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Sharing Plex Media Servers in Trinidad

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 2:13 pm

Synology DS1515+, the only other I would suggest is Qnap but they don't work as well with apple products. That's another reason I went with synology, seamless interaction with Apple products including time machine (I have an apple household).

The DSxx15+ range is quite good and will handle 1080p transcoding but at moderate bitrates, moderate being 3MB/s. Your files are in direct play format anyway so no transcoding needed. That's why your Mac will use almost no CPU. Even with direct stream the synology will fare well if the container is mkv etc.

I'm actually upgrading my current synology with the 1515+
Last edited by KarbonFiber on October 26th, 2015, 2:39 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 2:16 pm

Also if you can, go with WD Reds for drives. Those drive have not failed me in my current synolgy.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » October 26th, 2015, 2:29 pm

the DS1515+ looks great, pricey, but great!

LOL'd at this review on Amazon:
It's like rollin' in a Bentley... on your way to pick up your G5 for a flight to Vegas... where you're greeted by naked supermodels fighting over who gets to eat Skittles out of your belly button.

My original needs were for a SOHO backup solution but this NAS does much, much more! The number of "production" devices in my home has increased steadily over the years and I needed to centralize storage/backups for a few MBPs, W7 laptops and a couple PCs. The main issue I have with backup solutions is that they are typically invisible and boring. I hate spending money on something with no "bling" factor. In the past, I paid a few Benjamins for a piece of hardware (w/ proprietary software included), set up some backup tasks and let it do it's thing. It is difficult to quantify the value of a backup and I know how important they are but let's be real for a second... You aren't getting any "WOW" features. Synology changed my perspective on that.

Setup was super easy and I had 4 (additional) GBs of RAM and five 4 TB WD Red HDDs installed and the unit booted up and running within 15 minutes. After that came the parity check so I called it a night and resumed setup in the AM. Synology's DSM is a superb piece of software. Come to think of it, it "is" what I love about this NAS. Hardware specs are great for home/small office needs and with LACP, throughput on the DS1515+ is jaw-dropping.

Setting up backups was a piece of cake. I set up a Time Machine folder for the Macs, and several other directories for the Windows gear. Next, I synced a couple of Google Drive accounts and mapped a few folders on some of the PCs. I then moved/consolidated all of my music/pics/video to the NAS and backed everything up to Glacier. I was impressed how quickly the reorganization was going and figured I would document the config, set everything on cruise control and walk away. I was feeling good but I didn't feel like I was Ballin'.

Somehow, in between looking at 26" dubs for my ride and four finger platinum rings, I stumbled across a bunch of nerds talking about something called PLEX. Turns out, this piece of software lets you turn your boring NAS into a disco ball-spinning, bass-thumpin', panty-dropping, entertainment center. I played with the free version of PLEX for about 15 minutes before deciding to go all-in on a lifetime subscription. A couple of days later I had everything (and I mean everything) hooked up on it. PLEX is serving (the nerd definition) music/vids/pics to my 3 MBPs, 2 PCs, 4 smartphones, 5 tablets, 1 Apple TV, 1 Roku, 3 Samsung SMART TVs, 2 XBOX 360s, and 1 XBOX One! Yay-yeah!!! Don't hate...

My baby's mama couldn't be happier! She's currently on vacation in Florida with the kiddos and has been enjoying the ease with which she can access all the media. Meanwhile, P-Daddy (me) is back at the crib gettin' his grind on with all of the new-found features. If Synology was an NBA player, I'd own it's jersey. You feel me?

UPDATE 06.13.15

Even though I really wasn't having any problems with the above setup, I upgraded the RAM to 16GB because... 'MURICA!!!
http://www.amazon.com/Synology-America-DiskStation-Attached-DS1515/dp/B00PTGQJL4

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 2:42 pm

Lol, yes indeed. That is what it's like using synology, I kid you not.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » October 26th, 2015, 2:49 pm

I'm liking that I can run PLEX on this directly!

as an external storage device, how fast is this? Let's say I have a folder with a 38MB Adobe Illustrator file on the 1515+ and i want to open it, edit it and save it. Do I have to wait to connect to the NAS, then wait for the drives to spin up, then open the folder and eventually open the file in one long time consuming process? Or does this feel like a USB 3 or thunderbolt attached external drive?

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby yudhistre » October 26th, 2015, 3:04 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:I'm liking that I can run PLEX on this directly!

as an external storage device, how fast is this? Let's say I have a folder with a 38MB Adobe Illustrator file on the 1515+ and i want to open it, edit it and save it. Do I have to wait to connect to the NAS, then wait for the drives to spin up, then open the folder and eventually open the file in one long time consuming process? Or does this feel like a USB 3 or thunderbolt attached external drive?


It depends. If the NAS is not in hibernation, then the file access is as fast as your network speeds allow. Lets say that both Computer and NAS are on Gigabit Ethernet and the NAS is awake then it is almost seamless, just as accessing a file from a USB3.0 flash drive. If you are on a Wi-Fi a/b/g, you are limited to the maximum transfer speeds the Wi-Fi router/network can allow.

If the NAS is in hibernation, it only takes 10 seconds (in my case) for it to wake up and have the file accessible.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Advent » October 26th, 2015, 3:16 pm

Stay away from the qnaps and apple products

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 3:18 pm

Duane...Lol, that sounds like accessing an old windows server.

Not at all. Once you go with NAS hard drives you won't have that problem, that why I was suggesting to go with WD red drives (these are NAS specific drives and they work).

I use my 412+ as a network attached drive and it is fast and that's with everything else running on my network.

Its really no different than accessing another mac on you network. Now if it's in hibernation then it takes a few sec to wake.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 3:23 pm

nemo looks like your thread got jacked, sorry.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » October 26th, 2015, 3:41 pm

^ nah we are still talking about Plex and sharing. One good option to share Plex you'd need a good NAS. So it's not off-topic.

I am plugging it in via ethernet to an Airport Extreme.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby nemo » October 26th, 2015, 3:49 pm

KarbonFiber wrote:nemo looks like your thread got jacked, sorry.


Nah I'm enjoying the exchanges. Nice to see more guys getting in on the discussion.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 26th, 2015, 6:22 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:^ nah we are still talking about Plex and sharing. One good option to share Plex you'd need a good NAS. So it's not off-topic.

I am plugging it in via ethernet to an Airport Extreme.


You will be surprised how well it works Duane. I have the same setup, direct connection to AirPort Extreme AC version.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby nemo » October 26th, 2015, 7:39 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:ok so I run Plex currently on my iMac 5K and stream it to my devices on the LAN and remotely to my mom and dad in Jamaica to their Roku, iPad etc

I have a FLOW 150Mb / 10Mb connection and everything runs smoothly, the iMac barely breaks a sweat streaming to 5 devices at once. ALL the movies are 1080p H264 AC3 5.1 ~384Kb/s.

I have a really good gigabit aluminum PC full tower with a 800watt PSU running a
Core i7 2600K
ASUS P8P67 Workstation mainboard - USB 3.0 and SATA III 6GB/sec and 2 x16 PCIe
Corsair 16GB DDR3 1600Mhz
EVGA GTX 460 1GB DDR5 SSC
Intel X25 120GB SSD
Corsair A70 CPU Cooler

just sitting there doing nothing - enough space in there for about 10 5.25" HDDs
I could build my own NAS.

I need a NAS solution for the home office anyway since my ReadyNAS NV+ kicked the bucket after 6 years.

Problem is I have zero experience with FreeNAS or setting up one. I'm the type that would prefer an unmanaged switch over a managed one - reason for switching entirely to Apple too, it just works.

So what do you suggest?



You have some very nice hardware there to build a sweet FreeNAS server. Onboard graphics is all you really need since this box is usually a headless unit you will have tucked away in a corner and you access it over the network via a web interface.

The OS is very small and is usually installed on a small USB drive permanently plugged into the server. The current recommended size is 8GB so you can save your 120GB SSD for better uses.

Since your case can handle up to about 10 drives you will need, if not now but at some point to decide how you're going to connect all those drives to your motherboard so some disk controller will be needed when you run out of SATA ports.

You download the OS for free and install on the USB stick quick and easy then access the web interface to begin configuration. You will need to set up your storage and configure RAID, create the shares you need and install and configure the Plex plugin. Though the actual UI may not be very intuitive to a newbie, you can start off by viewing some of the YouTube videos on installing and configuring FreeNAS and also consulting the documentation guide. Before you know it you will understand the general concepts and be up and running.

Some up front planning is needed when it comes to your RAID configuration depending on the number of drives you have available and the type of performance you're looking for. Don't want to have to change things up dramatically when you already have TB's of data stored.

Plex, BTsync, Bittorrent, Firefly and many other applications can be installed as individual plugins within FreeNAS, each with its own IP address giving you a really full featured server using parts you just had lying around.

I am by no means the sharpest tool in the shed, nor do I have any server administration or UNIX experience (not necessary but helpful since FreeNAS is based on FreeBSD) but I was able to get my server running within a day or two. It took me a little while to grasp permissions but once I sorted that out I was good to go. Running about 4 months now, 24/7, always ready to deliver when called upon.

Of course this is a basic explanation of things but you don't need to do the complex stuff to get running.
Last edited by nemo on October 27th, 2015, 12:48 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » October 26th, 2015, 8:15 pm

^ thanks! I think I'll give a try before investing a the Synology 1515+. The Synology interface looks considerably better though
KarbonFiber wrote:
Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:^ nah we are still talking about Plex and sharing. One good option to share Plex you'd need a good NAS. So it's not off-topic.

I am plugging it in via ethernet to an Airport Extreme.


You will be surprised how well it works Duane. I have the same setup, direct connection to AirPort Extreme AC version.
yup I have the AC version too

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby ninjabilly » October 26th, 2015, 8:23 pm

Not an expert my @$$, that was very well put together and brushes upon most of the most important features of Freenas. Nemo if you want to learn more there's the manual which is easily accessible from the webui, there is also the forums and irc for specific requests.

I started out like you but with freenas 7.0 it's been a long journey but keep plugging away at it and that nas of yours would surpass any off the shelf offering.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » October 27th, 2015, 12:13 am

ninjabilly wrote:Not an expert my @$$, that was very well put together and brushes upon most of the most important features of Freenas. Nemo if you want to learn more there's the manual which is easily accessible from the webui, there is also the forums and irc for specific requests.

I started out like you but with freenas 7.0 it's been a long journey but keep plugging away at it and that nas of yours would surpass any off the shelf offering.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
I'm trying to avoid the long journey though. I really just want something to store movies and be able to access it from any device anywhere. The Synology with PLEX seems to do that out the box.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » October 27th, 2015, 7:24 am

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:
ninjabilly wrote:Not an expert my @$$, that was very well put together and brushes upon most of the most important features of Freenas. Nemo if you want to learn more there's the manual which is easily accessible from the webui, there is also the forums and irc for specific requests.

I started out like you but with freenas 7.0 it's been a long journey but keep plugging away at it and that nas of yours would surpass any off the shelf offering.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk
I'm trying to avoid the long journey though. I really just want something to store movies and be able to access it from any device anywhere. The Synology with PLEX seems to do that out the box.


That's exactly correct, I have worked with all the free distros and while it allows for you to use what you have laying around, it's not plug and play. Don't get me wrong, I love tinkering (Kodi, hackintoshes,iot) but synology just gives that ease of mind.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby warrenc_alexis » October 28th, 2015, 3:45 pm

I have a Plex server. I only have a 3Mb uplink but it seems to work ok for one remote stream at least. Willing to exchange some server access to try someone else's.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby nemo » October 28th, 2015, 4:32 pm

warrenc_alexis wrote:I have a Plex server. I only have a 3Mb uplink but it seems to work ok for one remote stream at least. Willing to exchange some server access to try someone else's.


PM your Plex username or email. Even if you didn't have a server you'd be welcome to check mine out.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » November 4th, 2015, 9:05 am

Duane, did you build your server?

On another note have you guys seen the new Plex for Apple TV? Amazing!

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Duane 3NE 2NR » November 4th, 2015, 9:40 am

^ yes Plex for AppleTv was actually one of the biggest selling point for getting a new AppleTv for me. I currently own two AppleTVs, but the other features were'nt necessary as Plex is.

and yes I built the work/stationmyself, but I didn't convert it to a file server. I think I'll buy the 1515+ from Synology

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby S_2NR » November 4th, 2015, 11:21 am

KarbonFiber wrote:Actually S_2NR it's safe. You the owner of the server controls what each user has access to. Also I'm sure you have a proper firewall setup.
I have a synology server running Plex with remote access. I have multiple users accessing at a time and I can monitor activity and end point connections (devices)
You can also block/delete access to any user at anytime.

The problem occurs when people start sharing access from multiple end points and bog down your server. But then it's a simple delete of that particular device from access.

My upload not so hot. I think is 3mb

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby ninjabilly » November 4th, 2015, 11:29 am

Yeah same here just install plexpy, it gives you all the analytical info to manage users and usage.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Trinifieds » November 4th, 2015, 2:17 pm

Thought I'd chime in.. I have a 10TB server i built running FlexRAID. It was an extremly setup. I am using OpenMediaVault as the management front end and its so super simple. There are plugins for

AFP
SMB
FTP
SSH
Torrent
CouchPotato
Usenet

and tons more..you guys should check it out. I wont mind sharing my PlexServer user also

altnavpanel.png

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby ninjabilly » November 4th, 2015, 3:10 pm

OMV is a pretty good overall nas firmware, especially since it was built by one of the main developers from freenas 7.xx.

You can add me, ill pm you and share back once I have access to my nas.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Trinifieds » November 17th, 2015, 9:26 am

Anyone else with their server setup?


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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » December 29th, 2015, 12:30 pm

Current gone in my area and meh UPS dead. No plex access for a bit today.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby KarbonFiber » January 15th, 2016, 12:03 am

Guys can you view a few movies or tvshows from my server please. I upgraded my server and would like some feedback (choppy, slow etc)

Thanks, much appreciated.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby Trinifieds » January 15th, 2016, 5:58 am

No issues. No choppiness even when transcoding down to 720p. If you need more info let me know.

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Re: Sharing Plex Media Servers

Postby nemo » January 15th, 2016, 6:30 am

KarbonFiber wrote:Guys can you view a few movies or tvshows from my server please. I upgraded my server and would like some feedback (choppy, slow etc)

Thanks, much appreciated.



Looking good. No issues found either.

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