The longer you wait the messier it gets ;)
I've learnt the same as you did, and became to cherish the feeling of 100 % accomplishment, not 99, not 99.9, but 100. I had to learn patience and perseverance/endurance, but it is very satisfying!
btw.: Finally I got a (NAS) server. In the end I run it on Linux Mint as it is the easiest for interacting with the rest of my system (esp. as mediaplayer and for remote desktop access). But thanks for the help anyways!
Glad you found a setup that's working for you :)