Playing programmes on one box through another over network
- Thread starter MikeSh
- Start date
Luke
Well-Knwοn Мember
I suspect that you can't find anything because in practise it is very easy to share content from one HDR-FOX T2 to another HDR-FOX T2, and there may not be much posted about it.
On the HDR-FOX T2 that has the recording/imported-video-or-audio set Content Share to 'On'. MENU > Settings > System > Internet Setting > Content Share.
Then on the other HDR-FOX T2 go into the Media list and press the blue button then select 'Network'. You will then be able to browse and play the content of the other box.
If one of the boxes is an HD-FOX then if I remember correctly there is a c/f package to expand the features available when cross playing.
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Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
What? The standard way is given in your user manual (Content Share and Network, as above)!
However, if you want full playback facilities (bookmarks, trick play, etc etc etc), use CF to make the playback unit think the recording is local. For that, see network-shares-automount. The recording will have to be decrypted of course, or the playback unit given the same decryption key as the recording unit.
OP
MikeSh
Well-Known Member
We've had these for decade or so - it's been a while since I even saw the manual.
Presumably if both boxes are connected to the same router this will 'just work'.
Will it work over WiFi? or is the bandwidth likely to be a problem?
(Wondering about how much extra hardware and cabling I might need.)
Luke
Well-Knwοn Мember
If you get round to trying it and it works, then why would you need extra hardware and cabling?
OP
MikeSh
Well-Known Member
Given the WiFi dongles are somewhat flaky anyway, if the group feeling was that they could be problematic I'd try and sort cable from the off.
It's for SWMBO's use, so needs to be reliable and (fairly) simple or I'll be getting support calls every 30 minutes and one star ratings
I'm going to wire one end anyway as it's fairly trivial (I think). The other end is trickier.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Always better to have a wire, but there's no reason the WiFi link shouldn't work so long as it can sustain 3Mb/s (for StDef - and I do mean b as in bits).
WiFi performance will depend on whether other household members are using the network, but if they are just pulling stuff through the broadband link it should be adequate, especially if it's using newer versions of IEEE802.11 than b/g.
Also, from experience, a failing disk on the host HDR can tie up the system enough to make DLNA (and probably other network video serving) fail regardless of WiFi bandwidth.
And
Mediatomb enables an HD to provide decrypted (or same key?) DLNA media to other clients, including HD/Rs.
Also, from experience, a failing disk on the host HDR can tie up the system enough to make DLNA (and probably other network video serving) fail regardless of WiFi bandwidth.
And
So that's DLNA, and the HD-Fox can access it fine, with the host HDR decrypting.
Foxlink can help to mount the HDR's video folder as a share on the HD using NFS; network-shares-automount is a more general package for mounting network servers on HD/Rs. In these arrangements the HDR source material must have been decrypted (or the HD and HDR have the same key?), but unlike DLNA trick play and the episode info are available.
Mediatomb enables an HD to provide decrypted (or same key?) DLNA media to other clients, including HD/Rs.
OP
MikeSh
Well-Known Member
Both boxes are HDR-FOX.
Now that's a question. Most of the stuff is/will be HD. What are the likely symptoms we'd see if the bit rate isn't up to that? Drops to SD, stuttering, pixellation, won't play?
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Mike: engage brain. How could it do that?
All of the above.
I used to try to try remote-playing HiDef over HomePlug, but it was so unreliable I gave that up and only watch HiDef local, or pull the recording down first. No problem with StDef. YMMV.
foxlink doesn't care whether the client is a HD-FOX or a HDR-FOX, you run that in the client and run nfs-utils on the server, but it isn't easy to do anything more complex than that. With network-shares-automount you can do almost anything, so it is worth getting your teeth into. I have my HD-FOX able to play from my three HDRs, the three HDRs able to play from each other, and one of them able to play from the HD (those units have matching encryption). You have .the choice of NFS or SMB (install nfs-utils for an NFS server, install samba for a SMB server); I use SMB so my Windows PC can also pick up the shares. NSM can also mount external NASes and anything else that looks like a NAS on the network (PCs etc).
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OP
MikeSh
Well-Known Member
Er. Good point.
Hm. It's gonna have to do HD.
The situation is she wants to be able to watch on either our big set in the living room or a small one upstairs. SD would be fine on the latter, but not the former in many cases. I say that, but she does watch stuff from SD channels, but can tell the difference (just). And of course most of her 'library' is HD, so that's that.
I've realised another problem with WiFi - as the dongle doesn't always connect, if she turns the source box on, goes down to the destination and starts all that, 50% of the time she'll find no connection. So then she'll have to go back to the source, turn the local TV on, navigate the HDR menu to kick the WiFi into life, turn the TV off, (accidentally turn the HDR off, get very annoyed, start over), go back down stairs.
Not elegant.
However, I have now had an idea for getting a network cable there without too much difficulty, so once (if) I've got it working in principle I'll probably try and do that.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
Bloody auto-correct! For "joy" read "only". I think what happens is (for top-row letters on the iPad) the touch sensor decides I've hit the word suggestions above that row of letters.
That's another one. I never use dots in contractions except where necessary for clarity.
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
I have a 1000' reel of Cat5 waiting for a house-wide rewiring, and I propose to renew aerial distribution at the same time (another thing for my shopping list: satellite grade co-ax)! However, the amount of clutter I would have to wade through to get to the voids...
MymsMan
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You wil never be able to teach everyone to be as stylish as a @Black Hole
EEPhil
Number 28
This from the man who always tells everyone to declutter
. (Yes I have read your "Do as I say, not as I do" style comments when challenged about this before.)
Black Hole
May contain traces of nut
It's inherited clutter with my clutter on top.
Black Hole
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...and with only me here there's far too little incentive to do anything about it when there are more interesting ways to take up my time, even now I'm in rather than out most of the time!
OP
MikeSh
Well-Known Member
The boxes are still together and both on WiFi, but in an idle moment I decided to just test this.
I checked that boxes were connected to the internet, so on the network, and the A box was set to Share.
But when I used the B box to look at Network it only saw the media server built in to the router, not the A box.
I'm guessing I may need to set something in the router to allow it to pass this type of service through as it's blocked by default, but I've no idea what to look for.
Anyone had and fixed this?