Many Mac OS excessively slow access when connecting via local Ethernet network to a NAS or NFS file server, especially the brand Western Digital, such as the WD MyCloud, or for example the Synology.
These servers are used to have external storage of personal files, such as photos and videos, thanks to their large size that ranges from 2TB (Terabytes) to 16TB.
For Mac OS users, they are a good option to make automatic backups with the function Time Machine included in the operating system.
Slow network access
However, many WD MyCloud and Synology users are frustrated by how access through the SAMBA protocol These NAS or NFS servers are extremely slow, causing errors or loss of TimeMachine backups.
Even though the installation has been carried out correctly and the Ethernet system of the local network has been checked (correct cables, switch and router in good working order...), access to the external NAS network drive from Mac is exasperatingly slow.
Solution to the problem to access the NFS
This solution is only valid for secure networks, such as your local home network or your work network if you are behind a firewall.
Consists in disable “packet signing” of the SAMBA protocol. That is, once the computer has been authenticated with a name and password to connect to a NAS, WD MyCloud or Synology directory, the packages they exchange will not be “signed” since we trust the established connection.
In this way, the negotiation of network packets will be much faster since they do not have to be checked one by one and they are directly let through. He speed increase is spectacular once “packet signing” is disabled
Disable packet signing in macOS client
The solution is simple and only requires knowing how to access the Mac file system through the terminal to disable “packet signing” for SMB 2 and SMB 3 connections.
First check if your macOS computer has a file in /etc/nsmb.conf
If your macOS has a file in /etc/nsmb.conf
- Open your /etc/nsmb.conf file to edit it
- Change the value of the signing_required parameter to “no”, like this:
[default]
signing_required=no - Save the file /etc/nsmb.conf
- Disconnect and reconnect (mount and unmount) any previously connected SMB drives for the changes to take effect.
If your macOS DOES NOT have a file in /etc/nsmb.conf
- Open the terminal
- Use these commands to create a /etc/nsmb.conf file with the signing_required parameter set to “no”, like this:
sudo -s
echo “[default]” >> /etc/nsmb.conf
echo “signing_required=no” >> /etc/nsmb.conf
exit - Disconnect and reconnect (mount and unmount) any previously connected SMB drives for the changes to take effect.
Trick to connect drives on Mac OS
- Open Finder
- Go to the “Go” menu and select “Connect to Server” (You can also directly press ?K)
- Choose a shared network folder on the NAS
- To disconnect them, tap the “Eject” symbol when you select them in the Finder.
In this video (in English) they show how to solve other problems with the Mac OS X Sierra system:
