Create Your Own Personal Streaming Service With Jellyfin
What if you could create your own streaming service? It’s not a pipe dream: you can actually build your own streaming network that hosts all the shows, movies, and music you already have – all you need to enter the world of media servers is enough hard drive space. PC and stable internet connection.
Why Use a Media Center?
If you’ve heard of Plex, you may already know about media servers and organizers. However, we’ll focus on Jellyfin , a completely free and open source media server that does everything you want (and is better than some of its paid alternatives).
Jellyfin turns a file directory into a visually interactive media library. You can browse your entire media collection as if it were your own Netflix. Jellyfin will scan everything, give you a quick overview of each title, display trailers, and even automatically download subtitles.
Once you download the Jellyfin app for your iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, or Smart TV (Jellyfin has great apps for popular Smart TV brands), your media is ready to stream wirelessly as long as you use the same Wi-Fi. net. With this setup, you can stream a movie to your iPhone while sitting in your bedroom when the actual data is on your computer in your office. If you’re away, you can transfer your data from outside your home network, but you can also download it to your device with a little fiddling .
Don’t get carried away by media servers
Once you start exploring media servers, it’s tempting to get carried away. Oh, let me buy a dedicated machine for this, like Synology , with server grade hard drives and RAID backup systems. But when you start, it’s best to stay grounded and use what you already have, like your computer.
The only thing we recommend you get is large and reliable NAS-level hard drives if you plan on keeping your computer running for days at a time (because spinning hard drives have a habit of randomly failing). However, if you plan to use your media center sparingly, you may be able to get by without traditional hard drives.
How to set up Jelefin
Before we begin, we suggest that you create logical folders for Movies, TV Shows, and Music. As long as the media is labeled correctly, you have nothing to worry about. Start by installing a server application on your computer – one that’s connected to a power source and you don’t mind working all the time.
First, set up Jellyfin using a username and password (the latter is optional but recommended). Be sure to remember your username as you will need it to sign in to each streaming client device.
Then choose the appropriate directory for your media type and let Jellyfin do its thing. In just a couple of minutes, you’ll see all your movies, TV shows, and music displayed in a grid with their respective posters and descriptions.
Next, it’s time to install Jellyfin on the client side. Browse the official list of Jellyfin client apps for all platforms and choose the one that works best for you. You’ll find clients for smartphones, smart TVs, desktops, and more.
When you run a client application on the same network, Jellyfin automatically scans available servers while your computer and server application are running. Select your PC name, enter your username and password, and voila: your setup is now complete, allowing you to transfer all media files from the server PC to the client application.
How to set up your system
Now that your basic setup is complete, you can play around with the settings as much as you want. Pretty much every part of this system is configurable, so you can change the sources the metadata comes from, and you can edit the movie’s metadata individually.
In the settings, you can change the subtitle source, font, and more. And best of all, you can head over to the Plugins section to add tons of new features to the Jellyfin app. If you’re interested in a step-by-step guide, Tek Syndicate details the main options in their video below.
To automatically download subtitles for any media (even if they are not embedded), you will need the OpenSubtitles plugin. You can enable and configure it in Administration > Dashboard > Plugins > Catalog . Once added, you will be required to enter your OpenSubtitles username, password, and API, which you can obtain from the OpenSubtitles account page .
Jellifin vs. Plex
Finally, let’s talk about Plex , the elephant in the room. Plex is usually the best choice for a media server, and for good reason. They have a simple, intuitive design and a low learning curve: they are available everywhere and work flawlessly.
But lately, Plex has been relying heavily on its own free media service, and it’s impossible to get rid of it in any app. In addition, Plex offers a number of features, such as offline downloading and offline streaming, for the $5/month Plex Pass. Combine all of this, plus the fact that Jellyfin is faster with a clutter-free interface and offers all the features and more thanks to community plugins – for free, and it becomes hard to choose Plex over Jellyfin.
Plex’s only benefit is its remote network feature, which allows you to access your library from anywhere and allows you to share your collection with friends. The Plex Pass feature takes the huge complexities of a remote network and simplifies it down to just a few options. While it’s possible to do this with Jellyfin, it’s not built-in and requires a bit of work using Tailscale. But if that suits you, check out this helpful guide for detailed instructions .