is there a way to set up amarok so it can access the media over a windows home server (im talking about the remote access) or would i be better off setting up a vpn of some sort?

well we have a person working on upnp support. Is that what you mean? If so, we haven't implemented this yet. Amarok 2 will also support Ampache servers, which is ideal for over-the-internet access to music.

The best solution for Amarok 1.4 would be to find a non-Apple DAAP server for Windows. Amarok 1.4 has DAAP support and you can add remote hosts. Maybe Limewire? I dunno if it works or not... if Firefly/mt-daapd (the project was renamed from mt-daapd to Firefly) are available for Windows that would be ideal.