NAS hardware / software advice

[Enquiries]

Looking to have a home NAS to store, and stream from - music, video (films and old TV series), ebooks.

Hardware: music and video seem to take a considerable amount of space, so size (and expandability) important. Also backup - bigger space means bigger backup space needed. Starting to sound expensive!

Software: believe software like Jellyfin can stream music and video (?), but I need ability to run 'Docker' on NAS. Calibre I think has ability to be installed remotely.

Queries/recommendations:
Hardware: thinking a bought (rather than 'build it yourself' system, but which make & models? Synology seems to be restricting HDD types; still worth considering, or are there better alternatives?

Software:
Installing/configuring software like this, and especially the 'network' side (all port numbers!), confuses me - are there any guides that can help? Is it a case of scouring YouTube? If others can do it, it can't be that difficult!

Any advice / pointers welcome.

Thank you!

[ed]

Thanks for the message, and it sounds like you’re right at the sweet spot where a NAS can really start to simplify your digital life. Streaming music, films, and TV, managing eBooks, running things like Jellyfin and Calibre, and having enough space for future-proofing and backups — all perfectly achievable with a well-chosen system, and you’re asking the right questions from the start.

Let’s start with the hardware side. If you’re aiming for something prebuilt and under £1000 (including or excluding drives), then yes, Synology still comes up quite a lot due to their excellent software (DSM), but you’re also right that newer models are increasingly locked to Synology-branded drives, which makes upgrading more expensive and restrictive. For flexibility, I’d suggest looking at either QNAP or Asustor — both offer models with good CPU performance, Docker support, open drive compatibility, and great value.

If you’re going with 4 to 6 bays, something like the QNAP TS-464 or Asustor Lockerstor 4 Gen2 (AS6704T) would be a solid fit. Both support M.2 NVMe caching or storage pools, handle Docker well, and can run Jellyfin smoothly. If you’re looking at larger setups or want future expansion beyond four drives, models like the QNAP TS-664 or Asustor AS6706T would give you more room to grow. They also support 2.5GbE networking, which gives you faster speeds now and down the line when you upgrade your switch or router.

In terms of software, yes, Jellyfin is a fantastic choice for music and video streaming and works well on all major NAS systems that support Docker or container apps. It’s fully open source and can handle large libraries without needing a Plex Pass. You’re also right about Calibre — it can run in a headless mode via Docker and serve your eBook library over the network with the right configuration. The only trick is setting it all up if you’re not familiar with Docker or port mapping, but you’re far from alone in that.

Most NAS platforms now offer Docker GUI front-ends or native app centers that simplify the install process quite a bit. That said, network configuration (like port forwarding or reverse proxies) can still be confusing at first. There are guides out there — some on YouTube, some written — but what really helps is focusing on one app at a time. Get Jellyfin working locally first, then add remote access later. Same with Calibre. Trying to configure everything at once is what usually gets overwhelming.

I’d recommend starting with a model that supports Container Station (QNAP) or Docker (Asustor and Synology Plus series), has at least 4GB of RAM (8GB ideally), and gives you drive flexibility. If you want, I can help you choose drives to match your storage needs and budget — just let me know roughly how much space you expect to need now and in the next few years.