[SlimDevices: SqueezeCenter] Noob wanting to change old pc into LMS Dedicated server. Best solution?

[SyrinxGC]

I have been a happy LMS/Squeezebox/Ipeng user for 6-7 years. The system
has been running on the same Windows 10 64 bit machine all this time.
Since the october 2018 windows update the pc has refused to boot.

I have started thinking about turning the pc into a dedicated media
server. I don’t really need it for much else anymore. It would be nice
if it could also be some kind of network storage for my laptops, ipad
and iphone, but running LMS is the most important thing here. It would
also be nice to get rid of the problem with windows updates always
changing the IP adress of the pc!

I have absolutely no clue about NAS, servers, Linux and similar subjects
but I did build the pc myself from recommended parts when it was new.
It seems to me that switching from windows to Linux, FreeNAS and/or
somethng callez Amahi may extend the life of the pc hardware. I am of
course prepared to replace the oldest harddiscs. I am also backing my
drives up to a cloud storage provider.

I do hope someone here can help me getting started because I am so NOT
ready to turn to Spotify, Apple or other streaming providers since I
have. 3000 hours local music library carefully built up over these last
6-7 years with lyrics and translations to classical vocal music easily
accessible from the wonderful Ipeng app.

Thanks for taking time to read this

Stein


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[SyrinxGC]

Could not sort any other way to subscribe to the thread already posted.
Only reason for this reply.


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[dolodobendan]

Could not sort out any other way to subscribe to the thread already
posted. Only reason for this reply.

Thread Tools - "Subscribe to this thread" in the grey bar over a page's
first post.



QLMS ***@2.02.03 x64 (digimaster) / QNAP 469L QTS 4.3.4
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[markm9999]

You might want to try Daphile. It can be a dedicated LMS server, or
with it's 'Local UI' player option turned on can also act as a
Squeezebox (aka endpoint).
I like it because it's a complete package so I don't have to dink around
with all the separate components - load OS, etc...

With this setting turned on, and since any player can connect to any LMS
server on your network, you can start out using it just as a player and
then migrate your files, settings, etc. until you're comfortable using
it as your primary LMS server if you decide to switch.

I've been bringing fellow music lovers into the SqueezeBox fold after
their issues with Sonos, etc. using old PC's and this distro and some
players off of eBay for over 1+ year now - and they LOVE THEIR
SqueezeBoxes!

What is your configuration - how many hardware players do you have &
what types (SB3, Boom, Transporter, Radio)?
Any software players?



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[Tony T]

For a dedicated LMS, consider dumping the old PC, get a Raspberry Pi,
and install PiCorePlayer: https://www.picoreplayer.org
(There's a PiCorePlayer forum here:
https://forums.slimdevices.com/forumdisplay.php?3-Linux-Unix)



Tony
 SBTouch ♪ SBRadio ♬
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[garym]

For a dedicated LMS, consider dumping the old PC, get a Raspberry Pi, a
https://www.picoreplayer.org
https://forums.slimdevices.com/forumdisplay.php?3-Linux-Unix)

Agree. This was dead simple. I got a RPi 3B+, installed PiCorePlayer
and had it all running in minutes. If you want it to be server only,
that's all you need. If you want it to be a player too, there are other
things you can add (plug in) that turn it into a DAC, an amp, or a
digital streamer. Again you don't need the extras if it is just running
your LMS.

I can follow instructions but have never "built a computer". And it
sounds as if your old PC is dead anyhow unrelated to LMS (you said it no
longer boots).

In addition to Daphile, Vortexbox is another turn key solution. Install
it and it creates an OS, installs LMS (among other things), and can
emulate a Squeezebox player using squeezelite.



*Home:* VBA 4TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Transporter, Touch, Boom, Radio
(ethernet)
*Cottage:* VBA 3TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Touch> Benchmark DAC I, Boom, Radio
w/Battery (Radio WIFI)
*Office:* Win8(64) > LMS 7.9.1>Squeezelite
*The Wild (no internet): *PiCorePlayer 4.0 on rPi 3B+, hifiberry
Dac+Pro, 4TB USB (LMS & Squeezelite)
*Controllers:* iPhone6 & iPadAir2 (iPeng & Squeezepad), CONTROLLER, or
SqueezePlay 7.8 on Win10(64) laptop
*Files:* ripping: dbpa > FLAC; post-rip: mp3tag, PerfectTunes;
Streaming: Spotify
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[markm9999]

Post by garym
Agree. This was dead simple. I got a RPi 3B+, installed PiCorePlayer
and had it all running in minutes. If you want it to be server only,
that's all you need. If you want it to be a player too, there are other
things you can add (plug in) that turn it into a DAC, an amp, or a
digital streamer. Again you don't need the extras if it is just running
your LMS.
I can follow instructions but have never "built a computer". And it
sounds as if your old PC is dead anyhow unrelated to LMS (you said it no
longer boots).
In addition to Daphile, Vortexbox is another turn key solution. Install
it and it creates an OS, installs LMS (among other things), and can
emulate a Squeezebox player using squeezelite.

Did you purchase a pre-assembled Pi? If not, 'running in minutes' might
have been a bit of an over statement :D

The OP said his system doesn't boot since the Windows fall 2018 update -
I assume he's referencing Windows 10. This doesn't mean the hardware is
bad. Why not just reuse it?

A thumbs up for Vortexbox, which is another USB bootable solution to
try, albeit not Squeeze ecosystem specific. My personal preference is
always to keep it simple.



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[garym]

Post by markm9999
Did you purchase a pre-assembled Pi? If not, 'running in minutes' might
have been a bit of an over statement :D
The OP said his system doesn't boot since the Windows fall 2018 update -
I assume he's referencing Windows 10. This doesn't mean the hardware is
bad. Why not just reuse it?
A thumbs up for Vortexbox, which is another USB bootable solution to
try, albeit not Squeeze ecosystem specific. My personal preference is
always to keep it simple.

No. Bought the parts. 5 minutes to burn the micro SD card. 5 minutes to
connect the DAC+ Hat to the RPi. Maybe another 5 minutes to screw this
all into a small case. So 15 minutes to working hardware. Then after
plugging in maybe 5 minutes to tick a few settings in the PiCorePlayer
software via the web interface. So certainly all done in less than half
an hour. Scanning the approx 100,000 track library from attached 4TB USB
drive took an hour or two. Can’t recall. Once done all is fairly
responsive, not quite as fast as my dedicated vortexbox, but not
annoying.



*Home:* VBA 4TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Transporter, Touch, Boom, Radio
(ethernet)
*Cottage:* VBA 3TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Touch> Benchmark DAC I, Boom, Radio
w/Battery (Radio WIFI)
*Office:* Win8(64) > LMS 7.9.1>Squeezelite
*The Wild (no internet): *PiCorePlayer 4.0 on rPi 3B+, hifiberry
Dac+Pro, 4TB USB (LMS & Squeezelite)
*Controllers:* iPhone6 & iPadAir2 (iPeng & Squeezepad), CONTROLLER, or
SqueezePlay 7.8 on Win10(64) laptop
*Files:* ripping: dbpa > FLAC; post-rip: mp3tag, PerfectTunes;
Streaming: Spotify
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[markm9999]

...Scanning the approx 100,000 track library from attached 4TB USB drive
took an hour or two...Once done all is fairly responsive, not quite as
fast as my dedicated vortexbox, but not annoying.

Yeah, this is just another reason I use laptops - a 500GB to 2TB native
drive holds A LOT of music, and the performance of even a USB 3 external
drive just isn't close to being the same.



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[Apesbrain]

If you'd like to try to repair your Windows 10 install:
https://www.groovypost.com/howto/create-windows-10-bootable-usb-flash-drive/

Of course, you need temporary access to a working PC to write the
recovery USB drive.


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[Apesbrain]

If you'd like to try to repair your Windows install:
https://www.groovypost.com/howto/create-windows-10-bootable-usb-flash-drive/

Suggested steps:
https://www.easeus.com/todo-backup-resource/fix-windows-10-won't-boot-after-update.html


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[SyrinxGC]

Post by Apesbrain
https://www.groovypost.com/howto/create-windows-10-bootable-usb-flash-drive/
https://www.easeus.com/todo-backup-resource/fix-windows-10-won't-boot-after-update.html

Thanks a lot Apesbrain. I have saved your links and will have a look
into the subject as soon as I'm up to it. Looks like just the right kind
of stuff for me!
... but I would still like an LMS server without messy windows updates
in the future ;)


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[markm9999]

For a dedicated LMS, consider dumping the old PC, get a Raspberry Pi, a
https://www.picoreplayer.org
https://forums.slimdevices.com/forumdisplay.php?3-Linux-Unix)

This is also a good solution, especially if he didn't already have the
hardware, but to me it's more for the 'computer guy' or tinkerer. I'm
both and as much as I have wanted to, I still haven't eaten any
Pi...yet!

Just my 2-cents...
While the OP doesn't state his level of tech knowledge, I think booting
an old desktop/laptop off of a USB stick into Daphile is going to be far
easier for someone who is not that well versed in tech.
In this scenario, you can also test drive much of the distro without
harming the existing OS install (dual booting)

Performance-wise, a 7 to 10 year old PC will probably out perform a
Raspberry Pi in everything but power consumption.
To address this issue, I have bought/been given/cherry picked old
laptops and used them this way - maybe still not as efficient as a Pi
but it's a nice, all in one, portable LMS server!



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[garym]

Post by markm9999
This is also a good solution, especially if he didn't already have the
hardware, but to me it's more for the 'computer guy' or tinkerer. I'm
both and as much as I have wanted to, I still haven't eaten any
Pi...yet!
Just my 2-cents...
While the OP doesn't state his level of tech knowledge, I think booting
an old desktop/laptop off of a USB stick into Daphile is going to be far
easier for someone who is not that well versed in tech.
In this scenario, you can also test drive much of the distro without
harming the existing OS install (dual booting)
Performance-wise, a 7 to 10 year old PC will probably out perform a
Raspberry Pi in everything but power consumption.
To address this issue, I have bought/been given/cherry picked old
laptops and used them this way - maybe still not as efficient as a Pi
but it's a nice, all in one, portable LMS server!

agree assuming the PC still works. I think he said he built the PC, so
he knows more than average.



*Home:* VBA 4TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Transporter, Touch, Boom, Radio
(ethernet)
*Cottage:* VBA 3TB (2.4)>LMS 7.9.1>Touch> Benchmark DAC I, Boom, Radio
w/Battery (Radio WIFI)
*Office:* Win8(64) > LMS 7.9.1>Squeezelite
*The Wild (no internet): *PiCorePlayer 4.0 on rPi 3B+, hifiberry
Dac+Pro, 4TB USB (LMS & Squeezelite)
*Controllers:* iPhone6 & iPadAir2 (iPeng & Squeezepad), CONTROLLER, or
SqueezePlay 7.8 on Win10(64) laptop
*Files:* ripping: dbpa > FLAC; post-rip: mp3tag, PerfectTunes;
Streaming: Spotify
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[markm9999]

...I think he said he built the PC...

Missed that...

Question to the OP:
You mention several thought options (NAS, Amahi, etc.), but stress
'running LMS is the most important thing'. These are all very different
end goals...
To clarify, are the hard drive(s) in this PC still good and it's just
the OS install that's messed up, or are you not sure?



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[SyrinxGC]

Post by markm9999
Missed that...
You mention several thought options (NAS, Amahi, etc.), but stress
'running LMS is the most important thing'. These are all very different
end goals...
To clarify, are the hard drive(s) in this PC still good and it's just
the OS install that's messed up, or are you not sure?

Thanks for all the excellent contributions above! No doubt all good
suggestions! The Rasberry PI looks really cool and may be my choice when
the PC finally dies.

markm9999:
What I did not mention in my original post was that I also have a
serious health issue, so when the PC got the blue screen (and I read
about the issues with this windows update) I started a recovery of the
previous update. When I got no longer than to the boot menu after the
recovery, I kind of gave up. Although I have not tried I am sure I can
get to the boot menu and sort out some problems there. I've just not
been up to it yet.

NAS and Amahi are not important - just "words" I read while looking for
possible LMS server alternatives. Having recently turned 60 words in ads
like "one-click-solutions" sounds more and more tempting to me -
although I am at the moment (off topic!) working hard to learn the
complex JOSM software for Openstreetmap.org.

The music 4TB HD in the old PC is not that old. It will probably still
run for years.
I would, however, like to have at least another HD there for backup
purposes. I've put so much work into that library!

I am replacing the old PC with a laptop now. Because of that, it would
be nice to have some kind of network disk together with LMS in that old
PC. That is all. If Daphile can do that, great, if not - well LMS is,
as I said, what really counts here!

Stein


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[DJanGo]

EDIT: I have not been able to set up Ipeng to stream music when I'm not
at home. THAT is something I would love to get working.

Please dont mix all your questions in one Thread!
Open another one for this.


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[SyrinxGC]

Post by DJanGo
Please dont mix all your questions in one Thread!
Open another one for this.

Sorry - My intention was kind of to ask if Daphile allowed for this.


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[markm9999]

Post by SyrinxGC
Thanks for all the excellent contributions above! No doubt all good
suggestions! The Rasberry PI looks really cool and may be my choice when
the PC finally dies.
I'm no computer tech, but I've been around computers since the Atari ST
in the late 1980s. I have very little respect for hardware boxes and no
fear of opening up things to have a look inside.
What I did not mention in my original post was that I also have a
serious health issue, so when the PC got the blue screen (and I read
about the issues with this windows update) I started a recovery of the
previous update. When the PC reset after the recovery and I got no
longer than to the boot menu, I kind of gave up. Although I have not
tried I am sure I can get to the boot menu and sort out some problems
there. I've just not been up to it yet.
NAS and Amahi are not important - just "words" I read while looking for
possible LMS server alternatives. Having recently turned 60 words in ads
like "one-click-solutions" sounds more and more tempting to me -
although I am at the moment (off topic!) working hard to learn the
complex JOSM software for Openstreetmap.org.
The music 4TB HD in the old PC is not that old. It will probably still
run for years.
I would, however, like to have at least another HD there for backup
purposes. I've put so much work into that library!
I am replacing the old PC with a laptop now. Because of that, it would
be nice to have some kind of network disk together with LMS in that old
PC. That is all. If Daphile can do that, great, if not - well LMS is,
as I said, what really counts here!
Another bonus would be if I could also use the buildt in DVD burner to
rip the occational CD. It would be nice.
Stein
EDIT: I have not been able to set up Ipeng to stream music when I'm not
at home. THAT is something I would love to get working.

Having read your reply and all the others that followed, all of which
bring up valid points, it will really boil down to how much effort you
want to perform the initial installation -and- the maintenance effort
required moving forward.

It sounds like you're technically inclined enough to install a native
Linux install, or to use one of the many solutions out there.
And yes, there is something to be said about 'rolling your own' as
opposed to using a distro that suddenly goes unmaintained.

If you have the time, or enjoy the challenge, plop in an old used drive
if you have one and try all the solutions mentioned for a week or two
and see what -you- like the best!



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[pufnstuf]

Post by SyrinxGC
Another bonus would be if I could also use the buildt in DVD burner to
rip the occational CD. It would be nice.

Hi again SyrinxGC

Yes, Daphile will use your inbuilt DVD drive for CD ripping with
automated tagging and cover art etc, and using AccurateRip comparisons.
It’s even polite enough to eject the CD when done :)


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[pufnstuf]

Post by markm9999
You might want to try Daphile. It can be a dedicated LMS server, or
with it's 'Local UI' player option turned on can also act as a
Squeezebox (aka endpoint).
I like it because it's a complete package so I don't have to dink around
with all the separate components - load OS, etc...

Daphile would be great for this use case. The OP can even “test” it out
by Live Booting from USB or CD without even making changes to their HD.
This way they can see if Daphile works well on their old PC hardware.


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[Mnyb]

Its not hard to install Linux Ubuntu or mint or debian for example i run
my server on linux mint .
If one does not want to tinker that much don’t use a server os without a
GUI ,modern desktop Linux is very much piont and click and occasionally
some command line stuff



--------------------------------------------------------------------
Main hifi: Touch + CIA PS +MeridianG68J MeridianHD621 MeridianG98DH 2 x
MeridianDSP5200 MeridianDSP5200HC 2 xMeridianDSP3100 +Rel Stadium 3
sub.
Bedroom/Office: Boom
Kitchen: Touch + powered Fostex PM0.4
Misc use: Radio (with battery)
iPad1 with iPengHD & SqueezePad
(spares Touch, SB3, reciever ,controller )
server HP proliant micro server N36L with ClearOS Linux

http://people.xiph.org/~xiphmont/demo/neil-young.html
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[Ge Ba]

Post by Mnyb
Its not hard to install Linux Ubuntu or mint or debian for example i run
my server on linux mint .
If one does not want to tinker that much don’t use a server os without a
GUI ,modern desktop Linux is very much piont and click and occasionally
some command line stuffThat sounds a better and much more flexible solution to me, for an old

laptop. For PC, I agree, the USB stick idea is neat.

Actually I just got inspired to put up an LMS on my old Vaio with Ubuntu
installed, as a portable music server.



*Server:* LMS 7.9.2 - 0011.1527861596 on Synology DS216Play. SOX mansr
ARMv7 & C-3PO.
*Players:* SB Radio, RPi 3B+, 7’’ Touch, pCP @Marshall Acton. Multiroom
HiFi: Denon AVR-X4000, AVM M30 @Nubert NuLine/NuVero 5.1+2
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[Man in a van]

@SyrinxGC

I trialled

https://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads/raspberry-pi-desktop/

on a USB stick and ran it with persistence.

LMS can be installed following the Debian LMS wiki and Squeezelite is
available in the package manager if you don't want to do it yourself.

It works very well (and I learned a bit:cool:).

So now I run LMS on and old Shuttle XS35GS V3 and I'm a happy bunny.:):p

Why not give it a try.

I have looked at Daphile but it seems to be based on a six month old LMS
(I can't see how to update it).

ronnie


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[DJanGo]

Hi,

always remember one thing:

You need some knowledge for everything.

If you run out of the box systems like vortexbox or daphile - the point
where you need the knowledge is NOT at the time you setup the OS / PC.
eg Vortexbox is based on a very old Fedora and Daphile is based on
Gentoo. And Gentoo is a OS that really needs a geek.

So These solutions always live and die with their Maintainer.
If you use these solutions and you never need any asistence - your fine.
If you need help for a specific problem at the time these maintainers do
other stuff your lost.

Using "normal" OS and learn what to do to get lms and samba (Network
Disk) up and running.
And you can ask "more" people (debian/ubuntu whatever is used not just
for lms purposes)


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[SyrinxGC]

Post by DJanGo
Hi,
You need some knowledge for everything.
If you run out of the box systems like vortexbox or daphile - the point
where you need the knowledge is NOT at the time you setup the OS / PC.
eg Vortexbox is based on a very old Fedora and Daphile is based on
Gentoo. And Gentoo is a OS that really needs a geek.
So These solutions always live and die with their Maintainer.
If you use these solutions and you never need any asistence - your fine.
If you need help for a specific problem at the time these maintainers do
other stuff your lost.
Using "normal" OS and learn what to do to get lms and samba (Network
Disk) up and running.
And you can ask "more" people (debian/ubuntu whatever is used not just
for lms purposes)

Great post! Thanks!
Don't I know it! The older I get the harder it gets to "recover" old
hidden knowledge from the internal HD ;)

There have been so many answers to this thread so I'm about to lose the
overview over all the suggestions.

Am I right if I assume you suggest that I install Linux on the PC?
That would work well for both LMS and network HD?
There will also be good Linux software for ripping and editing music?

Did I get it right that someone suggested running LMS from a USB stick
connected to a PC?


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[DJanGo]

Post by SyrinxGC
Am I right if I assume you suggest that I install Linux on the PC?

Linux is a OS and a OS is nothing else but a tool.
And if you only got a hammer as a tool all problem looks like a nail.
So using the best tool for solving a problem is always a good choice.

An old Notebook may work better on linux - and Microsoft with their
Win10 "always update the whole system every half/full year doesnt help
anyone (IMHO).

If you deel better with the win OS - that might be the better tool for
you.

Post by SyrinxGC
That would work well for both LMS and network HD?

depends on what you want.
In my case my lms has no monitor or a keyboard and its running lms and
is my Network HD.
But i just set it up once - i didnt need a fancy gui for the mouse to
add a network share.
Of curse there are solutions that provides a gui to manage network
shares.

Post by SyrinxGC
There will also be good Linux software for ripping and editing music?

in my case i use some scripts and the ripper abcde and a mp3 tagger
called eyeD3 that does the trick for me.

Post by SyrinxGC
Did I get it right that someone suggested running LMS from a USB stick
connected to a PC?

See eg here:
https://www.dionysopoulos.me/portable-ubuntu-on-usb-hdd/
and here
http://wiki.slimdevices.com/index.php/Debian_Package#Instructions_for_Debian_.2FUbuntu_.2FRaspbian


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[Ge Ba]

Allow me to comment on these, even if it wasn’t my original post. I set
up LMS and also Squeezelite on my old laptop with Linux just today,
effort was painless, but it did involve just a bit of Linux knowledge as
well.
Hope this helps.

Post by SyrinxGC
Am I right if I assume you suggest that I install Linux on the PC?

If you want to give your PC a new life, as a nice and stable network
server while getting rid of the horrible Windows updates and
instabilities -
YES

Post by SyrinxGC
That would work well for both LMS and network HD?
There will also be good Linux software for ripping and editing music?

YES and
YES.

Post by SyrinxGC
Am I also right in assuming that the userbase and number of people to
ask about Raspberry PI is about as "limited" as LMS and Squeezebox?

Questions about the Pi and OS - NO. There are millions of users.
LMS and Squeezebox on Pi - YES.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk



*Server:* LMS 7.9.2 - 0011.1527861596 on Synology DS216Play. SOX mansr
ARMv7 & C-3PO.
*Players:* SB Radio, RPi 3B+, 7’’ Touch, pCP @Marshall Acton. Multiroom
HiFi: Denon AVR-X4000, AVM M30 @Nubert NuLine/NuVero 5.1+2
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[Viragored]

It was as simple as changing the motherboard battery. Turns out the PC
didn't want to boot when the battery had just a little power left in it,
enough to confuse the BIOS but not enough to feed the boot process. It
was a lot cheaper than a new computer!



Digital: Squeezebox Duet Receiver - Yamaha RX-V2700 and Jamo speakers
Analogue: Speakercraft MZC-66 for whole house system
Logitech Music Server: 7.9 running on VortexBox 2.3 (built on an elderly
Dell PC)
Library: External USB drive
Ethernet: Squeezebox Receiver
Wifi: Duet controller
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[SyrinxGC]

Post by Viragored
It was as simple as changing the motherboard battery. Turns out the PC
didn't want to boot when the battery had just a little power left in it,
enough to confuse the BIOS but not enough to feed the boot process. It
was a lot cheaper than a new computer!

Thanks!
Does this apply even when the PC starts up but doesn't get past the boot
menu?


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[markm9999]

Post by SyrinxGC
Thanks!
Does this apply even when the PC starts up but doesn't get past the boot
menu?

Frankly, I find this scenario unlikely. In my 30+ years of building
PC's, I've never experienced something like that.

Computers can run without BIOS battery, it's just that the computer will
constantly prompt you for the default BIOS settings after it loses
power.



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[DJanGo]

Post by markm9999
Frankly, I find this scenario unlikely. In my 30+ years of building
PC's, I've never experienced something like that.
Computers can run without BIOS battery, it's just that the computer will
constantly prompt you for the default BIOS settings after it loses
power.

:cool: good old BIOS but [U]EFI and some strange Hardware like a
Thinkpad xx540 or some Samsungs and a Linux installation and you see
things you wouldnt believe...


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[DJanGo]

Post by markm9999
Frankly, I find this scenario unlikely. In my 30+ years of building
PC's, I've never experienced something like that.
Computers can run without BIOS battery, it's just that the computer will
constantly prompt you for the default BIOS settings after it loses
power.

:cool: good old BIOS but [U]EFI and some strange Hardware like a
Thinkpad xx540 or some Samsungs and a Linux installation and you see
things you wouldnt believe...

And then the good old Slot 1 CPUs where the cpu was just plugged in and
after moving the pc the cpu wasnt connected to the mainboard anymore.
In my (damned i am old) days i've seen a lot of these things.


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[markm9999]

Post by DJanGo
:cool: good old BIOS but [U]EFI and some strange Hardware like a
Thinkpad xx540 or some Samsungs and a Linux installation and you see
things you wouldnt believe...
And then the good old Slot 1 CPUs where the cpu was just plugged in and
after moving the pc the cpu wasnt connected to the mainboard anymore.
In my (damned i am old) days i've seen a lot of these things.

I agree, I've seen many strange things - just never a BIOS battery that
sorta works. Once power is applied, it's not used. I suppose it could
pooch the saved settings...maybe...



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[Viragored]

Post by markm9999
Frankly, I find this scenario unlikely. In my 30+ years of building
PC's, I've never experienced something like that.
Computers can run without BIOS battery, it's just that the computer will
constantly prompt you for the default BIOS settings after it loses
power.

There seems to be a twilight zone between not enough battery to support
a boot, and none left at all. It's obviously hard to reproduce, but does
happen once in a while after the PC has been unplugged for some time.



Digital: Squeezebox Duet Receiver - Yamaha RX-V2700 and Jamo speakers
Analogue: Speakercraft MZC-66 for whole house system
Logitech Music Server: 7.9 running on VortexBox 2.3 (built on an elderly
Dell PC)
Library: External USB drive
Ethernet: Squeezebox Receiver
Wifi: Duet controller
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[SyrinxGC]

I believe this will be the end of this thread.
Thanks again for all the great input!

My PC is now deemed officially dead after running almost 24/7/365 for
6-7 years.
I have posted a new thread asking for help setting up a Raspberry Pi
system.

Stein


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[markm9999]

Post by Viragored
There seems to be a twilight zone between not enough battery to support
a boot, and none left at all. It's obviously hard to reproduce, but does
happen once in a while after the PC has been unplugged for some time.

I guess that's sorta my point - just pop the battery out.
The system will still work, but when there is a loss of power you'll be
prompted for BIOS Defaults when the system comes back on (cold boot).

NOTE: This is not when it's simply restarted (warm boot) from within the
OS



*Player: *1 x Transporter w/Trans-knob, 2 x Touch (Active, 3 x Spares),
4 x Boom (Active, 9 x Spares)
*Server: *1 x Win Server (ESXi 6.x) w/LMS, 1 x HP 24" Touch Screen PC
w/LMS & SqueezePlay
*Control: *4 x w/iPeng, 1 x Samsung Note 4, 3ea x Fire 7", 8” tablets, 1
x 10" all w/SqueezeCtrl & Player (Angry Goat)
*Audio: *Mark Levinson 23.5 Amp, 380s Pre, 390s CD, B&W 801 II, Acoustic
Energy AE-2 signature, SOTA Sapphire table

Computer geek/tech hoarder(!), and DAMN I love the LMS/Squeeze
infrastructure!
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[Viragored]

Post by SyrinxGC
Thanks!
Does this apply even when the PC starts up but doesn't get past the boot
menu?

The only two times this has been the solution for me (two different PCs,
some years apart) the PC had booted fine the previous time it was used,
had been left unplugged from the wall thus draining the mobo battery.
Plugging in again, switching on produced nothing at all after the fans
started up. Nothing appeared on the monitor, no sign of entering BIOS -
just nobody home! It was the guy in our local computer shop who said to
try the cheap and easy before worrying about mobo fails or other more
expensive things.

So much to learn, so little time!



Digital: Squeezebox Duet Receiver - Yamaha RX-V2700 and Jamo speakers
Analogue: Speakercraft MZC-66 for whole house system
Logitech Music Server: 7.9 running on VortexBox 2.3 (built on an elderly
Dell PC)
Library: External USB drive
Ethernet: Squeezebox Receiver
Wifi: Duet controller
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[DJanGo]

Post by Mnyb
That sounds a better and much more flexible solution to me, for an old
laptop. For PC, I agree, the USB stick idea is neat.
Actually I just got inspired to put up an LMS on my old Vaio with Ubuntu
MATE installed, as a portable music server.

My Solution looks always like this:

- One small Harddrive for the OS
- Another Drive for the asset - in this case a music library
- If i dont need a CD Drive and using a old notebook i change the CD
Drive for a adaptor that changes the CD to a SATA disk.
Not all Notebooks - just the advanced ones - supports two Harddisks.

So always use separate Disks for OS and Library. eg. a small ssd with
120GB is fast costs mostly nothing and 120 GB is enough for a OS only
device.
If your library is grown up and your Disk is full you can copy the
library from one disk to the new one much easier than if its just one
the same disk.
Yes i know Clonezilla doesnt care about it - but someone who asks for
help must not know about clonezilla and so on.


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[SyrinxGC]

Post by markm9999
You might want to try Daphile. It can be a dedicated LMS server, or
with it's 'Local UI' player option turned on can also act as a
Squeezebox (aka endpoint).
I like it because it's a complete package so I don't have to dink around
with all the separate components - load OS, etc...
With this setting turned on, and since any player can connect to any LMS
server on your network, you can start out using it just as a player and
then migrate your files, settings, etc. until you're comfortable using
it as your primary LMS server if you decide to switch.
I've been bringing fellow music lovers into the SqueezeBox fold after
their issues with Sonos, etc. using old PC's and this distro and some
players off of eBay for over 1+ year now - and they LOVE THEIR
SqueezeBoxes!
What is your configuration - how many hardware players do you have &
what types (SB3, Boom, Transporter, Radio)?
Any software players?

Thanks.
So Daphile is some sort of freeware like Linux, just dedicated to music
and LMS and running on any old PC hardware? Sounds interesting.
What will I have to do with my old PC to prepare it for this - and what
about installing hard drives and copying data from old to new HD?

I have a Squeezebox Duet synced with a Squeezebox radio in the living
room and kitchen. These are controlled by Ipeng on iPads and iPhone.
I also listen a lot to music streaming to Ipeng on my iPhone or iPad.

Would it be possible to use the Daphile HDs as some kind of network
disks as well?

Stein


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[pufnstuf]

Post by SyrinxGC
What will I have to do with my old PC to prepare it for this - and what
about installing hard drives and copying data from old to new HD?

No special steps to prepare your PC, BUT if you want to copy information
from your existing internal hard drive first then you must do this
BEFORE installing Daphile. You have an option run a temporarily run a
“live” USB version of Daphile, however if you want to install it fully
it will take over your HD and completely erase it! Caution Caution
Caution... yes, Completely Erased. (It prompts you MANY times before it
lets you do this, but it would be a permanent change)

I strongly recommend that you able plug an external USB HD in and then
copy everything you need from the internal HD to the external HD before
you install ANY of the software that is recommended in this thread.

Post by SyrinxGC
I have a Squeezebox Duet synced with a Squeezebox radio in the living
room and kitchen. These are controlled by Ipeng on iPads and iPhone.
I also listen a lot to music streaming to Ipeng on my iPhone or iPad.

I also have multiple players and use (and love) iPeng on my iOS devices
too. All works well with Daphile.

Post by SyrinxGC
Would it be possible to use the Daphile HDs as some kind of network
disks as well?
Stein

Yes - you can enable a fileserver function from the settings menu once
Daphile is installed.


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[SyrinxGC]

Post by dolodobendan
Thread Tools - "Subscribe to this thread" in the grey bar over a page's
first post.

Thanks!


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