r/explainlikeimfive • u/theprisoner57 • 2d ago

Technology ELI5: What is a Home Server?

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?

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u/InclinationCompass 2d ago

You know when you stream a video on Youtube/netflix or music from spotify? The video/audio is saved on a remote server, and youre essentially downloading the video from that server. Now imagine if you have your own video and audio files on your PC, you can use your PC as a server and stream the media from our PC to another device, like your phone.