Export Synology NAS system logs

If you are a Synology NAS user, maybe you want to read some logs to understand what’s happened when you face a problem.

There are two ways to do that :

  • Using Log Center package
  • Using Support Center

If you want to read logs about backup, user connection, etc. the first solution should be quite good but if you are looking for more specific logs about a system problem, slowness, etc. the second solution will give you more details.

To export logs from Support Center, follow those steps :

  1. Open Support Center from Synology menu

  2. Go to “Support Services” tab and in the “Log Generation” menu, select the logs that you want to check, then click “Generate logs”
  3. Wait a few minutes while your NAS is generating the logs
  4. The file generated by the NAS will be named “debug.dat“, you can open it using 7-Zip.
  5. In the file you will find a directory named “dsm“, all the primary logs will be under the directory hierarchy : “dsm -> var -> log


  6. Enjoy reading all those logs!

3 thoughts on “Export Synology NAS system logs”

  1. Thanks for writing this up! I am a little stuck though.

    After clicking on ‘Generate Logs’ where exactly does the debug.dat file save to?
    – is it saved in one of my volumes on the NAS?
    – is it saved to the computer I’m using to access the NAS admin portal?

    I know this article is old, but hoping you might still be able to help me out.

    Thanks in advance – I appreciate it.

    1. When the file has been generated it should be downloaded by your browser.

      The file generation can take a lot of time depending the size of your logs files.

      1. Wow, thanks for such a quick response! I was able to find that there is a separate app on the NAS called Log Center. From there I was able to export through my browser.

        I generated the logs from a separate app (Support Center) . Clicked on ‘Generate logs’ then waited a while for that to complete – like you mentioned. But afterward, wasn’t sure where the logs would go or how to access them after completing the ‘Generate logs’ action.

        Now I know. Hopefully this comment thread helps the next person looking for answers as you have helped me.

        Thanks!
        . pG

        Ps. Any chance you’ve got an post on how to setup an email using a synology DDNS address?

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