What is Home Media Server??
A media server is a network device which acts as a central location for users to access media files on a network. There are three main components to any media server system:
All of these three components must be able to talk to each other — typically they are connected by a local area network (but it may also be connected by wireless methods).
Finally, a media server system also needs to have appropriate media server software to allow users to actually communicate with the server and access files.
We can’t buy anything to set up a media server as we will need specialized components for better performance, for instance we can’t install standard HDD (WD / Seagate Standard HDD’s) in the server instead we will need an Enterprise-grade HDD (Seagate IronWolf/ WD Red Etc) for our server.
For manually creating a home server we need :
CPU
— High Performance Intel & AMD Processors
RAM
— HyperX Fury 4x8GB DDR3–1600
HDD
— Seagate IronWolf / Pro 4TB-10TB
SSD
— Samsung 840EVO
Motherboard
— Asrock Z77 Pro4-M
Case
— Fractal Design Define Mini
Cooler
— Thermalright Le Grand Macho RT
PSU
— Seasonic 400W Fanless
OS
— FreeNas or Ubuntu Server
For manual setup, we will need hardware like this. the major drawback of this type of Operating Systems (FreeNas & Ubuntu Server) is that they don’t have any mobile applications so we have to use third parties apps which have another level issue in setting them up and these servers consumes a tremendous amount of electricity for a home use.
To get rid of this, I would prefer Ready To Use Nas devices which are the better option for home users and small business users. As per market recommendation, The best Nas service for home/small-Business users is SYNOLOGY.
Synology has a wide variety of NAS systems according to your need.
The Best Budget NAS is a Synology NAS DS218+
In the next section, I will tell you the pros and cons of it and also I share my complete setup to you all.
Synology DiskStation DS218+ features a dual-core processor with AES-NI encryption engine and transcoding engine, providing high-speed file transfers and supporting real-time 4K transcoding. DS218+ is ideal for protecting critical assets and sharing files across different platforms. Synology DS218+ is backed by Synology’s 2-year limited warranty.
Synology DiskStation DS218+ is designed for home users or small businesses pursuing a compact and reliable shared storage solution, offering the flexibility to expand the 2 GB RAM to up to 6 GB RAM to process intensive workloads. DS218+ features a dual-core 2.0 GHz processor with a burst frequency of 2.5 GHz. With AES-NI, DS218+ delivers encrypted performance of up to 113 MB/s reading and 112 MB/s writing under RAID 1 configuration1 . DS218+ comes with three USB 3.0 ports. The hot-swappable drive tray design allows easy installation and maintenance on 3.5-inch HDDs without additional tools.
Its comes with its own operating system : DSM
It covers all the mobile operating systems such as Android, IOS and also Major Linux Distros . It holds low powered Intel Celeron which consumes less power.
Hardware Used with It :
HDD : Seagate IronWolf 2TB To 12TB
Expansion RAM :
1. Synology RAM DDR3L-1866 SO-DIMM 4GB (D3NS1866L-4G), OR
2. HyperX 4GB 1866MHz DDR3L CL11 1.35V SODIMM HyperX Impact Laptop Memory HX318LS11IB/4
First of all made all the connection and Install the Hard Drives and RAM.
After Successfully connecting the server to home router and open the browser. there are two ways to find synology on your network :
Fill up your preferred username and password & setup quick-connect.
1. First of all check for DSM Updates
2. Right Top corner ➢ Personal Settings
3. Control Panel Settings
4. Package Center Settings
Package Center ➢ Settings ➢ Click on check Box of “Synology Inc and Trusted Publishers”
This will add Some Extra Packages to the Package Manager.
5. Some Must Packages (For Home Users)
Package Manager ➢ All Packages
1. Purchase a domain name.
For my server, I’ve purchased a domain from NameCheap.com and have also setup personal email trial service. It will require in adding SSL to your domain.
2. DNS Settings to Connect Your Domain To Your Server
Add your records to your domain. As in my setup my sub-domain is Synologyds, You can set your sub domain as you want.
3. Add SSL To Your Domain Name
You can add any free SSL Certificate to your domain name but if you want a paid and trusted SSL like the one I’ve using for my domain. you can purchase it from best ssl service like Comodo DV SSL
Go to WoTrus Certificate Store ➢ Purchase Comodo DV SSL ➢
Now go to Tool Section :
Settings for your Synology Server
Go to Control Panel ➢
Synology have vast variety of apps for Both Android & IOS Devices
Download : DS File & DS Photo App
Windows : You can take backup of your important folders automatically to this server
Go to Settings ➢ Update and Security ➢ Backup
Select a drive for backup
In this step you will face a problem in selecting a drive for which you have to Download Synology Assistant App for windows then create a folder in server you want to save your backup then map this folder as a drive and then select folders you want to take backup regularly.
You can also setup a shared folder via the Synology Cloud Station App. You can create a folder in any drive of pc then to put anything in it which will be automatically synced to your other computers which have this cloud station installed.
For Large Files :
If you want to make a backup of a particular folder of your server then you will need to install Hyper backup. This hyper backup package will let you backup your selected folder in server regularly and also allows you to backup from google drive and another different cloud vendors.
You can do a vast variety of things with this small box. you can host a custom email server, a word-press website, backup module for your small business, media server,plex server, also host a custom git server and etc etc. you can also manage your server through mobile browser or a DS Finder App.
𝕱𝖔𝖑𝖑𝖔𝖜 𝖒𝖊 𝖔𝖓 𝕴𝖓𝖘𝖙𝖆𝖌𝖗𝖆𝖒 @hypnosisss___ & 𝕿𝖜𝖎𝖙𝖙𝖊𝖗 @akash_rajvanshi