I'm getting more interested in keeping my own digital media collection, including movies I've purchased and game clips or VODs that I want to preserve. I'd like to store everything on several terabytes of local storage and connect the system directly to my TV or home theater setup.
This won't be a remotely accessible server or a system for broadly sharing media. I mainly want to download and organize files locally, then watch movies, shows, and old gaming highlights at home with my wife—essentially a DVD player with much more storage.
Would a small mini PC with additional internal or external storage be the simplest and most affordable option, or would a NAS such as a Synology DiskStation make more sense? Do NAS appliances include memory and storage, or are they generally sold as empty enclosures that require separate drives? I'd also appreciate advice on whether I should start with a media PC and add dedicated storage later.
4 Answers
A small media PC running Jellyfin is a good fit if you want the device physically connected to the television. A smart TV may have a Jellyfin app, but a dedicated streaming box can be useful if you need support for high-quality 4K video or lossless audio formats. You can keep the setup entirely local and avoid remote access.
If you eventually need more capacity, a NAS can simply act as the file server while the mini PC handles playback and the media software. For now, starting with the mini PC and adding a NAS or direct-attached storage only when necessary avoids paying for more hardware than you need.
A NAS—short for network-attached storage—is the type of device you’re describing, but most Synology and similar appliances are sold without hard drives or SSDs. You generally buy the enclosure first and then add the storage separately, so remember to include the drive cost in the budget. They may include the basic system memory, but the storage drives are usually not included.
You can also build a NAS from used or spare PC parts. Even older hardware is generally powerful enough for storing files and serving local video, and free systems such as TrueNAS or OpenMediaVault can handle the storage side. This takes more setup and troubleshooting than buying a Synology, but it can save money if you already have a case, motherboard, memory, and power supply available.
For reliability, plan on using multiple drives and some form of redundancy, but remember that redundancy is not the same as a backup. Keep another copy of anything you truly cannot replace.
For your use case, a cheap mini PC is probably the easiest starting point. Install a media app such as Jellyfin, connect it to the TV, and begin with the computer’s SSD or an external USB hard drive. If your collection grows, you can add a direct-attached storage enclosure or move the files to a dedicated NAS later.
A rack-mounted server is likely overkill. Rack cases are expensive even before adding drives, and you don’t need that form factor for a local living-room setup. A normal desktop-style NAS or a small PC will be quieter, cheaper, and easier to place near the TV.
That makes a used-parts build sound much more realistic. I may start with hardware I already have and expand the storage once I’m comfortable with the software.