{"id":335479,"date":"2021-09-06T15:00:53","date_gmt":"2021-09-06T12:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/"},"modified":"2021-09-06T15:00:53","modified_gmt":"2021-09-06T12:00:53","slug":"why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/","title":{"rendered":"#Why Hardware Transcoding Is Important on a NAS"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2ad3ce86262\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2ad3ce86262\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#What_Is_Transcoding\" >What Is Transcoding?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#What_Is_Hardware_Transcoding\" >What Is Hardware Transcoding?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#Hardware_Transcoding_Is_Fast\" >Hardware Transcoding Is Fast<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#Hardware_Transcoding_Frees_Up_the_CPU\" >Hardware Transcoding Frees Up the CPU<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#Hardware_Transcoding_is_More_Efficient\" >Hardware Transcoding is More Efficient<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#Hardware_Transcoding_Has_Downsides\" >Hardware Transcoding Has Downsides<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/#When_Is_Software_Transcoding_OK\" >When Is Software Transcoding OK?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;#Why Hardware Transcoding Is Important on a NAS&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage wp-image-751273 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/shutterstock_205511164-1.jpg?width=398&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 400w, https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/shutterstock_205511164-1.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 400w, 1200w\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/shutterstock_205511164-1.jpg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"An illustration of a desktop, laptop, and tablet connected to a NAS.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/various-devices-connected-network-attached-storage-205511164\" data-credittext=\"Andrea Danti\/Shutterstock.com\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-illustration\/various-devices-connected-network-attached-storage-205511164\">Andrea Danti\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When buying a Network Attached Storage device, you\u2019ll have the choice of getting a model with or without hardware transcoding. Hardware transcoding makes <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> streaming from your NAS\u00a0faster and more efficient. Here\u2019s how it works.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Is_Transcoding\"><\/span>What Is Transcoding?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Media files such as videos are encoded using a specific format. For example, one popular video format is H.264. Different formats have different <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>roaches to storing video information with the best balance of quality and size.<\/p>\n<p>Since there are so many different formats for media encoding, it\u2019s often necessary to\u00a0<em>transcode<\/em> a file into a format that a target device can understand. For example, you may have a file format that plays fine on your computer, but that\u2019s totally incompatible with your smart TV. In that case, you\u2019d transcode it to a format your TV does work with. This process is also referred to as video format conversion, but transcoding is more often used in streaming media and live conversion of media files.<\/p>\n<p>Transcoding isn\u2019t just about compatibility; it\u2019s also used to create multiple video versions to stream at different quality levels, depending on available bandwidth. This is what services like Netflix or YouTube do, automatically switching to whichever version of the video best fits your network connection at any given time.<\/p>\n<p>In the context of a home NAS, many people buy these devices to act as home media servers. Running software such as Plex, transcoding lets the NAS serve media files to local network users and users connecting to the content over the internet.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Is_Hardware_Transcoding\"><\/span>What Is Hardware Transcoding?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-751281 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/resolutions.jpg?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"Different image resolutions compared.\" width=\"650\" height=\"370\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/4k-television-display-comparison-resolutions-ultra-178278890\" data-credittext=\"REDPIXEL.PL\/Shutterstock.com\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/4k-television-display-comparison-resolutions-ultra-178278890\">REDPIXEL.PL\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A CPU (central processing unit) is a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>-purpose computing device. That means it can perform any type of calculation, as long as it can be expressed as computer code. The downside of this is that CPUs aren\u2019t as efficient as they could be at any specific type of calculation. Think of it this way: if you have the equipment to do addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, but you only ever do one of them, you\u2019re saddled with 75% of your capacity wasted.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s where specialized processors come into play. They do a limited number of calculation types for a very narrow set of jobs, but they do it\u00a0<em>very\u00a0<\/em>quickly. That\u2019s what hardware transcoding is. The transcoding process is handled by a specialized processor designed to be good at the sort of math transcoding requires. If you buy a NAS with hardware transcoding, such a processor is included somewhere inside it. So, why is this feature important?<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hardware_Transcoding_Is_Fast\"><\/span>Hardware Transcoding Is Fast<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Having special hardware that\u2019s dedicated to transcoding results in blazing-fast results. Usually, it\u2019s fast enough to happen in real-time, so you don\u2019t have to wait for a file to transcode before you can start watching it. This is probably the most important reason you\u2019d want hardware transcoding in your NAS.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hardware_Transcoding_Frees_Up_the_CPU\"><\/span>Hardware Transcoding Frees Up the CPU<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>A NAS is a busy device at the best of times. It might be handling file transfers, running backup software, and acting as a web server at the same time you want it to play <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a> on your TV. Transcoding is a CPU-heavy job, and if the NAS has to do it fast enough for real-time viewing, it will drop the ball on other tasks. Offloading the job to a dedicated hardware transcoder or (as is often the case) a GPU frees up the CPU to ensure everything else is taken care of without skipping a beat.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hardware_Transcoding_is_More_Efficient\"><\/span>Hardware Transcoding is More Efficient<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Using dedicated hardware to transcode media generally uses less power and generates less heat than using a CPU to do the job. If you do a lot of transcoding, that difference in efficiency can add up over time. It\u2019s not the most critical aspect of hardware transcoding, but it\u2019s worth noting.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Hardware_Transcoding_Has_Downsides\"><\/span>Hardware Transcoding Has Downsides<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-751279 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/shutterstock_1180285519.jpg?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"The Plex app on a Samsung smartphone in someone's pocket.\" width=\"650\" height=\"448\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/montreal-canada-september-8-2018-plex-1180285519\" data-credittext=\"dennizn\/Shutterstock.com\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/montreal-canada-september-8-2018-plex-1180285519\">dennizn\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hardware transcoding is a desirable feature in a NAS, but it\u2019s not perfect. First, the media streaming software you use must be compatible with the NAS and the hardware transcoder it uses. For example, Plex maintains a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1MfYoJkiwSqCXg8cm5-Ac4oOLPRtCkgUxU0jdj3tmMPc\/edit\">Google Sheet<\/a>\u00a0with a list of NAS devices and whether their hardware transcoders work with Plex.<\/p>\n<p>The next issue with hardware transcoding is that the transcoder can be very specific. For example, a transcoder might work with H.264, but not with the newer HEVC (High-Efficiency Video Coding) format. In those cases, the NAS will have to fall back on software encoding using the CPU anyway.<\/p>\n<p>With Plex, in particular, hardware encoding also introduces additional costs. Since Plex has decided to include hardware transcoding as a premium feature. Of course, that\u2019s a downside of Plex and not hardware transcoding specifically. However, since Plex is the most popular NAS media streaming choice, it\u2019s a relevant observation.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"When_Is_Software_Transcoding_OK\"><\/span>When Is Software Transcoding OK?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>You can save quite a bit of money by getting a NAS without hardware transcoding, but when is that OK? We think that if you\u2019re buying a NAS to\u00a0<em>only\u00a0<\/em>act as a media server, a lack of hardware transcoding is (ironically) not a big deal.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s assuming the CPU of the NAS in question is up to the job! In that same Plex Google Sheet mentioned above, you\u2019ll see performance testing results for software transcoding at various resolutions. You\u2019ll also see the specific CPU each respective NAS on the list is equipped with. That will give you a clear idea of which NAS CPUs will perform well as software transcoders.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, most NAS streaming software offers the option to transcode your media in the background. For example, it might transcode your content overnight when it\u2019s not busy. So, when you do stream the media, it\u2019s already in an optimal format. In this case, it doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re using software transcoding because you don\u2019t need real-time performance. The main downside is that your media will take some time to be available, and this approach uses more storage since the transcoded media is saved alongside the original unless you choose to have the original file deleted, of course.<\/p>\n<p>In the end, hardware or software transcoding is a choice that fits your needs and budget. Neither is objectively superior in every regard, but now you have the knowledge you need to decide for yourself.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/750701\/why-hardware-transcoding-is-important-on-a-nas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Why Hardware Transcoding Is Important on a NAS&#8221; Andrea Danti\/Shutterstock.com When buying a Network Attached Storage device, you\u2019ll have the choice of getting a model with or without hardware transcoding. Hardware transcoding makes media streaming from your NAS\u00a0faster and more efficient. Here\u2019s how it works. What Is Transcoding? Media files such as videos are encoded&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":335480,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/shutterstock_205511164-1.jpg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-335479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=335479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335479\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/335480"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=335479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=335479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=335479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}