new here looking for advice

Hi all, I'm a newbie for Linux and looking for some friendly advice
I have an old Hp ML310 that I'd like to build as a storage and possibly
media server. Any recommendations on which Free Linux server software
would be the best for this hardware / usage ?
Also where is the best place to download it from ?
I have a lot of technical knowledge and know a fair bit about
MS but want to try my hand with Linux

Many Thanks

I like Slackware, it is as plain as you can get. It will not do anything for you, you have to do it all.

Slackware or Debian seem to garner lots of support.
Another of interest is TurnKey