Immich Setup on Synology NAS

Installation Overview

Immich is installed on Synology NAS using Container Manager at /volume1/immich/

Directory Structure

/volume1/immich/
├── docker-compose.yml    # Container configuration
├── .env                  # Environment variables
├── upload/               # Photo and video storage
├── database/             # PostgreSQL data
└── model-cache/          # Machine learning models (Docker volume)

Configuration Files

docker-compose.yml

Defines 4 services:

• immich-server: Main application (port 3001)
• immich-machine-learning: AI/ML processing
• redis: Caching
• database: PostgreSQL with vector extension

Important: All services use network_mode: host for Synology compatibility. This allows containers to use the host's network directly, bypassing Docker bridge networking issues.

.env

Key settings:

• UPLOAD_LOCATION=/volume1/immich/upload
• DB_DATA_LOCATION=/volume1/immich/database
• DB_PASSWORD=<secure_random_password>
• IMMICH_VERSION=release

Container Management

Start/Stop Services

In Container Manager:

• Project tab → Select "immich" → Start/Stop/Build

View Logs

• Container tab → Select container → Logs

Update Immich

1. Stop the project
2. Image tab → Pull latest images
3. Start the project

Access

Web Interface: http://192.168.4.190:3001

Port Note: With host networking mode, Immich uses port 3001 (the container's internal port) directly.

First Time Setup:

1. Create admin account (first user becomes admin)
2. Configure mobile app connection
3. Set up automatic backup from phones

Mobile Apps

Download from:

• iOS: App Store
• Android: Google Play Store

Configure with server URL: http://192.168.4.190:3001

Migrating from Other Services

Google Photos Migration (via Google Takeout)

1. Request Your Data:

   • Visit https://takeout.google.com/
   • Deselect all products, then select only "Google Photos"
   • Choose file type: .zip or .tgz
   • Select file size: 50GB per archive recommended
   • Delivery method: "Send download link via email"
   • Click "Create export"

2. Download Archives:

   • Google will email you when export is ready (may take hours or days)
   • Download all archive files
   • Extract to a temporary folder on your Mac

3. Upload to Immich:

   Via Web Interface:

   • Open http://192.168.4.190:3001
   • Click upload icon
   • Drag and drop the extracted Takeout folder
   • Immich will automatically deduplicate and import metadata

   Via CLI (Recommended for large libraries):

   # Install Immich CLI
   npm install -g @immich/cli
   
   # Get API key from Immich: Account Settings → API Keys
   immich login http://192.168.4.190:3001
   
   # Upload all photos
   immich upload /path/to/google-photos-takeout

Notes:

• Google Takeout includes JSON files with metadata (dates, locations, descriptions)
• Immich will preserve original dates and EXIF data
• Albums may need to be manually recreated
• Verify uploads before deleting from Google Photos
• Large libraries (100GB+) can take several hours

Amazon Photos Migration

1. Download via Web Browser:

   • Go to https://www.amazon.com/photos
   • Select photos/albums to download
   • Click "Download" (downloads as zip files)
   • Extract downloaded archives

2. Alternative - Use Amazon Photos Desktop App:

   • Install Amazon Photos desktop app (Windows/Mac)
   • Use "Download" feature to save locally
   • More reliable for large libraries

3. Upload to Immich:

   • Same upload process as Google Photos (web UI or CLI)
   • Use immich-cli for faster bulk uploads:

   immich upload /path/to/amazon-photos-download

Amazon Photos Notes:

• No bulk export like Google Takeout
• Must download in batches or use desktop app
• EXIF metadata usually preserved in original files
• Consider downloading by year/album to organize process

iCloud Photos Migration

Method 1: macOS Photos App (Easiest for Mac users)

1. Download iCloud Photos to Mac:

   • System Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Photos
   • Enable "Download Originals to this Mac"
   • Wait for all photos to download (check Photos app for progress)
   • Photos stored at: ~/Pictures/Photos Library

2. Export from Photos App:

   • Open Photos app
   • Select all photos (⌘+A)
   • File → Export → Export Unmodified Original
   • Choose destination folder
   • Check "Export IPTC as XMP" to preserve metadata

3. Upload to Immich:

   immich upload /path/to/exported-photos

Method 2: iCloud.com (No Photos App needed)

1. Download from iCloud.com:

   • Go to https://www.icloud.com/photos
   • Sign in with Apple ID
   • Select photos (up to 1,000 at a time)
   • Click download icon
   • Repeat for entire library in batches

2. Upload to Immich: Same process as other migrations

Method 3: iCloud Photos Downloader (Open Source Tool)

For large libraries, use the command-line tool:

# Install icloudpd
pip3 install icloudpd

# Download all photos
icloudpd --directory ~/icloud-export --username your@email.com

# Upload to Immich
immich upload ~/icloud-export

iCloud Notes:

• Photos app method preserves all metadata (best option)
• iCloud.com limits downloads to 1,000 items at once
• Live Photos download as separate image + video files
• Shared albums must be downloaded separately
• "Optimize Storage" on Mac means photos aren't locally stored yet

General Migration Tips

• Get API Key: Account Settings → API Keys → Create (needed for CLI uploads)
• Batch uploads: For 100GB+ libraries, upload in smaller batches
• Deduplication: Immich automatically detects and skips duplicate files
• Keep originals: Don't delete from source until verified in Immich
• Monitor space: Check NAS storage capacity before large imports
• Machine learning: First upload triggers ML processing (face detection, object recognition)

Backup

Important folders to backup:

• /volume1/immich/upload/ - All photos and videos
• /volume1/immich/database/ - Database with metadata, faces, etc.

Troubleshooting

Connection Refused or Reset

Symptom: Cannot access web interface, connection resets immediately.

Solution: Synology Container Manager requires host networking mode for proper operation.

Ensure your docker-compose.yml has network_mode: host for all services:

services:
  immich-server:
    network_mode: host
    # No ports section needed with host networking
    
  redis:
    network_mode: host
    
  database:
    network_mode: host

With host networking:

• Containers bind directly to host ports
• Remove any ports: mappings from docker-compose.yml
• Services connect via localhost (DB_HOSTNAME=localhost, REDIS_HOSTNAME=localhost)
• Access Immich at http://nas-ip:3001 (not 2283)

Check Container Status

Container Manager → Container tab → Check all 4 containers are "Running"

View Container Logs

Select container → Logs button

Database Issues

If database won't start, check:

• Database folder permissions
• Sufficient disk space
• Database port 5432 not in use

Reset Everything

1. Stop project
2. Delete containers
3. Clear database folder: rm -rf /volume1/immich/database/*
4. Restart project (will reinitialize database)

Mounted Path

When accessing from Mac: /Volumes/immich/ Actual NAS path: /volume1/immich/

Notes

• Machine learning requires significant RAM (8GB+ recommended)
• First download of ML models takes time and disk space
• Upload folder will grow with your photo library
• Regular backups recommended