1.14.0 Video Seek errors over a Windoze Lan on Windoze 7 (1 Viewer)

[Gary_Francis]

MediaPortal Version: 1.15.0

Description
Folks,
I was running 12 until an error appeared in the Music Sync area.

Please remember this worked in Version 12, so something appears (on the surface) to have gone backwards.

I used Moving Pictures for Movies, and use Therefore "videos" for viewing docos. I have these spread across three machines two of which are in a Workgroup nicely under Windoze 7.

When Installing the directories via configuration, I have selected to "wake up Lan" so the names of those directories appear in my list. Without this turned on those not on the native box, don't show up on the list. So I was left no option but to turn on this flag.

When selecting "videos" from the main menu, I now have to wait for maybe 25 seconds. I suspect for MP to run around my network and sniff at the directories. (it has never needed to preform this exercise before. V 12 didn't.

If I then try to "select" a directory off the prime box, it tries to "Wake up the server", but fails each time.

Any suggestions? This function is real important to me to be able to access all the docos I have.

Replies - Thank you in advance.

Steps to Reproduce:
All the time

 

[HTPCSourcer]

Any suggestions?

Full logs please.

 

[Gary_Francis]

Sorry I forgot about the log reporting process. Been that long since having to work at this level with MP.

For the logs provided, I had to kill MP using Task manager having attempted to go into one of the network drives and failed. Then going into and trying to come out of another directory of videos. It went in OK read the directory fine but seemed to stop and lock up trying to exit that directory.

Also all machines are in the same work-group. No Issues with passwords or permissions or groups. Nothing changed in the underlying layout of the network since V12 where it was all working fine.

Also I acknowledge that this is now V15. I was previously advised that this was the only version that would get rid of a sync error in the Music database. I was seeing this same issue at V14 level. It was not apparent in V12 whatsoever.


Logs now attached. Thank you again for the help.

 

[HTPCSourcer]

Hi,

The problem is related to you using IPv6 addresses:

[2016-06-29 05:19:56,368] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: AsyncDNSReverseLookup: ip 'fe80::28cc:2554:9a4b:2c3%11' resolved for host 'dads-computer' in 274.0157 ms
[2016-06-29 05:19:56,374] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: PingHost: Connection Error: An exception occurred during a Ping request.
[2016-06-29 05:19:56,378] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: PingHost: Connection Error: An exception occurred during a Ping request.
[2016-06-29 05:19:56,379] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: UNCFileFolderOnline: host 'dads-computer' is not reachable!! , File/Folder 'V:\MC\M Arts'

While DNS resolves the name to the IPv6 address, MP seems to not handle this correctly.

Activate TCP/IP over NetBIOS in the LAN adapter properties of your computers and you should be alright. You can check the correct IPv4 name resolution by opening a command windows and pinging each computer - they should reply with their IP4 address.

 

[Gary_Francis]

Certainly a solid step in the right direction. Enabled it as instructed rebooted both pc of focus, these are others on the network also, if that has any impact.

Fired MP clicked into the videos folders, couldn't see any content in the networked folders. Went out and "read" the drives to ensure Windows was "talking" to the drives in question. Initially these al had the red cross over them. So I had to click on each into trun to get Windows to see these drives.

Still very laggy getting into the mapped folders and out. One in fact even though it went through the "Wake up over Lan" process it still didn't "see" the folder.

Certainly in the right direction, much better but still not back to close V12, however it was then. No other changes in any of the boxes we are talking about my end. Enabled it on both and rebooted both.

New Log Attached.

Again thanks for the help!!!!!!

 

[HTPCSourcer]

There are still some IPv6 paths left.

[2016-06-29 11:21:46,053] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: AsyncDNSReverseLookup: ip 'fe80::28cc:2554:9a4b:2c3%11' resolved for host 'dads-computer' in 6.0003 ms
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,132] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: PingHost: Connection Error: An exception occurred during a Ping request.
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,142] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: PingHost: Connection Error: An exception occurred during a Ping request.
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,143] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - UNCTools: UNCFileFolderOnline: host 'dads-computer' is not reachable!! , File/Folder 'Z:\Media Centre Materials\03 photos'
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,143] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - GetRootExt(): 'dads-computer' is offline. Added to the ignored list.
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,144] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - GetRootExt(): ShareOffline : 'Z:\Media Centre Materials\03 photos' doesn't exists or offline, enable WOL feature for permanent loading
[2016-06-29 11:21:46,144] [Log ] [PictureRemovableDrivesHandlerThread] [DEBUG] - GetRootExt(): ShareOffline : 'Z:\Media Centre Materials\03 photos' can be refreshed from context menu in share view mode

At my side I am using UNC paths only (i.e. \\NAS\Folder) rather than drive mapping, which has no issues. If problems persist you could consider deactivating IPv6 in the network adapters, however, I think that's end of the pipe rather than a real problem solution.

Did you activate TCP/IP over NetBIOS for dads-computer? I am not at my own machine now but there should be the possibility to then select from three different sub-options (radio-buttons) where the first one is activated by default but you need the second one.

 

[Gary_Francis]

Yes I did activate on both Computers and rebooted both, before doing anything else. I found this article and used it to turn on Netbios. It is one of three options at the last pop up screen.

http://answers.ea.com/t5/Miscellane...P-on-Windows-7-PC-for-Launcher-to/td-p/628082

Turned on on both boxes. Surly I can't be the only place that IPv6 is being used on a network where MP is being used?

 

[HTPCSourcer]

Give your PCs a static rather than a dynamic address and then select the second option:



Start with unticking the "Enable LMHOSTS" entry. If you like, you can later define all your IP addresses in the LMHOSTS file on all PCs but that should not really be necessary.

 

[Gary_Francis]

Better Again but when leaving the Videos section and then trying to reenter it the system appears to just stall. I note that in the Task Manager of Windows that FFmPEG as a process pops into the task list and exits again. The Box just sits there doing that. Appears the only way out is to kill MP as a Application. This stops the FFmpeg looping.

The log attached captures this happening upon trying to return back into the "Videos" area a second time. This then kicks the FFmPEG app to fire up in the task manager. This makes the entire "videos" area basically useless at present as I can't go in once, come out, and then go back into the area again.

Very laggy going into the Video area. Waiting maybe 10 15 20 seconds for the screen to refresh with the directories listing. Sometimes laggy going into and coming out of specific directories.

Thank you so much for your help with this.

Sub Thread (Completely separate to trying to find a fix for the issue)
How come all this is happening now? Has something changed in MP, since this has worked quickly, well, without a hitch up until the latest 1.14 and 1.15 versions. (At least that appears to be the case from my end). There was never a flag to "Wake up Server", not that I remember seeing in say V 1.12 backwards.

It concerns me that I am expected to make these changes down at the levels I am now to get MP to run well again, should I need to rebuild a box from time to time.

Still a great product folks,

 

[mm1352000]

Better Again but when leaving the Videos section and then trying to reenter it the system appears to just stall. I note that in the Task Manager of Windows that FFmPEG as a process pops into the task list and exits again. The Box just sits there doing that. Appears the only way out is to kill MP as a Application. This stops the FFmpeg looping.

FFMPEG is related to thumbnail generation. The log shows lots of this:
[2016-06-30 05:52:24,547] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - SetThumbnails: Thumbs for video (1987 To Engineer Is Human) not found. Creating a new video thumb...
[2016-06-30 05:52:24,549] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - SetThumbnails: Thumbs for video (1997 Dawn Of The Clone Age) not found. Creating a new video thumb...
[2016-06-30 05:52:24,551] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - SetThumbnails: Thumbs for video (2003 Percy Pilcher's Flying Machine) not found. Creating a new video thumb...
[2016-06-30 05:52:24,553] [Log ] [MPMain ] [DEBUG] - SetThumbnails: Thumbs for video (2004 Dr Money And The Boy) not found. Creating a new video thumb...
etc.

Thumbnail generation probably will be quite slow over the network. Even so, it should be happening in the background. What happens if you disable thumbnail generation or allow enough time for all thumbnails to be created? (I would guess the problem would go away.)

Very laggy going into the Video area. Waiting maybe 10 15 20 seconds for the screen to refresh with the directories listing. Sometimes laggy going into and coming out of specific directories.

Again, this is presumably because MP is generating and loading the thumbnails for those directories. That only needs to be done once (unless you delete the thumbnails).

How come all this is happening now? Has something changed in MP, since this has worked quickly, well, without a hitch up until the latest 1.14 and 1.15 versions. (At least that appears to be the case from my end).

The explanation depends on what you mean by "all of this".

If you're talking about the thumbnails, I can only guess that:

• you did a clean reinstall (so thumbnails have to be regenerated), OR...
• you're visiting directories that weren't visited in the past (so thumbnails have to be generated for the first time), OR...
• your network/security config has changed and is causing trouble for the thumbnailer, OR
  
• you never had the thumbnail generator enabled in the past

There was never a flag to "Wake up Server", not that I remember seeing in say V 1.12 backwards.

You can read the change-log to understand why changes were made. For example, in 1.13:
http://wiki.team-mediaportal.com/1_.../Using_MediaPortal/Reset_or_refresh_WOL_share