Can SageTV server and client running on one HTPC

[chrysek]

Can SageTV server and client work on the same HTPC? I mean can I start both of them up, server in tray mode and client in a full screen mode?

I did notice that if Server is working and I access it from a different machine my HTPC is not crashing that much but I did not install the client software on my HTPC since I don’t know if this would or would not work.

Please advice.

Chris

[carlgar]

It works with SageTV 1.4. I would expect that it still would work with 2.0.

[dkardatzke]

Yes, you can run the Client on the same PC as the server. This is also a way to do picture in picture if your graphics card and processor can handle it.

[Fluffdaddy]

Originally posted by chrysek
Can SageTV server and client work on the same HTPC? I mean can I start both of them up, server in tray mode and client in a full screen mode?


Chris

What is the reason for wanting to do this ?

Just looking for ideas that may have went over my head

Anyone can reply

Thanks

[carlgar]

I originally did it because of 350 lockup issues. I would only use the SageTV server version when I needed the 350 output. When I was at the computer and only needed software output I would use the client. I no longer need to do this.
Now, I sometimes bring up the client while viewing a show, just for access to the guide information. I do not like that I cannot view a program and the guide data at the same time.

[Opus4]

Originally posted by Fluffdaddy
What is the reason for wanting to do this ?

Not sure about the original poster, but I've heard of it being done in order to prevent crashing the recording core if the UI happned to crash -- some DirectX problems can cause a crash, or at least did in hte past.

Originally posted by carlgar
I do not like that I cannot view a program and the guide data at the same time.

Well... you can, but you're still using 1.4, right?

- Andy

[carlgar]

Originally posted by Opus4
Well... you can, but you're still using 1.4, right?

Yes, still at 1.4, but what is your solution? The preview window or the overlay. I do not think I would be satisifed with either, but really have not had enough 2.0 test time to know for sure.

[Opus4]

Originally posted by carlgar
Yes, still at 1.4, but what is your solution? The preview window or the overlay. I do not think I would be satisifed with either, but really have not had enough 2.0 test time to know for sure.

While viewing the entire 'regular' Guide screen, yes, I would be referring to having the video play as a preview window in the upper right corner or as the entire background.

I'm not sure how else you would prefer it to work, but there is one other option via the MlbDude2 STV (or mlbdude's part of MalDude). While watching a video, you can bring up a mini-guide at the bottom of the screen & scroll through the listings there. I believe it displays one show's info at a time, though it has been a while since I viewed it.

- Andy

[carlgar]

Originally posted by Opus4
I'm not sure how else you would prefer it to work, but there is one other option via the MlbDude2 STV (or mlbdude's part of MalDude). While watching a video, you can bring up a mini-guide at the bottom of the screen & scroll through the listings there. I believe it displays one show's info at a time, though it has been a while since I viewed it.

Ideally I would like a open Guide in new window option. This would be useful when sitting at the monitor or viewing thru a video card. The MldDude2 STV sounds interesting, maybe I can get to it in the first or second quarter of 05 .

[srothwell]

Would running client and server on the same PC help to solve the $*^@**$@ slowdown that always seems to occur on the server when also watching shows on it.

If I have to listen to my wife complain one more time that Sage just seems to lock up for 10 seconds or so....... The "lockups" (as reported by many other users here) seem to occur after you've been watching a show for a while. No problem with the video, just when you ask Sage to do something --- like fast forward or STOP or bring up the EPG or --well pretty much anything.

It's like Sage goes stupid, was in the middle of doing something and got caught off-guard when you asked it for something (kind of like a teenager).

I do not exerience this with either client.

Maybe running Client on the Server PC will stop this?

Stacy

[chrysek]

Originally posted by dkardatzke
Yes, you can run the Client on the same PC as the server. This is also a way to do picture in picture if your graphics card and processor can handle it.

I have ATI 9600 128mb and P4 3.0ghz, do you think I'll be able to do it? How does it work? I never seen option for PIP? could you let me know the details?

Thanks.

Chris

[chrysek]

Originally posted by Fluffdaddy
What is the reason for wanting to do this ?

Just looking for ideas that may have went over my head

Anyone can reply

Thanks

My SageTV is crashing like crazy when I have two PVR-250's and PVR-350, I did notice that when I had my SageTV server minimized to a system tray and I connected with a client software remotely to my SageTV server, my PC was not crashing that much. So I figured out that if I run my server minimized and conencted with a client to it running on the same system maybe this would get rid of the reboots/crashing.

Chris

[carlgar]

Originally posted by srothwell
Would running client and server on the same PC help to solve the $*^@**$@ slowdown that always seems to occur on the server when also watching shows on it.

Maybe running Client on the Server PC will stop this?

I say that it is possible but since the cause of the "lockups" are unknown, it is hard to say for sure. If SageTV server is "locked up" due to doing internal task, Then I would it would. Since you do not see the lockups on the client, this would imply that SageTV server gives priority to the streaming for the client. On the other hand if the "lock up" is due to the system just being overloaded or needed to bring something into memory, it could just make the problem worst.

I have noticed that SageTV usage does make jumps in my CPU usage from the normal 15% upto about 50% usage. I have seen some delays but I don't think they are as long as 10 seconds. Most of these occur when a show ends and waiting to go back to the guide. I only noticed them after I turned off the Hyper-threading on my CPU. While this may be the problem you are seeing, I think it is more likely related to the remote software needing to be swaped in.

[Opus4]

Originally posted by chrysek
I never seen option for PIP? could you let me know the details?

Maybe Dan will say otherwise, but I believe he means PIP in the sense of running 2 instances of SageTV (server + client, or 2 clients) and viewing 2 different shows. I can run 2 (maybe more?) on my client machine & watch multiple shows that way, muting all but the one to be listened to. I don't really do that, but I have done so just to test it out. You could probably run 1 full screen & then shrink the window size of the 2nd one, mark it as "Always on Top", & then park it in one corner of your screen/TV so that it plays back over the one in full screen mode.

- Andy

[mls]

Originally posted by srothwell

If I have to listen to my wife complain one more time that Sage just seems to lock up for 10 seconds or so.......

And I thought it was bad enough having to listen to my friend complain about the 15 - 20 second delays he has with his DirecTivo sometimes.

Me thinks ye are expecting far to much and not being realistic about the limitations of computer type systems.

Heck, I remember when I could walk up to my TV and turn a knob to change channels in under half a second. Now, I hit a button on a remote and my TV takes sometimes 2 seconds to change channels (and that's the TV itself, not anything outside like SageTV on my computer going to it).

Of course, if you're gonna have a bunch of other stuff running in the background, that can add more delay problems if there is not enough physical RAM and the computer has to start using the hard drive swap file.

[mls]

As for PIP with SageClient...

Although it is interesting and can be done... doing so adds to the complications. It's gonna need more CPU to handle a 2nd software decoder running, and there are some hassles with getting the right combination of video and decoder settings.

I've done it a few times here myself, but overall it's really not worth the effort (unless you really need to see 2 shows at the same time).

Otherwise, I REALLY do love mlbdude's STV skin (but, of course, you have to be using SageTV v2.0 to use it, not v1.4).

Great work mlbdude

[mikejaner]

Dan, Could you help us out and tell us what you mean by PIP? I am curious since I have the client and server running on the same box.

[mls]

Originally posted by mikejaner
Dan, Could you help us out and tell us what you mean by PIP? I am curious since I have the client and server running on the same box.

What Dan was referring to was that some TV have the capability of doing Picture-in-Picture. If you have both SageTV and Client running on the same machine you can resize the windows for each one and drag the 2nd (smaller) one over the top of the other one.

Or, if you have a dual monitor output card (like I do) you can have Sage running full screen mode out to a TV and then drag a smaller client window over on top of it to produce the same PIP effect as a TV with that option.

It's a bit tricky to get set up to work correctly with the decoder and video settings and requires a lot of extra horsepower from the computer and video card though (which could cause instability problems if your system isn't hefty enough to handle the extra load).