Building a HD Linux based multimedia streaming server PART 1 – (dvd and bluray and more)
I’ve built a HD multimedia streaming server using Linux and wanted to share my experiences with anyone that might be interested. I really like to have access to any kind of media from anywhere and love high quality content. So how can we access our DVD/Bluray/music/pictures collections from anywhere in the house? this article will help you.
Step 1 – Planning
First, before diving into any projects, you should write down what you want to achieve. I personally wanted to have a central server to store my personal files across all my computers. This would enable be to share documents and files across my Mac and Windows machines. Since I have gaming consoles (PS3 and XBOX), it was also possible for me to use them to stream multimedia content on the TV and projector. This is an interesting bonus!
The goals so far are :
- setup network repository for files/documents/music and more
- stream music to consoles
- access pictures from gaming consoles
- access movies from gaming consoles
- access HD movies from gaming consoles or other computer
It’s also a good idea to write down your network environment.
Here is a list of the current network standards:
Wireless 802.11b: slow (possible data rate of 11mbits/seconds)
Wireless 802.11g: medium (possible data rate of 54mbits/seconds)
Wireless 802.11n: medium+ (possible data rate of 72mbits/seconds)
Wired Ethernet 10mb: slow (possible data rate of 10mbits/seconds)
Wired Ethernet 100mb: high speed (possible data rate of 100mbits/seconds)
Wired Ethernet 1000mb : very high speed ((possible data rate of 1000mbits/seconds))
It would be a good idea to have a Gigabit network adapter in your server, this will allow simultaneous connections from multiples machines or consoles at the same time. If you intend to stream HD-DVD/Bluray movies over the network, it will be important to install a Gigabit switch (1000mb/s). You can get one cheaply on the internet (Newegg is a good place), got mine for 30$ from Dell.
Here is a table showing you the type of connections you need for each machines
| MEDIA | CONNECTION REQUIRED |
| Pictures | ethernet 10/100/1000 or wireless 802.11g/n |
| Music | ethernet 10/100/1000 or wireless 802.11b/g/n |
| Documents | ethernet 10/100/1000 or wireless 802.11b/g/n |
| Movies (DVD quality) | ethernet 100/1000 or wireless 802.11g/n |
| Movies (Bluray quality) | ethernet 100/1000 or wireless 802.11n |
Here is a very simplified view of a cool setup, not sure if I should post mine, It would confuse everyone. I personally have two gigabit switches and a wireless router and my internet connection is handled by another FreeBSD server.
What you need:
- A spare machine
- 1 TB or more disk space – the more the merrier
- the network requirement is associated with what you want to share or stream over the network
- free time and motivation
My own configuration
Server A
- AMD X2 6000 / 4 gig ram
- 300 megs boot disk
- 4x 1.5 TB hard drives in RAID 0 configuration
Server B
- AMD X2 6000 / 4 gig ram
- 300 megs boot disk
- 2x 2.0TB hard drives + 2x 1.0TB hard drives in RAID 0 configuration
Step 2 – Preparation
The first steps you may probably want to do is to make sure your network is ready. If you plan to stream high quality content (bluray, hddvd) or share big files, I recommend getting a gigabit switch. I also recommend network cables (CAT6 if possible). When you plug everything there is a light on the switch that will tell you the speed of each hosts. They should all be set to Gigabit except for consoles (ps3 and xbox are 100mb).
Note: You will be able to achieve better speed by changing the default MTU setting for each machines, this will be shown later in the process. It’s not required for the moment.
If you need ideas for parts, here is a small shopping list:
- 8 ports gigabit switch
- cables
- server case: recommend Antec three hundred (if you intend to have a lot of hard drives)
- processor: AMD seems the best bang for the buck
- ram: 4gig
- Hard drives: the Western Digital 1.5TB is the best bang for the buck, go for the green edition. We don’t need the black edition since we’re not doing a RAID-5
- if you plan a lot of hard drives, I recommend using backplanes, they let you install more drives in fewer slots: 5 drives / 4 drives ( See picture to the right )
Note: if you plan to stream bluray / hddvd quality, be prepared to order a few hard drives, movies are varying from 15gig to 45 gigs in size. DVDs requires between 3.5-6 gigs each
Note: I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO INTEND OF DEGRADING THE PICTURE OR AUDIO QUALITY OF ANY MOVIES. So when I refer to movies size, keep in mind that it will be the premium ultimate quality with no loss. If you personally intend to lower the quality of your media, it’s your choice!
Storage requirements overview
1.5TB holds around 318 DVDs in full quality (no video / no audio loss)
1.5TB holds around 54 Blurays in full quality (no video / no audio loss)
1.5TB holds around 350000 songs ( AAC 256kbs quality )