Complete, unofficial API documentation for Synology DiskStation Manager (DSM) Comprehensive coverage of DSM Core APIs, FileStation, DownloadStation, ActiveBackup, and more.
This repository contains comprehensive documentation for Synology DSM APIs, including core system management, file operations, backup services, and application-specific APIs. Documentation is derived from official API definitions, systematic testing, and community contributions.
DSM Core APIs:
- ✅ Authentication - Login, logout, session management (3 methods)
- ✅ System Info - Hardware, network, services, utilization (25+ methods)
- ✅ FileStation - File management, upload, download, sharing (46 methods)
- ✅ DownloadStation - Download tasks, RSS, BT search (24 methods)
- ✅ Users - User management, password policies (8 methods)
- ✅ Groups - Group management, membership (8 methods)
- ✅ Packages - Package installation, control (10 methods)
- ✅ Shares - Shared folder management, permissions (8 methods)
- ✅ Certificates - SSL certificate management (8 methods)
Application APIs:
- ✅ ActiveBackup for Business - 35 APIs, 215 methods (100% coverage)
- ✅ Docker - Container, image, network, volume management (30+ methods)
- ✅ Photos - Photo library, albums, folders, sharing (20+ methods)
- ✅ Surveillance Station - Camera management, PTZ control, recording, events (50+ methods)
- ✅ AudioStation - Music library, playlists, remote player control (10+ methods)
- ✅ VPN Server - VPN settings, connections, logs, protocols (10+ methods)
- ✅ Snapshot Replication - Volume snapshots, LUN snapshots, replication plans (10+ methods)
- ✅ Virtual Machine Manager - VM lifecycle, power control, images, tasks (20+ methods)
- ✅ System Services - DHCP server, Log Center, Security Advisor, Universal Search, Note Station, USB Copy (25+ methods)
- ✅ Task Scheduler - Script tasks, service control, scheduled automation (15+ methods)
- ✅ Cloud Sync - Cloud connections, sync tasks, Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, S3 (20+ methods)
- ✅ Directory Server - LDAP/AD management, users, groups, domain sync (15+ methods)
- ✅ Synology Drive - File collaboration, connections, logs, monitoring (15+ methods)
- ✅ Hyper Backup - Backup tasks, repositories, integrity checks, vault (20+ methods)
Total Coverage:
- ✅ 110+ API categories documented
- ✅ 750+ methods with examples and parameters
- ✅ Authentication flows and error handling
- ✅ Clean, concise UDM-style documentation format
curl "http://YOUR_NAS_IP:5000/webapi/auth.cgi" \
-d "api=SYNO.API.Auth" \
-d "version=6" \
-d "method=login" \
-d "account=YOUR_USERNAME" \
-d "passwd=YOUR_PASSWORD" \
-d "session=ActiveBackup" \
-d "format=sid"Response:
{
"data": {
"sid": "YOUR_SESSION_ID"
},
"success": true
}FileStation - List Files:
curl "http://YOUR_NAS_IP:5000/webapi/entry.cgi" \
-d "api=SYNO.FileStation.List" \
-d "version=2" \
-d "method=list" \
-d "folder_path=/home" \
-d "_sid=YOUR_SESSION_ID"ActiveBackup - Get Overview:
curl "http://YOUR_NAS_IP:5000/webapi/entry.cgi" \
-d "api=SYNO.ActiveBackup.Overview" \
-d "version=1" \
-d "method=get" \
-d "_sid=YOUR_SESSION_ID"- Quick Start Guide - Get up and running in 5 minutes
- Authentication - How to authenticate with the API
- Common Patterns - Common usage patterns and best practices
- API Reference Overview - Complete API reference
- DSM Core APIs - Authentication, System, User, Group, Package, Share, Certificate management
- FileStation - File operations, upload, download, sharing, compression, favorites
- DownloadStation - Download tasks, RSS feeds, BT search, statistics
- Docker - Container, image, network, volume management
- Photos - Photo library, albums, folders, sharing
- Surveillance Station - Camera management, PTZ control, recording, events
- AudioStation - Music library, playlists, remote player control
- VPN Server - VPN settings, connections, logs, protocols
- Snapshot Replication - Volume snapshots, LUN snapshots, replication plans
- Virtual Machine Manager - VM lifecycle, power control, images, tasks
- System Services - DHCP server, Log Center, Security Advisor, Universal Search, Note Station, USB Copy
- Task Scheduler - Script tasks, service control, scheduled automation
- Cloud Sync - Cloud connections, sync tasks, Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, S3
- Directory Server - LDAP/AD management, users, groups, domain sync
- Synology Drive - File collaboration, connections, logs, monitoring
- Hyper Backup - Backup tasks, repositories, integrity checks, vault
- ActiveBackup for Business - Device backup, VM backup, restore, versioning (100% coverage)
| Category | APIs | Methods | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| DSM Core | 9 | 80+ | Authentication, system info, users, groups, packages, shares, certificates |
| FileStation | 15 | 46 | File management, upload, download, sharing, compression, favorites |
| DownloadStation | 6 | 24 | Download tasks, RSS feeds, BT search, statistics |
| Docker | 4 | 30+ | Container, image, network, volume management |
| Photos | 4 | 20+ | Photo library, albums, folders, sharing |
| Surveillance Station | 10+ | 50+ | Camera management, PTZ control, recording, events, live view |
| AudioStation | 3 | 10+ | Music library, playlists, remote player control |
| VPN Server | 5 | 10+ | VPN settings, connections, logs, PPTP, OpenVPN, L2TP |
| Snapshot Replication | 3 | 10+ | Volume snapshots, LUN snapshots, replication plans |
| Virtual Machine Manager | 3 | 20+ | VM lifecycle, power control, images, tasks |
| System Services | 6 | 25+ | DHCP server, Log Center, Security Advisor, Universal Search, Note Station, USB Copy |
| Task Scheduler | 3 | 15+ | Script tasks, service control, scheduled automation |
| Cloud Sync | 4 | 20+ | Cloud connections, sync tasks, filters, Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, S3 |
| Directory Server | 3 | 15+ | LDAP/AD management, users, groups, domain sync |
| Synology Drive | 3 | 15+ | File collaboration, connections, logs, monitoring |
| Hyper Backup | 4 | 20+ | Backup tasks, repositories, integrity checks, vault |
| ActiveBackup | 35 | 215 | Device backup, restore, versioning, AEM, VM backup |
sequenceDiagram
participant Client
participant Auth as auth.cgi
participant API as entry.cgi
Client->>Auth: POST login credentials
Auth-->>Client: Return session ID (sid)
Client->>API: API call with _sid parameter
API-->>Client: API response
DSM APIs:
- Total API Categories: 95+
- Total Methods: 650+
- Fully Documented: 650+ methods
- With Response Examples: 650+ methods
ActiveBackup APIs:
- Total APIs: 35
- Total Methods: 215
- Coverage: 100%
Comprehensive documentation for 650+ API methods across DSM Core, FileStation, DownloadStation, Docker, Photos, Surveillance Station, AudioStation, VPN Server, Snapshot Replication, Virtual Machine Manager, System Services, Task Scheduler, Cloud Sync, and ActiveBackup.
All documentation follows the clean, concise format used in UniFi Dream Machine API documentation - easy to read and navigate.
Documentation generated through systematic analysis of official Synology API libraries and testing against live NAS systems.
All methods include actual JSON response examples with detailed field descriptions.
- File Management Automation - Automate file operations, uploads, downloads, sharing
- Backup Automation - Automate backup tasks and monitoring with ActiveBackup
- Download Management - Programmatically manage downloads, torrents, RSS feeds
- Container Management - Manage Docker containers, images, networks, volumes
- Photo Library Management - Organize and share photos programmatically
- Surveillance Automation - Control cameras, PTZ, recording, event monitoring
- Music Library Management - Manage playlists, control remote players
- VPN Management - Monitor VPN connections, manage settings
- Snapshot Management - Automate volume and LUN snapshots, replication
- VM Automation - Manage virtual machines, power control, image creation
- Network Services - Monitor DHCP, logs, security scans
- Task Automation - Schedule scripts, service control, system tasks
- Cloud Integration - Sync with Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, S3
- System Monitoring - Build custom monitoring dashboards for DSM
- User & Permission Management - Automate user and group administration
- Integration - Integrate Synology NAS with other systems and platforms
This is unofficial documentation created through reverse-engineering. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with Synology Inc. Use at your own risk. Always backup your data before making changes via API.
MIT License - See LICENSE file for details
Contributions welcome! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.
- Issues: GitHub Issues
- Discussions: GitHub Discussions
Made with ❤️ by the community