Docker container setup inside synology nas

From Terabytes to Analysis: Securely Connecting Your Synology NAS to HPRC with Globus and Docker

Image generated in Gemeni

So, you’re like me. You have a mountain of data.

In my case, it was terabytes of video data from a recent project, all sitting comfortably on my local Synology NAS. This data wasn’t just for show; it needed serious processing. And for serious processing, I needed the big guns: my university’s High Performance Research Computing (HPRC) cluster.

This left me with a classic problem: How do I securely and efficiently move terabytes of data from my little NAS box to a massive HPC system?

This challenge took me the better part of a week to solve. I dove deep into the HPRC documentation, exploring data transfer methods. My requirements were strict:

1. It had to be secure. I couldn’t just open up ports (like FTP or SSH) on my NAS to the entire internet.
2. It had to be robust and handle terabytes without failing.
3. It had to be compatible with my Synology NAS.

The HPRC’s preferred method, and the one that met all my criteria, was Globus. For a personal device like a NAS, the tool is Globus Connect Personal.

The only problem? Synology’s DSM (its operating system) doesn’t have a simple “click-to-install” package for Globus Connect Personal. The solution, it turned out, was Docker.

Here’s how I built a robust, secure data bridge from my NAS to the HPRC.

The Solution: A Dockerized Globus Endpoint

The plan was simple: I would use Docker on my Synology NAS to run a lightweight Ubuntu container. Inside that container, I would manually install Globus Connect Personal. Then, I’d use Docker’s “volumes” feature to mount my NAS data folder (e.g., /volume1/dairy_file) directly into the container.

This gives Globus access to the files without compromising the security of my NAS.

After a lot of trial and error, I landed on this docker-compose.yml file. It automates almost the entire setup.

version: "3.8"

services:
  globusconnectpersonal:
    image: ubuntu:22.04
    container_name: globusconnectpersonal
    restart: unless-stopped

    # Mount your NAS data directory to the container
    # CHANGE THIS: Update "/volume1/dairy_file" to your actual NAS path
    volumes:
      - /volume1/dairy_file:/data

    environment:
      - TZ=America/Chicago

    entrypoint: >
      bash -c "
      echo 'Starting Globus Connect Personal setup...' &&
      apt-get update &&
      apt-get install -y wget tar sudo python3 &&
      
      # Create a non-root user 'globus'
      useradd -m -s /bin/bash globus &&
      echo '✅ User globus created.' &&
      
      # Download and extract Globus
      cd /home/globus &&
      wget -q [https://downloads.globus.org/globus-connect-personal/linux/stable/globusconnectpersonal-latest.tgz](https://downloads.globus.org/globus-connect-personal/linux/stable/globusconnectpersonal-latest.tgz) &&
      tar -xzf globusconnectpersonal-latest.tgz &&
      GLOBUS_DIR=$$(find . -type d -name 'globusconnectpersonal*' | head -n 1) &&
      
      # Set correct permissions for the new user
      chown -R globus:globus /home/globus /data &&
      echo '✅ Globus Connect Personal downloaded and permissions set.' &&
      echo '' &&
      
      # Print instructions for the human
      echo '---------------------------------------------------------------' &&
      echo '🚀 ACTION REQUIRED TO COMPLETE SETUP 🚀' &&
      echo '---------------------------------------------------------------' &&
      echo '1. Open a terminal into this container:' &&
      echo '   docker exec -it globusconnectpersonal bash' &&
      echo '' &&
      echo '2. Switch to the globus user:' &&
      echo '   su - globus' &&
      echo '' &&
      echo '3. Navigate to the Globus directory:' &&
      echo "   cd /home/globus/$${GLOBUS_DIR}" &&
      echo '' &&
      echo '4. Run the setup (get key from globus.org):' &&
      echo '   ./globusconnectpersonal -setup <YOUR_SETUP_KEY_HERE>' &&
      echo '' &&
      echo '5. After setup, start the endpoint:' &&
      echo '   ./globusconnectpersonal -start &' &&
      echo '' &&
      echo 'Your NAS folder is available at /data inside the container.' &&
      echo 'Container will keep running. Follow the steps above.' &&
      echo '---------------------------------------------------------------' &&
      
      # Keep the container alive
      tail -f /dev/null
      "

1. Save the File

Save the code above as docker-compose.yml in a folder on your Synology (e.g., in your docker shared folder).

2. Edit the Volume

Change /volume1/dairy_file to the exact path of the folder on your NAS that you want to share.
/data is the name it will have inside the container, and you can leave that as-is.

3. Launch

Run:

docker-compose up -d

Or use the Synology Docker UI to launch the stack.

4. Get Your Key

Log in to the Globus website and go to the Endpoints section.
Click Add a Personal Endpoint and get the setup key.

Configure the Container

1. Open an SSH terminal to your Synology NAS.
2. Get a terminal inside your new container:

   docker exec -it globusconnectpersonal bash
   

3. Follow the instructions printed in the container log (and in the entrypoint script above):

   su - globus
   cd /home/globus/globusconnectpersonal-*   # use tab-complete
   ./globusconnectpersonal -setup <PASTE_YOUR_KEY_HERE>
   ./globusconnectpersonal -start &
   

That’s it!
If you go back to the Globus website, you’ll see your new endpoint is active.
You can now browse the /data directory (which is your NAS folder) and initiate high-speed, secure transfers to your HPRC endpoint.

⚠️ Things to Watch Out For (The “Gotchas” I Learned)

This is the part that took me a week to figure out.

❌ You CANNOT Run as Root

Globus Connect Personal is designed to run as a standard user, not as root.
My script explicitly creates a new user inside the container named globus.
You must run:

su - globus

before you run the setup or start the service.
If you try as root, it will fail.

🧑‍💻 The User “Myth”

I found a lot of conflicting documentation online claiming the user inside the container (e.g., globus) must match the user on your Synology NAS.
This is not true.
The Docker container is a completely isolated environment.
The important part is that the globus user inside the container has read/write permissions on the mounted /data folder.
My entrypoint script handles this with:

chown -R globus:globus /data

🔑 Permissions

The chown command is key — it gives the container’s globus user ownership of the /data mount point.
This is what allows Globus to read your files.

It was a fantastic learning experience.
I not only solved my data transfer problem but also got to deploy a container service that solves a real-world, practical issue.
Hopefully, this guide saves you the week of troubleshooting it took me!