Kodi creation on Raspberry Pi with shared mysql database

[Mike R]

Install using terminal.

Code: Select all

sudo apt-get install kodi

**Save the entire .kodi folder located in home/biffboffo/.kodi to backup**

Run Kodi
Goto---- to install repositories from the two different sources
Install theme from one respository which installs addons from the other respository
install nag addon for embuary (or whatever) then disable it to shut it the fuck up

create new phpmyadmin user on NAS - just a user with full priviledges
set up advancedsettings.xml in local installation to point to NAS IP address

Add smb shares one at a time and create the library

See what other probelems arrise.

[Mike R]

Sooo much more than thal...

Raspian install had conflict with a python module which seems to have now righted itself. Prior, Kodi with AeonMQ7 would crash as soon as you selected any menu item. Super frustrating to find that out after installling everything.

Discovered that no matter the install, the .kodi folder contains all that is needed to run Kodi identically on any install, so long as they are the same version. Firther testing will prove this out.

To date Libreelec works flawlessly - but cannot support other programs, such as a browser, alongside. No go.
Raspian will support it now, which is nice, but not entriely trustworthy, and not really resoponsive compared with other OS's.
Ubuntu with Cinnamon destop is too much system for the PI, so it is a non-starter.

Manjaro with Mate desktop runs well and handles the transferred ,kodi folder without issue. Also runs Telegram desktop, Vivaldi stable, but not Synology Drive, which complicates things.
Current hopes are here, with only initiating a share library standing in the way.
Finding a current method of migration is a problem.

[Mike R]

Well, it looks like I may have found a way to finally get this done.
With the folder I replaced that got Kodi working again (but no shared library), I go into settings and export the library. It does this with thumbnails, character art, and all , and puts it into a folder outside of Kodi.
AeoMQ7 needs you to set a folder for this first so stuff has a place to land.
Then put the advancedsetting.xml file into place, restart Kodi, and it will create a new database on the NAS.
Then import what was just exported and it writes it to the NAS as a shared library.

Sounds easy if you say it fast.

[Mike R]

That all sounded good, but was no where near what actaully transpired.

In realtime, the export appeared completely useless, as there was really no time saved whatsoever. The process to import a library is preciesly the same as if you were adding new smb shares to the library - setting content and waiting for them to scrape in. Whether this was being done via my NAS or not is anyones guess, but the process took the same amount of time.

Entonces....
It all came down to setting up the proper advancedsettings.xml and having it in place, and configured properly, as Kodi was turned on.

My process for this was to copy the /.kodi folder from a functioning install on a copy of Raspian I had running on the PI. It was only missing a shared library.
This was placed into the /home folder on a copy of Manjaro I had been using for some time.
Once that was copied, all that was needed was to add the advancedsettings.xml into the root of that folder, turn on Kodi, and begin scraping a folder into the library.
I could tell it was creating a shared library, as I was logged into myPhpAdmin at the time, and watched the database being created.
I ended up with a few errant folders that needed manual scraping to correct some titling, but considering the size of the library, not too bad overall.

Manjaro Setup
While that was being done, I wrote out another instance of Manjaro on another SD card and began setting it up. First by adding the AUR repository, then updating the system, and then installling Vivaldi, Telegram, mate-menu, KDEConnect, and finally Kodi being sure to check the options offered prior to install.
Destop backgrounds get changed. Lower menu tossed. Weather added to upper menu. Icons added to panel and rearranged. Sleep time lengthened.
By this time the scraping was done on the first instance, the shared library was up and running, and it was time to push out a new install.
It is better to compact the .kodi folder for transfer from the PI to the NAS, and then extract it on the NAS to push it out from there. It just wouldn't extract on the recieving PI... but whatever.

Once Kodi is started the first time, it writes its files into the /home folder. I deleted this folder and pasted the copy from the NAS in it's place, and allakashazammo!!
It works!!!

Plain and simple, it just worked.

So the long and the short of it is, no matter the installation medium, so long as the versions are the same, and you have an "advancedsettings.xml" in place, you can add as many client devices to the library as you want, regardless of hardware. Linux, PC, Android, etc... so long as the OS and the hardware have the beef to grind it out, that's it...

Fuk ya.