In this how-to, I will show you how to create a Plex server on a spare computer running Debian Linux, in my case, a Raspberry Pi 4, but you could easily replace it with an old laptop, spare PC, or a dedicated mini PC.
There are a myriad of streaming services available, and all of them want your money. That’s not a bad thing. Some content is only available via streaming, or the best possible version is streaming. But I like physical media. I like knowing I have every episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and The X-Files. Those were the shows that I watched as a teenager, and they bring me comfort.
I don’t want to buy my media again, heck, I’ve owned Deep Space Nine on VHS and DVD, and my copies of Star Wars stretch back to Betamax! I want my media ready to watch at a moment's notice, and this is where DIY services such as Plex and Jellyfin come into their own.
The best source of media for this project are DVDs and Blu-rays that you already own. Check your local laws before doing so, but you should be able to rip your discs using a tool such as Handbrake. We also have a full guide on how to rip your discs to digital files.
So let's build our own media server!
Setting Up Your Media Drive
For this, you will need a USB drive formatted as NTFS, along with your media sorted into folders. I tend to organize my media into the following:
Movies A-Z list of movies
Series Series name Season
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