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[daveman]

Hi there,

I have a TB server in my home which I use both to store all my audio and video media as well as for backups of my computers.

After a lengthy 12 years, it has died   (although all data remains intact

That said, it is time for me to figure out what to do next.

I can set up a new computer to act as the server.  This is tech that I know; I run windows and use backup software / remote desktop to manage it.

I have also been recommended to move to a Synology DiskStation DS1522+ NAS.  This is new for me.  Will I have any issues accessing media via JRiver (which runs from a different computer).  as new media is automatically added to the NAS, will JRiver automatically update the library.  Any issues I need to be concerned about?

your thoughts are appreciated

dave

[JimH]

I don't agree with people who think a NAS is a simpler solution.   A NAS is still a computer and, what's worse, it has a non-standard OS.

A modest PC with a couple of big drives is a better solution, in my opinion.  (The devil you know.)

[Manfred]

I had a NAS in my early stages of MC, ~9 years ago. Later I had used Microsoft Storage Spaces for HA (High Availability). In both cases the unexpected happend, the RAID 5 array on my NAS was broken, also MS Storage Spaces got broken as I had to move disks. In both cases even with vendor support it was not possible to find out the root cause (Administrator fault by me was the answer but no entry in the log's!!!). That's why I have get away from these HA  services and from NAS. I use a proper backup and I agree with JimH.
I have now a Workstation (acts as MC server, 1 TB NVME SSD for documents, Images, User AppData, 2 TB SATA SSD for audio files), a File Server (Video Files only, 46 TB capacity) and a Video Renderer in the Living Room. Audio streams from my Workstation to my Devialet via UPnP (works flawless).

[zybex]

While I do not disagree with Jim^{(I guess I do disagree)} I do like a proper NAS setup and think it's easier for most users. Their OS is usually just a customized Linux distro with EXT4+RAID/LVM filesystem.

I have a 4-slot QNAP currently with 3x16TB in RAID5:
- easy to setup
- easy to add disks to enlarge the storage pool, or replace disks with larger disks
- web interface for configuration and file management
- very low maintenance, just the occasional OS upgrade which can be automated (I prefer manual)
- low power consumption (if you can get your disks to sleep properly), low noise, low temperature CPU
- Network Recycle Bin! Seriously, I don't know why this is not standard in Windows (VSS is not the same thing). It saves my ass so many times.
- multiple backup paths - can backup to a number of cloud services, to local USB/Network devices, or rsync with another NAS/server anywhere
- optional functionality with app store: I use it for FTP Server, VPN Server, DNS Proxy, DynDns Updater and a couple other functions
- many multimedia capabilities which I don't use: Plex/Roon/Twonky servers, Photo/Music/Video station, DVR for IP webcams, etc
- advanced features such as Snapshots, Thin volumes, Domain Server, SQL Database, Apple Time Machine target, etc
- many models can also run VMs and Containers

A Windows/Linux server can have all that and much more. It can be more flexible. However, the maintenance needs are much higher and you need to figure out how to install/configure each one of those items.

[Manfred]

the maintenance needs are much higher

I disagree. 
I have a windows server for almost 5 years. Measured Uptime was 99.99%. Admin time during the last 5 years was almost ~0h. It was the best IT component I ever had (ASUS P10S-I Server Mainboard). Only the monthly Win update requires 15 - 30 min monitoring time.

[JimH]

While I do not disagree with Jim^{(I guess I do disagree)} I do like a proper NAS setup and think it's easier for most users. Their OS is usually just a customized Linux distro with EXT4+RAID/LVM filesystem.

Disagreement is good as long as one is not disagreeable.  It's how we learn.

Power usage can be extremely low on a vanilla Linux OS running on something like a Raspberry Pi.  I thought about recommending an Id, but it might struggle with video conversion.  Bob would know.  It would be fine for audio and for basic video.