Recently installed Linux after it was recommended due to its supposed ease of use and how smooth it is and yet I'm having a massive headache with Linux Mint. I was not expecting to run into a plethora of issues with the Terminal, poorly explained YouTube tutorials, et cetera. Also finding Logitech and other companies lack proper software support for Linux machines. I needed to install and setup software for Linux yet I found myself typing commands and troubleshooting for several hours just to install programs with and without a Gui. And I'm still not finished.

I can't even figure out how to get a Docker running after pulling it. Is Unraid this difficult to use as Linux? This is unbelievable!

I'm thinking about wiping the machine and installing Windows instead, but now I'm hearing that even users with an Unraid USB that's plugged into a Windows machine also experienced issues that screw with Unraid after certain Windows Updates.

Is a 99%> reliable system smooth setup that much to ask? =[

12 hours ago, Newhost said:

Is a 99%> reliable system smooth setup that much to ask? =[

Reliable and smooth at doing what?

They're different operating systems that serve different purposes.

12 hours ago, Newhost said:

but now I'm hearing that even users with an Unraid USB that's plugged into a Windows machine also experienced issues that screw with Unraid after certain Windows Updates.

I'm not even sure what you mean with windows screwing up Unraid - Unraid can host a Windows VM, but an update to Windows can't screw with the host. And you don't "plug an unraid USB into a Windows machine", it's either an Unraid Machine or a Windows Machine - it's not both at the same time

2 hours ago, Michael_P said:

Reliable and smooth at doing what?

They're different operating systems that serve different purposes.

I'm not even sure what you mean with windows screwing up Unraid - Unraid can host a Windows VM, but an update to Windows can't screw with the host. And you don't "plug an unraid USB into a Windows machine", it's either an Unraid Machine or a Windows Machine - it's not both at the same time

So let Unraid be the main host on the USB and have the VMs of Windows or Linux installed on a separate drive (like an SSD)? Are there videos showing this is possible and how to?

I think what's confusing me is that in a lot of the videos I came across, they set up their Unraid USB and stuff with another OS, which is their main OS, while they boot into the Unraid when necessary. No to mention, that managing, organizing, and adding media files and folders for the servers (such as Plex Media Servers) een done on other OSes before they are ready for the Unraid. Is the Web GUI of Unraid a better alternative for managing the Unraid and drives?

You need to buy a Mac. Not a joke, I'm dead serious. Get a Mac mini if you want a desktop or a Macbook Air if you want something portable with a screen.

Unraid is not for you unless you're looking to set up a server. It sounds however like you want to set up a desktop. That's not what Unraid is for - at all. It's not a general purpose Linux OS and the fact it runs Linux at all isn't very relevant to using it, as Unraid is 100% web-browser based, like using a Web App, not an OS desktop.

Edited May 26, 20251 yr by Espressomatic

4 hours ago, Espressomatic said:

You need to buy a Mac. Not a joke, I'm dead serious. Get a Mac mini if you want a desktop or a Macbook Air if you want something portable with a screen.

Unraid is not for you unless you're looking to set up a server. It sounds however like you want to set up a desktop. That's not what Unraid is for - at all. It's not a general purpose Linux OS and the fact it runs Linux at all isn't very relevant to using it, as Unraid is 100% web-browser based, like using a Web App, not an OS desktop.

But that's just it, I need to set up my Plex Media Server for my movies, music, etc. I have about 4 internal HDDs in my new custom build right now, which is desktop PC, for the media I plan to store so Mac OS isn't an option for this setup unless I want to go the Hackintosh route, which has its own issues. Synology has less support for Plex Media Server now than they did in the recent past so that's why I went the custom build route. Macs don't have expansion slots for HDDs, not to mention they made it hard to physically open and service them. If I do the Mac Mini or MacBook route, I'd have to worry about external HDDs taking up space and the power adapters coming out or limited surge protector slot availability. I just need to know which setup to in this situation whether it's Windows, Linux, Unraid and how I should best set them up and secure them to prevent as much issues as possible.

Point is that most people run their NAS, regardless of Unraid or other OS on a dedicated server machine to store data and/or run services, then access it from their other computers so there's nothing like the "OS conflicts" your post suggests.

A few run Unraid or other NAS OS on their main machine as host OS and create a VM on it for desktop use but that both hardware requirements, can be finicky and you need to understand how these things work in detail for that to be viable.

Edited May 26, 20251 yr by Kilrah

3 hours ago, Kilrah said:

Point is that most people run their NAS, regardless of Unraid or other OS on a dedicated server machine to store data and/or run services, then access it from their other computers so there's nothing like the "OS conflicts" your post suggests.

A few run Unraid or other NAS OS on their main machine as host OS and create a VM on it for desktop use but that both hardware requirements, can be finicky and you need to understand how these things work in detail for that to be viable.

I wasn't clear enough in my previous posts. It's mainly going to serve as a dedicated home server setup, and I'm planning to access the media server with different devices whether I'm at home or away from home. Though I've been basically testing what would serve me best as well as what's possible without having to manually dual boot. What do you best recommend in my situation? For the server build (previously to as "desktop PC"), 1 Unraid USB + 4 internal HDDs will be for the server, and my internal SSD will be used for another OS.

Another OS as a VM? Or why would you dual-boot a server?

you don't want to be dual booting on the file server, your data would only be available properly when the NAS OS is running and you run the risk of damaging something on the NAS side while windows is running or vice versa. You want to put a NAS OS on the server and put it away somewhere then only access it from your other machines.

Running your main PC as a VM within unraid or another OS isnt too hard if all you need is a basic desktop for file management and light apps, but there are some caveats and incompatibilities that can crop up and make things hard for beginners, especially with GPUs and software compatibility under VMs, I'd recommend a second system entirely for that. Keep the NAS as just a storage and applications server, don't try to use it as your main PC too.

Keep researching NAS operating systems and try some out with some test data, Unraid is fairly simple but most of the people here are long term users that might not understand the difficulties of coming in as a new user with limited experience or existing knowledge.

Truenas is another one, there is a free version but it can be more complex to configure than Unraid without some prior knowledge.

hexOS is a newer one that is also paid and a bit expensive in my opinion, but it's mostly just a simpler UI on top of truenas.

OMV might be up your alley as it is pretty simple, but it's imperfect and lacks some features.

Unraid is very flexible and feature rich, it does let you bend it to do whatever you want, but that can result in feature overload if you don't know what you are looking at.

All of these options will be better than an off the shelf NAS with proprietary software though, despite the learning curve.

All of that said, you can use windows or linux as a files and media server while using it as a desktop too, they are just a bit clunky compared to a dedicated NAS OS.

Edited May 30, 20251 yr by Faceman