webserver + vlc + android + streaming = error

[jreichen]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Well, technically we are talking:

Client --> web server (client tells the web server what to stream)
Web server --> VLC (web server tellls VLC what to stream)
VLC <--> Client (VLC streams to the Android client)

Actually the last step is more like:

VLC --> Local Port (VLC streams to local port)
Local Port --> web server (web server reads VLC's stream and...)
web server --> client (...forwards it to the client as part of the HTTP response)

So as it's currently implemented RTSP probably won't work.

[jreichen]

Originally Posted by jrjbertram

I guess it'd be nice to get some positive confirmation that android doesn't support http downloads, though.

You might try converting a video to a format supported by Android, then going to the web server's detailed info page for that converted file and clicking on the file link on the right side. That will do an HTTP download. I've been able to do that on nielm's and the mobile web interfaces with the iPhone.

The problem when trying to get from there (a preconverted video) to real-time transcoding is that HTTP progressive downloads request byte ranges from the server, and the file size is impossible to predict during a real-time transcode so there's no way to request something in the middle of the file.

Apple's HTTP Live Streaming holds some promise because it's based on a playlist consisting of small segments defined in terms of time, not bytes.

[jrjbertram]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

Try something like (putting your IP and port):

"C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe" -I dummy --no-sub-autodetect-file "Troisfugitifs-512272-0.mpg" --sout "#transcode{vcodec=h264,venc=x264{no-cabac,level=12,vbv-maxrate=384,vbv-bufsize=1000,keyint=75,ref=3,bframes=0},width=320,height=180,acodec=mp4a,ab=64,vb=384}:rtp{dst=192.168.0.102,port=8000,sdp=rtsp://192.168.0.102:8000/stream.sdp,mp4a-latm}"

No, that didn't work.

The issue with this is that VLC seems to like/need to know your destination IP and port before your client has made the connection. As soon as I started this instance of VLC, wireshark showed that VLC started pumping data like mad to the phone's IP address (I had substitued my ip addrs for the ones you show above).

But the phone (either at the phone level or the network provider) seems to effectively have the phone behind a firewall. Or maybe it's just that no app on the phone is listening on that port. Either way, the host and/or port are unreachable (according to an ICMP message that came back from the phone's IP addr).



Sooo.. VLC needs to support a mode where it sets itself up as a server and waits for the phone to connect via RTSP links. Which is what VLC's VLM VideoOnDemand functionality is supposed to support. I had issues with that, you should be able to find some of that discussion earlier in this thread.

[Fonceur]

You are supposed to provide the port and IP of the SageTV server, not of the phone. Just like you were originally using 127.0.0.1, but wasn't working from another pc/device... Then from the phone you open up that connection...

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by jreichen

Local Port --> web server (web server reads VLC's stream and...)

I see, I didn't know the web server was re-encapsulating the stream or such...

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by jreichen

You may want to create a playlist for a recording that's in multiple segments. I'm not sure exactly how to handle that situation, but a playlist might be one option.

But that seems more something between the web server and VLC, than between VLC and the client...

[jrjbertram]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

":rtp{dst=192.168.0.102,port=8000,sdp=rtsp://192.168.0.102:8000/stream.sdp,mp4a-latm}"

The dst parameter threw me off.. in both places, that's the ip addr of the server? I guess that's why it bombed on me. I still haven't sat down with the vlc manual to understand the sout parameters.

Can anyone else with a droid take a crack at it, I probably won't be able to try much out the rest of the week. I havew my new antenna preamp coming tomorrow and ill be on the roof. I'm also taking some vacation soon for a few days.

-J

[Fonceur]

Originally Posted by jrjbertram

The dst parameter threw me off.. in both places, that's the ip addr of the server?

I've seen 0.0.0.0 and 127.0.0.1 referenced, but neither worked from a different pc. I'm not sure all that redundancy is really needed, but since it worked, I didn't dig more.

[jrjbertram]

Originally Posted by Fonceur

but neither worked from a different pc.

What do you mean by this?

Thanks,
- Josh.

[jreichen]

Originally Posted by jrjbertram

What do you mean by this?

Thanks,
- Josh.

If either of those addresses is used in VLC's command line then it listens for connections on the local network interface and processes on other computers cannot connect to them.

[Fonceur]

As an alternative to testing by running a second instance of VLC, with the Mozila/ActiveX VLC plugin installed, you should be able to use an html file like:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
  <TITLE>VLC streaming</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgcolor="#CFFFFF">

<h1>VLC streaming</h1>

 <embed type="application/x-vlc-plugin" pluginspage="http://www.videolan.org" version="VideoLAN.VLCPlugin.2"
        width="320" height="180" id="vlc">
 </embed>

  <script language="Javascript">
    var vlc=document.getElementById("vlc");
    var id=vlc.playlist.add("http://192.168.0.102:8000");
    vlc.playlist.playItem(id);
  </script>

<br />
  <a href="javascript:;" onclick='vlc.playlist.play()'>Play video1</a>
  <a href="javascript:;" onclick='vlc.playlist.togglePause()'>Pause video1</a>
  <a href="javascript:;" onclick='vlc.playlist.stop()'>Stop video1</a>
  <a href="javascript:;" onclick='vlc.video.toggleFullscreen()'>Fullscreen</a>
  
</BODY>
</HTML>

Updating the http://192.168.0.102:8000 part as needed... Of course that doesn't help with the Android situation until an equivalent VLC Android plugin is released, if ever, but...

EDIT: That seems to only work for Firefox/Safari...

[Fonceur]

For completeness, here is how you would do it for IE:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
  <TITLE>VLC streaming</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgcolor="#CFFFFF">

 <OBJECT classid="clsid:9BE31822-FDAD-461B-AD51-BE1D1C159921"
    codebase="http://downloads.videolan.org/pub/videolan/vlc/latest/win32/axvlc.cab"
       width="320" height="180" id="vlc" events="True">
    <param name="Src" value="http://192.168.0.102:8000" />
    <param name="ShowDisplay" value="True" />
    <param name="AutoLoop" value="False" />
    <param name="AutoPlay" value="True" />
 </OBJECT>
  
</BODY>
</HTML>

Updating the http://192.168.0.102:8000 part as needed...

[jrjbertram]

fyi, no difference in android 2.1 update. Still seems to choke on the wvx file. Haven't had time to mess with anything else lately.

-J