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[pepar]

MC Library Server is running on dedicated Debian NUC. Server is being shared with key to one client (Debian/NUC). Plays great! Debian NUC Server has been added to JRemote on iPad. Zones available are "This device" and "Player." JRemote apparently does not see the client as the "Player" is actually the MC installation running Library Server.  How do I get JRemote to see and control the client?

Jeff

[mattkhan]

there is an element of preference in this but you may find it more user friendly to treat instance as a separate "server" in jremote (NB: server != library server, server in this context means "an MC instance with media network turned on").  I would say this is more likely to be the case if you have multiple zones in an MC instance, if you have a single zone per instance then it is perhaps not something you will find a problem.

if you do want to do this in jremote then you still need to turn on media network on the client and turn on the DLNA renderer option. This should mean that the zones from this instance now appear in other MC instances zone list and hence will appear in the jremote zone list.

[pepar]

Aahhhh ... what is a “zone” and what is an “instance” in your context?

Why isn’t this easy peasy? My configuration has to be common.

(Sorry admins/mods)

[mattkhan]

A zone is described in https://wiki.jriver.com/index.php/Zones

An MC instance is a single MC process

[pepar]

Thanks, will re-examine your previous reply with this understanding.

[pepar]

there is an element of preference in this but you may find it more user friendly to treat instance as a separate "server" in jremote (NB: server != library server, server in this context means "an MC instance with media network turned on").  I would say this is more likely to be the case if you have multiple zones in an MC instance, if you have a single zone per instance then it is perhaps not something you will find a problem.

if you do want to do this in jremote then you still need to turn on media network on the client and turn on the DLNA renderer option. This should mean that the zones from this instance now appear in other MC instances zone list and hence will appear in the jremote zone list.

I have an MC install running Library Server. It's not headless, and could play content. It has one "zone." I have one MC client and that has a zone.  Server has Media Network/DLNA "on" to share with clients. The client does not have it turned on, but is connected to the Library Server. It was my understanding that this is the correct way to configure these two MC instances.

If I turn on Media Network, does that enable the client to be a DLNA renderer? To which the Server will push content?  Soooo, it really does NOT need to be be connected (as a client) to the Library Server?

I am so close ... but as you can tell, I still have not wrapped my head completely around this. 

Jeff

[mattkhan]

I have an MC install running Library Server. It's not headless, and could play content. It has one "zone." I have one MC client and that has a zone.  Server has Media Network/DLNA "on" to share with clients. The client does not have it turned on, but is connected to the Library Server. It was my understanding that this is the correct way to configure these two MC instances.

If I turn on Media Network, does that enable the client to be a DLNA renderer? To which the Server will push content?  Soooo, it really does NOT need to be be connected (as a client) to the Library Server?

there are lots of correct ways to configure them, it just depends what you want to do this flexibility is a good thing but can also be a confusing thing

you have to turn on media network in order to do anything over the network with any MC instance irrespective of whether they connect to a remote library (that is served by some other MC instance) or load a local library that is private to this machine

once you've turned on media network then you have a choice of what to turn on

DLNA server = stream content from this MC to other DLNA devices
DLNA renderer = let other DLNA devices play this on (the zones of) this MC
DLNA controller = control other DLNA devices

this means you can have a setup like

MC Server ---> MC Client (DLNA Server on) ---> DLNA renderer

i.e. your client can act as the (DLNA) server to some other devices

in your case, you want remote control of this MC instance (via jremote) so you need media network on. Furthermore you want to control that via the MC server so your MC client must be a DLNA renderer (so that the MC server can be aware that this MC client exists as a target for playback).

does that make sense?

[pepar]

OK, thanks, I did not know I needed to turn on Media Network to be a client and connect to a library. This has opened my eyes.

Thanks again!

[mattkhan]

OK, thanks, I did not know I needed to turn on Media Network to be a client and connect to a library. This has opened my eyes.

no that's not what I mean, you don't need to turn on media network to be a client and connect to a library. You need to turn media network on if you want to control that client over that network.

which bit of my post makes you think that btw? let me know and I'll reword it

[pepar]

no that's not what I mean, you don't need to turn on media network to be a client and connect to a library. You need to turn media network on if you want to control that client over that network.

which bit of my post makes you think that btw? let me know and I'll reword it

My reply was badly worded. 

Heading to look at client settings now.

[pepar]

I turned on Media Network on client and was able to access it in JRemote. And I could play content with JRemote. However, I had no audio. Nor was there any longer audio when playing content with mouse on the MC instance on the client. I double- and triple-checked all of the settings, but couldn’t find the problem.

So I am going to overwrite the drive with the image I used initially to clone my other Debian/MC/NUC to this NUC. Hopefully, setting it up as a client correctly from the outset with what I learned on this thread will result in everything working properly.

Jeff

[pepar]

I re-imaged the Debian/MC installation and this time only pointed it to the Samba share to the unRAID server with my library.  I did not activate Media Network or DLNA. Again, I could access the media and play a movie. But also again, I had no audio. I closed MC, brought up a browser and went to Youtube. There was audio. So something in my MC install I guess.

Before I get to tracking that down, I have some questions about the topology of MC, Media Network and DLNA.  Using the Samba share as the Library is pretty simple to understand. But then that does not give me a common library that can be shared among all of my clients.

So, I understand the role of my MC device running Library Server and sharing it via DLNA. I think I also understand that checking play local file if it is the same as the Library Server's file (it is) so the Intel NUC Library Server runs on doesn't need to stream it; the unRAID streams it.

Where it all breaks down for me is when using JRemote. To operate a client, the client must be set up as a Library.  If JRemote is controlling the client instance of MC, is that instance acting as a renderer with the Library Server (somehow?) pushing media to it? Is it acting as a Controller and controlling the Library Server and causing the Server to push it media? Is it using the Library Server's library and streaming the "local" file to itself to pass on to my system? Or is it acting as the server streaming the content to my TV with the Library Server not involved at all?

Jeff

[mattkhan]

I think that if you grasp the distinction between a library server and a media server then it will fall into place.

NB: as far as I know this is accurate but it occurs to me that I haven't verified the network traffic follows the path I believe it does so I could be wrong.

Remember that a library is simply a database, it contains a list of items and item has a bunch of tags that describe that item including 1 or more tags that define the content (e.g. a file, a URL, a playback range, content type etc). This library can be served (by the library server) to a variety of different clients including MC clients, DLNA renderers and the various jriver remotes (panel, jremote, gizmo) and those clients can then play (render in DLNA terms) that content.

I get the impression that this much is quite clear to you.

Now take one of those MC clients and turn on media network so that it can itself serve content to clients that connect directly to this instance. If you ignore the local file option, content will be streamed from the library server to this MC instance (acting as a client to that library server) and then this MC instance will stream the content (acting as a media server to that connected client).

If you now turn on the play local content option, the library server is no longer involved in any content rendering, it just serves the database so the media server client can stream that content directly to clients.

to go blow by blow....

To operate a client, the client must be set up as a Library. 

if "as a library" means "as a library server" then no

If JRemote is controlling the client instance of MC, is that instance acting as a renderer with the Library Server (somehow?) pushing media to it?

if the local file option is not available then yes, the server has to stream the content to the client

Is it acting as a Controller and controlling the Library Server and causing the Server to push it media?

I can't think of a reason why this isn't technically possible but I don't believe MC can or does do this

Is it using the Library Server's library and streaming the "local" file to itself to pass on to my system?

if you turn on the local file option, yes

Or is it acting as the server streaming the content to my TV with the Library Server not involved at all?

the library server is involved because without the library server, the client doesn't know what it has available to play.

It occurs to me I don't know for sure to what extent a client caches the library, i.e. how resilient it is the server being unavailable. I believe the answer is "not resilient at all", i.e. it has to talk to the server whenever it plays anything.

[pepar]

Whew, thanks. Let's see if I can get this straight the first time.

So I have an unRAID media server and a Debian/MC NUC set up as a Library Server. I have a Debian/MC NUC set up at one of my A/V systems as a client to the Library Server. (The unRAID Samba share is permanently mounted to the Debian OS on both NUCs.) When I first set up the client, I "Add library" and point it to the Library Server. I have play local content option checked. At this point, I have checked "Use Media Media Network/enable DLNA" checked?

If I wanted to mouse to the media in theater view on the client, I would be done. The client is using the Library and reading the file from the unRAID media server.

But I want to use JRemote to navigate and play content on the system the client is connected to. Sooo, I need use the Access Key generated by the client (when checked "Use Media Media Network/enable DLNA") and set up JRemote with the CLIENT now appearing as a server?? It's this JRemote/client setup that is the edge of understanding MC for me. And it is where my understanding of the DLNA roles that my two MC instances are playing breaks down.

[mattkhan]

You can

- turn on media network on the MC client, set the dlna renderer option on on the MC client, connect jremote to the actual server

or

- turn on media network on the MC client, connect jremote directly to this MC client

In the first case, dlna is involved, in the second case it is not.

[pepar]

Hmmm, I had initially had JRemote "connected" to the Library Server MC instance. Playing content that way resulted in the Library Server MC instance playing through the system *it* was attached to.  I didn't see a way to select the client as the player.  I will retry it.

Thanks for your help!

Jeff