what OS to use?

[tetenteten]

Hello everyone,

 

I'm brand new to building a DIY NAS and I'm unsure which OS is best for my needs. That's why I'm asking you.

 

I have an old spare PC and I want to use it to stream media on my own network. Currently, I have a 2TB HDD and a 120GB SSD boot drive installed. In the future, I'd like to add 4x 8TB drives so I can stream movies, series, and music.

 

To keep electricity costs down, I want to shut down my NAS when it's not in use. I'll need Plex for streaming since I use a Samsung TV.

 

Which OS should I use for this purpose?

[Needfuldoer]

Unraid is relatively easy to set up.

 

TrueNAS Scale costs $0 and is very capable, but it doesn't give you much for guide rails. 

 

Running Windows on your NAS is a perfectly valid option if your machine has a Windows license.

[manikyath]

i'd say something like truenas.

 

also, realisticly, even with rates close to 50 cents per kwh you're only looking at maybe 20-30 bucks per year in power cost.

[tetenteten]

3 minutes ago, Needfuldoer said:

Unraid is relatively easy to set up.

 

TrueNAS Scale costs $0 and is very capable, but it doesn't give you much for guide rails. 

 

Running Windows on your NAS is a perfectly valid option if your machine has a Windows license.

Do i need winsdows server 2022 OS?

[Needfuldoer]

Just now, tetenteten said:

Do i need winsdows server 2022 OS?

Not at all. The regular desktop versions of Windows can present file shares over the network.