Music Server

[esefem]

My family has a large music library (200+ GB) and are all avid music fans. When my sisters and I each went off to university we created copies of the library. Through this we have ended up with multiple branches of the library which each of us have expanded independently. I would like to merge all these libraries into one master that I keep on a NAS.

 

In the end I hope to have a NAS in my apartment with the master library, which I could use to stream music to different devices in my house (primarily my computer and a Chromecast Audio connected to my main speakers).

 

 

 

Does anyone have experience merging media libraries? Due to the size I would need something automated.

 

Also what software should I use for managing the library on my NAS? All the libraries are currently in iTunes

 

Finally, would a basic NAS (eg a WD myCloud) be sufficient or should I build my own?

[Kirisha]

Do what I did, get an old but decent PC and setup a windows server 2012/16 machine to handle it and have each client connect to the library on itunes. I'm in the proccess of doing this, just need to sort out permissions

[paprikman]

6 minutes ago, esefem said:

-snip-

First off, you may decide if you really need that thing. I mean, you can always setup that server on your local pc and save money for enlarging hdd capacity for music. Also, if you're listening to mp3 tracks and no lossless, then use any cloud service.

Okay, so you're still reading this, then build your own thing. Also mind that network should be fast - 30mbps wifi is not enough for switching tracks without delay.

For hardware - any celeron cpu would handle this, you don't really need a NAS. Just make sure that mobo supports enough hdd's. Then it's very easy to set up any file server on that machine (even samba) and that's it.

P.S. idk about itunes libraries, maybe there is a solution, but for a simple music server you need hdd's, linux distro with file server set up.

[NelizMastr]

I use my Synology NAS for this. I installed the iTunes server package, configured which folder to use for the library and it did the rest. It's the best way to create one iTunes library that needs to be accessible by multiple users at once.

 

If you go for a similar solution, don't forget to always keep the server connected to a proper Gigabit LAN connection, and preferably 300N or faster wireless clients to ensure the best experience for everyone.