

How Much Storage Headroom Should You Leave?

A photo NAS should not be designed to reach full capacity immediately after import.

Leave room for:

• Future photos/videos.
• Generated thumbnails.
• Encoded videos.
• Database growth.
• Snapshots.
• Temporary operations.
• Application updates.

The exact percentage depends on filesystem, RAID layout and growth rate, so we would avoid a fake universal “20% rule”. Calculate against your own annual library growth.

A Practical Buying Matrix

Your priority	Best fit	Reason
Best all-round Immich NAS	UGREEN DXP4800 Plus	8505, Quick Sync, 8→64GB, M.2, 10GbE
Best value / RAM out of box	TerraMaster F4-425 Plus	16GB DDR5, N150, 3 M.2, dual 5GbE
Mature Intel Docker platform	QNAP TS-464	Container Station, N5095, Quick Sync
Best backup-first ecosystem	Synology DS925+	ECC, Btrfs, Hyper Backup, snapshots, expansion
Heavy Docker + Immich	UGREEN DXP4800 Plus	64GB ceiling and stronger CPU
Large protected photo archive	DS925+ or 4+ bay NAS	Storage/backup features and expansion matter most
Fastest future ML	NAS + remote compute	Immich supports remote machine learning
Small library, simple backup	2-bay NAS can be enough	But keep independent backups

Best NAS for Immich and Family Photo Backups: The Bottom Line

The UGREEN DXP4800 Plus is our strongest all-round Immich NAS. Its 8505 processor, Quick Sync, 8GB base memory, 64GB ceiling, M.2 slots and 10GbE make it an excellent photo server that can grow into a broader home-lab role.

The TerraMaster F4-425 Plus is arguably the easiest value choice. Sixteen gigabytes of DDR5 out of the box, Intel N150, three NVMe slots and dual 5GbE are unusually well matched to Immich.

The QNAP TS-464 is the mature-platform choice when you value Container Station/QTS and Intel hardware acceleration more than a very high RAM ceiling.

The Synology DS925+ is the backup-first choice, but upgrade it beyond its stock 4GB before running Immich. Its real strengths are ECC, Btrfs, snapshots, Hyper Backup and storage expansion—not iGPU acceleration.

For family photos, however, the NAS model is secondary to the architecture. Keep the originals and Immich database backed up independently, follow a 3-2-1 strategy, and test restoration. A beautifully indexed photo library is useless if the only copy dies with the NAS.

Continue the Private Photo Library Series

• Best 4-Bay NAS for Docker, Plex and Family Storage
• Install Immich on a NAS: Storage, Hardware Acceleration and Backups
• Synology Photos vs Immich vs PhotoPrism: Choosing a Private Photo Library

Datasheets & External Resources

• Immich – Current hardware and software requirements
• Immich – Recommended Docker Compose installation
• Immich – Hardware-accelerated video transcoding
• Immich – Machine-learning hardware acceleration
• Immich – Remote machine learning
• Immich – Backup and restore / 3-2-1 guidance
• Immich – External libraries
• UGREEN DXP4800 Plus – Official specifications
• TerraMaster F4-425 Plus – Official specifications
• QNAP TS-464 – Official specifications
• Synology DS925+ – Official specifications