# Seting up home media server - For a newbie



## Tim Reed

Hi all, I'm new here at these forums and have many things to learn when if come to home media servers.
Currently I have a MacBook PRO a wireless n router and a PS3 connected to my Sharp Quatron 46. I have hundreds of DVDs and now been getting blurays. I want to set up a home media server but I'm not sure what else i need to do so. Is there a way i can rip my dvds and bluray bit by bit perfect copy to my external hardrive to stream over to PS3 or maybe a Roku if i buy one? I have maybe 400-500 dollars to spend if i need other equipment. I have read about NAS drives but I'm not sure how it all works. Any help would be appreciated, thanks. And yes I'm a complete newbie, sorry.


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## RKolbi

Hey Tim,
There's a lot of ways to do this and before you start you should see what best fits any other devices you may have, such as iPad, iPhone, tablet, smart phone, and so on. I myself am a submariner so I deploy a lot with my iPad and macbook so it made sense for me to rip all my movies to .mp4/.m4v so they can easily be transferred over to all my devices. I also have appletv's (5) in my bedroom, living room, out side projector, and both kid's rooms and use home sharing on a mac mini to serve it all. This also worked well for me because I purchase many items through iTunes (I am stationed in Guam so it's not like I have a lot of places to browse movies and such) so all my media is readily available through one device. As for ripping software I use handbrake and MacX DVD Ripper Pro. My way of doing this worked for me because the items I already had, portability, storage size, and iTunes was already incorporated into my digital entertainment. But there are many other ways to do this, it's all depending on what your purpose is behind it and what works for you. Tekzilla, a revision 3 show has talked about this a few times - try googling them also.


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## Tim Reed

Thank-you for the information RKolbi! Ive been thinking of getting an Apple TV to stream my content. I could put all my media into iTunes, yes, but is there a way a can have a media server set up to where I dont have to have a PC/Laptop on at all times? I would love the Apple TV if i could access my iTunes content with out have a dedicated computer on at all times.


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## cburbs

A few steps involved...like mentioned above...
1) Figure out what Media streaming devices you have
2) Figure out what type of format will work with those devices


Nas
You can by prebuilt devices from synology, dlink, etc

You can build your own with software using say WHS 2011, Freenas, unRAID, etc

It really depends on exactly what your after, budget, time, how much you know about all the above stuff.


Example of my setup:
Nas - HP Microserver running unRAID

Media Devices - WDTV Live Plus, HTPC

File format - MKV files created with Makemkv & Handbrake

Reasons to choose MKV format -
http://www.pavtube.com/guide/blu-ray-backup-why-choose-mkv-pavtube-bytecopy.html
http://www.makemkv.com/aboutmkv/

General info on MKV - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matroska


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## RTS100x5

DVD FAB for ripping dvd and blurays ....not free but worth every penny .....XBMC for playback across any network and it is free / looks and sounds excellent .... I would also recommend movies stored to a NAS.... Apple TV is nice but only 720p lddude:


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## Tim Reed

cburbs, so, what it exactly is a NAS and how does it all work? Do you still need a dedicated computer on at all times using a NAS? And does itunes support MKV video format? Or would i just have to get a Roku with XBMC instead? All this home media server stuff is all new to me so sorry if im asking to many questions?


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## RKolbi

Tim,
A NAS is a network attached storage device, this could be a full blown server or a small device that is no bigger than a wifi router - check at tigerdirect.com, you'll find plenty of them. If you go the Apple route I'm pretty sure your files would have to be mp4/m4v and a NAS cannot share those files to a AppleTV via home sharing, (you need iTunes to do that) only if you hacked the AppleTV and with the latest version it's not yet possible. 

If you don't want to stick to the Apple way what I recommend to you is the following:
- $90.00 Western Digital WD TV Live Streaming Media Player W10-9404
1080p, HDMI, USB, Built-in WiFi. Stream hit movies, TV shows, sports, games, and popular Internet entertainment such as YouTube, Facebook, Netflix and more! Plays the widest variety of file formats including MKV, MP4, XVID, AVI, WMV, and MOV. Wirelessly stream online content, videos, music, and photos to your TV. Play media from USB drives, network drives, and any PC or Mac computer in your home.
- $389.00 Iomega 35430 StorCenter ix2-200 Network Storage - 4TB, 2x 3.5" 
These two items combined would put you just below your limit and be simple to operate. Or if you have an old PC hanging around you could turn that into a NAS with something like FreeNAS… Slap 4 hard drives in there and make a raid to share out. That way can save you some money and be very robust but it can be a little tricky to setup. Since you're just starting out, I would say go with the WD Live and Iomega NAS in raid 1 (data is written identically to two drives, thereby producing a "mirrored set" so in case one hdd fails you don't loose your data).

RTS100X5,
Up until the AppleTV 2 you are correct, however the new version that just came out, AppleTV 3, has full 1080P.

FYI, here's how my stuff is works:
-Commercial Linux Server running RedHat, sharing a 4x2TB raid 5. This holds all our multimedia and personal files. Also runs backup service for all our computers.
-Mac Mini as a dedicated iTunes server using home sharing, also we use this for Video Skype and some other stuff but it is always on and can be viewed on the projector.
-AppleTV's, we have five of them all over the house - wether we want to watch a bought an iTunes movie or want to watch one on the server (via mac mini home sharing) this does it all and is simple enough for my wife and kids to operate.


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## megageek

Good idea's in the above post. 
Id'd add since you already have a ps3, try getting the nas first and hooking it up to your ps3. You will have slightly less file type options but may serve as a cheap meantime option.
Also download 'ps3 media server' for your macbook. Through this program you should be able to stream from your mac and it will help with any mkv's you mite have by 'unpacking' them for the ps3 on the fly. This is a 'computer running all the time' option tho.


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## cburbs

To add to what RKolbi mentioned -
I would also think about data growth so your not buying something today and then buying another $300/400 item in 6 months.
So how much data do you think might go on this NAS? If you leave a BR rip as is they can be 18gb - 40gb in size that will eat up space quickly.

If you think your NAS may grow in size over the next year then you might want to think of Freenas/WHS2011/unRAID. All of these you can add Hard drives to as your data grows. 

Like mentioned some of these can be run off of old PCs.


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## Tim Reed

Thankyou all for the information. Ive done some more research and I think I decided I will buying the Iomega ix4-200d NAS and a Roku. I hope this works out well for me. I'll just rip my moves on my macbook pro to the NAS. I dont really want a dedicated HTPC so thats why im going with this option. Just one thing... Can I get Plex on the Roku? Cause it finds all kinds of meta data, i really like that.


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## RKolbi

I am not that familiar with the Roku's but I think the only way to play network shares through them is via the plex "channel" - and I think that needs to hook up to a plex server, which runs on an computer - I'm not sure and can be totally wrong, hopefully someone else puts forth some knowledge on this one.


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## cburbs

Doesn't one of the devices need to be running plex server? If so can that be done on the Iomega?

That device looks pricey for what you are getting. At that price you could build a decent unRAID machine.

HP ProLiant N40L Ultra Micro Tower Server System AMD Turion II Neo N40L 1.5GHz 2C 2GB (1 x 2GB) 1 x 250GB LFF SATA 658553-001 $349.99
(5) 2tb hard drives at $120 = $600
Single unRAID Server Plus Registration key ... $69

Sometimes you can find deals on the HP - I got mine for $199 and newegg has it for $249 seems like monthly you just have to be watching for the deal on a daily basis.

The one reason I don't like these pre built nas boxes is the support may not be the greatest if you are trying to run say Plex, Squeezebox, and other items on it. The other thing is the companies seem to come out with replacement items on a yearly basis so then they support that new device and the other one may be out of support. 

As an example here is some server plugins available if you are running the newest version of unRAID - http://lime-technology.com/wiki/index.php?title=UnRAID_Plugins.

WHS/Freenas also have plugins available as well just not sure which ones as I don't keep up with those items. 

Also if you want to read a little on unRAID this is a good article. http://www.mediasmartserver.net/2011/05/18/guide-unraid-server-part-1-the-journey-to-unraid/

Also I know for the Roku there is this -
http://roksbox.com/home/


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## Tim Reed

cBurbs


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## Tim Reed

cBurbs, thankyou so much. I just read your links and looked into the HP ProLiant N40L Ultra Micro Server and this sounds like a really great solution to exactly what I been looking for. I found the server cheap HERE and unRaid seems like the perfect piece of software to run it all! I'll just install Plex... Import all my movies/music/pics and use the Roku's to get everything streamed to my TVs. I hope it works. 

Do you think Green drives would be a good choice? Are they fast enough for streaming DVD and BD quality moves?


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## cburbs

Yes green drives work fine. Mine are all green. I would be careful buying from a place like that. Make sure you look them up to see if they are reliable. I bought mine from Macmall when they had it for $199. I haven't seen it for $199 in a while more like $249 which is still a good price.

The nice thing is if you want you can start out small - Use the basic package with 3 drives say 2tb parity and 2(2tb) drives for 4tb storage as an example.


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## Tim Reed

o yes, I just looked them up last week... And it seems that the website is a scam site from China. I guess I'll have to find an other more reputable retailer. Maybe Newegg or Tiger that i can trust


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## WRYKER

Hmm - I have a Popcorn Hour A110 and love the GUI on it (movie posters etc) however it does not support blu-ray .iso's nor blu-ray 3D rips (.ts/.m2ts). Does anyone have a suggestion on a media player that supports a similar GUI (YAMJ) and support 3D rips?
I have 14TB's hooked up to it via USB dongles (Fantom green drives) so no need for storage - just a 'player' like the Popcorn Hour.


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## hjones4841

Tim Reed said:


> Hi all, I'm new here at these forums and have many things to learn when if come to home media servers.
> Currently I have a MacBook PRO a wireless n router and a PS3 connected to my Sharp Quatron 46. I have hundreds of DVDs and now been getting blurays. I want to set up a home media server but I'm not sure what else i need to do so. Is there a way i can rip my dvds and bluray bit by bit perfect copy to my external hardrive to stream over to PS3 or maybe a Roku if i buy one? I have maybe 400-500 dollars to spend if i need other equipment. I have read about NAS drives but I'm not sure how it all works. Any help would be appreciated, thanks. And yes I'm a complete newbie, sorry.


I really like the Netgear NeoTV 550. I have several in the house and they work very well, including support for blu ray menus. They are about to be discontinued so updates won't be available. However, they are priced about $85 on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Netgear-NTV550-NETGEAR/dp/B004EEOA9U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338376131&sr=8-1

For storage, I use Western Digital My Book Live hard drives. They are available in 1TB, 2TB and 3TB versions. They connect to your network with a 1GB interface. I have found them to be very reliable and easy to set up. You can rip your discs from your computer directly to them via your network, then play them back on your media streamer. No need for a computer to be running all the time; the Live Drive does the work for you.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...=my+book+live&sprefix=my+book,electronics,166

I don't think the Roku will stream from your network. It is basically an internet streamer (Netflix, Hulu, etc.)


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## WRYKER

hjones4841 said:


> I really like the Netgear NeoTV 550. I have several in the house and they work very well, including support for blu ray menus. They are about to be discontinued so updates won't be available. However, they are priced about $85 on Amazon:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Netgear-NTV550-NETGEAR/dp/B004EEOA9U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338376131&sr=8-1


Does the Netgear support 3D BD iso's?


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## hjones4841

WRYKER said:


> Does the Netgear support 3D BD iso's?


I don't know for sure. Check out 

http://forum1.netgear.com/forumdisplay.php?f=111.


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