Plex comes in two parts - a media server and client - which allow you to categorize (and more importantly) play back all of the media you've accumulated over the years both locally and via streaming.įirst things first: while Plex will play nearly anything you throw at it, laws regarding the 'ripping' of personal media vary in different countries. This guide will take you through the basic steps of running your own streaming service using a common and powerful media software called Plex. Ever thought about running your own streaming service? It's actually easier than you might think, and there are a number of ways you can do it.

The safe option is to buy it and then work out a way to make it accessible wherever you are. Say you want to watch all 236 episodes of Friends, but know that Netflix is going to lose it to another service soon.

With downloads or physical media, this isn't an issue, because once you've bought it, you'll have access to it for life (that's the theory anyway). Video streaming is great - until you lose access to the movie or TV show that you assumed would always be available on Netflix and Amazon Video.

Setting up a home media server