Multi-Editor Collaborative NAS Setup for Video Production

A shared NAS provides video production teams with centralised storage accessible to multiple editors simultaneously. No more copying project files between individual drives, no version conflicts, and one backup point for the entire project archive. The critical constraints for a video editing NAS are bandwidth (multiple editors pulling 4K footage simultaneously requires 400-800+ MB/s aggregate throughput), low latency for scrubbing timelines, and correct share permissions to prevent editors overwriting each other's work. This guide covers configuring a NAS for multi-editor use: share structure, permissions, 10GbE networking requirements, SSD cache configuration, and recommended NAS hardware for 2-8 simultaneous editors.

Bandwidth Requirements by Format and Editor Count

Share Structure for Multi-Editor Workflows

Organise shared storage to prevent file conflicts and support parallel work:

Recommended folder structure:

• _Incoming. Footage ingestion folder. Camera files land here first. Write access for whoever is ingesting; read access for editors
• Projects. One subfolder per project. Editors have read/write on their active project. Archive projects become read-only after delivery
• Projects/[ProjectName]/Footage. Transcoded or optimised media for editing. Read access for all editors; write for the media manager
• Projects/[ProjectName]/Edit_[EditorName]. Personal project folder per editor. Full control for that editor only; read for review
• Projects/[ProjectName]/Shared_Assets. Common assets (graphics, music, templates). Read/write for all assigned editors
• Deliverables. Exported files awaiting client delivery or archive. Write for editors, read for clients/stakeholders if using share links
• Archive. Completed project originals. Read-only for all except admin

This structure allows multiple editors to work on the same project without overwriting each other's NLE project files. Each editor's sequence files live in their personal subfolder; shared media is read-only to prevent accidental deletion.

10GbE Network Setup

For 4+ editors on ProRes formats, 10GbE is required. The upgrade path:

1. 10GbE switch: An unmanaged or managed 10GbE switch. Budget option: QNAP QSW-1105-5T (5 × 2.5GbE, 1 × 10GbE uplink, ~$200 AUD). Better option: FS.com/Mikrotik 10GbE switches for 4-8 port 10GbE at $300-600 AUD
2. NAS with 10GbE: Either a NAS with built-in 10GbE (Synology DS1823xs+, QNAP TVS-h674) or a NAS with a PCIe 10GbE card (QNAP TS-473A + QXG-10G1T card ~$150 AUD)
3. Editor workstations: Each editing workstation needs a 10GbE NIC. USB 3.2 Gen 2 to 10GbE adapters (~$100 AUD) work for occasional use; a PCIe 10GbE card (~$100-200 AUD) is better for sustained transfer

All devices connect to the 10GbE switch. On a full 10GbE network, read throughput from the NAS to a single editor workstation reaches 800-1000 MB/s with SSD cache, comfortably exceeding ProRes 4444 requirements.

SSD Cache Configuration

SSD caching dramatically improves NAS read performance for video editing by caching frequently-accessed footage in fast NVMe storage:

Both Synology and QNAP support M.2 NVMe SSD caching (read cache, write cache, or read-write cache):

• Read-only SSD cache: Caches frequently read files in NVMe. After initial warmup (first few accesses), video files scrub from NVMe at 1-3 GB/s instead of spinning drive speeds (~180 MB/s). Ideal for ProRes footage used across multiple editing sessions
• Read-write SSD cache: Also caches writes to NVMe before flushing to HDD. Improves render write performance. Requires paired NVMe drives for redundancy (single-SSD write cache risks data loss if the SSD fails before flushing)

On QNAP TS-473A or TS-464: 2 × M.2 NVMe slots for SSD cache. 2 × 1TB NVMe SSDs (~$100-150 AUD each) in read-write cache configuration dramatically improves multi-editor performance without requiring an all-SSD storage pool.

🇦🇺 Australian Buyers: Hardware for Video Editing NAS

Hardware recommendations by team size (March 2026 AU pricing):

2 editors, 4K H.264/HEVC:

• QNAP TS-464 (~$989) + 4 × 4TB IronWolf (~$989) + 2 × 500GB NVMe cache (~$80) = ~$1,550 total. 2.5GbE handles 2 simultaneous H.264 editors. SSD cache keeps footage responsive

4 editors, 4K ProRes 422:

• QNAP TS-473A (~$1,269) + QXG-10G1T 10GbE card (~$150) + 4 × 8TB IronWolf Pro (~$1369) + 2 × 1TB NVMe cache (~$200) = ~$2,579. 10GbE provides ~900 MB/s sustained. Handles 4 ProRes 422 HQ streams
• OR Synology DS1823xs+ (8-bay, built-in 10GbE, ~$2,500). Higher cost but larger capacity ceiling and Synology's more mature permissions model

All hardware available at Scorptec, PLE, Mwave in AU. Use StaticICE.com.au for drive pricing. Factor in UPS: power interruption during video render can corrupt project files on HDD. A UPS is especially important for video editing NAS environments.

Proxy Workflow: The Real Solution to 4K Bottlenecks

Proxy editing is the professional answer to the 4K bandwidth problem. Instead of editing from full-resolution 4K ProRes files directly off the NAS, each editor creates a low-resolution proxy version of every clip (typically Apple ProRes Proxy at 100-200 Mbps, or DNxHD LT at 45 Mbps). Editors cut the timeline using proxies at high speed over 1GbE without bandwidth issues, then relink to the full-resolution originals for colour grading and final export.

DaVinci Resolve generates proxies natively and relinks automatically when you switch from "Proxy" to "Original" mode. Premiere Pro does the same through its Proxy Workflow. Final Cut Pro Proxy creation runs in the background while you edit. The proxy files live in a separate folder on the NAS (or locally on each editor's machine), while the original camera files remain in the main media share. Proxy files are typically 10 to 20 per cent of the original file size.

Folder Permissions and User Access for Multi-Editor Teams

A multi-editor NAS needs more than one shared folder. The recommended structure is three separate shares: a Media share for all camera originals (read-only for editors, read-write for the lead editor or DIT), a Projects share for NLE project files and proxies (read-write for all editors), and an Archive share for completed projects and exports (read-only for editors, read-write for the project manager or lead).

On Synology DSM, set up one group per access tier (MediaRead, ProjectRW, ArchiveRead). Add individual user accounts to the appropriate groups. Under Shared Folder > Edit > Permissions, assign folder access per group rather than per user. This makes onboarding a new editor a single step (add to the right groups) rather than manually setting permissions on each folder.

Common NAS Performance Issues in Multi-Editor Setups

The most common performance problem in multi-editor NAS setups is mixing 1GbE and 2.5GbE clients on the same switch. A 1GbE editor saturates their link at ~115 MB/s; a 2.5GbE editor saturates at ~280 MB/s. If multiple editors are reading simultaneously from a NAS connected via 1GbE uplink, the uplink becomes the bottleneck regardless of what speed the individual editors connect at. Solution: ensure the NAS connects to the switch at 10GbE if you have 3 or more simultaneous editors.

The second common problem is using WiFi for any editor in a 4K collaborative setup. WiFi introduces variable latency and throughput drops during retransmission. Any editor working on 4K ProRes or RAW must be connected via Ethernet. For editors in rooms without Ethernet runs, a MoCA adapter (coax-to-Ethernet) or a powerline adapter with dedicated Ethernet ports provides a more stable connection than WiFi 6 at equivalent distances.

Related reading: our NAS buyer's guide and our NAS explainer.

Use our free Transfer Speed Estimator to estimate how long large transfers will take over your connection.

Can multiple editors work on the same project file simultaneously?

Not on the same NLE project file. Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, and Final Cut Pro project files are not designed for simultaneous multi-user editing. Each editor works in their own project file, pointing to shared media on the NAS. DaVinci Resolve Studio has a genuine multi-user collaboration mode with a PostgreSQL database that allows multiple editors to work on different timelines within the same project. This requires a separate database server (can run as a Docker container on the NAS). For teams doing collaborative editing in Resolve, this is worth investigating. For Premiere and Final Cut, separate project files per editor with shared media is the standard workflow.

Do I need 10GbE for 4K editing?

Depends on the codec. 4K H.264 or H.265/HEVC (as shot by most cameras and iPhones) has manageable bitrates (50-100 Mbps) that 2.5GbE handles easily for 2-4 editors. 4K ProRes 422 (700 Mbps) requires 10GbE for 2+ simultaneous editors. If you are proxying camera footage to ProRes Proxy for editing on a 2.5GbE NAS and only pulling full-res for export, you can often get away with 2.5GbE. For edit-in-place workflows with ProRes or RAW formats, 10GbE is necessary for multi-editor use.

How do I prevent editors from accidentally deleting footage?

Enable the NAS recycle bin on the footage shared folder. Configure permissions so the footage folder is read-only for editors (only the media manager has write access). Editors can read and copy footage to their own project folder but cannot delete from the master footage location. For an additional safety layer, configure Snapshot Replication on Synology (Btrfs snapshots). This provides point-in-time recovery of the footage folder even if a file is deleted from the recycle bin.

Should I use RAID 5 or RAID 6 for a video editing NAS?

RAID 6 for production storage. Video editing NAS units often have 8TB+ drives. Rebuilding an 8TB drive after failure in RAID 5 takes 12-48 hours, during which a second failure causes total data loss. RAID 6 survives two simultaneous failures, protecting against the second-failure-during-rebuild scenario. For project archives (less frequently accessed), RAID 5 is acceptable. For active production storage, RAID 6's additional protection is worth the loss of one extra drive worth of capacity.

Can I use a NAS for DaVinci Resolve shared database?

Yes. DaVinci Resolve Studio's PostgreSQL database can run as a Docker container on the NAS (using the official postgres:15 image). Resolve clients connect to the database container at the NAS IP for multi-user project collaboration. The NAS stores both the PostgreSQL database and the media files. This requires DaVinci Resolve Studio licences for each workstation, a stable 10GbE network connection, and a NAS with 16GB+ RAM to run the database container alongside the storage workload comfortably. See the NAS for video editing guide for a full production workflow setup.

What internet connection do remote editors need to access NAS media?

Remote editing directly from NAS media over the internet is rarely practical for 4K formats. A 4K ProRes 422 stream requires ~88 MB/s (700 Mbps) sustained, which exceeds most Australian NBN upload speeds. The practical solution is a proxy-first workflow: editors receive low-resolution proxy files via download or sync, cut the timeline locally, and the NAS media is only accessed for final grading or export after the editor is on-site or connected via high-speed link.

How do you handle two editors accidentally opening the same project file?

NLE project files (Premiere .prproj, Resolve .drp, FCPX .fcpbundle) are not designed for concurrent editing. If two editors open the same file simultaneously, the last save wins and changes from the other editor are lost. The solution is a "checkout" convention: each editor keeps project files in their own named subfolder under the Projects share, and shared timelines are only on one editor's machine at a time. DaVinci Resolve Studio's collaborative mode is the exception and supports genuine multi-user editing of the same timeline.

What is the minimum NAS setup for two video editors sharing 1080p footage?

For two editors sharing 1080p H.264 or H.265 footage, a 4-bay NAS with 2.5GbE ports (QNAP TS-464 or Synology DS923+ with a 2.5GbE USB adapter) handles the bandwidth comfortably. At 50 Mbps per stream for compressed 1080p, two simultaneous editors use around 12.5 MB/s combined, well within gigabit capacity. RAID 5 across four 8TB drives gives 24TB usable. Where the setup breaks down is when camera-original footage is in ProRes or uncompressed formats, which demands 2.5GbE per editor minimum.