Installing XBMC on NAS?
#1
I'm thinking of getting this: Synology DiskStation DS212j to store my movies/tv shows on, and according to this: http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=NAS...9_and_XBMC you can install XBMC on it. My question is in two parts: how do you install it and what can you use to display it on a TV? I already have a PS3 and an Xbox 360 slim. I don't really want to buy anything else since I'll be spending quite a bit for the NAS. Thanks.
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#2
Your device uses an ARM platform (Marvell to be specific). Three hurdles: you need to compile Xbmc for that platform (there are a lot of ARM flavours), and you need to have a GPU, and that GPU needs to support 3D.

A conventional NAS has no GPU (that would defeat the purpose of a remotely administered networked device). This one does not have one either.

If you want to combine both functions, you are better off putting something together yourself.
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#3
The article you link to tells you that the Synology is compatible with XBMC as somewhere to store your media files (I use a DS211+, mounted over NFS to my XBMC units and using SMB to the various Android devices in the house). There's no suggestion of getting XBMC to run on the NAS itself for the reasons above.

Now, it is theoretically possible to get a TV backend running on your NAS if you want to really push the point...
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#4
Have a look at the HP MicroServer range. They're designed to be a server/nas and quite a few people use them to run xbmc.
Have a look at the HP MicroServer range. They're designed to be a server/nas and quite a few people use them to run xbmc.
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#5
If you are interested in a single BOX that offers NAS (Data storage and sharing) and XBMC client then QNAP TS-x53 range of devices will be a perfect match.

These NAS devices come with HDMI connectivity and that can stream out full HD and 7.1 surround.

Check this link for more info: http://www.qnap.com/en/index.php?sn=8254

Have fun!
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#6
(2014-10-31, 13:47)zap2cloud Wrote: If you are interested in a single BOX that offers NAS (Data storage and sharing) and XBMC client then QNAP TS-x53 range of devices will be a perfect match.

These NAS devices come with HDMI connectivity and that can stream out full HD and 7.1 surround.

Check this link for more info: http://www.qnap.com/en/index.php?sn=8254

Have fun!
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#7
(2014-11-03, 03:46)nickr Wrote:
(2014-10-31, 13:47)zap2cloud Wrote: If you are interested in a single BOX that offers NAS (Data storage and sharing) and XBMC client then QNAP TS-x53 range of devices will be a perfect match.

These NAS devices come with HDMI connectivity and that can stream out full HD and 7.1 surround.

Check this link for more info: http://www.qnap.com/en/index.php?sn=8254

Have fun!
Necro thread award.

Maybe so, and I recognize and respect your Super Moderator title, but I landed here as the result of a Google search, and zap2cloud's post has exactly the information I was looking for. Not only that, but the information he posted was not available in 2012. So, I, for one, am glad people reply to old threads and don't believe it should be discouraged. It makes the forum that much more useful for infrequent forum users like me who use search engines.
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#8
Ha, I only got that title a couple of days ago and certainly not when I posted my cryptic reply in 2014. You are right, it does show that an old thread can sometimes be a good thread.

Welcome to kodi forums. Enjoy your time here and please post any questions you have. Cheers, N.
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#9
Thank, you, I appreciate that. I half expected to be criticized for making a comment that didn't add anything useful. Glad to see there are some friendly people online. Smile

I'm a long-time XBMC/Kodi user (first ran it on a hacked original xbox, now on a Raspberry Pi). But it's worked well enough that I've never before needed to register for the forums. I registered not just to comment on this (that would probably be silly) but also because I'm actively reasearching NAS storage options, and wondered specifically about running Kodi *on* the NAS (not just using the NAS as storage for Kodi). So, I anticipate I'll be asking a few questions about that. When I do, I'll look for a current thread or start a new one, unless it *really* fits well in an older thread. Wink

cheers,
harrv
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#10
I think the general impression I get is that it seems like a good idea to start with, but there are several factors that lead to ultimate dissatisfaction.

1. Nases really don't usually have the gpu grunt to do a good job of video playback

2. Ditto cpu and ram for running the gui, particularly with more complex skins.

3. They run specialised versions of their os and when the manufacturer can't be stuffed creating a new version of kodi for their last years model nas, you can get left behind.

Of course there might be some that are better then others at this.
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#11
Very good points. Since I already have the Raspberry Pi to run Kodi on (with OpenELEC), I will likely only run a few other supporting things on the NAS--the things I currently run on Windows that "feed" content to Kodi. That would include mysql (for the shared database to hold the library that our multiple Kodi devices share), sabnzbd, sickbeard, and possibly a torrent client. It would be great to be able to shut of my Windows computer once in a while, rather than leaving it up all the time as a server. And I think the applications I want to run on the NAS are more IO intensive than CPU or memory intensive, but I could be wrong. In any case, with the exception of seeding torrents, everything else happens in relatively short and infrequent spurts when a new episode of a TV show that I watch has been found.

I was only considering actually running Kodi itself directly on the NAS if I end up getting a QNAP TS-x53 (what zap2cloud recommended a year ago) because it has a more powerful CPU and a built in h264 decoder (as well as handling a few other codecs in hardware too) and has HDMI out (at 1080p) directly from the device. That being said, based on what you've said and after thinking about it a bit, I probably wouldn't run Kodi on the NAS even in that case. I think now the only apps I'm interested in running directly on the NAS would be mysql, sickbeard (requiring python too), sabnzbd, and possibly transmission or something similar although I don't use bittorrent for TV, so I could probably leave that on Windows (uTorrent) for the occasional times I need it.

Most of the NAS boxes I've been researching do allow for running those apps and I've seen forum posts and blogs where users have discussed doing so successfully. Right now I'm leaning toward a Drobo 5N. I'd be interested in hearing from anyone with that setup how they like Drobo Apps (they have them for all of the things I've previously mentioned I'd want to run). I'll probably ask that particular question over at the Drobo forums.
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#12
Those tasks are great on a nas, although personally I use a computer as a 'nas', running Linux. Does all the mysql/couchpotato/sickbeard duties.
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