DVBLink v4.x and MediaPortal Guide!*Updated 2012-07-04*

[pjotr2k]

This is a small guide for using DVBLink v4.x with MediaPortal.

***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE *****

For DVBLink v4.0.0 Use port 8080

For DVBLink v4.x Use port 8081

***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE ***** NOTICE *****


Follow these instructions.

1. Configure DVBLink v4 to fit your DVBLink needs.
2. Install MediaPortal (TVServer).
3. Download the DVB-IP patch for the TVServer part. (Follow the instructions on the page for installing it)
http://forum.team-mediaportal.com/gener ... ter-96726/
4. Download DVBLink2m3u Zip file, see attachment.

i. Single Tuner Guide

Run the VBScript and set the options to your need.

Now load up MP Server Config goto TV Servers > <YourServersName> in the top of the right column make sure you have at least one DVBIP card active.
Go to the DVBIP card to scan and choose the tuning file you created DVBLink.Comhem.
Make sure the checkboxes are unchecked and then press scan and your channels will show up.
After the scan go to the TV Channels > Channels tab and make sure ALL your channels are GREEN (Free to Air) THIS IS IMPORTANT!!!
If the channels are red (Crypted) you wont get any picture.
Changing the channels to FTA is as simple as right clicking the channel and choose edit channel and tick Free to Air checkbox. (or checkout ii.2)

All done for singel tuner setup!!!


ii. Multituner Setup (example is for 4 tumers)

Run the VBScript four times, remember to change the CLIENT IDENTIFIER each time.

Now load up MP Server Config goto TV Servers > <YourServersName> in the top of the right column make sure you have 4 DVBIP cards active.
On the first card scan with DVBLink.Comhem.m3u, on the second use DVBLink.Comhem2.m3u and so on.

When this is done you will end up with 4 duplicate channels of every channel in the Channels tab.

Then we go to TV Channels > TV Combinations
Mark the first channel in the left column and you will get channels that are 100% match in the right column
Mark the channels that are 100% match and press combine, then do this for all your channels.

After this go to TV Channels and under Channels you will only see one channel of each channel and no dupes.
Now the Tuningdetails column of each channel under channels will say 4 instead of 1.

ii.2
Goto Import/Export and Export your channels to ex. C:\export.xml.
Delete all your channels from Tv Channels.
Load up export.xml in notepad.
Replace all FreeToAir="False" with FreeToAir="True" then save file.
Goto Import/Export and Import C:\export.xml.
Goto TV Channels and all your channels should be Green and with Tuningdetails set to 4.


If all this checks out for you then you are good to go Enjoy MediaPortal with multiple tuners and DVBLink!!!


*** TIP * TIP * TIP ***

If you are experiancing "TvLibrary.TvException: Unable to start graph".
Try and change the UdpReceiveDataTimeout delay in MPIPTVSource.ini to ex. 5000.
This should solve the problem.

Tips and experiances are welcomed.

*** TIP * TIP * TIP ***

//Pjotr2k

[Oberon]

@Pjotr2k
Great guide! Thank you very much for your time and effort.

I wonder if someone from the community can create a simple script that uses our DVBLink Remote API to generate the m3u with these urls?..

[pjotr2k]

Thank you Oberon.

Can you make this a sticky? or maybe a part of the wiki/faq.
Ive seen some comments about mediaportal and dvblink v4 (myself included) so i taught this guide might be useful for more people than me .

i no programmer but it should be fairly easy for someone who knows how to program to create a small simple program for this.
i mean some simple thing with the ability to set ip/port, client id and just parse the other info from the xml file and maybe generate more than one file.

//Pjotr2k

[Oberon]

It is already sticky
I will crosspost it to Wiki.

[wassupTC]

Has this worked for anyone? And for that matter, would this be the same instruction set if one were to be using MediaPortal in old versions of DVBLink Network Server Pack (3.x)?

I'm thinking of ditching 7MC in favor of MediaPortal or XBMC, but I don't want to go to all of the effort if I won't be able to achieve satisfactory results.

Also, is there any luck with using the 1geek1tool products with MediaPortal.

Thanks in advance!
TC

[pjotr2k]

Hello wassupTC

This guide is for DVBLink v4 only, and i did this guide because MediaPortal does not support PBDA and this is a workaround for getting DVBLink v4 to work with MediaPortal.
There is a tool for DVBLink v3 that makes the virtual tuners availible in MediaPortal viewtopic.php?f=52&t=8985&hilit=mediaportal

I might be doing a total writeup for DVBLink v3 but it dosent feel current as off now.

My setup is quite good right now and my main HTPC runs MediaPortal and my laptops runs WMC, IPAD runs DVBLink client, Galaxy S2 runs DVBLink client and UPNP server to a BLURAY Player.

And everything works top noch, this was also the purpous of this guide, to get everything running the way i really wanted. and i saw people cursing over not getting MediaPortal to work with DVBLink v4.

To get everything to work the way you want needs a bit off work but this guide works and thats why i wrote if, if you decide to test this please leave feedback if you get into trouble.

I wrote this guide after i got everything working and i hope i didnt leave anything out, it is a quite comprehensive guide and it takes a bit of work and time but the result is good.

//Pjotr2k

[IanPH]

As part of a learning process I wrote a DVBLink2M3U VBScript that uses the DVBLink API and is therefore also able to create an M3U file from another PC.

It uses a config file to remember your settings and when you alter the settings in the program it saves these settings for later use.

Please be aware that the password is saved in plain text!

The created M3U file plays well in VLC and MediaPortal just like to one Pjotr2k created.

**EDIT 28-10-2011**:

Fixed script to handle incorrect server settings / inactive server more accurately.

**EDIT 28-11-2011**:

Fixed script to correctly read the config file and changed the default config to the new 4.0.1 default control port (8080).

[Vladimir17m]

Hello, please help with setup. I've done DVBLink2m3u.vbs in the directory C: \ ProgramData \ Team MediaPortal \ MediaPortal TV Server \ TuningParameters \ dvbip a new Fail DVBLink.m3u

# EXTM3U
# EXTINF: 0, Relax FM
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?cl ... l=10020000
# EXTINF: 0, MTV Live HD
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?cl ... l=11000000
# EXTINF: 0, MTV ROCKS
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?cl ... l=11010000
# EXTINF: 0, Discovery HD Showcase
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?cl ... l=12820000

But when scanning in Media Portal DVB Card IE, writes that there is no signal

Probyval different IP address and port "localhost: 39 876", "192.168.0.1:8080"
thanks in advance

[IanPH]

Hello, please help with setup. I've done DVBLink2m3u.vbs in the directory C: \ ProgramData \ Team MediaPortal \ MediaPortal TV Server \ TuningParameters \ dvbip a new Fail DVBLink.m3u

# EXTM3U
# EXTINF: 0, Relax FM
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?client=AAAAAAAAA&channel=10020000
# EXTINF: 0, MTV Live HD
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?client=AAAAAAAAA&channel=11000000
# EXTINF: 0, MTV ROCKS
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?client=AAAAAAAAA&channel=11010000
# EXTINF: 0, Discovery HD Showcase
http://127.0.0.1:8080/dvblink/direct?client=AAAAAAAAA&channel=12820000

But when scanning in Media Portal DVB Card IE, writes that there is no signal

Probyval different IP address and port "localhost: 39 876", "192.168.0.1:8080"
thanks in advance

Did you use my DVBLink2M3U tool or Pjotr2k's version?

When your Media Portal computer is another PC than your DVBLink server, the best you could do is use my version.
One thing I noticed in your M3U file is that all the links point to 127.0.0.1 (which is localhost). This will definitely not work when the Media Portal system and the DVBLink system are two seperate PC's.

[Vladimir17m]

I used DVBLink2m3u.zip (Potr2k) and yours, but when used it made ??your Fail was a mistake!
Media Portal and dvblink installed on one computer!

[IanPH]

Hello Vladimir,

What this actually means is that it can't contact the server for some reason.

I've updated the script to better handle this.
But I would like to note that for my script to work you must not terminate the DVBLink server!

[Vladimir17m]

I used your script, dvblink server is running, but again a mistake.
of what directory you want to run a script?

[Vladimir17m]

Maybe there's another way to determine the IP address?

[pjotr2k]

If the dvblink server is on the same machine as mp tvserver you can use http://localhost: instead.

in the vb script in the top of the post open it with notepad and change the ip adress and everything else that might be needed and run the script.

you may also enter the command prompt and write ipconfig to determen your ip

//Pjotr2k

[Vladimir17m]

/ / Pjotr2k how to use the port?