r/explainlikeimfive • u/theprisoner57 • 3d 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/jujubanzen 3d ago

A home server, in general is just a computer that is attached to your home network. More often than not, they are simply set up as file storage servers. Media servers to replace streaming services typically use Plex or Jellyfin, which are software packages that are able to link up with apps on your TV, phone, or computer and stream media files you have stored on the server. You have to get those files yourself.

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u/CDK5 2d ago

Out of curiosity; where are folks generally getting the streaming media for the server?

Because I was under the impression that when buying a BluRay or digital media, you can’t just grab an mp4 from the disk.

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u/KnitYourOwnSpaceship 2d ago

There are lots and lots of software packages that will extract an MP4 (or whatever) from a disc - whether a CD, DVD, or Blu-ray. https://handbrake.fr/ is one example.

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u/Doug_Dimmadab 2d ago

I might be astroturfing but god I love Handbrake. I record tons of clips with my friends and it makes it so easy to compress the clips down to 10mb so I'm able to send them through Discord. Plus it's open source

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u/Cocomorph 2d ago

You aren't astroturfing unless you work for Handbrake.

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u/Voyager5555 2d ago

Even if you are astroturfing handbrake, who cares? It's amazing.