Premiere Pro Dropped Frames on a NAS: SMB and Cache Fixes

Premiere Pro drops frames or shows the spinning buffer when the media is on a NAS, even though the same clips play from a local drive. After the basic diagnosis in our stutter guide, the storage path is usually where the fix lives. This article covers the pieces of that path that you can change: the link, the SMB file sharing settings, and where Premiere keeps its cache and scratch files.

The steps apply to Premiere Pro 26.x as documented by Adobe in September 2026, to Synology DSM 7.x and QNAP QTS 5.x as described in their documentation, and to macOS and Windows file sharing. Router and NAS menus differ by model, so treat the menu names below as a guide to what to look for.

The quickest first thing to try

Plug the editing computer into the network with a cable and turn Wi-Fi off. If you are on a Mac with both connected, macOS may choose the connection that advertises the highest speed, and Apple documents that some Wi-Fi networks advertise faster speeds than a wired connection. Apple's setting to prefer wired is mc_prefer_wired in the nsmb.conf file, documented in Apple Support article 102010. Turning Wi-Fi off is simpler and a good test.

Step by step

1. 1Confirm the link speed. A 10 Gb port that reports 1 Gb will drop frames on anything heavy. Check it on the computer, on the switch port and on the NAS. If the numbers do not match what you paid for, see our 10GbE troubleshooting guide.
2. 2Use SMB. Adobe says that when a NAS offers SMB, AFP or NFS, you should always prefer connecting with SMB for Productions. Mount the share by its SMB address rather than through an older protocol.
3. 3Check SMB signing on the NAS. Apple says packet signing is off by default on a Mac from macOS 10.13.4, but that it turns on by itself when a server requires it. Synology documents that enabling server signing or transport encryption may reduce read and write performance during SMB transfers. On Synology, look in Control Panel, File Services, SMB, Advanced Settings. On QNAP, look in Control Panel, Network and File Services, Win/Mac/NFS/WebDAV, Microsoft Networking, Advanced Settings. If signing is enforced, ask why before you turn it off, because it exists for security. See the notes below.
4. 4Check SMB Multichannel only if you have the hardware for it. Synology says SMB3 Multichannel needs both the NAS and the computer to have multiple network adapters, or adapters that support RSS. It also lists the requirement of DSM 7.1.1 or later and says it cannot be combined with link aggregation. Apple enables it by default on macOS 11.3 and later. If you enable it and see no gain, Synology has a troubleshooting article for that case. It is a tuning step, not the first thing to try.
5. 5Leave the SMB version alone unless you know why. QNAP advises using the default SMB version setting if you are unsure. Synology notes that setting the minimum protocol to SMB3 can lock out older clients.
6. 6Check where Premiere keeps its cache. Adobe recommends a fast SSD for the media cache, ideally dedicated. For Productions on shared storage it does not recommend and cannot support media cache files on shared storage. Open Edit, Preferences, Media Cache on Windows, or Premiere Pro, Settings, Media Cache on a Mac, and confirm both the cache files and the database are on a local drive.
7. 7Check scratch disks. In Project Settings, Scratch Disks lets you set captured video, previews, auto save and other locations separately. For Productions Adobe says it is safe to place scratch disks such as auto save and preview files on shared storage, though they sit beside the Production folder by default. Without Productions, Adobe does not state a rule, so keep previews on fast storage you can trust.
8. 8Keep the Production folder clean. Adobe warns not to store other files or media inside the Production folder, because Premiere scans everything placed there and performance can suffer.
9. 9Look at the NAS itself. Check for a rebuild, a scrub, snapshots, an indexing job or a backup that runs during the day, and check how full the volume is.

What usually causes dropped frames on a NAS

• A link that is slower than the footage needs. Adobe's minimum for Productions is 1 Gbps per workstation, with 10 Gbps or faster recommended for frame sizes beyond HD, bigger Productions or several editors at once.
• SMB signing or encryption turned on across the whole share.
• A computer connected both by cable and Wi-Fi, with traffic taking the wrong path.
• Cache or preview files placed on a slow or shared location.
• Several editors, a backup and a rebuild competing for the NAS disks.

What not to do

• Do not paste long lists of tweaks from forums into nsmb.conf on a Mac. Apple documents a small number of settings for SMB Multichannel, and the safe way back from any change is to delete the file.
• Do not disable SMB signing on a network you do not control. Apple's guidance on turning it off is written for macOS 10.13.3 and earlier and warns that it reduces protection.
• Do not enable jumbo frames on the NAS alone. The setting must match on every device in the path, which we cover in the 10GbE article.
• Do not enable every SMB option at once. Change one setting and test it, so you know what helped.

When it is time to call someone

If the link is at full speed, signing is not the problem and the cache is local, but frames still drop, the NAS may be undersized for the number of editors, or the disks and network may be misconfigured in a way that is hard to see from the workstation. If several people have the problem, or it began after a change to the network, the cause is usually on the server or switch. Our guide to choosing NAS storage for post-production explains what to expect from different designs.

Want a person to look at it?

This is the kind of problem our production consulting team handles: reading the NAS, switch and workstation settings together and fixing the one that is limiting you. You can see our NAS storage work for editing teams, or tell us what is happening in your edit bay and a real person on our team will reply.