NAS setup to share movies with my friends

[Mouse-Potato]

Hello,

As the title says I am looking for a way to set up an external 8TB hard drive as a NAS server and then allow access to my friends so they can watch movies from my HD drive. They are located around the world so I am wondering if there is an easy way to set this up. Would it be possible to use a Raspberry Pi as the controller?

I'm not too good with NAS and server stuff so  anything would be helpful.

I would prefer to allow them a read only option, so they don't delete my files accidentally.

Has anyone ever tried or built somehting like this?

[Pixel5]

the big question here is how fast is the upload of your internet connection, this is what decides if this will work or not.

[NoxOps]

If you have the CPU and the bandwidth (upload) from your ISP, I would recommend using Plex as the streaming application, it's pretty easy to setup https://www.plex.tv/

[Mouse-Potato]

1 hour ago, Pixel5 said:

the big question here is how fast is the upload of your internet connection, this is what decides if this will work or not.

 

56 minutes ago, NoxOps said:

If you have the CPU and the bandwidth (upload) from your ISP, I would recommend using Plex as the streaming application, it's pretty easy to setup https://www.plex.tv/

 

As for hardware, I have an old laptop with an i7 and 8gb of ram, a media pc with a 2200G 8gigs of ram, and a RPi 2 B.

 

As for Plex do you have to pay to use it? Are there other free options?

 

Thanks again !

[Pixel5]

with your upload you wont even need any kind of transcoding to make this work.

 

you could literally take the new raspberry pi 4 and set it up with an external HDD, what exactly you would set up is depending how you want these people to be able to access the files, should it be a simple file share or an actual service like plex or Kodi

[Mouse-Potato]

1 minute ago, Pixel5 said:

with your upload you wont even need any kind of transcoding to make this work.

 

you could literally take the new raspberry pi 4 and set it up with an external HDD, what exactly you would set up is depending how you want these people to be able to access the files, should it be a simple file share or an actual service like plex or Kodi

Thanks for your response, what would be my options regarding file share and using a rpi 4? Install windows or linux? How would you go about setting this up if you were to do it?

 

Thank you !

[Jarsky]

I'd keep in mind that without transcoding, everything will have to run in its native resolution. 

This will mean that your friends connection (in regards to Download speed) to you, is just as important as your upload speed if you have 1080p content. And of course if they have a monthly allowance, this could blow out much easier if you have larger file types. 

 

Also make sure you have a standard dynamic or fixed IP address and not a shared one (CG-NAT) as your IP address would not be routable. 

 

If you have a dynamic IP then you'll need a domain name if you want them to access it directly, a dynamic one like DynDNS/No-IP would be best. 

 

In regards to RPi-4 best would be to run linux, like Raspbian. Theres plenty of guides

And just connect your external HDD by USB and mount it. 

You could create an SMB share of the mount, so that you can access it from your Windows PC and drag/drop files in there etc...

 

As for the licensing for Plex, people would only need PlexPass for the mobile app. Your friends can access it free through a browser. Best would be if they sign up with their own Plex account, and then you can grant them access so they can just see it under https://app.plex.tv/desktop

[Salacious B Crum]

3 minutes ago, Jarsky said:

As for the licensing for Plex, it only costs for the mobile app. Your friends can access it free through a browser. Best would be if they sign up with their own Plex account, and then you can grant them access so they can just see it under https://app.plex.tv/desktop

When did they start charging for the mobile app?

[Jarsky]

Just now, mrbilky said:

When did they start charging for the mobile app?

 

They don't, but unless its changed you've always had to have a Plex Pass for accessing a non-local Plex Server from the mobile app

I have a lifetime Plex Pass so not sure if this is still a thing

[Salacious B Crum]

1 minute ago, Jarsky said:

 

They don't, but unless its changed you've always had to have a Plex Pass for accessing a non-local Plex Server from the mobile app

I have a lifetime Plex Pass so not sure if this is still a thing

Yeah same here don't remember paying for the app though that may have been a thing in the past

[Jarsky]

4 minutes ago, mrbilky said:

Yeah same here don't remember paying for the app though that may have been a thing in the past

Pretty sure its always been free, but im referring to the Plex Pass subscription. 

Just did a quick search, and according to Plex Support its still a thing. 

 

https://support.plex.tv/articles/202526943-plex-free-vs-paid/

 

Quote

Our mobile apps (Android, iOS, Windows, Windows Phone) can be used for free, but have limitations.

• Until the mobile app is unlocked (through an in-app purchase or a Plex Pass subscription), video and music streamed from a Plex Media Server has a 1 minute limit, and photos will be watermarked.

 

[paddy-stone]

3 hours ago, Jarsky said:

Pretty sure its always been free, but im referring to the Plex Pass subscription. 

Just did a quick search, and according to Plex Support its still a thing. 

 

https://support.plex.tv/articles/202526943-plex-free-vs-paid/

 

 

Yeah, I have the android app that I paid for, it's not expensive though TBH... and I can use it on all my devices with no problems, ShieldTV, my phone, even my pi4 through KODI and plex plug-in (though it's not android), it's not perfect playback yet though as the pi4 still needs work.