Just wanted to contribute a pragmatic solution, many I've noticed seem to be on a somewhat utopian chase for a nice concise PVR-sized power sipping appliance like set and forget setup with X featureset sans proprietary lockin or pricing, but I notice most seem to of course frequently compare back to
Blue Iris as reference. Meaning VM or separate Windows box... But there's no reason said window box can't also be "just an appliance". Sorry, I fawned and droned on below, so here's the punchline - a perfect ubiquitous appliance like choice that just won't fail / just won't die:
HP Compaq Elite 8300 PC Product Specifications | HP® Customer Support (sourced dirt cheap on ebay etc.).
My time is worth more than zero re: tradeoffs and time consumption of an underdeveloped FOSS solution or custom building a PC (the more tiny you go usually the more custom and pricey it gets, paradoxically), so after google foo and too much forum sweat equity, I turned to the thought of repurposing an "appliance PC". So landed on the ubiquitious tiny and rather indestructible HP8300 USFF (ultra slim form factor) about the size of 2 mac mini's stacked -- PVR appliance size box / low power use / silent and set and forget boxes all checked. Just new enough to be UEFI bios, and HP proprietary but in a good way (ridiculously simple). Onboard hardware components almost exclusively intel (hence ubiquitously compatible). Comes with WIndows activation key if like me it's easier just to choose path of least resistance, buy the BI license, install Win10 with autoupdate or no-update air gapped option (which makes Windows suddenly appealing) and never look back -- and by the way is completely honey badger for OS, to include being
super easy to config as Hackintosh and happily run any distro of linux you want, I've played with dozens on it. A screwdriver and about 90 seconds and you can dissasemble it completely and no part (including MB or the Ivybridge CPU / DDR3 SODIMM RAM) is >$20 to acquire or replace. Has onboard mini PCI slot (WiFi card) and an mSATA slot, perfect for OS drive and 2.5" drive caddy that's for whatever reason big (tall) enough to accommodate a shucked "giant" spinning 2.5" drive that's basically a double height 2.5" drive, IE the 4 or 5 TB sized ones (that are very cheap now). Even includes DVD-R, and it's kind of handy anymore to have a machine around that actually has one for that once a year situation where burning to DVD (or loading from one) is helpful. USB3 ports in the back, and just new enough to have HD4000 i-GPU with quicksync.
<$100 on ebay with decent amount of RAM usually with i5 / i7 (3440 or 3770) or can buy by the pallet load, square/industrial metal box so works as monitor stand, can stand on edge, or has VESA mounts to mount to back of monitor and disappear. Even the bios is simple and easy (and somewhat recently updated even!). These were ubiquitous enterprise grade machines in medical exam rooms, Wal Mart cashiers, etc. 10+ years ago, meant for chronic abuse. Indestructible pretty much (external overbuilt power brick). Can pick your poison i3-i7 and pretty much <30 watts, slient, set and forget. And with the i7, enough horsepower to even still do most of the AI mentioned on this thread. OS fanboy Snobbery proof solution too lol. The powerbricks are massively overbuilt because they actually had the ridiculously inefficient option of a 75 watt GPU add in daughtercard that was kind of worthless, so rapidly phased out but the design remained and endured.
HP Compaq Elite 8300 PC Product Specifications | HP® Customer Support Do not "settle" for any of the earlier models (8200 or 8000 etc.) even tho they look identical. Caution: high risk of this becoming a collector type obsession as my 3foot tall stack of these devices will attest. They're just so damn handy and well designed lol, and they "just vanish" once deployed and keep chugging.
Ask yourself "what if someone like HP (back when they mattered/tried) set off to truly make something bulletproof and touch-me-not so clients could mass deploy fleets of them by the gazilions, and that's what this is. Makes me wonder if DOD or someone like that might have actually had a hand in the original specs. I could absolutely see a Pentagon or many other govt buildings with these sitting under a monitor at every workstation, built to last 20 years, off lease in 3, removed from service and packed on a pallet to sit in a warehouse somewhere, rinse repeat.......
