Shared NAS storage for video post-production works. Production houses and independent studios use it daily. But it requires deliberate network design, the right file protocol, and a NAS with enough CPU and RAM to serve multiple high-throughput connections simultaneously. The failure mode isn't usually the NAS itself; it's the network between the NAS and the workstations, or the file protocol chosen for multi-user access. Get those two things right and shared NAS editing is reliable for 2-10 editor teams at reasonable cost.
In short: Use SMB3 with multichannel enabled for shared editing on a Synology or QNAP NAS. Ensure 10GbE end-to-end (NAS + switch + workstations). Plan for each editor needing ~110 MB/s sustained read throughput for 4K ProRes 422 HQ. Use a NAS with SSD cache for active project files. File locking is handled by the NLE application (Premiere, Resolve), not the NAS. Understand what your editing software locks vs shares before onboarding the team.
Architecture: What a Shared Editing NAS Looks Like
A shared editing storage setup has three components: the NAS, the network, and the workstations. Each has requirements for the system to work at professional throughput.
The NAS needs sufficient drive throughput, CPU headroom for concurrent SMB sessions, and ideally SSD cache for hot project files. For 4 concurrent 4K ProRes editors, you need a NAS capable of sustained ~500 MB/s aggregate read. Which means a quality HDD RAID (RAID 5 or 6 across 6+ drives) or SSD caching supplementing a 4-bay unit. A Synology DS925+ or DS1525+ covers the 2-4 editor range.
The network is almost always the bottleneck in real-world deployments. 10GbE between every workstation and the NAS is the standard. Gigabit aggregation (bonding two 1GbE ports per workstation) is sometimes used as a workaround but it's inferior. Latency is similar, and bandwidth gains are partial. A dedicated 10GbE switch (not sharing with regular office traffic) is the right solution. Budget $600-1,200 for a managed 10GbE switch with enough ports for your team size.
The workstations need 10GbE NICs and enough local RAM/CPU to handle the edit application load without competing with network I/O. For Mac workstations (common in post-production), Thunderbolt 3 to 10GbE adapters are the standard path since most Mac Pros and Mac Studios lack built-in 10GbE.
File Protocol: SMB3 vs AFP vs NFS
Protocol choice affects both throughput and compatibility for shared editing workloads.
SMB3 (recommended) is the current standard for shared file access across mixed Mac/Windows environments. SMB3 Multichannel lets a workstation use multiple network paths simultaneously (e.g. two 10GbE connections) to aggregate bandwidth. Relevant for high-throughput workflows. Synology and QNAP both support SMB3 Multichannel. On macOS Monterey and later, SMB3 is the default file sharing protocol. AFP is deprecated. Enable SMB Multichannel in DSM: Control Panel > File Services > SMB > Advanced > SMB Multichannel.
AFP should not be used for new setups. Apple deprecated AFP and it's slower than SMB3 on modern macOS. Existing AFP shares continue to work but should be migrated to SMB3.
NFS is the preferred protocol for Linux workstations and high-throughput workflows where SMB overhead is a concern. NFS v4.1 provides better performance than NFSv3 for large sequential reads. If your editing workstations run Linux (common in VFX pipelines), configure NFS shares in DSM's NFS service settings. NFS is not directly accessible from macOS Finder. Use SMB on Mac, NFS on Linux.
iSCSI is sometimes used for dedicated editing workstations that need block-level access (faster than file-level protocols for certain workloads). iSCSI mounts a NAS volume as if it were a local drive. Only one workstation can mount a given iSCSI LUN at a time, so it's not suitable for concurrent multi-editor access. It's occasionally used for a single power user's primary edit drive while the rest of the team uses SMB shares.
File Locking and Concurrent Access in NLE Software
This is the most misunderstood part of shared NAS editing. The NAS doesn't intelligently manage which editor is editing which file. That's the job of the NLE application. Understanding what your editing software locks is critical before putting multiple editors on the same storage.
DaVinci Resolve (shared database mode): Resolve uses a PostgreSQL database for shared project management. Multiple editors open the same project and check out individual timelines. The database handles locking at the timeline level. This is the most robust multi-user editing workflow. The project library and media files sit on the NAS; the database runs on a separate server (or one of the workstations acting as server). Resolve's shared database is free in the full version; it requires a dedicated machine running the database server.
Adobe Premiere (Productions): Premiere's Productions feature lets multiple editors work on different sequences in the same project simultaneously. Media is referenced from a shared NAS location; individual sequences are locked per editor when open. Productions doesn't require a separate database server. The project file management is handled via file locking. This is less granular than Resolve's database approach but sufficient for independent sequence editing.
Final Cut Pro (Libraries over network): Final Cut Pro doesn't officially support shared library access from a NAS. Apple's documentation recommends local storage or dedicated storage solutions. In practice, FCP works over NAS via SMB for media playback, but simultaneous library editing by multiple users isn't supported. For multi-editor Mac workflows, either use Resolve/Premiere or run FCP locally with media referenced from NAS (read-only access to shared media).
Folder Structure and User Permissions
A clear folder structure prevents accidental overwrites and makes permission management tractable. A practical structure for a 4-8 editor team:
/video/. Root volume on NAS/video/active/. Current projects (all editors, read/write)/video/archive/. Completed projects (read-only for most users, admin write)/video/ingest/. Incoming footage from cameras, shared write access/video/exports/. Delivery files, editor write + client read-only/video/personal/[username]/. Per-editor personal workspace, individual write
In DSM, create user groups (e.g. editors, producers, admin) and assign permissions to shared folders at the group level rather than individual users. This makes onboarding and off-boarding team members a single group membership change rather than updating multiple folder permissions.
For /video/active/, all editors need Read/Write. Producers may need Read-Only. The NAS admin account should be separate from the working accounts. Don't use the DSM admin account for day-to-day access.
Australian Network Infrastructure Context
Australian post-production workflows are almost entirely LAN-based for active editing. NBN upload speeds (20-50Mbps on most plans) are too slow for remote editing of ProRes from a home NAS over the public internet. This is a real constraint for distributed teams or work-from-home editors in Australia.
Practical workarounds used in Australian post-production:
- Proxy-based remote editing: Generate H.264 or H.265 proxy files from the master footage. Editors work with proxies remotely (small file sizes transfer over NBN), then reconnect to original master files when back on-site for final output. Premiere and Resolve both support proxy workflows.
- Secure remote access for offline editing: For documentary or interview-style content where real-time playback isn't critical, a VPN connection to the studio NAS with a local proxy cache can enable offsite editing. See the NAS remote access guide for CGNAT and NBN constraints.
- NBN Business plans: Some NBN Business plans offer symmetric speeds (100Mbps up and down) which allows marginally higher-bitrate remote access. Sufficient for H.265 proxy workflows but not ProRes. Costs vary significantly by location and available technology type.
Related reading: our NAS buyer's guide.
Use our free Transfer Speed Estimator to estimate how long large transfers will take over your connection.
How many simultaneous editors can a NAS support for 4K ProRes editing?
Each 4K ProRes 422 HQ stream requires ~110 MB/s sustained read from the NAS. A DS925+ with SSD cache and 10GbE can sustain ~900 MB/s total. Theoretical maximum of 8 streams, practical reliable delivery of 4-5 accounting for scrubbing, rendering overhead, and concurrent write operations. The DS1525+ with similar configuration handles 4-6 concurrent editors more comfortably. For 8+ simultaneous editors, a rackmount unit (RS1221+, RS2423+) or a dedicated storage platform is the right tier.
What happens if two editors try to open the same file?
It depends on the application and file type. Most editing applications (Premiere, Resolve) open media files read-only. Multiple editors can reference the same camera file simultaneously without conflict. Project files and database files are locked by the application. Opening a Premiere project file that's already open elsewhere will trigger a lock warning. Resolve in shared database mode handles this at the timeline level. The NAS itself doesn't enforce application-level locking; that's entirely managed by the NLE software.
Should I use RAID 5 or RAID 6 for a production NAS?
For a working production NAS with large drives (8TB+), RAID 6 (or SHR-2 on Synology) is the safer choice. RAID 5 can tolerate one drive failure. During the rebuild process (which can take 12-48 hours on a large array), a second drive failure loses all data. With large-capacity drives, URE (unrecoverable read error) rates during rebuild make a second failure statistically meaningful. RAID 6 tolerates two simultaneous failures and is the production standard for a media asset library that can't afford data loss. The storage penalty is one additional drive's worth of capacity. See the RAID explained guide for a full breakdown of RAID levels.
Do I need a dedicated NAS or can I use a Mac Mini or PC as a file server?
A Mac Mini or PC running as a file server can work for small teams but has practical disadvantages: it needs a keyboard/monitor for maintenance, consumes more power than a NAS, lacks hot-swap drive bays (a failing drive means downtime), and uses a general-purpose OS rather than a purpose-built storage OS. For a 2-person editing team with low budget, a Mac Mini as a server is viable. For anything professional or with 3+ editors, a purpose-built NAS from Synology or QNAP is more reliable, easier to manage, and typically cheaper to run over time.
Can I mix Mac and Windows workstations on the same shared NAS?
Yes. Both macOS and Windows mount SMB shares. It's the cross-platform standard. Configure SMB3 on DSM (default), and both platforms access the same shares. The only complication is case sensitivity: macOS HFS+ and APFS are case-insensitive by default; Windows NTFS is case-insensitive; the Synology NAS's Btrfs/ext4 is case-sensitive by default. Filenames that differ only in case can cause issues when files are created on one platform and accessed from another. DSM has a 'Case Insensitive' option in SMB settings. Enabling it prevents this problem in mixed environments.
Ready to set up shared editing storage? The video editing pillar page covers the full NAS-for-video-editors picture. Hardware requirements, workflow options, and how Australian NBN affects remote editing.
NAS for Video Editors Guide →