Media Server (PLEX) and NAS / Problems / help

[MrSimplicity]

Okay so yesterday i had a post up on what parts to get to build a server and i never really got responses so i took what i already had and headed to microcenter and got the rest. So now i have a system as follows:

 

MB: Asrock B365 Pro4

CPU: 8700K

RAM: 32 GB Gskill 3200Mhz 16x2

Storage: 256gb nvme ssd

              8TB Seagate Barracuda

              8TB Seagate External Drive (that i had previously that has been hosting all of my movies and shows)

PSU: Corsair 750 watt

GPU: 980Ti (cuz why not)

OS: Windows 10 Pro (will change if necessary, not familiar with linux bases OS' or FreeNAS but am willing to convert)

 

Now for what i'm deal with: It took me a bit to get network file sharing to work, was a lot easier back on windows 7, but eventually did. Then was running into issues with administrator privileges on TeamViewer so i eventually realized to use Remote Desktop being that it's already built into windows. Though after i got Remote Desktop all setup with multiple users to have access to their own files on the NAS, I no longer can access the shared folders on the network. This isn't really an issue as I'd rather take a more technical approach to that anyways. So i scoured the Internet on how to setup a Local FTP Server. No matter what i did i just can not get it to work. I tried the FTP Service built into windows and did everything and more that all the tutorials said to do. Then i decided maybe there's a program out there to make this easier and found FileZilla's FTP Server but couldn't for the life of me get that to work either.

 

I like having the option to just use Remote Desktop as i'm familiar with it since i use it at work. Being that i also use it as my source of acquiring said movies and shows instead of my gaming PC. So is there a way that i can get my network accessible shared folders back or more preferably someone to help me get FTP to work.

[Jarsky]

5 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

Now for what i'm deal with: It took me a bit to get network file sharing to work, was a lot easier back on windows 7, but eventually did.

Sharing is the same in Windows 7 vs Windows 10. 

-Check your connection is using the appropriate network profile (e.g Private)

-In Network & Internet Settings > Sharing Options - Turn on Network Discovery and the File & Printer Sharing

-Right click the Folder/Drive you want to share > Properties > Sharing > Share

Add the local user accounts you want to access the share, and their permission level. 

If you want everyone to be able to access it, then the user is 'Everyone'

 

5 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

 

Then was running into issues with administrator privileges on TeamViewer so i eventually realized to use Remote Desktop being that it's already built into windows. Though after i got Remote Desktop all setup with multiple users to have access to their own files on the NAS, I no longer can access the shared folders on the network.

What did you change? Why do you need to give users RDP if you're mapping a share?

 

5 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

This isn't really an issue as I'd rather take a more technical approach to that anyways.

SMB/CIFS (Windows File Sharing) isnt a less "technical" approach to FTP, its a different use case. 

If you don't need to edit/access files "live" then yeah FTP works, but for editing documents, watching/listening to media files, etc.....FTP is horrible, as you have to transfer the entire file locally. You also have to reupload the entire file to update it on the server. 

 

5 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

So i scoured the Internet on how to setup a Local FTP Server. No matter what i did i just can not get it to work. I tried the FTP Service built into windows and did everything and more that all the tutorials said to do. Then i decided maybe there's a program out there to make this easier and found FileZilla's FTP Server but couldn't for the life of me get that to work either.

IIS FTP is horrible to work with if you don't work with IIS. FileZilla Server is a good one. 

Free TFTP from SolarWinds is really good as well as a free alternative. 

 

What trouble are you having with FTP? What errors are you getting when you try to connect using a client?

 

5 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

I like having the option to just use Remote Desktop as i'm familiar with it since i use it at work. Being that i also use it as my source of acquiring said movies and shows instead of my gaming PC. So is there a way that i can get my network accessible shared folders back or more preferably someone to help me get FTP to work.

 

SMB would be the best way of working with media like this at home, since you can direct stream it with media players (VLC,mpv,mpc,etc....) and attach it to things like Kodi, Plex, etc....

 

Need more info  on what you've troubleshooted though, and what you're experiencing.

 

Do you see the shared folders if you go to \\<servername>  in your File Explorer?

What happens when you try click on a share?

If you open Computer Management on the Server and go to "System Tools > Shared Folders > Shares" - what do you see?

[MrSimplicity]

13 hours ago, Jarsky said:

-Check your connection is using the appropriate network profile (e.g Private)

My god i'm dumb i was so focused on everything else and RDP and a FTP i forgot about that... So that works again.

 

13 hours ago, Jarsky said:

What did you change? Why do you need to give users RDP if you're mapping a share?

Well I was just fucking around with it and I like the way RDP works. I was trying to run things as admin (i.e. CMD and Powershell) and in teamviewer the screen goes black unless you babysit the server and for me that's in a different part of the house. Also I'm basically the only one that will be using RDP so it's not really an issue as far as anything goes really. I also plan on run games servers off of it too at times, probably won't be a 24/7 use case cuz my roommate gets bored of games and moves on quickly. So a server doesn't last more than maybe a few days.

 

13 hours ago, Jarsky said:

What trouble are you having with FTP? What errors are you getting when you try to connect using a client?

I've done almost everything... Port forwarding, managing every port in firewall, even trying to just fully open it to the internet (which i do eventually want to do if i get requests for movies that someone wants to watch while I'm at work). Everytime I try to connect it just says connection timed out and could not connect. The main reason i want to use FTP over basic file sharing is because I like the interface better. For me it just seems more fluid when i comes to file transfers. FileZilla's GUI is better for me than just having 2 file explorer windows next to each other.

 

13 hours ago, Jarsky said:

Do you see the shared folders if you go to \\<servername>  in your File Explorer?

What happens when you try click on a share?

So after i made sure both the server and my PC were both on "private" i can access the folders again. Before it still showed up but it just said i didn't have access to it even after messing with permissions for hours.

 

-----------------------------

 

So the case really is that other than occasionally running a game server and using RDP to download the movies and shows directly on the server, i don't want to be just downloading random files and such on the server. It doesn't bother me risking my main PC cuz I only game on it, if something happens i can always just start over with windows. I want to be able to avoid that at all costs with the server. So my plan is to use my PC to test programs or download plugins and such then transfer them to the server. Also actually using it as a NAS to backup my PC. I don't really think i'm explaining it all that well but I like the way FTP works and it's always felt faster to navigate than the network folders.

13 hours ago, Jarsky said:

SMB would be the best way of working with media like this at home

Also what is SMB and the benefits of it?

[Jarsky]

6 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

Well I was just fucking around with it and I like the way RDP works. I was trying to run things as admin (i.e. CMD and Powershell) and in teamviewer the screen goes black unless you babysit the server and for me that's in a different part of the house. Also I'm basically the only one that will be using RDP so it's not really an issue as far as anything goes really. I also plan on run games servers off of it too at times, probably won't be a 24/7 use case cuz my roommate gets bored of games and moves on quickly. So a server doesn't last more than maybe a few days.

Yeah the black screen is a known thing caused by UAC (User Account Control). I just RDP personally for managing servers. TeamViewer should generally be used more as a support tool. You can disable UAC, but its not advised generally from a security perspective. 

 

6 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

I've done almost everything... Port forwarding, managing every port in firewall, even trying to just fully open it to the internet (which i do eventually want to do if i get requests for movies that someone wants to watch while I'm at work). Everytime I try to connect it just says connection timed out and could not connect. The main reason i want to use FTP over basic file sharing is because I like the interface better. For me it just seems more fluid when i comes to file transfers. FileZilla's GUI is better for me than just having 2 file explorer windows next to each other.

OK so connection timed out.....is this from your PC on the local network, to the server?

Can you open Command Prompt, and run the below command and advise the output

telnet <server name/ip> 21

Also open Command Prompt on the server, and run the below 2 commands and advise the output

telnet localhost 21

netstat -ano | findstr ":21"

 

6 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

So after i made sure both the server and my PC were both on "private" i can access the folders again. Before it still showed up but it just said i didn't have access to it even after messing with permissions for hours.

Sounds like you may have enabled filesharing on only the Private network, and not on Public/Guest.....In Network & Sharing Center > Advanced sharing settings...if you look you'll actually see drop downs for each of the different profiles. Private, Guest or Public, Domain, and All Networks. If you go into the Guest or Public, and enable file sharing in there then it should stop your server from being inaccessible if it ever happens again. 

 

6 hours ago, MrSimplicity said:

-----------------------------

 

So the case really is that other than occasionally running a game server and using RDP to download the movies and shows directly on the server, i don't want to be just downloading random files and such on the server. It doesn't bother me risking my main PC cuz I only game on it, if something happens i can always just start over with windows. I want to be able to avoid that at all costs with the server. So my plan is to use my PC to test programs or download plugins and such then transfer them to the server. Also actually using it as a NAS to backup my PC. I don't really think i'm explaining it all that well but I like the way FTP works and it's always felt faster to navigate than the network folders.

Also what is SMB and the benefits of it?

SMB or CIFS, is the Windows File Sharing protocol, its what File Explorer uses for navigating your network share, and what allows you to just simply click on a video file and play it locally without copying the entire file to your computer. Or be able to edit a document without copying it, editing it, reuploading it. 

 

 

[MrSimplicity]

1 hour ago, Jarsky said:

OK so connection timed out.....is this from your PC on the local network, to the server?

Can you open Command Prompt, and run the below command and advise the output

telnet <server name/ip> 21

Also open Command Prompt on the server, and run the below 2 commands and advise the output

telnet localhost 21

netstat -ano | findstr ":21"

So it says telnet is not recognized as a command on either CMD or PS, I ran both as admin as well... I ran a ping though and it pinged fine until it came to the port, I think that's due to i basically reset everything and unistalled the FTP servers and undid the port forwards. So i am back at square one. When i get or find better instructions I'd rather start from the beginning.

 

and yes this was on my main PC which is on the same LAN as the server

 

1 hour ago, Jarsky said:

Sounds like you may have enabled filesharing on only the Private network, and not on Public/Guest

as far as that goes i did in fact have filesharing turned on for all 3 on both computers.

[Jarsky]

21 minutes ago, MrSimplicity said:

So it says telnet is not recognized as a command on either CMD or PS, I ran both as admin as well... I ran a ping though and it pinged fine until it came to the port, I think that's due to i basically reset everything and unistalled the FTP servers and undid the port forwards. So i am back at square one. When i get or find better instructions I'd rather start from the beginning.

 

and yes this was on my main PC which is on the same LAN as the server

 

as far as that goes i did in fact have filesharing turned on for all 3 on both computers.

 

You can install telnet client through "Turn Windows Features on or off"

Telnet is used for testing TCP connectivity, in particular to check if certain ports are reachable. 

 

But yeah if you have no service running on that port since you uninstalled Filezilla, then it will just time out, or connection refused. 

[MrSimplicity]

Just now, Jarsky said:

 

You can install telnet client through "Turn Windows Features on or off"

Telnet is used for testing TCP connectivity, in particular to check if certain ports are reachable. 

 

But yeah if you have no service running on that port since you uninstalled Filezilla, then it will just time out, or connection refused. 

I'll get it all back up and running and try that.

[MrSimplicity]

2 hours ago, Jarsky said:

Also open Command Prompt on the server, and run the below 2 commands and advise the output

telnet localhost 21

netstat -ano | findstr ":21"

C:\Windows\system32>telnet localhost 21

 

220-FileZilla Server 0.9.60 beta
220-written by Tim Kosse (tim.kosse@filezilla-project.org)
220 Please visit https://filezilla-project.org/

 

----------------

 

C:\Windows\system32>netstat -ano | findstr ":21"

  TCP    0.0.0.0:21             0.0.0.0:0              LISTENING       11732
  TCP    [::]:21                [::]:0                 LISTENING       11732
  TCP    [::1]:52191            [::1]:21               TIME_WAIT       0

 

2 hours ago, Jarsky said:

OK so connection timed out.....is this from your PC on the local network, to the server?

Can you open Command Prompt, and run the below command and advise the output

telnet <server name/ip> 21

C:\WINDOWS\system32>telnet 192.168.1.39 21
Connecting To 192.168.1.39...Could not open connection to the host, on port 21: Connect failed

 

------------------

So if I'm not dumb and kind of know what I'm looking at. The server is running and working and my PC just doesn't connect. either that or I have failed to configure something and i have no idea what.

[Jarsky]

8 minutes ago, MrSimplicity said:

C:\Windows\system32>telnet localhost 21

 

220-FileZilla Server 0.9.60 beta
220-written by Tim Kosse (tim.kosse@filezilla-project.org)
220 Please visit https://filezilla-project.org/

 

----------------

 

C:\Windows\system32>netstat -ano | findstr ":21"

  TCP    0.0.0.0:21             0.0.0.0:0              LISTENING       11732
  TCP    [::]:21                [::]:0                 LISTENING       11732
  TCP    [::1]:52191            [::1]:21               TIME_WAIT       0

 

C:\WINDOWS\system32>telnet 192.168.1.39 21
Connecting To 192.168.1.39...Could not open connection to the host, on port 21: Connect failed

 

------------------

So if I'm not dumb as kind of know what I'm looking at. The server is running and working and my PC just doesn't connect. either that on I have failed to configure something and i have no idea what.

 

Yup so what the netstat tells us is that port 21 (Default FTP Port) is listening. 

The local telnet tells us that youre able to connect to the FTP server on that port. 

 

The remote telnet, tells us that connection to that port is blocked. aka a Firewall. 

 

 

So assuming you're using the built in Windows Defender Firewall, you could try disabling  it for testing purposes

 

 

 

If that works its a matter of configuring your firewall rule. You can add it by making Filezilla Server an allowed app

 

 

[MrSimplicity]

@Jarsky Well you're a f*cking life saver. So that works, now if you're up for it, could you help me get it to work over WAN as well. Sometimes i download things on my phone while im at work and while working 10-12 shifts I'd like to get things uploaded to my media server promptly. 

 

I think though it's working cuz the console entries match up but i can't seem to browse the file system or upload.

[Jarsky]

7 minutes ago, MrSimplicity said:

@Jarsky Well you're a f*cking life saver. So that works, now if you're up for it, could you help me get it to work over WAN as well. Sometimes i download things on my phone while im at work and while working 10-12 shifts I'd like to get things uploaded to my media server promptly. 

 

I think though it's working cuz the console entries match up but i can't seem to browse the file system or upload.

to get it to work over WAN theres just the 2 things

- You need to have a dedicated IP address from your ISP, not shared (e.g CGNAT...its most commonly used for mobile broadband)

- Forward the port in your router configuration

 

You can use whatever port you want externally, you could just try port 21, and forward it to 192.168.1.39  Port 21. 

You can find instructions for your router on https://portforward.com

 

Keep in mind most ISP's give you a dynamic IP address, so you either need to request a Static IP address, or use a DynDNS service such as DuckDNS so you always have a way to reach it. 

[MrSimplicity]

1 minute ago, Jarsky said:

to get it to work over WAN theres just the 2 things

- You need to have a dedicated IP address from your ISP, not shared (e.g CGNAT...its most commonly used for mobile broadband)

- Forward the port in your router configuration

 

You can use whatever port you want externally, you could just try port 21, and forward it to 192.168.1.39  Port 21. 

You can find instructions for your router on https://portforward.com

 

Keep in mind most ISP's give you a dynamic IP address, so you either need to request a Static IP address, or use a DynDNS service such as DuckDNS so you always have a way to reach it. 

Thank you so much. I'll look into that and see what i can come up with. If i can't get it, it won't be the end of the world.