Creating a flexible media orientated home network, easily and cheaply using Apple Products.
The wireless future was supposed to make sharing films, photos, music and documents easier.
Computers with various operating systems, mobile phones, would all be able to store and share information around the home, streaming from screen to screen or to a networked device from a networked storage device somewhere else in the same building. For many, this hasn't happened as easily as they thought. Setting up a 'workable' and enjoyable home network can be a challenge. But it doesn't have to be, there are easy and cheap work arounds for most of the problems. Surprisingly, many of these come from Apple.
Let me explain my setup before I explain how it works, so that you can decide whether this is what you're looking to achieve. I'll explain the technology I use, the settings or programs I use, where appropriate and the connections between the devices that makes it all possible.
There are also spare ethernet ports at either end of the house for anyting else that we need to connect.
So, if this sounds like something you'd like, here's the equipment thats used.
Standard ISP provided Netgear router. This is the first device into the house and wifi is disabled on it. Fortunately this router model comes with 4 ports in the back, which enables me to hard wire it to a number of key devices. This is connected directly to......
Powerline hub - The first step in order to retain flexibility is to be able to blast this fast data connection around your house. So don't worry if you can't plug these other devices (listed below) where I've plugged them in, having powerline adaptors means you can take your fast data connection to another mains socket somewhere else in the house.
The whole purpose of a powerline hub is to connect it up to another one, this other powerline hub is connected to an older 500gb Apple time Capsule, which I picked up for £130.
This 'dumbell' setup means I have 4 ethernet spare ports at one end of the powerline hub, and 4 upstairs with the time capsule. It also means I can move the Time capsule to somewhere where noise isn't an issue as it can be heard when it starts backing up.
Connected by ethernet to the main router at one end is.....
Apple Airport Express £60. This is the only aspect of the setup that isn't in the ideal location. I actually use this for streaming to the bedroom, which meant running a headphone cable through the roof into the bedroom. But for the sake of the network, I wanted the Airport express close to the router, to create the first part of the wifi network downstairs. This device CREATES the wireless aspect of our home network downstairs. It's configured through Airport Utility using basic settings.
Also plugged into the router is Apple TV £100 this is connected to the main Amplifier in the living room as well as the TV, obviously?
Sky TV is plugged into the router as well, although this serves little purpose for the sake of the network flexibility.
Finally, plugged into the USB port of the Airport express, is a cheap Canon printer. Both of the Mac's see this as a network printer as this is what the USB port of the Airport Express was designed to do. However for the iPad and iPhones, I need to run Handyprint server, which can be completely hidden, and runs in the background on any or all of the Macbooks.
At the other end of the house, plugged into the second powerline adaptor the Time Capsule extends the network created by the first Airport express. This is made simple by the Airport utility app that can be configured on either of the Macbooks in the house. Also plugged via ethernet into the Time Capsule is;
Second Apple Airport Express. Wifi on this device is disabled as well, as the time capsule extends the network already.
The X-Box is plugged into the TC too, but for no other purpose than fast internet, it isn't used to enhance our network.
Finally, plugged via USB into the time capsule, is a 500Gb Buffalo USB drive. This model is great because it has an auto wake function, which, when it's not being used, means it just powers down and waits for a USB signal to hit it. Then it wakes up.
The USB drive plugged into the Time capsule can be found in Finder on both of the Macs. Data can be shared at this central location easily on either machine and transfer speeds are fast, no matter where they are in the house, thanks to the powerline hubs, maintaining a great internal network speed.
From the iPad, FileBrowser, available through the app store can scan the network and see the Buffalo drive, which enables it to stream any of the films on the Buffalo USB drive, or music, or photos to the iPad. Furthermore, it supports Apple TV, so films can simply be thrown to the TV.
I use Handbrake to create MP4's from my DVD collections and I use Smart convertor pro (from the Apple App Store) to convert other media types to MP4. Both Handbrake and Smart convertor have Apple TV defaults, so conversion is simple. I rarely run into any problems, and I've noticed of late, Handbrake has also been ripping the 5.1 surround sound properly too!
The iPhones act as a remote, to stream music, either off the Macbooks or Google Music to each or any room in the house. Plus they can obviously stream their own stored content as well. Video can be streamed off the iPhones, to Apple TV and the latest Macbook Air, will mirror to the Apple TV. If you want, you could watch a movie on the iPad in the bedroom, and have the audio coming out of the speakers, using Airplay. Filebrowser is also available for the iPhones and will enable you to gain access to any of the content off the USB drive plugged into the Time capsule. Youtube, or Vevo can be streamed to the Apple TV from the iPhones or iPad.
You can also get a number of Apps from the Android app store that will allow streaming to Airport Express and Apple TV from an Android device.
So, in a nutshell, thats how everything connects together. Everything works pretty swimmingly. If you have any questions. Please ask. There's a diagram below to help illustrate how it all connects together along with a key to show which cables are used and where.
Computers with various operating systems, mobile phones, would all be able to store and share information around the home, streaming from screen to screen or to a networked device from a networked storage device somewhere else in the same building. For many, this hasn't happened as easily as they thought. Setting up a 'workable' and enjoyable home network can be a challenge. But it doesn't have to be, there are easy and cheap work arounds for most of the problems. Surprisingly, many of these come from Apple.
Let me explain my setup before I explain how it works, so that you can decide whether this is what you're looking to achieve. I'll explain the technology I use, the settings or programs I use, where appropriate and the connections between the devices that makes it all possible.
- We can wirelessly stream music to THREE rooms in the home. Living room, Bedroom and Cinema room. This can be simultaneous if we want so we can have the same music in sync, in every room.
- We can browse a film library, pick a film or an old home or holiday movie and watch it on any computer, the iPad, or on Apple TV.
- We have a shared home storage device, which allows us to deposit files for other people to move onto their machines.
- We have wireless backups for the Macbooks. (Windows machines would work as well).
- We have a networked Xbox, which is upstairs, away from the main router, but has enough throughput to download HD films, via lovefilm or netflix, or iPlayer or Xbox Movies etc.
- We have wireless printing on an ordinary (non wifi) printer, which also works from the iPad.
There are also spare ethernet ports at either end of the house for anyting else that we need to connect.
So, if this sounds like something you'd like, here's the equipment thats used.
Standard ISP provided Netgear router. This is the first device into the house and wifi is disabled on it. Fortunately this router model comes with 4 ports in the back, which enables me to hard wire it to a number of key devices. This is connected directly to......
Powerline hub - The first step in order to retain flexibility is to be able to blast this fast data connection around your house. So don't worry if you can't plug these other devices (listed below) where I've plugged them in, having powerline adaptors means you can take your fast data connection to another mains socket somewhere else in the house.
The whole purpose of a powerline hub is to connect it up to another one, this other powerline hub is connected to an older 500gb Apple time Capsule, which I picked up for £130.
This 'dumbell' setup means I have 4 ethernet spare ports at one end of the powerline hub, and 4 upstairs with the time capsule. It also means I can move the Time capsule to somewhere where noise isn't an issue as it can be heard when it starts backing up.
Connected by ethernet to the main router at one end is.....
Apple Airport Express £60. This is the only aspect of the setup that isn't in the ideal location. I actually use this for streaming to the bedroom, which meant running a headphone cable through the roof into the bedroom. But for the sake of the network, I wanted the Airport express close to the router, to create the first part of the wifi network downstairs. This device CREATES the wireless aspect of our home network downstairs. It's configured through Airport Utility using basic settings.
Also plugged into the router is Apple TV £100 this is connected to the main Amplifier in the living room as well as the TV, obviously?
Sky TV is plugged into the router as well, although this serves little purpose for the sake of the network flexibility.
Finally, plugged into the USB port of the Airport express, is a cheap Canon printer. Both of the Mac's see this as a network printer as this is what the USB port of the Airport Express was designed to do. However for the iPad and iPhones, I need to run Handyprint server, which can be completely hidden, and runs in the background on any or all of the Macbooks.
At the other end of the house, plugged into the second powerline adaptor the Time Capsule extends the network created by the first Airport express. This is made simple by the Airport utility app that can be configured on either of the Macbooks in the house. Also plugged via ethernet into the Time Capsule is;
Second Apple Airport Express. Wifi on this device is disabled as well, as the time capsule extends the network already.
The X-Box is plugged into the TC too, but for no other purpose than fast internet, it isn't used to enhance our network.
Finally, plugged via USB into the time capsule, is a 500Gb Buffalo USB drive. This model is great because it has an auto wake function, which, when it's not being used, means it just powers down and waits for a USB signal to hit it. Then it wakes up.
The USB drive plugged into the Time capsule can be found in Finder on both of the Macs. Data can be shared at this central location easily on either machine and transfer speeds are fast, no matter where they are in the house, thanks to the powerline hubs, maintaining a great internal network speed.
From the iPad, FileBrowser, available through the app store can scan the network and see the Buffalo drive, which enables it to stream any of the films on the Buffalo USB drive, or music, or photos to the iPad. Furthermore, it supports Apple TV, so films can simply be thrown to the TV.
I use Handbrake to create MP4's from my DVD collections and I use Smart convertor pro (from the Apple App Store) to convert other media types to MP4. Both Handbrake and Smart convertor have Apple TV defaults, so conversion is simple. I rarely run into any problems, and I've noticed of late, Handbrake has also been ripping the 5.1 surround sound properly too!
The iPhones act as a remote, to stream music, either off the Macbooks or Google Music to each or any room in the house. Plus they can obviously stream their own stored content as well. Video can be streamed off the iPhones, to Apple TV and the latest Macbook Air, will mirror to the Apple TV. If you want, you could watch a movie on the iPad in the bedroom, and have the audio coming out of the speakers, using Airplay. Filebrowser is also available for the iPhones and will enable you to gain access to any of the content off the USB drive plugged into the Time capsule. Youtube, or Vevo can be streamed to the Apple TV from the iPhones or iPad.
You can also get a number of Apps from the Android app store that will allow streaming to Airport Express and Apple TV from an Android device.
So, in a nutshell, thats how everything connects together. Everything works pretty swimmingly. If you have any questions. Please ask. There's a diagram below to help illustrate how it all connects together along with a key to show which cables are used and where.
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