Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

Windsept · 2010-05-05 23:08:41

Hello,

I'm fairly new to Archlinux. I was wondering if I could use it to build a server that I could store all my movies on and then be able to access them via password through the internet? If it is possible how would I setup the server? Would I want LAMP and stream the movies through a webpage? Or FTP? Or what?

A few months ago I saw an old computer converted into a server for just this purpose. I believe they used Archlinux. I just wanted to build one this summer as a side project while I'm home from college. Then just leave it at home plugged in so I don't have to carry around ALL of my DvD's.

Thanks!

-Windsept

n0dix · 2010-05-05 23:40:27

Probably this can helps you. http://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?pid=735230

Last edited by n0dix (2010-05-05 23:41:16)

Trent · 2010-05-06 01:45:23

Allow me to be the first to welcome you to the forums.

Windsept wrote:

I'm fairly new to Archlinux. I was wondering if I could use it to build a server that I could store all my movies on and then be able to access them via password through the internet?

Short answer: yes. Long answer: Still yes, but the devil's in the details, as they say. Both the suggestions you mention (LAMP and FTP) are possibilities (assuming you can get the appropriate access to your machine at home from your dorm -- make sure this is possible before investing a lot of time into the project). NFS is another option that I don't have personal experience with. n0dix's link refers to something I didn't know was available, but it looks like it could be worth investigating.

It will eventually boil down to how much work you are willing to do and how little security you are willing to settle for. So far as I know there is no software that "just works" for doing this kind of thing, probably because there are so many variables that every individual situation is different.

It's definitely possible, and depending on your method might not be difficult at all. Whether you should use Arch Linux for it is a question of some debate. Personally, I'd say go for it, but only you can make the decision. Best of luck no matter what!

Duologic · 2010-05-06 02:03:30

Why not SSH it? You can use sshfs and mount it directly into your filesystem at your dorm.

Zeist · 2010-05-06 05:49:17

I quite like the soluton of using OpenVPN and a UPnP server to stream media as it also works with any device that supports UPnP.

Might be a bit bandwidth-intensive and require quite some setup though.

Using ssh and sshfs is probably the simplest method.

Fingel · 2010-05-06 06:28:37

I like the idea of UPnP, but bandwidth might be a challenge. To stream high quality video takes a significant amount of bandwidth and most consumer connections dont provide enough on the upside. If you are willing to sacrifice video qaulity or just do a download then watch thing I would say that would work well.

.:B:. · 2010-05-06 07:22:46

I would use other solutions than UPnP, it's not the safest protocol to use on the internet.

Especially if you'll be accessing stuff over the internet, you'll want encryption, and strong authentication. SSH is imho the way to go, but NFS v4 could be a possibility too - only needs one port for all communication (2049) and can do encryption too.

My suggestion would be SSH(fs) with keys, but I haven't seen any benchmarks of SSH vs NFS v4. A lot of programs/devices that support streaming support NFS too (I know my old HDX-1000 does, for example).

Duologic · 2010-05-06 07:42:18

Another solution, not quite with Arch, is buying a (Multimedia) HDD and put all your movies on there. I advised my sister to buy the Lacie LaCinema (http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?pid=11389) which can connect to a TV too, as she doesn't use a PC very much.

Trent · 2010-05-06 11:30:35

Ooh, speaking of bandwidth, make sure your college/university doesn't implement low bandwidth caps. I have personal experience with those

Fingel · 2010-05-06 18:24:44

Trent wrote:

Ooh, speaking of bandwidth, make sure your college/university doesn't implement low bandwidth caps. I have personal experience with those

I work at a university and we do in fact implement bandwidth caps. Anything that is not HTTP gets set to a lower priority... except for World of Warcraft!

Protip: Find out which ports WoW uses and use that for whatever you are doing and enjoy the speed!

BurntSushi · 2010-05-07 17:25:36

Duologic wrote:

Why not SSH it? You can use sshfs and mount it directly into your filesystem at your dorm.

I run a media server in my house, and this is precisely how I stream video and music over the network.

You, however, want to run it over the web, which, as other posters have already pointed out, will mean that you're likely going to run into bandwidth issues. (On the upstream end, your home ISP.) When I'm off my network, I can still access my video and music, however, it isn't really feasible to stream the video. I can usually stream music, though. (And again, like some other poster said, you could simply download the video before you want to watch it.)

But certainly, sshfs is the way to go. That way, you don't have to worry about setting up a web server, streaming video over a web page, etc. With sshfs, you can just watch media through your normal video player.

I store all of my media on two 500GB external hard drives connected to my media server. Otherwise, there's not much else to the setup... Just a basic ssh server.

QuimaxW · 2010-05-12 01:00:17

Another thought might be using MythWeb. I know that it can convert recording to flash video "on the fly", but I haven't had mythweb set up in a while so I'm not sure if it can do this with videos as well on version .22. I know there was talk of it. It's not exactly high quality, but it did work. Of course, the trade off was a 'server' that was fast enough CPU wise to do the video conversion basically on the fly.

Otherwise, I use the sshfs option quite frequently with my home server. I'm also bandwidth limited, so I don't often pull large video type files off over the internet though.

Arch Linux

#1 2010-05-05 23:08:41

Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#2 2010-05-05 23:40:27

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#3 2010-05-06 01:45:23

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#4 2010-05-06 02:03:30

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#5 2010-05-06 05:49:17

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#6 2010-05-06 06:28:37

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#7 2010-05-06 07:22:46

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#8 2010-05-06 07:42:18

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#9 2010-05-06 11:30:35

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#10 2010-05-06 18:24:44

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#11 2010-05-07 17:25:36

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

#12 2010-05-12 01:00:17

Re: Is Archlinux appropiate for this...?

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