Plugin: Web User Interface for SageTV 2.2-6.6 (V2.25 18 Sep 2009)

[bjkiller]

Originally Posted by ericscottf

Nice, so that's how i'll name them -- any reason you can think of as to why i'm only seeing two out of three of them?

(i didn't mention that all three are on and working in every other way..)

I also have same issue, also i do not see SageTV Clients (PC) in the list, so unable to see what they doing...and can't power-off them remotely.

[jreichen]

I can't reproduce the problem with extenders not showing up in the web interface. I'll be happy to look through anyone's log file if it has anything useful.

[VCRUser]

Originally Posted by dinki

I uninstalled and reinstalled 0.9.8a but it still just says 'Waiting for Video' . I know that some sort of streaming is working because clicking on the 'Play in external player' link opens the standalone VLC on my client pc and the video starts playing.

I've tried this on several systems (my server is XP with VLC 1.0.3; various earlier versions on other systems). When trying to stream, this is one of the error messages I get from VLC:
access_http error: error: HTTP/1.0 500 Internal server error
access_mms error: error: HTTP/1.0 500 Internal server error
main error: open of
Your input can't be opened:
VLC is unable to open the MRL 'http://localhost:8080/sagepublic/MediaFileTranscode?MediaFileId=4637396&Segment=0&mode=vlc&vc=mp4v&vb=256&ac=mp3&ab=96&scale=0.3&mux=ts&deint=1'. Check the log for details.

I'm not sure which "log" it's referring to for details; what I pasted came from the "messages" screen, which is the only log I can find.

My main use for this would be to verify recordings while out of town (sometimes the irblaster and stb don't convert perfectly, and I need to arrange for a second recording attempt). I have low upload bandwidth (whatever Comcast's current basic highspeed provides), so I don't intend to use this for prolonged viewing (for that, I simply copy the files I intend to watch while away onto my laptop, USB stick, etc.). My laptop doesn't get along with PlaceShifter, or I'd try using that. So, if there are other ways to accomplish what I'm attempting, I'd be grateful for an suggestions.

[jreichen]

I don't see that message in the web server code so I'm not sure what other log it's referring to. Check the SageTV debug log and the webserver/log folder. Make sure the webserver/transcode.properties file has the property DebugLog set to 'true'.

[VCRUser]

Sorry; I wasn't clear. The errors are coming from VLC. I've done some further experimentation, and have found that the H264 streaming option works on my server (in localhost mode) or on a client WinXP laptop when accessing the webserver thorugh the LAN, but not on a Win2K client desktop through the lan. When the client laptop goes instead through the external web-address, the playback fails. (I can do everything else I might want to do on the web interface from afar, so the web server in general is working over the internet). That suggests a firewall issue for VLC, but I'm not sure which ports to open for VLC or how to tell VLC to use a port that is already open (say, the one open for the webserver). Being able to get the low-bandwidth streaming over the internet would serve my current purpose if I could figure out how to do it. I can't make head or tail out of the VLC documentation; the references to streaming there don't mention firewalls or ports (maybe there's a particular place I need to look that I'm missing.)

[jreichen]

IIRC the web server takes the request for a video stream from the client, starts up VLC and tells it to make the stream available on a certain port (see StartAtPort and StopAtPort properties in transcode.properties). The web server captures VLC's output on the port and forwards it back to the client as part of the HTTP response. No ports should need to be opened on your network's firewall, but maybe the ports specified in the transcode.properties file need to be opened in the Windows firewall.

[VCRUser]

Originally Posted by jreichen

IIRC the web server takes the request for a video stream from the client, starts up VLC and tells it to make the stream available on a certain port (see StartAtPort and StopAtPort properties in transcode.properties). The web server captures VLC's output on the port and forwards it back to the client as part of the HTTP response. No ports should need to be opened on your network's firewall, but maybe the ports specified in the transcode.properties file need to be opened in the Windows firewall.

Thanks. I checked those, and entered the the startat and stopat ports into the public/private port translation setup in my router (this is the same setup that works for the webserver, so I assume it's the correct method; there is no command to simply open a port). I also told the Windows firewall on the server that VLC and the start/stop ports could all go through, turned off the router firewall, and (when it still wasn't working), turned off the Windows firewall. No luck in any case (so turned the firewalls back on). And yet, things are working when I go in via LAN & not working when I go in via Internet.

[razrsharpe]

Originally Posted by VCRUser

And yet, things are working when I go in via LAN & not working when I go in via Internet.

Are you sure you arent saturating your outbound connection bandwidth? Or is your server having trouble keeping up with the transcoding that vlc is doing when accessing from the internet (that you dont have when on the lan because youre bandwidth is sufficient)?

[VCRUser]

Originally Posted by razrsharpe

Are you sure you arent saturating your outbound connection bandwidth? Or is your server having trouble keeping up with the transcoding that vlc is doing when accessing from the internet (that you dont have when on the lan because youre bandwidth is sufficient)?

I'm not sure - any suggestions on how I could determine that? I am selecting the lowest possible bandwidth options in Webserver.

[razrsharpe]

Originally Posted by VCRUser

I'm not sure - any suggestions on how I could determine that? I am selecting the lowest possible bandwidth options in Webserver.

i would look at http://www.dslreports.com/speedtest and test your connection to see what your real up and down connection speed is... as far as server horsepower goes if you are using the same bandwidth for both test (LAN and WAN) and it works on your LAN then its not likely a horsepower issue...

[VCRUser]

Don't think upload speed is the problem. This is what I get from dslreports:
Run: 2010-02-23 03:13:48 EST
Download: 8216 (Kbps)
Upload: 2985 (Kbps)
In kilobytes per second: 1003 down 364.4 up
Tested by server: 56 java

Since I'm trying the lowest bandwidth supported by the webserver, that seems adequate. I'm beginning to suspect this is a lost cause. I've been thinking about installing Orb, but wonder if I'll run into the same issues. Since my purpose requires only sampling new downloads, maybe I can (1) convert the first 2 minutes of each to the smallest possible file, (2) download that file through the Webserver & check for the correct recording.

[jreichen]

I uploaded v 2.26 snapshot 49 with a couple of new additions.

• XML document and RSS feeds for 'Upcoming Movies' were empty. Multiple categories in search URL were not preserved
• Import all XML files from a folder

[rickgode]

I have a brand new SageTV box running the latest version of sage in service mode and version V2.25 18 Sep 2009 of webserver. My SageTV box is hooked directly to my TV in my living room. I also have two MVP extenders that connect to my SageTV box.


When I go to http://blahblah:8080/sage/home I am only able to see what I’m watching on my extenders. The webremote works on these which was a surprise because I’ve never been able to do that before. Maybe it was an upgrade? Maybe I installed it right this time? Who knows? When I click on the "Webremote (Local Sage)" I get the “Webserver is running in SageTV Service –no remote control possible”

http://www.cakevideo.com/remote_link/sagetv8080.jpg

So I did some google searches and found out that I needed to add load_at_startup_runnable_classes=net.sf.sageplugins.webserver.StartServer to my client properties. So I did. Well now I’m able to control the local version of SageTV, but the extenders don’t show up.

http://www.cakevideo.com/remote_link/sagetv8081.jpg

**(I took the above screen shot after I messed with the ports. After adding the load_at_startup line I got this exact same screen with the 8081 port that the first screenshot used to use also)

Then I started playing with the nielm/webserver/ports and changed the one in the sage.properties to nielm/webserver/port=8080 and the one in the sageclient.properties to nielm/webserver/port=8081. **Both of these were 8081 to begin with. I don't know why?

So now when I go to http://blahblah:8080/sage/home I’m able to control my extenders, but not my Local SageTV Box. When I go to http://blahblah:8081/sage/home I’m able to control my Local SageTV instance, but not my extenders.

It's late, and I've successfully migrated all my videos and such to a completely new computer this week. 1 terabyte drives are $80!! That was a feat in itself as I was running 6.2 flawlessly and the WAF(wife acceptence factor) was very very high.

From this website http://tools.assembla.com/sageplugin...bserverInstall

"Installation on a Sage Client

The webserver can also run in client systems, (or when using the service, the SageTV user interface).

This gives the ability to remotely stop or start playback, and to see what is currently playing on the client, or even to use a web browser as a remote control (webremote)

Follow the same installation instructions above, but ensure that the SageTV/Client User interface is closed and edit the SageClient.properties file instead. Note that if you are also running the webserver in the service, or running multiple clients on the same system, you may need to choose a different port to allow the 2 servers to co-exist (see WebserverCustomisation)"


I'm pretty sure what I need to do is there, but when I click on the WebserverCustomisation link all I get are ads. (plus customization is spelled wrong)

Any ideas?

Ricky
p.s. I need to update my sig at the bottom. I have terabytes of data now!

[gplasky]

If I'm not mistaken the webserver can control a local Sage session. This means that it can control any extender and type of extender because they all execute on the server. One instance of the webserver can control many extenders. You will also see that it WILL tell you when a PC client is connected. The IP address will show. But you cannot control it. For amy client to be controlled it must be running the webserver locally. ANd to run multiple webservers they must run on different ports. So you have already discovered this. To be able to control a PC client it needs to be running the webserver and on a different port. So you won't be able to centrally webremote to multiple PC clients. Only extenders.

The wiki pages are no longer editable but you can go to the history and back to the original page. The page you wany will not help you in what you are trying to do.

WebserverCustomisation
v1 v9
= Customisation of the Sage Web Server =

There are several things that can be customised in the web server:

* View style
* Channel Logos
* menu layout and items
* saved searches and saved EPG views
* colors and formatting
* direct links to video files
* Advanced server configuration
* Disk space bar in Home page
----
== View style ==

Most of the screens have a [show options] button which opens a section which allows you to customise the view. These settings are saved as cookies on your browser, so each browser can have different settings.

These settings can do things like:
* alter sorting/grouping/filtering in Sage Recordings
* alter filtering in Recording Schedule
* enable/disable channel logos everywhere.
* alter cell size in the EPG views
* alter the number of hours/channels shown in the EPG views
* add show description in EPG List view

To reset to the defaults, delete the cookies for this site in the browser.

----
== Channel Logos ==

From version 1.5 onwards, the webserver gets channel logos from the same place as SageTV (the ChannelLogos subdir of the SageTV directory, see the SageTV manual) -- there is no need for a separate channellogos subdir in the {{{webserver/webroot/sage}}}

----
== Menu layout and items ==

The menu bar that sits at the top of the screen is defined in a !JavaScript source file in SageTV/webserver/webroot/sage/menu_items.js

This file defines a multi-level array, with menu items and sub-menu items. Take care when editing this, any errors in the Javascript will cause the menu to fail to load.

Menu items can be to any valid URL, so you add saved searches, and even add bookmarks to external sites.

Note that any changes to the menu_items.js will require a refresh of the web browser, but not a restart of the Sage process.

----
== Saved Searches/EPG views ==

All web pages in the server (even search results) can be bookmarked, so you can make a custom search (such as for movies in the next 48 hours on your 4 favorite channels) and bookmark them.

EPG views may also be bookmarked, but note that startdate is set to a defined date by default. Relative dates are supported -- replace {{{startdate=2004/11/17}}} with {{{startdate=n}}} where n is the number of days to offset from 'now' (ie -1=yesterday, 0=today, 1=tomorrow), eg: for an EPG grid view starting tomorrow at 6pm
{{{
http://localhost:8080/EpgGrid?startdate=1&starthr=18
}}}

The default menu.properties has 2 custom searches and 2 EPG views defined as an example. I have chosen 'Prime Time' to start at 6pm local time, you may of course edit it to whatever you feel is appropriate.

----
== Colors and formatting ==

The majority of the colors and the formatting is done with external CSS stylesheets in webserver/webroot/sage:
* sage_screen.css -- for normal web browsers
* sage_print.css -- for printing (removes menu bar, background, options etc)
* sage_handheld.css -- for small screen/handheld devices (in 1.0 version this is the same as sage_screen.css because I have no handheld device to develop/test on!)

These stylesheets can be edited to change the layout, font size, background image, colours etc.

To reload a stylesheet, you normally need to refresh your browser with F5, or CTRL-F5 because the existing stylesheet is cached.

----
== Direct links to video files ==

As of v 1.6, the webserver provides direct download links to all media files in Sage (videos, music, images). The webserver needs direct access to the disk where these video files are held, so if running on a client, the disk paths must match -- this is easiest done with UNC paths.

The Detailed Information screen for Sage Recordings can also include file:// links that provide direct access to the video files.

To enable this, you need to specify the how to translate the video storage paths into URL paths.
For example, the Sage server is called sage-server, and uses D:\Sage-video as a video path.

For a File:// url accessible as a mapped drive over the home network:
* The video directory is also available as M:\media\sage-video
* This path can be expressed as the file url: file://localhost/m:/media/sage-video/
* Therefore there needs to be an entry in the paths.properties file as follows: [[BR]]{{{d:\sage-video\=file://localhost/m:/media/sage-video/}}}
* The webserver will then append the video file name, and the link will show up in the detailed information screen.

For a File:// url accessible as a UNC path over the home network:
* The video directory is also available as \\sage-server\media\sage-video
* This UNC path can be expressed as the file url: file://sage-server/media/sage-video/
* Therefore there needs to be an entry in the paths.properties file as follows: [[BR]]{{{d:\sage-video\=file://sage-server/media/sage-video/}}}
* The webserver will then append the video file name, and the link will show up in the detailed information screen.

Note that the path in paths.properties must match exactly the path to the video file shown in the detailed info screen.

If you want to serve video files to the internet using this web server, you may want to limit the bandwidth used. This can be configured in throttles.properties (see also WebserverServingOtherFiles), by specifying a file path of:
{{{
/sage/MediaFile/*
or
/sage/MediaFile/*.mp3
etc
}}}

----
== Advanced server configuration ==

Some of the parameters used to start the webserver are stored in the sage.properties file, in the section: {{{nielm/webserver/}}}

These include:
* {{{nielm/webserver/root}}}[[BR]]where the webserver configuration directory is[[BR]]Default: webserver subdirectory of the SageTV directory

* {{{nielm/webserver/port}}}[[BR]]The port used by the webserver[[BR]]Default: 8080

* {{{nielm/webserver/log_access}}}[[BR]]{{{nielm/webserver/log_referrer}}} [[BR]]{{{nielm/webserver/log_user_agent}}}[[BR]] Whether to log each access, and whether to include user agent, and referrer in the logging[[BR]]Default: false[[BR]]By default, log files will be created only upon error in the webserver/log directory

Other parameters are defined in the various .properties files of the webserver configuration directory:
* aliases.properties : associates real paths to the paths in web requests
* realms.properties : defines usernames and passwords for accessing web pages.
* throttles.properties : defines bandwidth throttles for file types and paths.

----
== Disk space bar in Home page ==

The disk space used/required/free bar in the home page uses the same sage.properties settings as the disk space bar in several of the custom STV's. These are:
* nielm/diskbar_partials_free (true/false, default: true)[[BR]]Whether to treat partial recordings as free space
* nielm/diskbar_lookahead_hours (number, default: 48)[[BR]]Number of hours to look ahead in the recording schedule when attempting to predict disk space required for upcoming recordings
* nielm/diskbar_lookahead_only_requested (true/false, default true)[[BR]]Only include Favorites/manual recordings (not IR) when predicting required disk space
* nielm/diskbar_used_space_warn (number 0-100, default 90)[[BR]]Percentage of disk space used before 'warning' color (orange) is used
* nielm/diskbar_needed_space_warn (number 0-100, default 95)[[BR]]Percentage of disk space including required disk space for future recordings before 'warning' color (red) is used for upcoming recording space.

----

== Multiple users with mutliple roles (guest / admin) ==

The webserver supports defintion of multiple users in the realms.properties file. The user can be specified for each page, which allows multiple users with different roles to be set up.

The format of the realms.properties file is:
{{{
[Browser Prompt]=[web-path to protect],[username]:[password]
eg: SageTV Web Actions=/sage/Command,writenly
}}}
Note that the name of the prompt does not matter - but the browser uses it to internally reference a user/password...

Multiple users can be defined for the same path...

When checking for a user to access a page, the first matching path int he realms.properties will be used, so specify more specific paths before more general paths.

So if you want allow a guest user (with password GPASS) access to everything, but only an admin user (with password APASS) is able to change things, then you should have something like:
{{{
# admin user access to commands/actions
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/Command,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/AiringCommand,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/ManualRecord,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/ResolveConflict,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/TimedRecord,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/MediaFileCommand,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/ForceEpgUpdate,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/EditShowInfo,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/EncodeCommand,admin:APASS
SageTV Web Actions=/sage/FavoriteCommand,admin:APASS

# Guest user acess to normal screens
SageTV Web Interface=/sage,guest:GPASS
# admin user access to info screens
SageTV Web Actions=/sage,admin:APASS
}}}

Gerry

[rickgode]

Originally Posted by gplasky

If I'm not mistaken the webserver can control a local Sage session. This means that it can control any extender and type of extender because they all execute on the server. One instance of the webserver can control many extenders. You will also see that it WILL tell you when a PC client is connected. The IP address will show. But you cannot control it. For amy client to be controlled it must be running the webserver locally. ANd to run multiple webservers they must run on different ports. So you have already discovered this. To be able to control a PC client it needs to be running the webserver and on a different port. So you won't be able to centrally webremote to multiple PC clients. Only extenders.


Gerry

Thank you Gerry. Your right. That webpage didn't have anything I needed. I guess where I am having an issue is running the client locally on a different port. My SageTV server is hooked directly to a television and is running a client on it I guess. Since SageTV runs as a service on it? What I really want to do is just go to one webpage and be able to control the Local SageTV instance AND both my extenders from the same webpage.

As it stands now, I go to the webpage with 8080 in the address and I see what is currently being watched on both extenders, but cannot see what is running on the Local instance of SageTV:



If I go to the webpage with 8081 in the address I'm able to see what is currently being watched in the Local instance of SageTV, but not the two extenders:




This is already 100 times better than it was because now I'm just able to switch the port number to get to a different page and be able control either both clients or switch port numbers in firefox and be able to control the Local SageTV instance.

BUT... I could swear I was able to see all 3 in the past. What I would like is it to do this:



Thank you.

Ricky

[Slugger]

You'd be able to see all of them if you did not run the server in service mode. If you do it that way then the server and local client are actually one process. The downside (imho): You're not running the server in service mode. Your local client causes a crash for some reason and it'll take the server down with it. But if you want to control the local instance and all extenders from the same web page then that's how you can do it.

The other solution is to convince someone to modify the web server to use the remote APIs for remote clients. If someone were to do that then all clients and extenders could be consolidated into one web server instance. Mind you, this is no small task (quite the opposite, actually).

[Doubledose]

Ok, I guess I need some help also on this web interface. I installed it and left it goto defaults other than the password. Typed in my browser <http://localhost:8080/sage/home> and I can get the loggon screen and I can put in the log on and the pass word and all that happens is it wants the password again so I put it in again and it does the same thing, on the 3rd try the logon window disapears and I get a blank screen. I also can goto another computer and type in <http://myip:8080/sage/home> and get the same thing. I read on hear some where to add / to the end, that also made no difference, It does have the startup line in the properties file. I have tried to read most of this threat and did not find anything to help me out. Does anyone have any idea what to try or do?
Thanks
Wayne

[Fuzzy]

check the caps.. http://localhost:8080/sage/Home

[Doubledose]

That made no difference, I even copied it and tried it. Still same thing
Wayne

[jreichen]

Turn on SageTV's debug logging and see if any errors show up there.