Linux is brilliant at serving files. It’s this ability that keeps the enterprise world turning to Linux for its heavy lifting jobs and that keeps the world Googling 24/7.
But it’s just as good at serving files from a computer tucked away under the stairs or stuck in the loft, and a server in your house is now becoming an essential accessory.
Mobile phones, games consoles and even televisions are rapidly developing the ability to read, display and play files held on a media centre PC, and Linux is the perfect free software solution. All you need is a relatively low-powered PC, a decent amount of storage and somewhere safe to hide it.
Read more here: http://www.techradar.com/news/digital-home/media-servers/how-to-turn-a-spare-linux-machine-into-a-media-server-640034