Cost Free Alternatives to Network Shares

Ok, since network shares are persnickety what are the cost free alternatives to play my network files.

My requirements are 

  1.  Support for FLAC, Mp3, DVD-VOB, DVD Image files and MKV

  2. All files must be seekable (fast forward/rewind)

  3. No additional hardware. 

I am thinking of a DLNA or Media Share Software that supports these requirements

anybody who can suggest some alternatives

check out

HaneWin

or

FreeNFS

both are windows program to share files via “linux file sharing”

you’ll fine NFS is much more stable that windows smb

generally NFS throughput is considerably higher as well

DNLA is an option, but also has limitations, like can’t use media library

subtitles might not be supported, and any other specific DNLA program limitations

example windows media server can’t handle MKV’s without some work arounds, etc …

if you do go DNLA I recommend to check out Serviio

it’s one of the better full featured free DNLA servers

thanks.  I will check out FreeNFS

I’m not a big fan of DLNA since the renderers can have problems with certain codecs like FLAC. 

yeah, DNLA has it’s limitations and they are all specific to what DNLA server you use

serviio is definetely worth checking out

it’s free

and very robust

can stream pretty much anything if you know how to configure it

it will even transcode in real time, if your device does not support the codec’s needed

it also utilizes a plugin struture, for streaming online content to your WD

  Ok, since network shares are persnickety

Perhaps for you, but many, many  others have no problems.  So get your shares problem figured out, and take a pass on the “alternative” solutions.

1 Like

I use both plex and freenas.

The freenas is on a separate box just for my media and sharing info through NFS which is rock stable.

Freenas lets you install a plex server plugin on it so you get the best of both worlds.

Plex is for my android devices so i can stream to the phone or tablet in or outside the house.

One of the biggest problems i see here is sharing through windows homegroup which is at best flacky.

Yeah my freenas box cost me a few extra bucks but its got 16 tb of storage and unlike store bought nas you can always add more harddrives.

Dlna is usefully but limited as mentioned and udnp is slow .

yeah, why in the world does microsoft keep coming up with new things that are MS only

the whole idea of homegroup only exist within a windows environment

so yeah, I’ll agree, flaky at best

if they want to create a new scheme for sharing, it should be done in collaboration with other companies, so that it actually works across multiple devices, vendors, OS’es

which is what happens in real world

Magnus

Will WDTV Live support FLAC via PLEX.  

WDTV will not play FLAC files under Serviio.  It says the file type is not supported. I’m sure this is a renderer problem even though WDTV will support playback of FLAC Files

also what can be done for DVD Image files.  I can play those through the Network Shares but not with Serviio. 

JRFishman wrote:

Magnus

 

Will WDTV Live support FLAC via PLEX.  

 

WDTV will not play FLAC files under Serviio.  It says the file type is not supported. I’m sure this is a renderer problem even though WDTV will support playback of FLAC Files

 

also what can be done for DVD Image files.  I can play those through the Network Shares but not with Serviio. 

actually this sounds like a serviio set up issue

the WD even has it’s own serviio profile

but no I don’t have flac files, so I have’t tested it

what I have tested serviio will transcode whatever you tell it to in real time, so that the WD receives a file it can play

you just need to enable transcoding and set the transcoding profiles

and if the default profile doesn’t do it, custom profiles are supported

http://www.serviio.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=24

   also what can be done for DVD Image files.  I can play those through the Network Shares but not with Serviio. 

For same reason WDTV cannot play ISO files via Media servers – the server needs to be doing the decoding.  Whereas ,via Network shares the file is “pulled” by the WDTV to it, which does have a decoder in it, so it can play an ISO.

 Hi, I’d like to suggest   TVMOBiLi, it has a ridiculous cost and great performances. :wink:

I’ve been playing with Plex Media Server and this will probably be my long term solution for migrating away from Network Shares

Plex handles FLAC and MKV with seek capabilities so this looks to my long term game plan

Also Plex is free.  

1 Like

Good call in going with the Plex Server.

I have not used Plex in awhile so I reinstalled it… no more messing with Windows network shares, let Plex do the work and let the WD box do what it does best… play media.

I even re-upgraded to the latest firmware!

There are four problems with Flex but they are not show stoppers

  1. Plex downsamples Lossless flac to 320kbs.But when I want to play flac losslessly I use my Cambridge Audio DAC with a hard wired USB from my computer to my stereo

  2. Plex does not play DVD ISO files. If I have to I’ll convert my DVD ISO to MKV

  3. Plex does not handle playlists - that is in development though 

  4. Plex does not play .TS High Definition TV captures. But those can be converted since there are so few of those inmy libraries. 

I’d prefer to stay with Network Shares but until WDTV gets this fixed, I’ll go with Plex

JRFishman wrote:

There are four problems with Flex but they are not show stoppers

 

 

  1. Plex does not play DVD ISO files. If I have to I’ll convert my DVD ISO to MKV

 

  1. Plex does not handle playlists - that is in development though 

 

I’d prefer to stay with Network Shares but until WDTV gets this fixed, I’ll go with Plex

Point 2 – Plex, (being software) doesn’t play ISO files because they are not “media files” (they are disc image files) and only the WDTV has the innards (hardware)  to do this via network shares. Converting to MKV would be a total waste of time.

Point 3 – WDTV does a great job playing my random playlists created with iTunes.

And on this last comment:  “I’d prefer to stay with Network Shares but until WDTV gets this fixed. . . .”

What needs to be “fixed” about this?  I and hundreds others have no problem using WDTV and network shares, so because you can’t get it to work, it need to be “fixed”?  Nope.  I and others have tried to help you get this going, and if you want to try again, start a new thread and see if others beside me come to your assist.  Network shares is NOT rocket science, because if I could eventually figure it out, likely anyone can.

mike27oct wrote:


  Network shares is NOT rocket science

I agree, well actually in some business environments it can get complex, but yes for a consumer app it is ridiculous the difficulty people have getting WDs to work correctly and to keep them working correctly.

You can continue to say it isn’t an issue and imply people who can’t get the silly box to network are stupid, but at the end of the day the facts don’t support your opinion.  The most common thread in this forum since this product was introduced has been networking related.   Pointing the finger at the user as the root cause is sophomoric.

For those that are looking at Plex, I’ll second that it is a great app, though if you are going to use Plex there isn’t much point in pairing it with a WD beyond the fact that you have a WD lying around.  Once you go to Plex there are far better devices to pair it with.

<<What needs to be “fixed” about this?  I and hundreds others have no problem using WDTV and network shares, so because you can’t get it to work, it need to be “fixed”?  Nope.  I and others have tried to help you get this going, and if you want to try again, start a new thread and see if others beside me come to your assist.  Network shares is NOT rocket science, because if I could eventually figure it out, likely anyone can. >>

 

Mike 

I am not knocking the box. It is a wonderful product in terms of codec support. However I use many different things to connect to windows network shared items (my blu ray), a Linux Laptop, my Smartphone, my tablet as well as my two Windows laptops and two Windows desktops 

I’ve never had any problems with sharing network items (losing passwords and ids, losing network shares) as I’ve had with WDTV.  I have set up my windows boxes with WDTV in mind (with no firewall software, no Windows Live, Network Advanced Properties set up as documented in the forum). 

So when I see that the only problems I have are only with WDTV and not with any other DLNA devices, a Linux Laptop, smartphones, tablets, two Windows 7 desktops and two Windows 7 laptops, I have to say that its the WDTV that makes Network Shares more tricky than any other platform.

I’ve never had any of these problems with either DLNA enabled (Blu Ray, TV, Ubuntu, Droid or other Win 7 devices).  I understand WDTV is not a Windows device (hence it uses Linux Samba Share technology) and doesn’t have to adhere to MS’s standards.  But its main user base includes far more Windows users than Mac or Linux users. So I have to put some of the onus on WDTV.

The thing that concerns me is that suddenly a box will have these network share issues (bad id password) without rebooting the WDTV or rebooting the ‘offending’ boxes. There is no set pattern I can figure out. 

I feel I have tried every option suggested and still see this pattern occuring. These solutions include

  1. Resetting the WDTV box to factory standards

  2. Setting firmware back which almost helped solve every problem

  3. Powering off the box with both hot and cold reboots and rebooting the ‘offending’ machines

  4. Setting up Windows Networking Advanced Options via WDTV Live Forum options

  5. Insuring that the master browser is set as per  http://community.wd.com/t5/WD-TV-Live-Networking/Troubleshooting-Windows-File-Sharing/m-p/92642#U92642

If there is a way to set up Win 7 shares without ID’s and passwords.  If that would solve the problem I’m game. Frankly I’m not sure how to do that. 

I’d love to get your help with this.  If you could tell me the diagnostic information you need, I would love to furnish it.  Please tell me the info and I will furnish it for a new topic.  

JRF

JRF:

Have I referred you to this thread yet?  If it does not work to solve your problems, I would guess it is master browser or a WIndows PC config that is bunged somewhere along the way.  Don’t try to do this until you have freshly rebooted your entire network system back to the modem, etc.  That should solve any master browser issue for the time being.  Good luck.

http://community.wd.com/t5/WD-TV-Live-Streaming/How-to-resolve-quot-Network-shares-quot-access-problems-with/td-p/671513

Mike

I made sure the Master Browser was set months ago. 

I thought the master browser set was more for WDTV problems where you weren’t seeing Network Shares at all.  that problem is not my issue since I am seeing the machines that I have set up for Network Shares but getting the Invalid ID/Password on only one PC. 

Here is the nbstat just to insure

NetBIOS Remote Machine Name Table

Name Type Status
---------------------------------------------
NEW-SPEEDWAY-PC<00> UNIQUE Registered
WORKGROUP <00> GROUP Registered
NEW-SPEEDWAY-PC<20> UNIQUE Registered
WORKGROUP <1E> GROUP Registered
WORKGROUP <1D> UNIQUE Registered
MSBROWSE.<01> GROUP Registered

MAC Address = 7A-79-19-10-80-F1

The master browser function of Windows auto-sets when a PC that can take over as master browser is on.  If that PC is turned off, hibernates, etc. the master browser disappears and another device can take over (e.g. a WDTV)  The only way I know to make something permanently take over as MB is, for example, a router that has a setting for this either as a software switch or one turns on Samba…  My Asus router does this, so I always have a functional MB with no PCs on.

Be that as it may, I want to know if you went through the steps I provided to use or not use paswords for WDTV network shares.  I do not use passwrods, and suggest you don’t either.

The fact that some of your PCs can be seen except for one, tells me shares for WDTV and passwords may be OK, and the problem lies with the PC you cannot see; sharing on that PC is bunged somehow.