First Dedicated Server

Self-Hosted & Services Plex
1

I have been using Plex for a long while now on a retired gaming PC and just got the email to get the discounted lifetime pass so I went ahead and purchased it. I now have the bug to make a wholly dedicated server for Plex (and light file storage duty). I have a budget somewhere between 6-800 including storage. I would like to get the biggest bang for my buck and take advantage of as much of Plex as I can. I was wondering if there is a suggested current build I could look at or if anyone had any recommendations. Thanks for any help you all can provide.

Edit to add: My library doesn’t exceed 1TB now but is steadily expanding, use to delete old media now I have been holding on to it. I can adjust my price point a little higher if needed.

2

You can look at the OTIS build for inspiration.

Though it sounds to me all you really need to do is find a small form factor prebuilt machine with an Intel 7th generation processor or newer.

So the HP 290, HP 400 G4 and some of the Lenovo and Dell offerings are really all you need. Plex doesn’t necessarily need horsepower…just the right processor to utilize QuickSync.

This would be a solid low power unit…though I would prefer something a bit newer.