I am thinking of getting another Vero 4K+ for my office and would like to share my Kodi settings (thumbnails, settings) from my current unit and not have to rebuild the library on both systems when I add new movies. Is there any way to do this? Both units would access my storage by /mnt the drives with the video files on them so they should be accessible using the same filename.
The recommended way is to use a common database (via MYSQL).
https://kodi.wiki/view/MySQL
This would share the Library between the two systems and there is a chapter how to share other info.
https://kodi.wiki/view/MySQL/Sync_other_parts_of_Kodi
In regards to Thumbnails you could put them on a NAS and use Path Substitution while this is not really the recommendation as the local emmc is the fastest way to provide the Thumbnails.
https://kodi.wiki/view/Path_substitution
Thanks. I will make my way through these pages. I guess my biggest ask is how I can set it up so that I don’t have to “Scan to Library” on each device when I add new videos. Is this possible?
Yes, with the common Database you only need to “Scan to Library” on one of the devices.
OK. Thanks. So that capability is addressed by the first link you provided?
Yes, and you can install the MYSQL server either on your NAS or on one of the Vero’s
Great! Thanks. Is there any preferred installation? I guess since I already have a big library on the current Vero, I’d like to install the MYSQL server on it. Does that make sense?
There is no relation between your existing library (which is a local filebased sqlite database) and your future MySQL setup (need to recreate the database anyhow).
If your NAS support MySQL for me it make most sense to keep the Media Files and the Shared Library (MySQL) on the same server but there is nothing wrong to just install it on the Vero if you prefer that.
I don’t have a NAS. I /mnt the drives from a RAID array connected to my Mac server.
I know Vero used Debian. Which tab is the right one to follow for MYSQL (Ubuntu, Arch or RedHat)?
You could follow Raspbian (https://kodi.wiki/view/MySQL/Setting_up_MySQL#RaspberryPi_Raspbian), while to install it on the Vero it could be as easy a sudo apt-get install mysql-server
Well as you MAC Server would need to run to access the files you then also could pack the MySQL on the MAC.
I think running it on my Mac server makes the most sense as long as I can import my old library easily. I’ll works through the links you provided. Thanks.
The importing of the library would be the same regardless where the server is running.
You basically point your clients to the server then rescan your library and you are done.
When everything is up and running fine you then can remove the local database files that remained on the client.
Check the Backup section on the page I pointed out.
OK. Thanks for all your assistance. I’ll attempt to get my current Vero setup to use MYSQL on my Mac server and import my current local library. When that is running I’ll add in the second (and third) Vero. It looks a bit intricate but I think I can work through it. Thanks again.
It’s a onetime effort and following the steps on the Kodi Wiki should get you going. Otherwise let us know.
Installing and starting MYSQL on the Mac server looks straight forward. I assume that I don’t have to worry about section 1 of the “MySQL/Setting up Kodi” page as that is covered in the installation instructions. Step 2 “Exporting” looks easy enough. In Step 3, I think that means I should copy the advancedsettings.xml file to the folder /home/osmc/.kodi/userdata/ (and the restart Kodi?). Step 4 “Importing” is the most uncertain for me as I have not done that before. I assume the files I exported on the Vero in step 2 will now be available to me to select to import. That should get my original unit up and running as before. Then all I have to do is Step 2 for all new Vero units. Does this sound right?
Yes, I recommend to connect to the Vero by SSH and.
systemctl stop mediacenter
nano ~/.kodi/userdata/advancedsettings.xml
systemctl start mediacenter
Step 4 allows you either to re-import the stuff you backed up before or you could just rescan your library.
For adding additional devices you would just need Step 3 (not Step 2) or you could just copy your sources.xml and advancedsettings.xml from your first device.
Right. Step 3 - not step 2 - that was a typo. I also have an /etc/fstab that I will need to copy to mount all my fileshares. Importing might be easier as I have some data that is Movies and some that are TV. Thanks so much for all your help.
Path substitution for thumbnails is only for relocating them to a different location. Sharing thumbnails even with two machines sharing the same database is not supported. You do not need to worry about thumbnails at all though. In this kind of a setup all clients other than the one that is used for the scan will automatically populate the thumbnails the first time the UI tries to access them without any special configuration necessary. This is seamless and the only thing that you will probably notice with this type of setup is that the new content on clients is that the new content only shows up upon reboot, library scan or after you play a file.
Great. My biggest concern was keeping the libraries in sync without having to “Scan to Library” on both units. Thanks.