Software for home servers manages local network resources and services.
Software for home servers manages local network resources and services.
I've been exploring options for setting up a home server and found Amahi. I appreciate its greyhole feature, which allows me to structure the disk pooling in various folders rather than relying solely on an HDD. What others think about Amahi is mixed—some like it, while others find it lacking in real demos, videos, or comprehensive guides. The site itself feels incomplete, with limited content and few YouTube reviews. If you're open to alternatives, there are other solutions that also support greyhole setups, though they may vary in ease of use and community support. Let me know your thoughts!
Windows Home Server is a free, open-source file sharing solution for Windows.
Microsoft has stopped supporting home servers—it was my initial option.
You can obtain an ISO for Server 2003/2008 R2/2012 R2 online. You might either purchase a license that's costly or... get one through alternative methods. I recommend the legal option, though the decision is yours. Personally, I prefer Server 2008 R2, even though I have more hands-on experience with it. I’m aware of many free options like Amahi and various Linux distributions, but I’m more familiar with 2008 R2 than these alternatives. PS: 2012 R2 includes Storage Spaces, which functions similarly to a diskhole by combining multiple physical drives into a single logical drive or folder. This feature is also available on Windows 8.1, though it may not be optimal for server use depending on your needs. Likely, Windows 8.1 will be the best fit if you mainly want to run games and act as a NAS.
Most operating systems today allow streaming files using protocols like SMB or NFS. What matters is how you reach the data—through a shared folder or via software access. Generally, a shared folder works well, unless you need to stream to mobile devices, which I haven't done personally.