Need multiple stream from NAS or hard drive

[elviefrey]

Okay so I'm a newbie I need some input. I am wanting to rip all of our DVDs and put them on my hard drive. I then need to be able to stream to TV's (we have 4). We constantly have people here the set-up would have to be able to support streaming different movies to all 4 TVs at the same time. I have a dedicated gigabit network set up but i lack the software and hardware to do the streaming. We could use apple tv with home sharing and other various things but most of these only support one movie at a time. I also could do multiple computers or hard drives but then each time you add movies it's a hassle to save it in several places plus all the hardware gets expensive. Obviously we don't want to spend a ton on this, but we do realize that this project could easily add up quickly. If you've done this or something similar please let me know. Or if you think I;m crazy, i'm fine with that too.

 

[stevech]

you can setup software on windows to do video streaming, e.g,. using the DLNA standard. Don't go overboard on the network.

Avoid WiFi for streaming as much as you can. It's a PITA for streaming, esp. multiple streams on WiFi and with busy neighbors' WiFi.

Or get a 2 bay NAS such as Synology or QNAP make. Well under $100 less drives.
Don't try a drive plugged into USB port on router.. low performance.

Betware building your DVD on hard disk collection on a PC hard drive or a NAS with no backup! It's not if, it's when. Same goes for your photos and financial records, of course. On line backup not advised.. just rigor in automating backups as discussed at length on this forum.