Question 1

Anyone use this successfully as a Plex media server?

Accepted Answer

To clarify, this can absolutely be used as storage for the media you host on a plex server but you will need to run the plex server on another device. Kind of Similar to DC Mike's setup; I have a an old AMD PC that hosts my plex server (Athlon x2 4400+, 8gb DDR2, and Radeon HD 6870 *can't remember if video card helps with plex decoding at all, but it's there anyway and has no other use to me) I do have a couple TB worth of media on HDDs in that box but the majority of my data is on similar NAS devices like this buffalo Linkstation.  Literally any USB external or NAS drive can host media for a Plex server with extremely little chance of limited performance.  The limiting factor in Plex performance comes with the capability of the computer hosting the server to decode and encode media to play on the device you're trying to stream to (for instance, accessing your plex server from another pc takes much fewer resources than on your ipad would require because the server pc has to reencode the media to a format that iOS can utilize) and, in the case of remote streaming, your internet connection.  The 10+ year old pc I described can stream multiple 1080p video remotely with no visible lag and I've tried as much as 7 local network 1080p streams and had not issue there.tl;dr - This can host all of your music, video, pictures for a plex server to access but not run the plex server itself.

Question 2

3 questions: does it by default appear in windows 10 pro file manager? can the contents be encrypted? can i directly copy to the drive via usb?

Accepted Answer

1 does it by default appear in windows 10 pro file manager? Not always. I have one that does and one that doesn't. You can set it up as a network drive.
2 The contents are not encrypted. This has to be done before storing them to the drive.
# No, the drive can't be accessed by USB. The USB port is to add an additional drive to it.

Question 3

does this support time machine?

Accepted Answer

I'm having MAJOR problems with it. It's unreliable. It shows it's backup one day. I check a week later only to find it hasn't done a single back up since. Time Machine progress bar shows it being stuck.

Question 4

Can this be used as an iTunes home sharing server? (e.g. Stream to an apple TV. )

Accepted Answer

Yes

ASIN	B08V5LFRDW
Assembly Required	No
Best Sellers Rank	#83,371 in Computers & Accessories ( See Top 100 in Computers & Accessories ) #21 in Network Attached Storage (NAS) Devices
Box Contents	AC Adapter, Ethernet Cable (Cat 6A), LinkStation 710D, Quick Setup Guide, Warranty Statement
Brand	BUFFALO
Brand Name	BUFFALO
Colour	Black
Compatible Devices	Server
Country of Origin	USA
Customer Reviews	3.8 out of 5 stars 607 Reviews
Enclosure Material	Metal
Item Dimensions D x W x H	205D x 45W x 127H Millimeters
Item Weight	3 Pounds
Manufacturer	BUFFALO
Manufacturer Part Number	LS710D0401
Material	Metal
Model Number	LS710D0401
Mounting Type	Floor Mount
Product Dimensions	205D x 45W x 127H Millimeters
Size	4TB (1x4TB)
UPC	747464134581
Unit Count	1.0 Count

LinkStation 710 4TB 1-Bay NAS Network Attached Storage with HDD Hard Drives Included NAS Storage that Works as Home Cloud or Network Storage Device for Home

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