#Setting up infrastructure for automated media retrieval and management
##Requirements
###OS Preferably a linux distribution such as Ubuntu or Debian. I recommend Arch Linux which I have installed on both my server as well as HTPC. It has a bit of a steeper learning curve but is a very well supported, lightweight distri that can be set up in any way you like it. It comes without a window composition system (read: X.Server w/ gnome or such aka Desktop GUI). If you prefer a GUI and are not yet very familiar with a terminal I then would advise you to install Ubuntu Desktop variant. Terminal use should be limited to a minimum. Now AFAIK for the tools/software packages that need to be installed on your server Windows should be supported by all those but I cant guarantee it.
####Arch Linux If you decide to go with arch linux here are a few of links that should get you started: