Looking for thoughts on moving from Microsoft to Apple at home

[McG]

Hi everyone; looking for well given thoughts on changing my entire home environment from a Microsoft to an Apple environment. No haters please; I already have a healthy dose of hate for both sides of this discussion. On the one hand, I dislike the monopolistic tendencies shown by both, but I appreciate the ease of use when either of them can control the software and hardware of any specific device. It is the up and downside on both. I should add here that I have been up to now almost exclusively an M$ guy; it just seemed the most that my brain could handle! Here is where I am at; everything M$ that I have works very, very well. The providers of gear that use M$ products without M$ oversight is what is killing me. The last straw was my HP Windows Home Server; It isn't even 2 years old and it died; no support available from HP and they won't even touch it. Server...designed to last and protect the environment including backups...just died. So yes...not M$'s fault at all since the software was great and it worked very well for me, but the amount of effort that i have to put in to keep that server running and now to have to save my data...well it is the last straw. I used to build high end M$ gaming machines for fun...and the one that I built for me in the late 90s is still chugging... Until M$ makes their own hardware exclusively, I just can't stay on their platform. Which makes me mad because you can imagine that I have had the last 22 years from MS-DOS right through to Win 7. i should add that we do have apple in the house; we have a macbook pro and itouch so it isn't a completely blank slate. Enough ranting. This stuff is all ancient history now and I need to understand if i can transition my current home over completely to an Apple environment.

Here is my ask of my fellow CPers; if you can please direct me to trusted sites with Apple info; i can google just like everyone else but i would like to know if there are sites in the Apple world that an Apple newbie can learn from and trust and not spend time with the isheep and ihaters of the world. Also, if you know enough about apple, please recommend replacement products if you know of them. i will do all of the research from there! looks like i will be spending time and money on apple.

my M$ world

Xbox 360 (obviously not replaceable) but it does have to connect with an apple server
Linksys 610 dual band simultaneous router - does it survive or do i need an airport?
HP Windows Home Server - is there an equivalent in the Apple world? backups, syncing media and acting as a media hub for the 360 and laptops; is there an equivalent to this in the apple world? Does it stream video? (its a dumb question but i have to ask)
Home Computers - will my laptop and Desktop function in the new apple environment until i replace them?
DLNA and wireless for TVs - does the apple environment support DLNA?
USB devices - i have a few; do they work in the apple environment or is that an "it depends". What is the deal with apple and usb?

i see that my rant is waaay longer than my list; and that's an edited, cut down rant.

in a perfect world, M$ would be allowed to make one of each hardware product and operate like apple; guaranteeing that the hardware and software works. instead, we have to rely upon 3rd parties manufacturing devices, throwing in their own hardware and software, and screwing everything up. i seriously believe that this is the problem with the M$ world.

as homer says, please help push the old knowledge out of my head so that i can learn new!

please help me obi-wan!

[DownhillGoat]

Any time I'm looking for info macrumors and ehmac.ca tend to show up. Might be a good place to start.

[algernon]

I am no expert.
I would (and will be) looking into a Time Machine. Hopefully they'll be triple the TB's when I buy.

[McG]

it occurs to me that i will run out of thanks to posters on this thread; i will do my best to thank everyone however thank you in advance in case i run out!

[McG]

Originally Posted by algernon

I am no expert.
I would (and will be) looking into a Time Machine. Hopefully they'll be triple the TB's when I buy.

thanks! i would think that the time capsule will also replace my router as well. which i am okay with.

hmmm...i need to search for switches/hubs now that i think of it. off to google for apple friendly switches!

[Hack&Lube]

You mentioned building your own computer before, I would basically recommend that route and choosing your parts well for compatibility and stability. I have never had a problem with hardware in many years now after I stopped cheaping out on components and started buying good motherboards and high end power supplies and providing adequate cooling.

Mind if I ask what issues you are having with hardware that are giving you the headaches? That seems like an odd problem to me, most of the times it is software and the fault is with the OS, not the hardware unless it's junk with poor driver support or low end or mass produced Dell/HP low end boxes. Hardware failures occur with everything, even Apple. If you lost a lot of data on your backups, I understand that is awful. For me, it was the actual harddrives dying (Seagate) and not the fault of anything else. There are much better backup solutions out there like a Drobo or RAID setup with automatic imaging with Acronis, etc.

As for switching to Apple, since everything is Intel based and if you do know what you are doing, you could just install OSX on your current PC hardware and use bootcamp to have both solutions. You are making this all far more complicated than it needs be. You can have both worlds running off the same hardware with some effort. My current machine has Windows Server that I want to run Win7 virtualizations off eventually, a Linux Partition, an XP Parition, and I'm thinking of trying to bootcamp OSX onto it as well at some point to check it out. I have reverse bootcamp on my WinXP right now. Why must you transition over completely? What are your computing needs that you need to go and convert absolutely everything over?

[Bob]

Originally Posted by McG

my M$ world

Xbox 360 (obviously not replaceable) but it does have to connect with an apple server
Linksys 610 dual band simultaneous router - does it survive or do i need an airport?
HP Windows Home Server - is there an equivalent in the Apple world? backups, syncing media and acting as a media hub for the 360 and laptops; is there an equivalent to this in the apple world? Does it stream video? (its a dumb question but i have to ask)
Home Computers - will my laptop and Desktop function in the new apple environment until i replace them?
DLNA and wireless for TVs - does the apple environment support DLNA?
USB devices - i have a few; do they work in the apple environment or is that an "it depends". What is the deal with apple and usb?

Looking at this list, there's no real need to do a whole-hog replacement of everything. Apple's Time Capsule is a nice router/NAS, but it doesn't talk with a 360 for streaming (no DLNA at all in the Apple world). Unless you go with third-party software or hacks, you're stuck in the iTunes ecosystem, which can be a PITA for some people, but in general the AppleTV is really nice.

I suppose you could revamp your media with:
-Time Capsule
-Mac Mini (or a laptop, as you need an active Mac to stream to an AppleTV, unless you hack it)
-AppleTV

Otherwise, just start small by adding a laptop/desktop and go from there. I have the following:

Games: 360, PS3
HTPC: Mac Mini (running Plex)
NAS: FreeNAS box with 4x2 TB
Laptop: MacBook Pro
Desktop: Custom PC
Router: Linksys WRT running Tomato

All work fine together.

Re: Apple and USB. It "just works" most of the time (especially with printers).

[FanIn80]

Originally Posted by Bob

Looking at this list, there's no real need to do a whole-hog replacement of everything. Apple's Time Capsule is a nice router/NAS, but it doesn't talk with a 360 for streaming (no DLNA at all in the Apple world). Unless you go with third-party software or hacks, you're stuck in the iTunes ecosystem, which can be a PITA for some people, but in general the AppleTV is really nice.

I suppose you could revamp your media with:
-Time Capsule
-Mac Mini (or a laptop, as you need an active Mac to stream to an AppleTV, unless you hack it)
-AppleTV

Otherwise, just start small by adding a laptop/desktop and go from there. I have the following:

Games: 360, PS3
HTPC: Mac Mini (running Plex)
NAS: FreeNAS box with 4x2 TB
Laptop: MacBook Pro
Desktop: Custom PC
Router: Linksys WRT running Tomato

All work fine together.

Re: Apple and USB. It "just works" most of the time (especially with printers).

Just pointing out a couple of things.

- Apple Airport routers (including Time Capsules) stream content just fine to a 360. I do it all the time.

- You don't need a Mac to use an AppleTV. It will connect to any iTunes library, even one on a Windows PC.

[Flames0910]

Xbox 360 (obviously not replaceable) but it does have to connect with an apple server
Linksys 610 dual band simultaneous router - does it survive or do i need an airport?
HP Windows Home Server - is there an equivalent in the Apple world? backups, syncing media and acting as a media hub for the 360 and laptops; is there an equivalent to this in the apple world? Does it stream video? (its a dumb question but i have to ask)
Home Computers - will my laptop and Desktop function in the new apple environment until i replace them?
DLNA and wireless for TVs - does the apple environment support DLNA?
USB devices - i have a few; do they work in the apple environment or is that an "it depends". What is the deal with apple and usb?

Trying to figure out what exactly you're looking for...you don't want to replace every device you own do you? Even if you add a few Apple items to the mix, it's not going to break all the old stuff - they'll still work just fine.

What is the problem you're trying to solve?

[McG]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

You mentioned building your own computer before, I would basically recommend that route and choosing your parts well for compatibility and stability. I have never had a problem with hardware in many years now after I stopped cheaping out on components and started buying good motherboards and high end power supplies and providing adequate cooling.

Mind if I ask what issues you are having with hardware that are giving you the headaches? That seems like an odd problem to me, most of the times it is software and the fault is with the OS, not the hardware unless it's junk with poor driver support or low end or mass produced Dell/HP low end boxes. Hardware failures occur with everything, even Apple. If you lost a lot of data on your backups, I understand that is awful. For me, it was the actual harddrives dying (Seagate) and not the fault of anything else. There are much better backup solutions out there like a Drobo or RAID setup with automatic imaging with Acronis, etc.

As for switching to Apple, since everything is Intel based and if you do know what you are doing, you could just install OSX on your current PC hardware and use bootcamp to have both solutions. You are making this all far more complicated than it needs be. You can have both worlds running off the same hardware with some effort. My current machine has Windows Server that I want to run Win7 virtualizations off eventually, a Linux Partition, an XP Parition, and I'm thinking of trying to bootcamp OSX onto it as well at some point to check it out. I have reverse bootcamp on my WinXP right now. Why must you transition over completely? What are your computing needs that you need to go and convert absolutely everything over?

Apologies for the delay in getting back to my own thread...i started vacation and so finding time on the computer is a little tougher. Thank you to everyone for taking the time to post on this thread.

Thank you for the suggestion of building my own...i have totally been down this road mentally and i agree that this might be the best route. my problem is time. i just don't have enough of it to devote to investigating, building and supporting my own stuff. i find that a crazy sentence, but what i mean by it is that i need to defer to my wife and kids and not being my own at home IT guy. this is the reason that i have moved away from building my own stuff and trying to go with manufacturers, which by my own admission is entirely my actual problem and i may have to go the build my own route in the end. it would certainly be my second choice to having something that "just works", hence the apple direction. i also realize that apple isn't all plug and play either...but hoping less.

the hp ex470 windows home server is the last straw for me. i have had so many HDDs crash on me over the years that i don't actually trust any of them however it is a necessary evil that has to be lived with. seagate, WD, hitachi, samsung; i have had at least one drive fail from all of them. i thought that a win home server from HP would protect me. no. final straw. i managed to recover all of the data that i can tell, and i had actually backed up all of my photos off server just a week or so previously so all of my pictures were good...it is the hassle to rebuild everything. and the repeated hassle with this gear as a home platform.

what specs are you running on your server?

there are things that work well...again when M$ controls things. the xbox integration with the network is well done, as is the streaming. i should add that my own personal computer will always be a microsoft box...just because i need it to do things that i cannot get apples to do; either because they don't or because of lack of end user abilities (heh).

so while i was totally frustrated when i posted this thread and am a little calmer now, the work that i have had to do to rescue the data is completely above and beyond. i could have done all of this without the expense and time of the home server in the first place.

i have really looked at the drobo FS as my NAS device, and with a media server plug in i will get dlna abilities to the xbox and beyond. the beyondraid thing appeals alot. the proprietary data storage doesn't. it equally does time machine and windows. so that looks like a good solution for me at the moment. i need to see more critical reviews and other options to the drobo though...

laptop will just get replaced with mac when the time comes, and desktop will likely be another custom build from a local shop. 360 remains. linksys remains. printers remain.

i'm not married to the apple move; i am married to moving away from the outright freaking hassles that seems to exist on the m$ platform from the multitude of vendors out there.

thanks for your well thought out post and equally apologies for my rambling.

[McG]

Originally Posted by Bob

Looking at this list, there's no real need to do a whole-hog replacement of everything. Apple's Time Capsule is a nice router/NAS, but it doesn't talk with a 360 for streaming (no DLNA at all in the Apple world). Unless you go with third-party software or hacks, you're stuck in the iTunes ecosystem, which can be a PITA for some people, but in general the AppleTV is really nice.

I suppose you could revamp your media with:
-Time Capsule
-Mac Mini (or a laptop, as you need an active Mac to stream to an AppleTV, unless you hack it)
-AppleTV

Otherwise, just start small by adding a laptop/desktop and go from there. I have the following:

Games: 360, PS3
HTPC: Mac Mini (running Plex)
NAS: FreeNAS box with 4x2 TB
Laptop: MacBook Pro
Desktop: Custom PC
Router: Linksys WRT running Tomato

All work fine together.

Re: Apple and USB. It "just works" most of the time (especially with printers).

FreeNAS eh? looks like i have some research ahead of me. i see the problem without the dlna stuff though...hmmm...

and so far i have been able to avoid the htpc although i can certainly see the upside. i have also looked at the asus and wd home media devices but realize that it may lock me into the m$ space...i need to do more research.

thanks for your post! free nas going into google right away.

[McG]

Originally Posted by Flames0910

Trying to figure out what exactly you're looking for...you don't want to replace every device you own do you? Even if you add a few Apple items to the mix, it's not going to break all the old stuff - they'll still work just fine.

What is the problem you're trying to solve?

this is an excellent question. i think i am immediately trying to solve my storage and backup issues; drobo fs was one that i looked at and qnap is another. also freenas from above if it will stream to a 360.

i think what you recommend will be the way i go; only so much time and money! but definitely, frustration aside, i think i need to move away from being a support guy in my own house.

server/storage device will have to be first.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by McG

i have really looked at the drobo FS as my NAS device, and with a media server plug in i will get dlna abilities to the xbox and beyond. the beyondraid thing appeals alot. the proprietary data storage doesn't. it equally does time machine and windows. so that looks like a good solution for me at the moment. i need to see more critical reviews and other options to the drobo though...

I was hung up on the proprietary nature of the Drobo too. I mitigated the risk I perceive there two ways - first, I bought the Instant Product Replacement plan for the unit at Memory Express, so I have hardware replacements available if needed (in theory...but I don’t depend on this aspect)

Second, I make sure that the contents of my Drobo are backed up to Mozy, which is $5 a month for all you can eat online backup. Yeah, the initial uploads take a long time, but you’ve got lots of time, 24 hours in a day, in fact.

This way, if the hardware dies, I can get it replaced. If I can’t get the hardware replaced, or BeyondRAID goes kerplooey, or it gets stolen, or whatever, I have the entire contents backed up offsite in the cloud, which I can either download again in stages, or simply pay to have the data shipped back to me on DVD.

So I’m at a point now with the Drobo where I feel I can comfortably use it as my primary home storage device, having eliminated the risk of some of my biggest fears about it. All in all, they are nice devices. Like you, the time savings of not fooling around with yet another file server or FreeNAS or any of that stuff was time I could re-invest elsewhere. FreeNAS is cool but so is my time

[FlamingStuffedTiger]

I'm not sure if this is what you are looking for, but it sounds like you might be interested in what these guys have to offer. Something like this:

http://www.synology.com/enu/products/DS210j/index.php

I hear good things about them. Just another alternative to consider...

[mykalberta]

You might want to consider drobo as a replacement to Windows Home Server - this is what I use and this is what I have my parents setup with (damn you leo laporte).

Please advise the drobo is not the cheapest way to go but I will never go back to a drobo free world.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by mykalberta

You might want to consider drobo as a replacement to Windows Home Server - this is what I use and this is what I have my parents setup with (damn you leo laporte).

Please advise the drobo is not the cheapest way to go but I will never go back to a drobo free world.

It is definitely a high quality product, much better built than I had expected. And the Laporte affect didn’t help, I’m with you on that. Puuut Alll of your stuff on a Droboooh

It’s a mature product at this point, so there is no fear of being an early adopter, and the company would seem to be financially a going concern and unlikely to go out of business any time soon.

I still dislike that its proprietary, but once you develop a strategy to back up your Drobo, which I’ve done, you can treat it as an appliance and move on.

[mykalberta]

Once I learned I could use the Drobo itself as a media server for my files instead of my computer that made me buy it. 699 Retail for Drobo FS with gigabit ethernet I got mine and my parents on "sale" for $550.

I too was tempted by the HP windows home server but why bother with another computer that is just on and never used when you can get a drobo or an equivilent replacement.