I know. But I love the form factor of the J4 and the idea if silent, non-spinning drives. And also enough speed redundancy to allow for further future options like 4K and other file use over a (wired) network.
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Movie Server
- Thread starter rogo43
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I know. But I love the form factor of the J4 and the idea if silent, non-spinning drives. And also enough speed redundancy to allow for further future options like 4K and other file use over a (wired) network.
This is a pretty expensive option of just serving up your films. Why not get something like the HP N54l and put something like windows home server on it? That way you can put iTunes on to it. I was considering using a Mac mini but it seems like such a waste. In the UK it's on £100 cashback so is basically half price. Comes with a 250 gig drive, you just need to put some larger drives in and it's job done.
It's Windows, that's reason enough not to use it for me.
Okay, on a more serious note, the only supported redundancy offered is mirroring which doubles the cost per GB of storage. This assumes you even go down that path.
It's Windows, that's reason enough not to use it for me.
Okay, on a more serious note, the only supported redundancy offered is mirroring which doubles the cost per GB of storage. This assumes you even go down that path.
You have tons of different options from adding a cheap RAID card to setting up a software RAID in Linux or Windows.
Kind of surprised no one has mentioned Plex yet. Install the server app on your existing iMac, and the client app on any computers you would use to watch media. The server app will serve media to any of the clients in the background, allowing you to use the iMac for other tasks. The server can stream MANY file types, including M2TS.
As far as storage solutions, look at the OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2.
$260 for the empty box, and add hard drives to your liking (must be same size). With 3TB Seagates selling for $125 each, you could have a 12TB (9 usable TBs if arranged in a RAID 5) storage solution for around $750. If you have spare drives sitting around, your costs will come down.
Personally, I am using a Mac mini to run plex server (and client, because the mini is plugged in to the tv). My media is stored on a 12TB Synology NAS (a little more expensive than the OWC listed above, as it hooks up via ethernet instead of usb/firewire). I run the plex client app on the mini, an upstairs iMac, a jailbroken Apple TV 2, two iPhones and two iPads. Plex also works with the andriod platform, windows phones, and Raspberry Pi.
The only software supported raid is 1, aka mirroring. "Cheap" RAID cards are usually in the category of "you get what you pay for".
My post was strictly about Windows "Home Server" which isn't a stunningly awesome product IMO.
Linux is a different kettle of fish entirely.
Well thats just not true. You can create spanned, striped or mirrored in almost all versions of Windows.
A cheap raid card will be more than fine for home use. You need spend no more than £30-£50 on a raid card for home use.
I'm a Linux and OS X user but I can recognise the strength of other operating systems and like it or not, Windows is still one of the best out there. With the sheer amount of hardware Linux and Windows support, its amazing either ever work some times.
Except Windows home which only allows RAID1, a mirror pair.
You get what you pay for. Especially when it comes to something beyond RAID1
We'll have to have a gentlemanly disagreement on Windows being one of the best out there. Especially when you look at all of the *nix family.
I make my living between four and five nines of availability so my standards are fairly lofty.
So a MacMini and Synology? Why? I am trying to do something similar but was thinking about one or the other.
Because I spend more than enough time at the office dealing with servers, storage and backups so I wanted simple and effective at home.
Besides with multiple hundreds of movies I ripped from my blu-ray collection it's impractical to connect the storage directly to my Mac and manage. I'd rather use the Synology for that.
I personally use a Mac Mini with a USB 3.0 external drive connected to it which is loaded with all my movies. I'm running Plex on it which serves up movies across the house but the Mini is also directly connected to my livingroom TV so is both a server and client in one. The 2012 i5 mini runs cool and silently and of course it is sleeping as is the connected drive when not in use. 4 USB 3.0 ports make moving or increasing storage a breeze and of course it does a lot more when needed - iTunes server, download manager, media converter and can be accessed and controlled from anywhere for true flexibility.
Rogo43 -
I use a MacMini, 2 Drobos (Firewire 400 and Firewire 400/Lightening connector) and PLEX for my moving and TV show storage and playback -
PLEX with PlexPass purchase allows you to sync your media to any of you iDevices or other supported devices (android and the like)
Have been using this for a few years now -
too I use eyeTV with the Mini for DVR capabilities -
Low end Mini is all that is really needed - and really really simple, easy solution
I sit in the camp that would not consider Handbrake for any other purpose but lowering the quality and output to work on say an iPhone or iPad.
If you are looking to play back on a regular TV, perhaps have a receiver/AVR then keeping your files as m2ts (or uncompressed MKV) remains a great option.
Drobo - nice units but I am not a fan given they use a proprietary set up of the drives (once you put everything in Drobo you are kind of stuck with Drobo).
Mac Mini - can dish up m2ts files under OSX but will not handle HD audio streams but only the core. As example, if you use Plex or XBMC, it will play your movie but the DTS-Master will only out put the DTS core (same with Dolby counterpart). If your m2ts files only have DTS or Dobly, then you are good to go with various low end players up to the Mac Mini. If you want HD Audio to go to your receiver, then there are other options.
Here are some decent options -
Mac Mini - with XBMC live installed or use Windows7 with XBMC.
Dune HD media players - great bang for the buck and playback is very good.
Med8tor 500 or 1000 models - also has a good following.
Higher end Blu Ray players such as Oppo.
Storage - I find that network attached storage has the best of all worlds for the most part as long as you use cable not wireless. The newer AC draft wifi might change this but N is not sufficient in most cases to handle m2ts files at 1080p/i.
My set up - NAS (network attached storage) for all media (including music), my Mac Mini, my blu ray player, receiver and large screen TV.
The Mac Mini can do playback, my blu ray also and even the large screen TV can play many but not all of my files.
Costs - Mac Mini costs more than Dune. Dune's drawback is rather plain Jane Menus. Mac Mini of course keeps you going in the Apple environment but at a cost. Med8tor seems to play back well though some people have found some hiccups with it.
If you prefer directly attached storage, I would shy away from Drobo and go for something less proprietary. One thing to note - you don't need the fastest drives to play back m2ts files. A 5400 rpm drive is plenty fast if you use directly, via USB3, Firewire 800, TB or Ethernet.
Most of the time I use my Blu Ray player for playback as it does a great job. I use my Mac Mini to monitor and when working on a project, I hook it up to the large screen TV. My friend uses an older Dune Base 3 unit that has one drive inside and also connect to the network. I cannot honestly see a quality hit at all compared to my Blu Ray player in terms of quality of output. I do see minor difference with the Mac Mini and XBMC/Plex compared to the latter.
Hopefully the above gives you some food for thought in what path you prefer to go. Everyone has a different level of needs and wants.
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Mac Mini 2.0 quad server w/16 gigs RAM and SSD, Oppo Bdp103 Blu Ray Player, Panasonic VT50 65" plasma, Marantz NR162 AVR, QNAP NAS storage (2), TiVo3, NEC PA series monitor.
If you are looking to play back on a regular TV, perhaps have a receiver/AVR then keeping your files as m2ts (or uncompressed MKV) remains a great option.
Drobo - nice units but I am not a fan given they use a proprietary set up of the drives (once you put everything in Drobo you are kind of stuck with Drobo).
Mac Mini - can dish up m2ts files under OSX but will not handle HD audio streams but only the core. As example, if you use Plex or XBMC, it will play your movie but the DTS-Master will only out put the DTS core (same with Dolby counterpart). If your m2ts files only have DTS or Dobly, then you are good to go with various low end players up to the Mac Mini. If you want HD Audio to go to your receiver, then there are other options.
Here are some decent options -
Mac Mini - with XBMC live installed or use Windows7 with XBMC.
Dune HD media players - great bang for the buck and playback is very good.
Med8tor 500 or 1000 models - also has a good following.
Higher end Blu Ray players such as Oppo.
Storage - I find that network attached storage has the best of all worlds for the most part as long as you use cable not wireless. The newer AC draft wifi might change this but N is not sufficient in most cases to handle m2ts files at 1080p/i.
My set up - NAS (network attached storage) for all media (including music), my Mac Mini, my blu ray player, receiver and large screen TV.
The Mac Mini can do playback, my blu ray also and even the large screen TV can play many but not all of my files.
Costs - Mac Mini costs more than Dune. Dune's drawback is rather plain Jane Menus. Mac Mini of course keeps you going in the Apple environment but at a cost. Med8tor seems to play back well though some people have found some hiccups with it.
If you prefer directly attached storage, I would shy away from Drobo and go for something less proprietary. One thing to note - you don't need the fastest drives to play back m2ts files. A 5400 rpm drive is plenty fast if you use directly, via USB3, Firewire 800, TB or Ethernet.
Most of the time I use my Blu Ray player for playback as it does a great job. I use my Mac Mini to monitor and when working on a project, I hook it up to the large screen TV. My friend uses an older Dune Base 3 unit that has one drive inside and also connect to the network. I cannot honestly see a quality hit at all compared to my Blu Ray player in terms of quality of output. I do see minor difference with the Mac Mini and XBMC/Plex compared to the latter.
Hopefully the above gives you some food for thought in what path you prefer to go. Everyone has a different level of needs and wants.
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Mac Mini 2.0 quad server w/16 gigs RAM and SSD, Oppo Bdp103 Blu Ray Player, Panasonic VT50 65" plasma, Marantz NR162 AVR, QNAP NAS storage (2), TiVo3, NEC PA series monitor.
Phrehdd:
Your post implies that vendors other than Drobo with standard raid levels can be moved between the different vendors enclosures. Can't be done. At that level they are all proprietary.
Also Synology and NetGears ReadyNAS have similar RAID as you go technologies.
Your post implies that vendors other than Drobo with standard raid levels can be moved between the different vendors enclosures. Can't be done. At that level they are all proprietary.
Also Synology and NetGears ReadyNAS have similar RAID as you go technologies.
Be careful about cheap RAID cards - chances are they are software RAID cards. I had some for a while and they were forever "Resynching". Hardware RAID cards are so much better but more expensive, usually.
In the end I invested in some ReadyNAS units (plural so I could move RAID sets between them). Never been let down (even though there have been some H/W failures)
Currently running all of my media from a Mac Mini server (i7 QC 16GB RAM).
Everything is stored on an external NAS and shared through iTunes and everything is streamed to my 3 Apple TV's around the house. Works a treat along with streaming to all of our phones and iPads.
Going to upgrade to an 8 disk NAS later this year.
Everything is stored on an external NAS and shared through iTunes and everything is streamed to my 3 Apple TV's around the house. Works a treat along with streaming to all of our phones and iPads.
Going to upgrade to an 8 disk NAS later this year.
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Hi John - it was not my intention to suggest Drobo is alone in proprietary RAID options. However, typical RAID 1, 0, 01, 5, 6 with a Linux OS is far easier to access for issues than say Drobo or other non-standard RAID under other makers. Also, I don't recall implying one can move between various makers while Drobo cannot. What I do believe is that Drobo is a closed system because of its proprietary only option. Those that like Drobo will like Drobo for what it CAN do.
I do apologize if I gave the wrong impression or appear to be insulting or too cavalier.
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I've never seen this work in the real world.
There must be some disconnect between what you are desiring to say and what you are actually saying because once again this is wildly inaccurate.
I do apologize if I gave the wrong impression.[/QUOTE]
You're still doing it.
You're still doing it.[/QUOTE]
John, please (not sarcastic) educate me - can you go into the software of Drobo and make changes? Can you get into the software of Drobo at any level?
If not, then typical NAS coming from known makers that use typical RAID does have that advantage when there are issues.
Please tell me what exactly is inaccurate. I would appreciate it.
I can transfer data, do backups and more between various makers of NAS that use traditional RAID options and more.
The above isn't showing up when I quote!,
When I read this then I read it as implying that with Drobo that you cannot make backups, or transfer data from the Drobo.
On a Drobo all that you do is copy/transfer the contents of the Drobo Volume to another drive accessible on your system. On a Mac then as long as can read the HFS+ formatted volume then you can transfer data off it / back it up to another volume on any other device that you want to and is accessible.
The idea of the Drobo is that you don't NEED to get into the software. If there is a fault with the unit then Drobo replace it, ( presuming under warranty, and no different to any other vendor / solution at that point ) if the fault is with the disks then you simply replace with another disk and the Drobo rebuilds the data onto the replacement disk.
If a disk fails in the Drobo, then you can simply shutdown, remove the drive, and install a replacement. Drobo then rebuilds the data for that drive. ( Done Personally so can confirm works )
If the unit fails/requires replacing then you shutdown ( if not completely failed ) take the drives out and when get the replacement unit, place the drives back into the unit. Fire up and data is back. ( Done Personally so can confirm works )
You might not backup the Drobo etc in the same way that would expect with other NAS solutions but you can still backup / transfer data off a Drobo unit.
When the iTunes/Elgato was smaller then I made a backup of my Drobo to an External Drive, swapped the External Drive over for the Drobo and was able to work after disconnecting the Drobo with the External Drive in it's place.
The idea of the Drobo is that you don't have to spend the time yourself having to fix your Storage Solution. Hence why there aren't the options for fiddling with it yourself. Some people like to be able to tinker / tweak themselves, others prefer the approach of the work being done for you.
You pay's your money and makes your choice, however when it comes to the Proprietary Closed nature of the Drobo then the user doesn't lose anything compared to other solutions. They can still transfer there data off the unit and still make backups of the data on it. As such there is no need to stay away from Drobo's purely because of there Proprietary nature.
The above isn't showing up when I quote!,
When I read this then I read it as implying that with Drobo that you cannot make backups, or transfer data from the Drobo.
On a Drobo all that you do is copy/transfer the contents of the Drobo Volume to another drive accessible on your system. On a Mac then as long as can read the HFS+ formatted volume then you can transfer data off it / back it up to another volume on any other device that you want to and is accessible.
The idea of the Drobo is that you don't NEED to get into the software. If there is a fault with the unit then Drobo replace it, ( presuming under warranty, and no different to any other vendor / solution at that point ) if the fault is with the disks then you simply replace with another disk and the Drobo rebuilds the data onto the replacement disk.
If a disk fails in the Drobo, then you can simply shutdown, remove the drive, and install a replacement. Drobo then rebuilds the data for that drive. ( Done Personally so can confirm works )
If the unit fails/requires replacing then you shutdown ( if not completely failed ) take the drives out and when get the replacement unit, place the drives back into the unit. Fire up and data is back. ( Done Personally so can confirm works )
You might not backup the Drobo etc in the same way that would expect with other NAS solutions but you can still backup / transfer data off a Drobo unit.
When the iTunes/Elgato was smaller then I made a backup of my Drobo to an External Drive, swapped the External Drive over for the Drobo and was able to work after disconnecting the Drobo with the External Drive in it's place.
The idea of the Drobo is that you don't have to spend the time yourself having to fix your Storage Solution. Hence why there aren't the options for fiddling with it yourself. Some people like to be able to tinker / tweak themselves, others prefer the approach of the work being done for you.
You pay's your money and makes your choice, however when it comes to the Proprietary Closed nature of the Drobo then the user doesn't lose anything compared to other solutions. They can still transfer there data off the unit and still make backups of the data on it. As such there is no need to stay away from Drobo's purely because of there Proprietary nature.
phrehdd said:
Read the post above me by mcnally... He's parsing things the same way I am, so it is obviously not just me.
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mcnallym:
You're exactly right. In the end, it's a question of whether you want to deal with your own integration and support or buy an "appliance" for lack of a better word. Me? I spend enough hours at work wrangling a complex of servers and storage, so I'd rather buy an integrated solution for my house. I went with Synology, but that's really a matter of personal choice.
I'd challenge phredd to take the drives out of a ReadyNAS and put it into a QNAP (or Synology or whatever) and not lose the data. Even though RAID-5 itself is a defined technology, the implementations vary and it isn't as simple as pulling a set of drives from Vendor X and inserting them into Vendor Y and life is good.