Auto Connect/Reconnect for Placeshifter

[bfhoothead]

I seem to be having some intermittent network issues at home where my Placeshifter client will disconnect from the server. When I turn the Placeshifted TV on, the client is back at the server selection screen, with my server as the one and only listed. Now, it's not too much of a problem for me, but it's a little too much for my wife (gotta pull out the keyboard). Is there a way to make Placeshifter automatically choose and connect to a server when it's available (thus, hopefully forcing it to reconnect in my case).

Thanks,
David

[bfhoothead]

Really, no way to automatically connect/reconnect?

[Narflex]

Not currently with the Placeshifter, but it's on the to-do list for 5.1.

[Narflex]

Not currently with the Placeshifter, but it's on the to-do list for 5.1.

Actually....I just thought of a way you can do it. :) Once I say you can't...then immediately I figure out how of course.

If you run it on the command line like:

java -cp MiniClient.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient 192.168.1.23

(or whatever IP/hostname you're connecting to)

and put that inside a batch file that loops then that'll basically do what you're looking for. Not the prettiest solution, but it should work. :)

When you give it a hostname on the command line, the process will exit when the connection dies.

[bfhoothead]

That'll do just fine, thanks for the post!

[zzmystique]

I would like to create a batch file to start placeshifter to auto connect to my server without me having to choose the connection or enter the username and password.

Is this possible?

Thanks in advance.

[zzmystique]

Actually....I just thought of a way you can do it. :) Once I say you can't...then immediately I figure out how of course.

If you run it on the command line like:

java -cp MiniClient.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient 192.168.1.23

(or whatever IP/hostname you're connecting to)

and put that inside a batch file that loops then that'll basically do what you're looking for. Not the prettiest solution, but it should work. :)

When you give it a hostname on the command line, the process will exit when the connection dies.

Hi
How would you add the username and password to "java -cp MiniClient.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient 192.168.1.23" in the batch file to connect away from home?

Thanks, I have been searching for a way to do this for a while.

Anne

[Dillenger69]

I'd like to know this as well.
I like to run placeshifter on a machine that needs to be more "wife" friendly when things start up.

With client it was nice and easy, but Placeshifter has that intermediate connection screen.

[Opus4]

Two posts were merged into this older thread w/the same topic... it doesn't look like the username & pwd can be entered automatically, but there is a connection method above. If on a LAN, there is usually no need to enter a username, btw.

- Andy

[Woobie]

I am also in need of a way to automate the Placeshifter login. I'm using this in an environment where text entry is difficult. Has anyone managed to do this yet?

edit: Alternativly, is there any way to simply disable the authentication screen entirely? I could configure my router to only allow connections from trusted hosts.

[krikkit]

Alternativly, is there any way to simply disable the authentication screen entirely? I could configure my router to only allow connections from trusted hosts.

...simply remove all placeshifter users, then you don't have to authenticate...

[Opus4]

...simply remove all placeshifter users, then you don't have to authenticate...I'm curious about whether you've actually tried that. The lack of users is not what determines whether you have to authenticate when using the Placeshifter client on a local network, and if you have no users, a remote connection should tell you that you first have to create a user in order to connect.

- Andy

[nielm]

FYI for v6 or 6.1, the command line may need to be:
Windows:

java -cp MiniClient.jar;jogl.jar;gluegen-rt.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient ip_of_server

Linux:

java -cp MiniClient.jar:jogl.jar:gluegen-rt.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient ip_of_server


I have attached a quick'n'dirty windows batch file -- put it in the placeshifter directory, and run with:
PlaceshifterReconnect.bat mediaserverIP

[btrcp2000]

Can somebody dumb this down for me? I am trying to get all the way into Placeshifter on a desktop that will always be inside my own lan, by just double clicking the icon, not having to choose the server, because it's always the same. I am not sure how to use this command line info.

Also, whenever I start Placeshifter, it brings up the dialog box where I choose my server, then immediately bings up another box referencing "My Sagetv". It looks like it is seeing another sage server somewhere. This pc did once have the server program on it, maybe that is still there?

thanks

[GKusnick]

Can somebody dumb this down for me? I am trying to get all the way into Placeshifter on a desktop that will always be inside my own lan, by just double clicking the icon, not having to choose the server, because it's always the same. I am not sure how to use this command line info.
Using Niel's batch file, just put the

PlaceshifterReconnect.bat mediaserverIP

command line into the Target field of your shortcut icon (replacing mediaserverIP with the actual IP address of your server, obviously).

[btrcp2000]

thought I did that, but i left off the .bat off the target line. That works, now how do I get it to run full screen right away? I tried entering fullscreen mode then exiting/restarting PS, but it went back to windowed mode.

Also, is there a flag or something I an add to the command line that will make the DOS window go away once I close PS so it doesn't keep restarting?

thanks again!

[Dillenger69]

It will start in fullscreen if you change the startup line to add a -fullscreen option like this:
javaw -cp MiniClient.jar;jogl.jar;gluegen-rt.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient -fullscreen %1

As for making the DOS window go away ... the whole purpose of the bat file is to restart the client if it dies. Even without the restart code in the batch file it won't go away until you close the sagetv client. That's just the nature of batch files.

If you just want to start in fullscreen without the batch file just create a shortcut in your startup folder with the line above, using your server's IP in place if %1.
Be sure to set the "Start in:" to "C:\Program Files\SageTV\Placeshifter" or wherever your placeshifter is installed to or it won't start.

thought I did that, but i left off the .bat off the target line. That works, now how do I get it to run full screen right away? I tried entering fullscreen mode then exiting/restarting PS, but it went back to windowed mode.

Also, is there a flag or something I an add to the command line that will make the DOS window go away once I close PS so it doesn't keep restarting?

thanks again!

[mkanet]

I tried the below Windows command-line and the error message below it.

java -cp MiniClient.jar;jogl.jar;gluegen-rt.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient 127.0.0.1


Exception in thread "main" java.lang.NoClassDefFoundError: sage/miniclient/MiniClient

[sibo]

I've been using the code mentioned in this thread to auto connect Placeshifter on one of my machines for quite some time now.

(javaw.exe -cp MiniClient.jar;jogl.jar;gluegen-rt.jar sage.miniclient.MiniClient 192.168.1.22)

When I upgraded to 6.4.8.184 recently and use the above code, Placeshifter crashes everytime I right click in fullscreen. It crashes at other times as well, but not as consistantly--when using the scroll wheel, or changing menus, toggling fullscreen, and probably others. If I don't use the code and select my server on the 'Servers Manager' window it works without a problem.

Any idea how to remedy this situation?

The following is the command line output for a crash:


Mon 11/3 17:05:26.748 Error w/ GFX Thread: java.lang.OutOfMemoryError: Java heap space
java.lang.OutOfMemoryError: Java heap space
at java.awt.image.DataBufferByte.<init>(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.image.ComponentSampleModel.createDataBuffer(Unknown Source)
at java.awt.image.Raster.createWritableRaster(Unknown Source)
at javax.imageio.ImageTypeSpecifier.createBufferedImage(Unknown Source)
at javax.imageio.ImageReader.getDestination(Unknown Source)
at com.sun.imageio.plugins.png.PNGImageReader.readImage(Unknown Source)
at com.sun.imageio.plugins.png.PNGImageReader.read(Unknown Source)
at javax.imageio.ImageIO.read(Unknown Source)
at javax.imageio.ImageIO.read(Unknown Source)
at sage.miniclient.GFXCMD2.ExecuteGFXCommand(GFXCMD2.java:1182)
at sage.miniclient.MiniClientConnection.GFXThread(MiniClientConnection.java:843)
at sage.miniclient.MiniClientConnection.access$200(MiniClientConnection.java:6)
at sage.miniclient.MiniClientConnection$4.run(MiniClientConnection.java:340)
Mon 11/3 17:05:26.826 Execute media command 17
Mon 11/3 17:05:26.904 stdout:OFF THE SCREEN!!!!
Mon 11/3 17:05:26.936 stdout:
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:<vo_directx> adapter 0: Primary Display Adapter
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:<vo_directx> adapter 1: RADEON 9600 Family (Microsoft Corporation)
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:ID_SIGNAL=11
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:Uninit audio filters...
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:[libaf] Removing filter dummy
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:Uninit audio: mp3lib
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:Uninit video: libmpeg2
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.014 stdout:WINSOCK2 uninit
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:<vo_directx><FATAL ERROR>could not set cooperativelevel for hardwarecheck
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:<vo_directx><FATAL ERROR>could not create primary surface
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:MPlayer interrupted by signal 11 in module: filter_video
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr:- MPlayer crashed by bad usage of CPU/FPU/RAM.
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr: Recompile MPlayer with --enable-debug and make a'gdb' backtrace and
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.045 stderr: disassembly. Details in DOCS/HTML/en/bugreports_what.html#bugreports_crash.
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 Closing down mplayer
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 Sending mplayer command:inactive_file
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 Sending mplayer command:quit
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 MPlayer process exit code:1
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stdout:ao_dsound: DirectSound uninitialized
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stdout consumer has closed
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr:- MPlayer crashed. This shouldn't happen.
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr: It can be a bug in the MPlayer code _or_ in yourdrivers _or_ in your
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr: gcc version. If you think it's MPlayer's fault, please read
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr: DOCS/HTML/en/bugreports.html and follow the instructions there. We can't and
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr: won't help unless you provide this information when reporting a possible bug.
Mon 11/3 17:05:27.076 stderr consumer has closed



Thanks for your help!

[Mucaro]

btrcp2000,

I found a way of hiding that unsightly DOS Window:
1) Create a batch file with nielm's java command in it (see #13).
2) Right-click on the batch file and create a shortcut file.
3) Right-click on the shortcut file and click on "Properties".
4) Make sure the "Start in:" field points to the Placeshifter installation folder.
5) Also change the "Run:" field to "Minimized".
6) Click OK to save the changes to the shortcut properties.
7) Run the shorcut created in step 2 instead of the regular Placeshifter shortcut.
8) Enjoy ;)

[perholm]

Hmm, the other thread about possible feature restriction in Placeshifter has been closed, so I'll answer the user who asked about auto-logging in to Placeshifter.

Again, I think it's mystery that such an obvious and necessary feature has been left out. I'm sorry, I still think that Placeshifter has been made clunky to log into on purpose. There's not a person who uses Placeshifter who doesn't want to log in with a single mouseclick. Read the forums.

But here's a way to work around it:

1.) Buy a www.quickmacros.com

2.) Create the following macro:


run "C:\Program Files\SageTV\Placeshifter\SageTVPlaceshifter.exe" "" "" "" 0x800 "SageTV Placeshifter Servers Manager"
key vpn
key Y
wait 5 WC "SageTV Placeshifter"
1
dou 37 13 "SageTV Placeshifter"
key username
key T
key password
key Y


3.) In the Properties for the macro, select Shortcut. QuickMacros will create a shortcut on the screen that activates this macro, and Placeshifter goes through the entire login process automatically.

IMPORTANT: You need to ADD a connection, so there's a connection in the list immediately after load. My connection is called "vpn", so on line 3, the macro types "vpn" on the keyboard to select it. Also change the path to your Placeshifter player.

SageTV guys, as expected, you closed the other thread saying that Placeshifter and Client are simply different technologies, without addressing that without hacks to MPlayer, playback quality is significantly reduced. Sure they're different technologies. But I just still think that the clumsy login combined with the lack of smooth playback is plain weird. There's nothing that stops you from having shining playback in Placeshifter.

Per

By the way, it even starts Placeshifter in full screen.

Best,

Per

* merged with existing topic *

[The Truth]

My question is does using this batch still use my connection settings that I have set up while using the placeshifter's normal shortcut and connect? this might be an issue because I have manually configured my settings for wireless.

I will try to look into this myself right now...


Thanks...! I LOVE THIS BATCH!!!!!!!!!!

[perholm]

Hi there,

Yes, it uses the connection settings. I've found that it's often necessary after changing the settings, to quit and restart PLaceshifter for the settings to stick.

I should also add that I've tried the miniClient approach, and that actually doesn't work, because LM Gestion remote remapper doesn't work when Placeshifter is activated this way. For some reason, any remote control button remapping is bypassed when it's launched this way.

So the QuickMacros way is much better, and runs really fast.

Best,

Per

[The Truth]

Wait so Per....? I will be unable to map to a remote? or unable to use a remote on the placeshifter when i use the batch?

could i map the remote without using the batch then once complete use the batch?

[perholm]

No, exactly not! When you use the "minijar" approach listed elsewhere in this thread, you're forced to always have a command line open in the background, and LM Gestion is unable to intercept the keypresses.

When you use the macro, it's the same as logging in regularly, except that it's automatic.

Per

[The Truth]

I have created a VPN for my network using openvpn... and now I can use this batch anywhere..... even over the internet....


MCE Remotes work because they use windows to send messages I believe.....

[dealsdyker]

...
1.) Buy a www.quickmacros.com ....


You also may want to check out the free macro program http://www.autohotkey.com/

[band80]

Now that v6.6 offers auto-login, can someone find a way to launch SageTV from a BAT file and then have it automatically login?

When I run SageTV from a BAT file using the code from this thread, the auto-login box is not an option...

[mhassman]

I too have the same issue.. autologin is missing from the login screen when launching from command-line with auto-connect. I tried specifying mac address and a few other guesses for what might be command-line parameters, but not luck. anyone know the method to automatically launch & login a placeshifter client?

[band80]

So? Anyone from SageTV want to chime in?? Are you guys on vacation?

[GKusnick]

So? Anyone from SageTV want to chime in?? Are you guys on vacation?

It's a user-to-user forum. The devs don't follow every thread. If you have a support issue that requires a reply, contact support directly.

[band80]

It's a user-to-user forum. The devs don't follow every thread. If you have a support issue that requires a reply, contact support directly.

Yes but the devs could answer thus question very quickly and help a lot of people