Test Plugin of MiniDLNA - Almost works perfectly now.

[joeschmuck]

I have been provided a copy of a custom plugin of MiniDLNA with inotify built in and have been testing it out for almost a month. This is not my work, it was provided it to me by Will for testing since I have a lot of experience with this simple DLNA server. So far it works perfectly for me however there is a known issue with it as well which may affect people with large repositories of media. The details are in the Readme.txt file.

What this plugin can offer you over the current version is it will automatically update your files.db when you add, remove, or rename your shared files.

I have placed the plugin and a readme file on my FTP server for now and if you want to give it a shot, have at it. Ensure you read the Readme.txt file as it has important information on specific configuration changes you need to make to keep this working properly.

This is an unsupported custom plugin. If you have issues with it please just send me a PM and we can discuss it and if we cannot fix your problem, well I can at least report the issue if it's a new one. If you do see some odd behavior, report it to me. I haven't seen anything myself but that doesn't mean someone else wouldn't. If I don't get back to you right away, be patient, I'm a busy man these days.

As usual, use at your own risk. This plugin will be available until it becomes available on the FreeNAS Plugins site. I suspect that will be once the one issue has been completely resolved. And I will not post anything that I haven't tried & tested myself on my own home FreeNAS system first.

To access the FTP server you must use the following:
URL: ftp://joeschmuckatelli.homeftp.org:1025
Name: GuestFTP
Password: guestftp

EDIT: I have taken down the FTP Server as of 31 Dec 2014. If you desire the file, let me know your email address and I can forward it to you.

 

[dlavigne]

Any idea if he will be making a FreeBSD port as well?

 

[joeschmuck]

The patches are out on sourceforge.net so anyone could use them. Since it's not perfect yet, I'd hate to see FreeNAS endorse the code as is, you are going to get complaints due to the one remaining issue. I have this out now because some people use MiniDLNA like myself and if even a dozen people enjoy the benefit, well that is a good thing.

Should I get another update to test, I will test it myself, ask a friend of mine to also test it, and once we can confirm it works without harm and after providing feedback to Will, I will put it online.

 

[Yatti420]

Any update since 1.1.1_5? I'm unable to get a connection to the FTP to check..

 

[joeschmuck]

Nope, same version. You used the correct port number? It's got to be 1025. User name and password are case sensitive. The link above works for me in FireFox. Haven't checked it in IE.

 

[Yatti420]

I still got 111.5.. That's what I'm testing with currently..

 

[durdur]

Thank you very much for sharing this joe,

It works perfectly for me as I don't have too many files. It's a huge progress, files shows very rapidly when added in the directory, no more interruptions if someone changes something in the folder (like me) when someone else is watching a movie (my wife for example.. :))

This new plugin version will increase my WAF !!

 

[joeschmuck]

You're welcome.

 

[twisted]

Seeing as this modified plugin is out and about with iNotify, wonder how long it will take to go official?

 

[joeschmuck]

Don't know but as soon as it is part of the official plugin I think folks that use MiniDLNA will be happy.

 

[rawkus]

Any update with this issue?

 

[solarisguy]

Have you tried ReadyMedia 1.1.2 released in March?

BTW, did you replace inotify with kqueue or used some inotify support library?

 

[rawkus]

I haven't done either. It sounded like they fixed minidlna and the new version was on its way but so far nothing. I will look into readymedia.

 

[joeschmuck]

I haven't checked on it lately but MiniDLNA still had a minor issue and one I see it has been included in the FreeNAS plugins, then things should be good. libinotify/kqueue is part of this custom version. Is readymedia ported to FreeBSD and does it have kqueue support. Too often program which are imported into FreeBSD ports they don't include kqueue support.

 

[BrianDMG]

Hey Joe,

I've got this installed and set up, and it works just fine as far as serving up content, but it doesn't seem to be refreshing the contents without restarting the plugin. I read the readme.txt from your FTP and entered the inotify string in the aux parameters box, etc. Is there some other step I'm missing? I feel like I read something about a .db that gets refreshed, but couldn't locate said file. Thanks for keeping the MiniDLNA users (like myself) in mind!

 

[joeschmuck]

Is "Rescan on Restart" checked?

EDIT: After re-reading your posting, if the database is being updated after restarting your plugin then I would have to assume Rescan on Restart is checked. I have not tried this in FreeNAS 9.2.1.4, I'm currently running 9.2.1.3 and it works in this jail setup for me.

The Aux Parameter setting does not impact the rescanning, it just reduces the needless logging of warning messages (which occur a lot). And your plugin is version 1.1.1_5 ?

 

[BrianDMG]

I'm running FreeNAS 9.2.1.4, and yes, it was checked. I just got home and noticed it's not showing up in the plugins section of the GUI anymore, so I'll reinstall and make sure to leave "Rescan on restart" unchecked and report back. Thanks.

 

[joeschmuck]

I'm running FreeNAS 9.2.1.4, and yes, it was checked. I just got home and noticed it's not showing up in the plugins section of the GUI anymore, so I'll reinstall and make sure to leave "Rescan on restart" unchecked and report back. Thanks.

You need to leave Rescan on restart checked. I'm curious why your plugin was not longer present.

 

[Yatti420]

1.1.2 is out.. I think we should get the test plugin updated to this build..

1.1.2 - Released 06-Mar-2014
-------------------------------- - Show client status on our basic presentation page.
- Add a new force_sort_criteria option, to globally override the SortCriteria value sent by the client.
- Fix a couple resource leaks.
- Add configuration include file support.
- Support DLNA/UPnP-AV searches issued by clients using the Grilo framework.
- Fix some clients playing artwork instead of movie.
- Fix bookmarks on Samsung Series E clients.
- Add an extra folder level if there are multiple media locations.
- Fix some multicast membership issues with changing network settings.
- Make max number of children (connections) configurable.
- Fix choppy playback with some file types on Panasonic clients by increasing the max connection limit.

 

[joeschmuck]

MiniDLNA in Freshports? All I see is 1.1.1_5. I do see ReadyMedia 1.1.2 but that isn't BSD ported yet, unless I'm missing something. Please correct me if I'm wrong.