File streaming with a NAS?

[BlackFlag79]

Hi. I was planning on buying a NAS soon and was wondering if there was any sort of program that I could install (Linux) that would allow me to stream all of my music and videos to my TiVo? Pretty much just like TiVotogo does. I'd just use TiVotogo but I don't think I could get that program for a NAS, correct? I'd appreciate any help!

[chip_r]

I have Galleon running on a NAS.

Details about Galleon (http://www.galleon.tv/)

Details about running Galleon on a Kurobox NAS (http://www.kurobox.com/mwiki/index.php/Debian_Galleon_Media_Server)

Galleon is an excellent server for video, music, photos, etc. You may want to check it out. Load it up on a PC, MAC, or Linux box and give it a spin. Running it on PC is the easiest, especially if you want a quick spin.

A few caveats with using Galleon on a NAS:

Galleon is Java based so the NAS must run Java, must have a sufficient amount of horsepower, and must be hackable. The KuroboxHG (hackable Buffalo Linkstation) has been the only NAS I've found that has that combination. I believe someone may have a hacked Linkstation that runs Galleon with similar directions but I run Galleon on a KuroboxHG. Also you must be somewhat Linux savvy to follow the directions in the link above. If you're interested, I can walk you through it. I know the guy who wrote the Kurobox wiki page ;) . Also it's not blazingly fast because it's only a 266MHz embedded CPU. Currently I only use ToGO, GoBack, and Music. The other Galleon apps I've checked run too slow on the NAS (plus I really just needed these feature).

NAS boxes use various underpowered embedded CPUs and although they're OK for running the NAS, Java is a tall order. I've only be able to find Java JRE pre-built for the PowerPC. You can attempt to build Java on another target but the dependencies are not trivial. I went the (somewhat) straightforward route of purchasing hardware that matched the available software instead of the other way around. My goal was to have a small Tivo server, this works for me.

[windracer]

There's also TiVo.Net (would need to be run through Mono on Linux) and pyTiVo (written in python). Both require ffmpeg compiled for your platform.

As chip_r mentioned though, most NASes are not powerhouses, so ffmpeg can easily stress them out. I tried getting Galleon to run on my NAS and couldn't because there's no good java port for the MIPS processor. I tried pyTivo, but it was just too slow.

So I just store all my recordings on the NAS and have a separate Linux server on which I run pyTivo and Galleon to "stream" things to my TiVos.

[stubarrett]

I have a ReadyNAS box. While it is on the same subnet as my S3 Tivo, I access its content (mp3 files) via the Tivo Desktop Server running on an XP machine.

I'm not aware of anyway the Tivo box can *directly* access a NAS box. I guess if you could host a Tivo Desktop Server on the NAS box that would be possible.

Stu

[chip_r]

Just some general thoughts here on the subject (in order from easy/cheap to more involved/expensive)

1) Put a larger drive in your Tivo

Pros: Easy, cheapest solution. Just the cost of a drive.
Cons: You really don't get a media server, just more storage

2) Run a server like Galleon, TiVo.Net, pyTiVo, or similar on a older Linux or PC

Pros: Older x86 boxes are easy to come by (usually free). Enough horsepower to run many types of servers. Flexible.
Cons: Noisy box, power hungry

3) NAS box

Pros: Small size, low power. Can be use as a Tivo server and NAS.
Cons: Limited selection of usable hardware/software solutions. Weak on horsepower.

[BlackFlag79]

Thanks for the responses. I guess I have a few options... I'll probably go with buying a NAS from Qnap. Through e-mail they told me they'd have a 4 or 5-bay NAS by the end of the year. I have 5 1TB drives that I'd like to utilize. Then I'd just have to have any computer in the house running with the TiVotogo software and I could stream from the NAS using my computer as a middleman, correct?

[chip_r]

I recall there may be an issue with using a shared drive for your "My Tivo Recordings" directory in TivoToGo.

I just now tried to change my File -> Preferences -> File Locations -> My Tivo Recordings path to my NAS and I get a "has changed, deleted, or moved warning" and the location doesn't update. I have seen this problem referred to on the forum but I don't recall the resolution (or even if there is one).

As a quick check, if you have two computers on your home network, share the drive on one and run TivoToGo on the second to see if a shared drive can be used for My Tivo Recordings. Also you may want to search the forum a bit especially before buying a NAS and assuming that it will work. Your middleman idea may not work with TivoToGo.

[stubarrett]

I access video, music, and pictures off of my NAS box. With Tivo Desktop I "publish" a folder on my local XT box and then add a short-cut to a directory on my NAS box. Works great!.

Stu

[chip_r]

I access video, music, and pictures off of my NAS box. With Tivo Desktop I "publish" a folder on my local XT box and then add a short-cut to a directory on my NAS box. Works great!.

Stu

That's good to know for the OP's plans. Must be pilot error on my part. Or maybe just old age :)

[adessmith]

I dont think there is a way to specify an 'alternate' location for your video files. You would probably want to map your NAS as a network drive (eg: Z:\ ) Then, in your "My Tivo recordings" folder just put a shortcut to the path where your video files are (eg: Z:\Videos\ )


Keep in mind this would double the traffic on your home network. You will have packets flowing from the NAS to the PC and from the PC to the Tivo at the same time. The link between your PC and your network switch (or router) could become a bottleneck. I'm not sure if the bandwidth used would be enough to saturate the link.

Hopefully you are running 100BaseT (or even better would be gigibit) and you are using a switch or router and not a hub.