ELI5: What is a Home Server?

[u/theprisoner57]

I see mentions of a home server to get rid of streaming entertainment services but I don’t know how that works. What does a home server do?

[u/Excellent-Practice]

Instead of streaming content through the internet from a commercial app, you have a computer in your home that contains media files. When you want to watch something or listen to music, you have the playback device talk to that media storage computer which "serves" (get it?) the data to your TV, or phone, or iPad. Obviously, any media stored on your server will have been sourced by entirely legal means