Looking to build my own budget NAS/Plex server for the first time (have built gaming PCs) would like to know if an Intel i3 8100 with 4GB RAM be enough to stream/transcode to one device such as a Smart TV or iPad Pro? Most content will be 1080p and 720p but I do want to use it for some 4K content.
Also would like to know whether after I set it up will there be much regular maintenance involved or would it just work like a Synology/QNAP box?
Your CPU/RAM should suffice according to https://support.plex.tv/articles/200375666-plex-media-server-requirements/ . I would say you will probably have slowdowns, trans -coding (yuck), and loading delays - but it should work. The link also gives info on what you want versus what it will take. There are several intel links to check data as well.
You can direct play anything, as direct play takes very little CPU.
You can transcode two or three 1080p streams.
You cannot transcode 4K media with that CPU unless you have a Plex Pass and use hardware accelerated transcoding. Hardware transcoding uses the GPU instead of the CPU.
Note that transcoding HDR media in Plex is not without issue. Plex does not map HDR to SDR, so transcoded HDR material usually has washed out colors.
If you’ll be using Windows then definitely go with 8 GB RAM. Windows is happier with more RAM. 8 GB will give you extra room to run other apps besides Plex. You will see a slight performance boost since your system can run in dual channel mode (more memory bandwidth). The cost is minimal compared to other components. 2 x 4 GB DDR4 RAM runs $35 - $40 USD.
The required size of RAM will also grow if you plan on using any type of RAID or “drive pooling”.
The larger the connected drives are (and the higher their number) the more RAM you should add.
I agree that Windows feels more comfortable with 8 GB.
So from what I understand, if I wish to stream remotely it will likely require transcoding. According to this page https://support.plex.tv/articles/201774043-what-kind-of-cpu-do-i-need-for-my-server/ The Core i3 9100 would only be able to transcode a 720p video file and I need an i5 or i7 for 1080p and 4K? I’d seen a i5 7400 on ebay new for cheaper than this i3 but it gets a lower pass mark than this Core i3
The passmark appears to be the driving factor. I would buy as high as my budget allows (and I did) to allow the most robust and long lived system for my circumstances.
Most models of i3 8100 should support Quick Sync and hardware accelerated transcoding. There are many forum posts of people with i3 6100 and i3 8100 happily doing multiple simultaneous transcoding sessions.
Even for software-only, the passmark numbers are what matters. The other recommendations on that support article seem old. An i3 8100 is better for this than an i5 7400. I’d bet an i3 8100 would support 2 1080p transcodes in software.
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