6 hours ago
Hi, thanks for the message. Yes, the DX525 will accept non Synology drives. The expansion unit does not enforce its own drive rules, it simply follows whatever the main NAS accepts. The problem you had with the DX517 and DS1821 Plus comes from DSM drive validation, not the expansion chassis itself. Older units like the DX513 and DS916 Plus work because they do not enforce these rules.
If you attach the DX525 to a NAS running newer DSM, it will follow the same restrictions, so very large Seagate recertified drives may still be flagged. If you want full flexibility with third party drives, the realistic alternatives are QNAP, Unifi UNAS or a DIY TrueNAS system.
https://github.com/007revad/Synology_HDD_db
If you attach the DX525 to a NAS running newer DSM, it will follow the same restrictions, so very large Seagate recertified drives may still be flagged. If you want full flexibility with third party drives, the realistic alternatives are QNAP, Unifi UNAS or a DIY TrueNAS system.
https://github.com/007revad/Synology_HDD_db