Jellyfin

Centralize your media library on one server and deliver it to many kinds of clients

Jellyfin Server is the backend that manages and streams media, while a range of official and third-party clients connect to it. Official projects alone cover desktop, Android, iOS and iPadOS, Kodi, and other device classes. The architecture keeps your own server at the center rather than requiring you to upload the library to a media-service provider, so a home server, NAS-oriented setup, or dedicated machine can remain the source of the media.

Sources: [1][2]

Adapt playback on the server when a client cannot play the source directly

During playback, the client reports capabilities such as codecs, resolution, and bitrate constraints, and Jellyfin selects an appropriate playback path. Direct Play leaves the file untouched and has almost no additional server load; Remux changes only the container, Direct Stream transcodes audio, and full Transcode converts video as well. When conversion is needed, supported Intel, AMD, NVIDIA, Apple, and Rockchip GPUs can accelerate transcoding, making hardware choice important for high-resolution media or multiple simultaneous streams.

Sources: [3]

For people who want a self-managed home media service rather than premium-gated server features

Jellyfin fits households and individuals who want one library for personal videos, movies, or music that can be reached from a living-room TV, phone, and computer. It is especially appealing when you want control over storage, backups, networking, and users without unlocking media-server features through a subscription tier. It is a different proposition from a commercial streaming subscription, however: Jellyfin provides the system for organizing and delivering media you manage rather than a catalog of licensed entertainment content.

Sources: [1][2]

Playback quality depends on client compatibility, transcoding capacity, and network configuration

A file that a client can decode may Direct Play with minimal server work, while an incompatible codec or container can force server-side conversion. High-resolution video and HDR conversion can be demanding enough that CPU-only transcoding becomes impractical in some cases, so expected devices, concurrent streams, and GPU support should be considered when sizing a server. If the server is exposed outside the home network, follow the networking guidance for HTTPS, reverse proxies, and per-user remote-access permissions rather than treating simple port exposure as the complete setup.

This repository contains the Jellyfin backend server; the web client and other clients are separate projects. Jellyfin Server is licensed under GNU GPL v2, whose redistribution obligations differ from permissive licenses such as MIT or Apache. If you modify, redistribute, or embed Jellyfin components, verify the license terms and source-code obligations for each component involved.

Sources: [1][3][4][5]