Step-by-step guide to setting up a Linux media file server on a Mac

We show you how to repurpose an old iMac as a media server so you can download films and TV shows from Torrents and play them on your Smart TV.

how to repurpose an old iMac as a media server

There are many purpose built NAS or Mini-PC’s you can purchase to achieve the same thing but our example is to repurpose an old iMac and replace its MacOS with a Linux based OS, Ubuntu 22.04 (free)

Steps to follow

  1. Creating a Ubuntu Boot Disk
  2. Installing Ubuntu on an iMac, Mac Mini or MacBook
  3. Setting up Ubuntu to share files with your TV
  4. Setting up Ubuntu so it can be remote controlled from another Mac or Windows computer
  5. Installing Caffeine to ensure the Ubuntu server is always awake and available
  6. Installing a bit torrent client on Ubuntu
  7. Finding and downloading torrent files
  8. Locating and playing files on your TV

Step 1 – Creating a Ubuntu Boot Disk

ubuntu logo

With a bootable Ubuntu USB stick, you can:

  • Install or upgrade Ubuntu
  • Test out the Ubuntu desktop experience without touching your PC configuration
  • Boot into Ubuntu on a borrowed machine or from an internet cafe
  • Use tools installed by default on the USB stick to repair or fix a broken configuration

Follow these tutorials to help you create a bootable USB stick from both Microsoft Windows or Apple macOS.

Step 2 – Installing Ubuntu on an iMac, Mac Mini or MacBook

big ununtu logo

If there is any data you want keep from the old mac, back it up now to Timemachine or an external drive. Once we install Ubuntu, you may lose all the data on the Mac.

Insert the USB stick into an Apple Mac, you will need to restart or power-on the Mac with the USB stick inserted while the Option/alt (⌥) key is pressed.

This will launch Apple’s ‘Startup Manager’ which shows bootable devices connected to the machine. Your USB stick should appear as gold/yellow and labelled ‘EFI Boot’. Selecting this will lead you to the standard Ubuntu boot menu.

booting mac to ubuntu

Now simply follow the prompts to install Ubuntu on your Mac.

Step 3 – Setting up Ubuntu to share files with your TV

With Ubuntu installed on the iMac (or whatever device you are using) goto Settings > Sharing

Click on Media Sharing and switch it on

You can choose what data you wish to share

setting up ubuntu media sharing

Any data files in the selected shared folder should now be visible on any other device such as a smart-TV or iPad running VNC

Step 4 – Setting up Ubuntu so it can be remote controlled from another Mac or Windows computer

You can use Microsoft Remote Desktop (RDP) to connect to the Ubuntu server from Windows or Mac by installing Microsoft Remote Desktop from the App Store.

Set up your Ubuntu this way by opening Terminal, and typing

ubuntu terminal window
sudo apt-get update

After that install XRDP:

sudo apt-get install xrdp

Enable XRDP to start on boot:

sudo systemctl enable xrdp

If you have a firewall make sure that the 3389 port is open:

sudo ufw allow 3389/tcp

Now connect to your Linux machine using Microsoft Remote Desktop (RDP) for Windows or Mac, using the password displayed in Settings > Sharing > Remote Desktop

Windows Remote Desktop app

Logging in can be troublesome. Make sure the password you use on your Ubuntiu system is complex enough. You may find that you need to Log Out of Ubuntu and leave it at the login screen before attempting to connect using RDP

Step 5 – Installing Caffeine to ensure the Ubuntu server is always awake and available

Ubuntu servers have a tendency to slumber into power saving mode no matter how you setup the power settings

ubuntu caffeine

The only way of preventing this and making sure the files on the server are available 24/7 is to install a utility program called Caffeine, In Terminal type this

sudo apt install caffeine

Once installed

Goto “Applications” find the new program and run it. You can also drag the Caffeine indicator program to the status bar which will show you if the program is on or off

ubuntu caffeine indicator

Step 6 – Installing a bit torrent client on Ubuntu

We are going to install a program called Qbittorrent to download torrent files such as Films, TV shows using your favourite Torrent Search engine such as The Pirate Bay

sudo apt install qbittorrent

Go to your system’s application launcher and there search for this Torrent client Linux application, as its icon appears, click to search the same.

ubuntu qbittorent
qbittorrent v4.4.1

Step 7 – Finding and downloading torrent files

Choose your favourite torrent search engine in a browser

The pirate Bay
Pirate bay results

click on one of the “Magnet” symbols and if prompted for a program to open the torrent, choose Qbittorrent

Step 8 – Locating and playing media files on a smart TV

On you Smart TV (this example is a Toshiba), navigate to “Source”, this should display a list of Networked devices on your network. You should be able to access file on those networked devices

Samsung TV source

If your TV is detecting the media files from the Ubuntu server, there should appear a symbol such as highlighted below:This symbol indicates a Universal Plug n Play (UPnP) data source

If you dont see the symbol, switch your TV off at the power point (do not use your remote to turn the TV off), restart the TV and repeat the process.

Once you see the symbol, use your remote to open the files structure and navigate to the folder your files are stored in and play them.

We hoped this solved one or two problems for you. Fortuately this worked today (Feb 2024) but as updates and new versions show up, things may change. Please let us know in the comments below if you have any comments or queries that we or other readers maybe able to help with.

Options

Sonos – Sharing Music Files on Linux Server

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *