Looking to make a plex server reddit / selfhosted ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tacohero154 · 2023-12-26 21:14 Hello, I'm looking to set up a self hosted media server in my home, and I was just looking for a few recommendations or starting points. Ideally, I would like to be able to watch my own digital media, shows, movies, etc ripped from a blu rays and dvds, on my tv that I'm too lazy to swap discs every couple episodes. My other goal with it is to be able to sign into YouTube or other similar platforms and block ads and pop ups. As for achieving this, it shouldn't take to much. The majority of everything streamed will be on a single non-smart TV. It doesn't have wireless capabilities, and I'm unsure at the moment if it has an ethernet port. It's a Samsung 1920x1080 from 2011-ish. Other than that, maybe a smart phone. Bonus points if I can access it remotely when visiting family. I've never messed around with this kind of thing, but I do have an understanding of home networking and computing running either Windows or Linux. I'm thinking that I'll need to set up a NAS to host all my media but I've seen people mentioning using a Raspberry Pi instead. I'm not sure how much storage space I need at the moment, but preferably at least 2TB starting out. I'll probably add more later as needed. For hardware is HDD or SSD preferable for a NAS when streaming? HDD would be slower when adding files but I don't think it would make a noticeable difference when streaming the files, but I'm not 100% on that. I assume it's depended on the plex and NAS software. For the TV, I'll need a device that can access, and run these files through Wi-Fi, maybe ethernet, depending on what's behind the wall plate. I will also need a remote that can control it as well. I've seen universal USB sticks that can pair with TV remotes. So I'll likely need a Pi for the TV and a NAS near my router. What would you recommend for a NAS device and what to consider when selecting one? Any prefered software to be running? Also any helpful guides you recommend is appreciated. Thanks. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ich_hab_deine_Nase · 2023-12-26 21:33 Does it have to be Plex? Plex is a privacy nightmare, and the developers behind it really shouldn't be trusted. Have you considered something like Jellyfin instead? I know that wasn't the question, just felt the necessity to comment on that particular topic. Sorry for derailing otherwise. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tacohero154 · 2023-12-26 21:57 No, it's appreciated. It doesn't have to be plex. It's just the one I hear about most often. If there are alternatives you recommend, I'll look into them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- eddyizm · 2023-12-26 22:14 I agree with the original comment, left plex years ago. Haven't used jellyfin but it looks sweet and I considered switching over to it this year. I use Kodi in my living room as you mentioned you would. I use lightweight music server for my music. Between those two I'm set along with some scripts to automate some stuff, eg grab YouTube channels overnight without any ads. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SteveMacAwesome · 2023-12-26 22:43 I tried Jellyfin and it lacked the “mark as viewed” option, and that was probably just the client I was using. Other than that I loved it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ex800 · 2023-12-26 22:46 If you are only after playback on a single TV, then something to run Kodi and have your media accessible on a SMB or NFS share might be a simpler path than a media server. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DTea123 · 2023-12-27 00:42 I'd recommend unraid as an os for your NAS, especially if you're just getting started. It's easy to expand, and you can combine nvme or flash hhd's as cache or transcode pools and still have spinning hdd's for large storage. There are a ton of helpful videos by SpaceInvader One that walk you through setting things up. I played with several OS's and landed there for my home needs. It's easy to manage docker containers and vm's, and the parity options for replacing failed hdd's are nice too. If you end up going that route and have any questions, let me know and I'll do my best to help. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mrbmi513 · 2023-12-27 00:51 I made the switch from Plex to Jellyfin and have enjoyed it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bucksnort2 · 2023-12-27 01:33 It does have marked as viewed, it’s the check mark on the movie/episode/season/collection. It doesn’t always update immediately, but it works. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- WirtsLegs · 2023-12-27 04:49 Unraid is nice for storage but think about where it goes in your network and how you secure it because unraid itself is a security disaster I'm using it but just for handling bulk storage, it's sitting with a direct link to my proxmox box exposes shares to that and then I manage access to the rest of the network via proxmox, then I just give it limited internet access once in a while to update, prob more than most are willing to do but really do be careful and plan how you deploy it ---------------------------------------------------------------------- bazpaul · 2023-12-27 08:09 You can get a NAS and the install some media streaming software on it like Plex or Jellyfin and store all your media there. For the TV you could use a Pi but you mentioned needing a remote too. Honestly it would be so much easier to get a streaming stick/device for the tv. The best in terms of privacy would likely be the Apple TV streaming device. Connect that to your tv and install Plex or Jellyfin on there to connect to your media. If you want a cheaper less private option than a fire stick or Roku stick would work ---------------------------------------------------------------------- DTea123 · 2023-12-27 11:24 Agreed, Unraid is not a good solution from a security standpoint if open to the internet. For LAN only applications for beginners, and for ease of use, it's hard to beat though. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- SteveMacAwesome · 2023-12-27 17:45 Thanks, that’s helpful!