I've been running a Linux server for Plex for a few years now. The problem is it's too stable. I only have to work on it when hardware fails, other than that it just makes fan noises in my closet. I have only had to work on it twice (reinstall after hardware failures) and I don't feel like I learned much. I am still baffled by the file/folder permissions. I feel like I'm just faffing about with the command line, copy pasting everything in sight until it starts doing what I want it to do. I've actually taken an online Linux course but it was such a waste of time. It felt like those College Computer classes they give to elderly people so they can email their grandchildren. "This is a cursor."

I think my main problem on this front is motivation. If what I have is working and doing what I want it to do then I am unlikely to tinker with it. I learned Windows because it broke. I grew up with DOS 3.2 and moved up from there. Most of what I know is thanks to Windows ME being such a turd. Break stuff is a good answer. You learn by fixing.

Perhaps what you ought to consider is creating a mirror of that server which works very well, and then tinkering on the mirror by adding new capabilities. Seeing if there are different applications or services which you can add or modify and improve what you have now. Then depending as to whether or not it is a personal server or one for work, you can make, or propose, to make changes to it once you've tested them well enough. Some ideas, if things are not already configured and working on that server.

• Media services - either conferencing or music, movies, entertainment.
• On the entertainment front, portal to Netflix, Hulu, YouTubeTV, other, and also DVR.
• File sharing portal, for mobile phones, other computers, etc.
• Home/office automation - home, say you have some smart appliances, or say you also have an irrigation system, or an alarm system - make this a portal for them allowing you access which you may or may not have had in the past. Or make this the alarm system/irrigation system. Yes you may have to experiment to buy a relay board to switch things on and off or additional hardware to connect things you hadn't connected before to the network.
• On the home automation front - portal for things like Alexa or Google assistant, or some other audio interface assistant. Automation of lights.
• Email server, web server, NAS capable device.

What's your problem with permissions? Maybe someone here can explain.

This isn't crazy talk. I run Lubuntu on an HP ML350 G6 for Plex. I've been thinking of replacing the 8x 2.5" bay and backplane with a 5x 3.5" for awhile now. Maybe if I can find a cheap server with the parts I need I can just use what's left over to tinker with so I don't have to take my server down.

Every time I've tried setting up Plex it's always an issue with Plex as a user and how Plex gets ownership or control or whatever of the RAID array so it can serve my movie files. I really couldn't be more specific than that at the moment. It's just always frustrating. Luckily it is such a rare occurrence that I've never been bothered to sort it all out properly. I probably should though for security if nothing else. I usually just start throwing permissions around willy nilly until it works. Mostly. There is a temporary folder on the drive that bugs me because I don't have permission to delete it (I'm not Plex!). But since it's an empty folder and not taking up space I just leave it be.

I also find Linux permissions to be quite unlike other OS permissions!
However, they are logical and are well explained at https://unix.stackexchange.com/quest...-in-linux-work

This includes a table showing the effects of all possible combinations of permissions on files and directories (halfway down the web page).

Corrupt-Liberty ... I highly recommend taking some notes. Open a text editor, copy and paste (since that is what you've been doing) the things that have helped you, add some comments to it like "this command here does this..." and just store it there on the server. It will help you next time you upgrade or have an issue.

Oh $DIETY... where to begin...

First off: I do NOT recommend trying to make a dual boot Windows/Linux system. There are too many landmines that Windows has placed on the system. Others may disagree. I chose to make my life simpler/saner by avoiding have the two on the same system.

If I were just starting out w/ Linux today, I would: get a hold of two desktop systems. It helps if you have a monitor that has two inputs---get the appropriate cabling to let you connect both systems to that monitor. Install a Linux distribution with a reputation for being "user friendly" on one of the systems. Some say that Mint is a good user-friendly choice. (Haven't used it so I cannot verify that.) Then, install a distribution that has a reputation for being more difficult on the other. I used Slackware for that (actually I didn't have many choices back then)---it makes you edit config files for most everything you'll want to do. That learning curve is well worth the effort you'll put into it. When you run into a snag getting something to work on the "hard" system, you have the "user-friendly" Linux to use for surfing the web searching for answers. (Or... if you must, use your Windows system if you have one for that.)

If you cannot get a hold of a second system to do an easy/hard Linux setup, I'd choose to install the so-called hard distribution on your system. The first thing you should probably learn is how to do a backup of the system. In case you break something, restoring from a backup -- or, in a pinch, re-installing -- will get you back up and running/learning. Take a backup before doing anything that you think will screw up your system to the point of being unusable. Initially, you'll probably want to do full system backups. As you get more experienced, you'll be able to decide whether a full system backup or just a back up of a particular directory tree will be needed.

Back when I was starting out, there were a plethora of introduction-to-Linux-type books in the book stores. Not so much any more but I'd bet that your friendly neighborhood public library has some. Lacking a local library ( :^( ) there's always the sites that maintain HOWTOs on a variety of Linux-related topics. There's the venerable "tldp.org" (The Linux Documentation Project) and the newer "howtoforge.com" that have tons of useful information, though some of it is out-of-date (esp. on "tldp.org") so be careful that what you're looking at. There's nothing like following along in a text and trying the commands yourself. Of course, Google is your friend. As is LQ.

As another poster suggested, you'll likely break your system (hopefully, the "hard" system) numerous times. Take notes of what you were doing before you broke it. Make a habit of either running commands through "tee" or using "script" -- check out the manpages for those commands -- to capture the log of a session you can post when seeking help online. (Assuming, of course, the error doesn't result in your system becoming unusable and your log inaccessible.) Use what you learned about backups to recover after a major screw-up. You learn better by doing.

Good luck and, as the openSUSE folks say: Have a lot of fun!

If that's the case, it's not "your" server any more. :^D

Point taken.

I started right here

https://itsfoss.com/download-linux-w...-cheat-sheets/

poked around here

https://www.howtoforge.com/

Joined some teams. Wrote some articles. Probably became infamous.Without trying to.

Oh yeah. If a Ubuntu or Mint user. Cli_Companion will be useful for you also.