this specific machine is not meant for change. Ever.
Debian
Bonus round: anyone who’s ever transferred Plex servers from win to Linux (insert flavor), is it actually possible to keep my collections and playlists and stuff?
Yes, it’s relatively simple, especially with Docker. Back up the Plex folder from your windows machine. Once your new OS is set up, put the folder where you wanna store it and point Docker to that folder in the compose.yaml.
Is there a reason you’re not considering running this in a VM?
I could see a case where you go for a native install on a virtual machine, attach a virtual disk to isolate your library from the rest of the filesystem, and then move that around (or just straight up mount that directory in the container) as needed.
That way you can back up your library separately from your JF server implementation and go hog wild.
But this post didn’t suggest Docker, it suggested a VM. This would be a totally sensible thing to do as you can just recreate it if you mess it up. Virtualbox works fine on Windows and Linux. Install it and spin up a distro.
Mate, the suggestions you have been given for VMs and docker are to help you recover easily should you mess up. If you are going to moan about that…maybe just install bare metal and get on with it yourself?
As a person who has been managing Linux servers for about a decade now, trust me that a few hours or days of learning docker now will save you weeks if not months in the future. Docker makes managing servers and dealing with updates trivial and predictable. Setting everything up in docker compose makes it easy to recover if something fails, it’s it’s self documenting because you can quickly see exactly how your applications are configured and running.
Without docker you still just copy your files from Windows to Linux, though you have to find the right directories for that. Jellyfin can be installed directly on Debian. Just add their repo and go
I would recommend using Docker first on the windows machine as a step in the transition. I did exactly this when I was transitioning to debian from windows. It made the official switch insanely easy because all I had to do was set up the Docker filesystem to what it already knew and it started up without any issues.
My lessons learned:
Keep the database on an SSD. I put mine on a HDD and it corrupted.
Keep the database on an SSD. I put mine on a HDD and it corrupted.
That seems very odd to me, and a very serious bug, no? 🤨 I feel like the storage medium shouldn’t matter as long as it can keep up with data throughput (or eventually keep up, with some help with buffering via the kernel or some other mechanism).
When you say database, do you mean the OS and the server install?
Yes, that’s what I meant. I switched my server install to a HDD because it was running on a 256 GB SSD which was running out of room.
I’m sure docker is easier if you know it… that’s like the point, afaik, but while basic use might be easy, it’s… never ever that easy for me, something always goes wrong, which is why I haven’t bothered yet. I know I should, I know it’ll make things easier (hypothetically), but it feels like a huge undertaking for someone with no skills. I’ve been looking for a super noob friendly instruction guide, and have not found one that I can work with, tbh, without a bunch of other know-how that I don’t have. (If you know of any I’d be eternally grateful!!!)
I can give you some tips for now and then I’ll give you some more in-depth instructions when I’m at my computer again.
For now:
Install Docker to your computer. I’m not sure how windows Docker handles it but I recommend using Docker compose. I’m not sure of the technical differences between Docker and Docker compose, but I found Docker compose to be much easier to use because it’s saved as a YAML file (text file). If you need to make changes, just edit the file.
Once you have that set up, get a Plex server running. You’ll probably have to change the ports in the Docker one to avoid conflict with your current one.
I recommend LinuxServer.io for a lot of things, including Plex. There’s some dissent over use of Linux Server’s apps due to permission and root things, but they are also super simple to use and you can start with the basics here.
Scroll down a bit to find the docker-compose section. To start a sample plex server, make the following changes:
Remove network_mode: host
In line with environment and volumes, add this: ports - 324001:32400
This will route 32400 of the docker container to 32401 of the host network, allowing you to have both servers running at the same time without a port conflict.
Edit the volumes as needed. Always remember, it goes: host: container for everything. You can change it however you need. /config should preferably be on an SSD, as I said. The rest can be created as needed. For mine, I have both movies and TV shows stored under a folder called /media/. My plex docker script mounts /media/ and in plex I can search through the subdirectories to find the TV and Movies section.
Your second (temporary) plex server should be set up properly once you start the container
I’ll tell you how to data over to the Docker container later.
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Debian
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Yes, it’s relatively simple, especially with Docker. Back up the Plex folder from your windows machine. Once your new OS is set up, put the folder where you wanna store it and point Docker to that folder in the compose.yaml.
Does the docker container have gpu access for transcoding?
Yes, if you pass the gpu into the container
Man, if the “Download more RAM!” scammers of old could see us now.
It is possible to pass transcoding - I’ll share my compose file when I’m at my computer
deleted by creator
Is there a reason you’re not considering running this in a VM?
I could see a case where you go for a native install on a virtual machine, attach a virtual disk to isolate your library from the rest of the filesystem, and then move that around (or just straight up mount that directory in the container) as needed.
That way you can back up your library separately from your JF server implementation and go hog wild.
deleted by creator
But this post didn’t suggest Docker, it suggested a VM. This would be a totally sensible thing to do as you can just recreate it if you mess it up. Virtualbox works fine on Windows and Linux. Install it and spin up a distro.
Mate, the suggestions you have been given for VMs and docker are to help you recover easily should you mess up. If you are going to moan about that…maybe just install bare metal and get on with it yourself?
As a person who has been managing Linux servers for about a decade now, trust me that a few hours or days of learning docker now will save you weeks if not months in the future. Docker makes managing servers and dealing with updates trivial and predictable. Setting everything up in docker compose makes it easy to recover if something fails, it’s it’s self documenting because you can quickly see exactly how your applications are configured and running.
Without docker you still just copy your files from Windows to Linux, though you have to find the right directories for that. Jellyfin can be installed directly on Debian. Just add their repo and go
I would recommend using Docker first on the windows machine as a step in the transition. I did exactly this when I was transitioning to debian from windows. It made the official switch insanely easy because all I had to do was set up the Docker filesystem to what it already knew and it started up without any issues.
My lessons learned:
Keep the database on an SSD. I put mine on a HDD and it corrupted.
That seems very odd to me, and a very serious bug, no? 🤨 I feel like the storage medium shouldn’t matter as long as it can keep up with data throughput (or eventually keep up, with some help with buffering via the kernel or some other mechanism).
Millions of database have run on hdds for decades just fine. They didn’t know what they’re talking about.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I put it on a larger HDD because my SSD was running out of space and it corrupted about a week later.
Nothing to do with it being an hdd.
deleted by creator
Yes, that’s what I meant. I switched my server install to a HDD because it was running on a 256 GB SSD which was running out of room.
I can give you some tips for now and then I’ll give you some more in-depth instructions when I’m at my computer again.
For now:
Install Docker to your computer. I’m not sure how windows Docker handles it but I recommend using Docker compose. I’m not sure of the technical differences between Docker and Docker compose, but I found Docker compose to be much easier to use because it’s saved as a YAML file (text file). If you need to make changes, just edit the file.
Once you have that set up, get a Plex server running. You’ll probably have to change the ports in the Docker one to avoid conflict with your current one.
I recommend LinuxServer.io for a lot of things, including Plex. There’s some dissent over use of Linux Server’s apps due to permission and root things, but they are also super simple to use and you can start with the basics here.
https://docs.linuxserver.io/images/docker-plex/
Scroll down a bit to find the docker-compose section. To start a sample plex server, make the following changes:
Remove
network_mode: hostIn line with environment and volumes, add this:
ports - 324001:32400This will route 32400 of the docker container to 32401 of the host network, allowing you to have both servers running at the same time without a port conflict.
Edit the volumes as needed. Always remember, it goes: host: container for everything. You can change it however you need. /config should preferably be on an SSD, as I said. The rest can be created as needed. For mine, I have both movies and TV shows stored under a folder called /media/. My plex docker script mounts /media/ and in plex I can search through the subdirectories to find the TV and Movies section.
Your second (temporary) plex server should be set up properly once you start the container
I’ll tell you how to data over to the Docker container later.