No media in the current folder

WD Legacy Products WD TV Live & Live Plus
1

I have 3 Live and Live Plus units. I have had them for about 1 1/2 years. I have the most recent updates installed on all three devices. I never had a problem other than an occasional loss of connection when using a wireless bridge. I cured that by running cables through out my home and adding an Ethernet switch. Now my home network is fully wired. That cured connection losses.

Also, I have 3 Windows 7 Pro computers in my Homegroup and all can act as Media servers, but I typically only use one of them. The one I use has mirrored boot drive and a mirrored data drive where the media files are all stored. About 6 months ago, after a Windows update session and subsequent reboot of my main media server, I started getting, on my WD TV LIve plus, the message: “There is no Media in the current folder”. This only occurs when attempting to stream music. Video an Photos always work. Up until now, I have always been able to get it working again by rebooting the computer and/or the Live Plus, or by un-sharing and re-sharing the music folders. Once I stopped and started my Norton Anti-Virus and the problem was cured until the next Windows update. I have also tried shutting down all streaming from the media server computer, restoring everything back to default settings. This worked once, then the next time it did not. I tried the suggestion by another poster to remove all folders from the music library, shutting down Windows Media player, stopping the Media player services, removing the media player database files in the Appdata folder,  then rebooting and restarting everything and reconfiguring the music library. This worked once. The next time it did not work. None of these attempted fixes has repaired the problem permanently and none seem to work more than once.

This last time, yesterday, I tried all the above tricks and none of them restored music streaming. The TV Live Plus still shows the same error message. I even went so far as to backup my data drive with all the media files. Then I rebuilt the OS from scratch. Removed all the partitions from the boot drive, including the hidden one., then reloaded Window 7 Pro, Norton, and did all the updates on both. I got it to work for about 2 hours, then another Windows update notice showed up and I installed it. Again, I tried all the tricks as above, except reloading the OS and cannot get it to work.

As a sanity check, at the three locations in my home where I have the TV Live Plus units installed (none work for music but do for video and photo),  living room, bedroom, and game room (for the grandkids), I have 3 Samsung TVs and 3 Bluray players (1 Samsung and 2 Denons). All six of these devices have media streaming capabilities and can access the music streaming on all my computers while the TV Live devices cannot. I much prefer to us the TV Live devices since the user interface is much more intuitive that any of the other devices.

To my way of thinking, this points to a software problem in the TV Live devices related to DLNA that the Windows updates exposed.

Any suggestions on where to go from here???

Just in case anyone is interested, I have a computer background that goes back to 1968 when I maintained Navy shipboard computers and tactical display systems. Also, I worked for 10 years as a Telecommunications Technician, and 15 years a systems developer for call center technology. I have extensive experience with large server systems, workstations, and networks.

2

Hello,

Another thing that you can try, is turning the media library off, then performing a hard reset and when the unit load back on enables the media library again.

Please let us know what happens.

1 Like
3

Thanks for the suggestion, but I have already tried that. It worked once. Then the next time I applied Windows updates, music streaming stopped working again with the TV Live units. Music streaming still, and always works from my 3 Bluray players and 3 TVs that have media streaming capabilities.

The only media streaming devices that have a problem are my 3 WD TV LIve Plus units. On them, I have made sure that they have the current firmware updates and I have tried resetting them to factory defaults. None of this seems to work as a permanent fix. Sometimes various combinations of the order of reboots and resets will work, sometimes not.

At the present time, none of the things that worked in the past  have restored the function of the TV Live devices. I have almost given up on the TV Live devices, but not quite. I have a real problem accepting that the problem is with Windows when 6 other device besides the WD TV Live units can stream music and are not affected by the Windows updates and reboots.

4

Your problem sounds the same as one I first wrote a message about here.  It’s been quite a while since I wrote it, and my problem is gone for way over a year.  If it were to happen again, I would just follow the same steps to fix it again.

“There is no media in the current folder.” (Oh yes there is!)    Let me know if this fixes things for you. 

BTW, WD suggests we do NOT use Homegroups for sharing (turn them off) and instead use Windows shares.

1 Like
5

Your original suggestion was one that I tried. I worked the first time I used it. Then about a week later, there was another Windows update. It did not work when tried again. I still think there is something going on with the WD devices since I don’t have problems with other media streaming devices. And we should not have to jump through all these hoops every time we update Windows and reboot the computer .

I will try turning off the homegroup to see if that helps. It really should not make any difference, but I’ll try anything once to get this fixed.

6

magnum42 wrote:

Your original suggestion was one that I tried. I worked the first time I used it. Then about a week later, there was another Windows update. It did not work when tried again.

Thanks for trying my suggestion.  It really is more than a suggestion – it really does fix this problem.  I think the issue being caused by Windows is gone or reduced since some past updated happened that made things better. 

So, please try again with this in mind:   If you have a lot of music tracks as I have (over 10,000, now)  it can take perhaps an hour of time, or more; resharing and writing all the data Windows needs to store as I described in my message.  Be patient, and keep an eye on the disk drive light.  Check it after a half hour; it will still be flashing. If the light is out after 45 minutes, wait another 10 minutes or longer to be sure you see no more major disk light activity.  I mean, go mow the lawn, or hang some wallpaper – or do something;  just to let things on the PC go undisturbed.  Once I did this and rebooted the PC, the problem has been gone for me way over a year now. 

Yes, it is a pain to have to do this, but don’t get ticked at WD, get ticked at Microsoft.  Windows has to make its database file completely or it will fail again.  I have even run this routine over again even if I have no problems, and I do not use the PC at all while running the task, and I remain patient while it all runs to completion, because I know if there are any problems lurking, they will be resolved this way.

7

I left it overnight. It still does not work, My 2 Denon and 1 Samsung Bluray players and my 3 Samsung TVs can still stream music media, I also tested my Integra Surround sound processor this morning and it works with music streaming also.  How can Windows have a problem when I have 7 other devices by 3 different manufactures, that can stream music from the same server and the only ones that can’t are the WD devices. All of these devices support DLNA including the WD.

I am at a loss as to why I can’t get these WD devices working.

I really like the WD user interface much bettern that all the rest, so I would really like to get it working.

8

magnum42 wrote:

I left it overnight. It still does not work, My 2 Denon and 1 Samsung Bluray players and my 3 Samsung TVs can still stream music media, I also tested my Integra Surround sound processor this morning and it works with music streaming also. 

 

None of these devices are Windows computers, and that is why they apparently work.  It is a “Windows thing”.

 

How can Windows have a problem when I have 7 other devices by 3 different manufactures, that can stream music from the same server and the only ones that can’t are the WD devices.

 

I don’t know; ask Microsoft?  :wink:

 

All of these devices support DLNA including the WD.

 

I am at a loss as to why I can’t get these WD devices working.

 

I really like the WD user interface much bettern that all the rest, so I would really like to get it working.

 

Telling us you can/cannot “stream” does not tell us HOW you are attempting this, and this is important.  So when you attempt to stream music from your PC, are you using “Media server” or “Network shares” from the WD menu?

 

“Media server” and “Network shares” are two different ways of streaming.  In the first method, your computer “pushes” (and plays) the media to your WD, and in the second method your WD “pulls” the media from a source and the WD plays it.  I have a feeling you are using Media server, which my solution addressed.  It does not affect “shares”.  Can your WD play the music if you go through Network shares?

 

Buy the way, I hope you rebooted your PC after Windows had stopped cataloging all the data performing my re-sharing suggestion.  Ya gotta reboot, so Windows reads the new file it created upon boot up.

 

Also, do you have additional computers and can they share media between themselves?

 

Have you tried the “Play To” feature of Windows and played a music file from PC to the WD?

 

 

9

The WD TV Live is not a Windows device either, so what’s your point? Why should I ask Microsoft why WD devices don’t work for music streaming when all other brands of device that I have access to do work. All Microsoft is going to tell me is that Windows must be working fine if only one brand of devices will not work for music streaming.

You are correct, I am using the Media servers option from the TV Live. I have tried the file shares, that does no work either. In fact, I experimented with that early on when I was able to stream music to the WD devices and it did not work then and does not work now. I have not tried using user names and passwords. Seems more complicated than just using the media server method and I am not the only one who operates the systems.

Yes I can share play stream music between my PCs using WIndows Media Player.

Yes I have rebooted after following your suggested fix. No help there.

No I haven’t tried the “play to” feature. It never occurred to me to try and control the WD device from my PC when I should be able to do it from the WD device itself. I don’t know if there is additional setup required on the WD devices to allow control from a remote device such as a PC.

10

magnum42 wrote:

The WD TV Live is not a Windows device either, so what’s your point?

 

My point is that, because a WDTV interacts with Windows (and the other DLNA devices you mention do not) it is a special case situation with WIndows and the WDTV…

 

Why should I ask Microsoft why WD devices don’t work for music streaming when all other brands of device that I have access to do work. All Microsoft is going to tell me is that Windows must be working fine if only one brand of devices will not work for music streaming.

 

I was joking!  I said this to imply that Microsoft has made network sharing too difficult for the average person, so ask them why it all works the way it does (and doesn’t).

 

You are correct, I am using the Media servers option from the TV Live. I have tried the file shares, that does no work either. In fact, I experimented with that early on when I was able to stream music to the WD devices and it did not work then and does not work now. I have not tried using user names and passwords. Seems more complicated than just using the media server method and I am not the only one who operates the systems.

 

Network shares is the preferred and better way to stream media.  Most people use it over Media shares and don’t even use Media shares method at all… So, it is adviseable that you learn how, or get help, to set up Network shares.  (This is where Windows and WDTV meet up head on.)  You see, not every file type is streamable via Media server, but they are via Network shares.  This info from WD support explains why some files work under one condition, but not another.  Many WD users do not know about this, and can get very frustrated with their WD.

 

WD TV Live Media Player does not play ISO files from a WD network drive 

 

Same can be said about getting help using/not using passwords.  I do not use passwords.  Really not necessary for a home setup with other users around.  But, to be able to use Network shares, password issues need to dealt with so they can be turned on or off and turned into a non-issue for the household of users.

 

Yes I can share play stream music between my PCs using Windows Media Player.

 

Yes I have rebooted after following your suggested fix. No help there.

 

No I haven’t tried the “play to” feature. It never occurred to me to try and control the WD device from my PC when I should be able to do it from the WD device itself. I don’t know if there is additional setup required on the WD devices to allow control from a remote device such as a PC.

 

Play To is fairly easy; it is a Windows 7 feature.  Give it a try, as it can help diagnose things.  Locate a music and video file on your computer to stream to the WD and TV.  Right-click on file and select Play To, hover over that area and you will see choices of hardware you can stream it to; incl. the WDTV.  Select it, and click to stream it to WD and TV which are both on.  Windows Help gives you all the details about Play To.

11

OK, I give the network shares a try, but I still go back to the fact that it worked with the media server method for over a year with no problems and just quit working. I was able to nurse it along with various restart tricks, unshare and the share again, your suggestions, etc.

I don’t do any video or photo sharing, but I have tried them both and they work fine. It is just music and all my files are .mp3 so there should not be any problems with unsupported file types.

I also looked at the online manuals and just to make sure we are talking about the same devices, I have an older model that is no longer in the current WD lineup. The full name is the WD TV Live Pluse HD Media Player. It has the USB port on the side, not the front like the current model.

I will also try the “play to” features. 

12

magnum42 wrote:

OK, I give the network shares a try, but I still go back to the fact that it worked with the media server method for over a year with no problems and just quit working. I was able to nurse it along with various restart tricks, unshare and the share again, your suggestions, etc.

 

I don’t do any video or photo sharing, but I have tried them both and they work fine. It is just music and all my files are .mp3 so there should not be any problems with unsupported file types.

 

I also looked at the online manuals and just to make sure we are talking about the same devices, I have an older model that is no longer in the current WD lineup. The full name is the WD TV Live Pluse HD Media Player. It has the USB port on the side, not the front like the current model.

 

I will also try the “play to” features. 

We both have the same WD player – I have two Live Plus units, so I know your player very well.  Mine works great, and we can get yours working great again. 

You know, it dawns on me now, it could be the latest firmware causing your new problems.   You see, WD posted some very buggy firmware a month or two ago, and many people naturally installed it when the notice of new firmware appeared on screen., (MANY of us are not happy about this at all, and are still waiting for a good one to replace it.)   So, if it is installed, you need to get it  uninstalled and put a suitable older firmware on in it’s place.

Tell me what firmware is currently installed on your WD, and then we will know what the next step should be  To find the firmware version, go into Settings/System settings/About.  You will see the firmware version installed.  Write it down and tell me what it is.

It is very possible it got installed and you didn’t even know it.  This is because every time the player is started, it checks for new firmware, and if available, it ask on screen if you want to install it. Well, since people other than you use the WD, one of them may have seen this notice and gone ahead and installed it.  Uh- oh, when it comes to this bad firmware.  I think you might not know of this issue, because if you did, you would have been in the message thread for this firmware adding your name to the chorus of unhappy users complaining that the “new firmware broke my WD player, and now it won’t even work like it used to!”

I never even installed the last few firmwares because of the bug reports in this forum.  I still use a firmware of May, 2011, version, 1.05.04_B because it is the most current bug-free firmware they released.  It enables my Plus to work just fine.

Once we resolve the firmware question, we can then tackle Network shares and password issues. 

13

The really messed up firmware was 1.06.34. The current 1.06.43 has still issues but I’m watching files over network shares all the time on this player.

14

Techflaws wrote:

The really messed up firmware was 1.06.34. The current 1.06.43 has still issues but I’m watching files over network shares all the time on this player.

Yes, and that .34 was yanked after a couple of days, and .43 a week or three later, and now the “current”: firmware is 1.06.16_B, (I think the rollback has a higher number now) ,I believe, (I’m afraid to look!)  So, if our friend got caught in that cross-fire, he could really be in a mess.  Well, we will find out what he’s got when he gets back to us. If he’s got either of these, there is some major repair to do.

15

mike27oct - as far as I know the latest firmware has not been yanked. The current firmware for the live is 1.06.43 and it can still be downloaded as can the 1.06.42 for the live plus. The rollback number is irrelevant as it is only used to fool the player into accepting the old firmware.

16

Exactly, current firmware is 1.06.43, see this thread.

17

My current firmware version is 1.06.42_B. When I check for updates, it says I have the latest, so 1.06.43 does not seem to be available for my devices at this time. I’ll keep checking periodically.

I am not sure what happened, but I was going though all the sharing permissions and such and I didn’t find anything that looked suspicious. So I shut down my anti-virus software,  restarted of the media player service and the windows firewall, then restarted the anti-virus and rebooted. Now it works as a media player. All three of my WD started working. I tried the same on my other two PCs and one started working, but not the third one. 

For the time being, I am happy, but I hope I don’t have to reboot my media server computer anytime soon. Not sure what will happen.

18

That’s OK you have the live plus with the latest firmware for that model (1.06.42). The 1.06.43 firmware is the latest firmware for non plus live player. Good to see that you are happy, hopefully it will stay that way,

19

OK, there seems to be a little confusion as to what firmware is current, so I looked into the firmware update request in my Live Plus, player and it wants to install v1.06.42_B.  I also checked the WD Product Update page, for Live Plus and it shows same version:  http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/updates/?family=wdfwdtv_liveplus 

V1.06.43 is the current firmware for the OLD TV Live product:  http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/updates/?family=wdfwdtv_live

20

magnum42 wrote:

My current firmware version is 1.06.42_B. When I check for updates, it says I have the latest, so 1.06.43 does not seem to be available for my devices at this time. I’ll keep checking periodically.

 

As Rich and I have explained, you have the current firmware for the Live Plus.  Even though it was released to fix problems with the preceeding disasterous firmware that was basically yanked immediately, many people report major problems with this one, and have rolledbacked to v1.06.16_B.  If you find this firmware is causing you more pain, you are advised to rollback.

 

I am not sure what happened, but I was going though all the sharing permissions and such and I didn’t find anything that looked suspicious. So I shut down my anti-virus software,  restarted of the media player service and the windows firewall, then restarted the anti-virus and rebooted. Now it works as a media player. All three of my WD started working. I tried the same on my other two PCs and one started working, but not the third one. 

 

Good idea.  In fact, it makes a lot of sense to completely turn off the entire system from time to time to remove any gremlins that get into one’s equipment.  So, to do this in a logical order, turn off all media players, then turn off ALL computers in the house, and finally any network switches, router and modem. 

 

Then turn everything back on in opposite order, starting with the modem, router, and your main PC and network switches.  Once all of this is up and fully running, then turn on the WD and any other media players.  Do not turn on any other PCs until you find the Live Plus is working fine. 

 

This procedure insures that a Windows operation that makes you main PC the “master browser” happens as it should, and that the WDTV doesn’t become the master browser.  For info about the master browser, see this link:

How to Determine the Master Browser in a Windows Workgroup  Download and use the author’s free master browser discovery tool called lanscan.

 

For the time being, I am happy, but I hope I don’t have to reboot my media server computer anytime soon. Not sure what will happen.

 

If you want my help in setting up Network shares and resolving password setup/issues, let me know.  Your are not using your Live Plus to it’s full capabilities if you do not have Network sharing on the WDTV working for you.