Overview
As a dedicated family man and movie enthusiast, I cherish movie nights with my family. To save space and enhance our viewing experience, I designed and implemented a home media server that can be displayed directly on our living room TV. This server consolidates all my digital content in one place and allows remote access.
Hardware Setup
I repurposed an old Dell OptiPlex for the hardware. After thoroughly cleaning the system, I upgraded it with additional RAM and extra storage for digital content. I updated the Windows 10 operating system and removed unnecessary bloatware to ensure optimal performance.
Media Server Solution
After researching various media server solutions, I chose Plex due to its intuitive user interface and positive reviews. Plex allows integration with subscription services like Amazon Prime, Disney+, and Netflix, and has dedicated apps for both Android and Apple devices. Additionally, Plex uses metadata from IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes to create a polished UI for each movie.
Remote Access
For remote desktop access, I selected TeamViewer. It fits seamlessly into my current managed devices, is free for personal use, and provides end-to-end encryption for secure connections. TeamViewer allows me to monitor the media server from my phone, receive alert warnings, securely send files, and perform maintenance tasks remotely.
Network Drive Setup
I also set up a Network Drive between various devices on my home network. This enables me to send files from these devices to a specified location on the home server, ensuring easy and organized access to all digital content.
Skills Utilized and Developed
In this Portfolio Website project, I utilized my project management, coding, and networking skills to successfully bring the project to life. This experience helped me grow and develop these skills further, from designing and developing the website to pushing it into production.
Conclusion
This home media server project has significantly enhanced our family movie nights by providing a centralized, easily accessible digital content library. The combination of Plex and TeamViewer ensures a seamless and secure user experience, while the Network Drive setup facilitates efficient file management across devices.
Windows 10
Windows 10 was already on the system that I repurposed. There would have been no upside to changing this so i decided to ensure the OS is updated and use the Windows 10 security features to secure the media server. Windows 11 is not currently compatible with the hardware due to the lack of TPM2.0, however this is something that could be upgraded in the future.
TeamViewer
TeamViewer is used to remote access the system so i can located the PC in a location that suits. TeamViewer also allows me to monitor and access the device wherever I am in the world through their mobile app. With end-to-end encryption it is also secure.
Plex
I use Plex to store my media library which is accessible to both myself, friends and family. When I upload a single file, it will scrape data from various sources and create pages with the relevant information on the movie/tv show. In addition to movies, I have linked my paid subscriptions so it is all available in one package.