advancedsettings.xml sort of being ignored

freebase1ca · January 29, 2017 at 9:47 AM

I'm hoping this is the appropriate place to post this...

I'm brand new to LibreELEC. I've come to take advantage of the recent addition of Bluetooth audio support (which is working great BTW.)

I traditionally have Kodi on about 8 devices in my home. To provide a consistent user experience I have been a long time user of the Kodi SQL database for the library. I have also been doing path substitutions so that all devices share the same sources.xml file. If a source is changed on one device, all will see it. This setup has been working great for years.

I recently upgraded to Kodi 17rc1 on my Windows machines which appropriately moved to a new SQL database specifically for v17. It has all been working great.

I've now come to LibreELEC in order to bring Kod 17rc4 (LibreELEC-S905.arm-8.0-7.90.beta4.img.gz) to my Amlogic S905x (1GB/8GB) boxes that are running Android 6.0 / Kodi 16.

Since I am currently testing, I am just booting LibeELEC from an SD card.

I've been impressed so far, but have run into a problem with the advancedsettings...

From Windows I have connected to the LibreELEC's SMB share and moved all my standard xml files into the Userdata folder. The Userdata folder is given all the same xml files I store in a central, common share (mostly for redundancy in case the network is ever down). The advancedsettings.xml file defines the SQL database settings as well as defining a number of pathsubstitutions which tells Kodi to use the xml files like sources.xml from the central share instead.

This arrangement works with Kodi 17rc1 on my Windows machines, but doesn't seem to be working with LibreELEC 7.90.beta4. When LibreELEC boots, it acts like there are only empty libraries. It also shows no sources - as if none were defined. One might think that the advancedsettings.xml file has failed to deliver any settings, but this isn't the case. If add a source in the interface, the sources.xml file in my central share will be overwritten with a new sources.xml file that defines only that single new source. Also, if I reboot LibreELEC, it will repeat the process. It won't remember the source I just defined previously and will happily overwrite that central file with any new one I create. Oddly, LibreELEC completely ignores the sources.xml file I stored locally the entire time.

So the problem seems to be that LibreELEC is sort of ignoring the advancedsettings.xml file, but certainly not entirely. Although it's not presenting the SQL library and not giving me my defined sources, it does write to that folder and doesn't use the local copy of sources.xml at all. It's as if it's only processing the advancedsettings once it's too late to affect the current GUI interface or something.

Being new to LibreELEC, I don't know if I am unaware of some special behaviours, or if this is a result of booting from SD or if this is simply a bug in this beta.

Thanks for any and all help. I'm happy to provide any extra details or debugging that might help.

Thanks,

Freebase1ca

**Klojum** · January 29, 2017 at 9:55 AM Official Post

Kodi/LibreELEC has not been designed specifically, or optimized at all, to use local settings on a shared network share. Since you haven't shared your advancedsettings.xml file with us, I can only guess that you either used path substitution or soft links to redirect access to the various config files. Also, not all addons do will with centralized data storage. If your AV.xml file is ignored at all, it should come up in kodi's log file.

freebase1ca · January 29, 2017 at 10:08 AM

Quote from Klojum

Kodi/LibreELEC has not been designed specifically, or optimized at all, to use local settings on a shared network share. Since you haven't shared your advancedsettings.xml file with us, I can only guess that you either used path substitution or soft links to redirect access to the various config files. Also, not all addons do will with centralized data storage. If your AV.xml file is ignored at all, it should come up in kodi's log file.

Thanks for the quick response! (I was just heading to bed and was going to give the post time to be seen.)

Here's my advancedsettings.xml:

Code

<advancedsettings>
  <network>
    <buffermode>1</buffermode>
    <cachemembuffersize>52428800</cachemembuffersize>
    <readbufferfactor>3</readbufferfactor>
  </network>
  <pathsubstitution>
    <substitute>
      <from>special://profile/sources.xml</from>
      <to>smb://DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi Config/sources.xml</to>
    </substitute>
    <substitute>
      <from>special://profile/RssFeeds.xml</from>
      <to>smb://DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi Config/RssFeeds.xml</to>
    </substitute>
    <substitute>
      <from>special://profile/favourites.xml</from>
      <to>smb://DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi Config/favourites.xml</to>
    </substitute>
    <substitute>
      <from>special://profile/playlists/</from>
      <to>smb://DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi Config/playlists/</to>
    </substitute>
    <substitute>
      <from>special://profile/keymaps/</from>
      <to>//DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi Config/keymaps/</to>
    </substitute>
  </pathsubstitution>
  <videodatabase>
    <type>mysql</type>
    <host>192.168.1.10</host>
    <port>3306</port>
    <user>xbmc</user>
    <pass>xxxxx</pass>
  </videodatabase>
  <musicdatabase>
    <type>mysql</type>
    <host>192.168.1.10</host>
    <port>3306</port>
    <user>xbmc</user>
    <pass>xxxxx</pass>
  </musicdatabase>
  <videolibrary>
    <importwatchedstate>true</importwatchedstate>
    <importresumepoint>true</importresumepoint>
  </videolibrary>
</advancedsettings>

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It's pretty standard. This file has remained unchanged since 2014. It has worked across many version of Kodi.

But if Kodi/LE hasn't been optimized to use a shared network share, why isn't it even trying to use the local copy it has?

Disregarding the central share for a moment... why isn't Kodi/LE even trying to make use of the SQL database library settings that are also in that file?
[hr]
I've just turned debugging on. I've also started digging through the logs...

I see where it reads the contents of the advancedsettings.xml. No complaints there.

But then I do see a number of database errors such as:

00:00:35.151 T:4026524576 ERROR: Unable to open database: MyMusic60 [2003](Can't connect to MySQL server on '192.168.1.10' (101))
.
.
.
00:00:35.155 T:4026524576 ERROR: Unable to create new database
00:00:35.156 T:4026524576 ERROR: Unable to open database: MyVideos107 [2003](Can't connect to MySQL server on '192.168.1.10' (101))
.
.
.
00:00:35.161 T:4026524576 ERROR: Unable to open database: MyVideos107 [2003](Can't connect to MySQL server on '192.168.1.10' (101))
00:00:35.161 T:4026524576 ERROR: Unable to create new database
00:00:35.166 T:4026524576 NOTICE: Running database version TV29
00:00:35.171 T:4026524576 NOTICE: Running database version Epg11
00:00:35.178 T:4114446960 NOTICE: start dvd mediatype detection
00:00:35.260 T:3999265696 NOTICE: Register - new cec device registered on cec->AOCEC: CEC Adapter (0000:0000)
00:00:35.858 T:4114446960 WARNING: JSONRPC: Could not parse type "Setting.Details.SettingList"
00:00:36.075 T:3927970720 ERROR: SMBDirectory->GetDirectory: Unable to open directory : 'smb://USERNAME:PASSWORD@DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi%20Config/playlists/video'
unix_err:'6e' error : 'Connection timed out'
00:00:36.075 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting /storage/.kodi/userdata/playlists/video
00:00:36.075 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting special://profile/playlists/video
00:00:36.075 T:3927970720 ERROR: Error Getting Directory (special://profile/playlists/video)
00:00:36.076 T:3927970720 ERROR: SMBDirectory->GetDirectory: Unable to open directory : 'smb://USERNAME:PASSWORD@DARKHORSE/Resources/Software/Kodi%20Config/playlists/mixed'
unix_err:'6e' error : 'Connection timed out'
00:00:36.077 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting /storage/.kodi/userdata/playlists/mixed
00:00:36.077 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting special://profile/playlists/mixed
00:00:36.077 T:3927970720 ERROR: Error Getting Directory (special://profile/playlists/mixed)
00:00:36.077 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting multipath://special%3A%2F%2Fprofile%2Fplaylists%2Fvideo/special%3A%2F%2Fprofile%2Fplaylists%2Fmixed/
00:00:36.077 T:3927970720 ERROR: GetDirectory - Error getting special://videoplaylists/

**Klojum** · January 29, 2017 at 12:30 PM Official Post

Quote

<cachemembuffersize>52428800</cachemembuffersize>

Good working networks don't need outrageous caching. Try first to use default settings. If problems arise, then look further.

As already said, usage of pathsubstitution is tricky. Normally you set up the configuration, sources and other settings files only once.

Apparently you already use MySQL databases a bit longer than today (or you stumbled onto an outdated tutorial), but default name and password are 'kodi'. xbmc is what kodi used to be called.

Quote

Can't connect to MySQL server on '192.168.1.10' (101))

You'll have to fix that first, or every Kodi client will use local databases instead. Error 101 = Network unreachable.

And finally, always post full, unabbreviated kodi log files. Errors can start in the most unusual places. See HOW TO:Provide Logfile - LibreELEC

freebase1ca · January 30, 2017 at 12:54 AM

Quote from Klojum

Good working networks don't need outrageous caching. Try first to use default settings. If problems arise, then look further.

As already said, usage of pathsubstitution is tricky. Normally you set up the configuration, sources and other settings files only once.

Apparently you already use MySQL databases a bit longer than today (or you stumbled onto an outdated tutorial), but default name and password are 'kodi'. xbmc is what kodi used to be called.

You'll have to fix that first, or every Kodi client will use local databases instead. Error 101 = Network unreachable.

And finally, always post full, unabbreviated kodi log files. Errors can start in the most unusual places. See HOW TO:Provide Logfile - LibreELEC

Yep, this is one old environment. I'm just taking the config files I'm using on a Windows Kodi 17rc1 so I would expect them to continue to work. Naturally the xbmc user is a carry over from those old days - but works everywhere else.

I definitely don't set and forget the sources. I'm constantly adding more drives that require another source to be added. Keeping 8 devices in sync would be a royal pain without this nice centralized config - that has always worked until now.

I'm definitely happy to post complete logs if people are willing to sift through them. I don't understand why I would have network errors. The same parameters are being used as elsewhere. I have wired connections. I am able to manually map to those sources from that device and it s able to write to the central sources.xml file - it just isn't reading from it.

I'll post complete logs n a few hours...

trogggy · January 30, 2017 at 1:02 AM

Quick question and a shot in the dark...
Have you enabled the 'wait for network' option in libreelec settings?
I ask because if kodi's starting before your network's up that will bork your pathsubs (kodi looks for them but they're not there > errors) and maybe cause the symptoms you describe.

Edit: btw you should check the kodi wiki for changes in video cache settings in v17 - yours need to be updated.

freebase1ca · January 30, 2017 at 5:10 AM

Quote from trogggy

Quick question and a shot in the dark...
Have you enabled the 'wait for network' option in libreelec settings?
I ask because if kodi's starting before your network's up that will bork your pathsubs (kodi looks for them but they're not there > errors) and maybe cause the symptoms you describe.

Edit: btw you should check the kodi wiki for changes in video cache settings in v17 - yours need to be updated.

Thank you so much for this. I figured it was going to be some LibreELEC specific thing that was going to get me. The "wait for network" setting was exactly what the doctor ordered. All the sources and libraries are now online!

Thank you very much!

Yes, I removed the cache settings. I'll try the default for a while. A long time ago I was having troubles when too many people were watching at once and while the server was also handling downloads and things. Since then routers and things have been upgraded so problems like that shouldn't exist.