101 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
101 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
# Library
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The library is scanned in bulk mode at startup, but the server will be available
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even while this scan is in progress. You can follow the progress of the scan in
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the log file or via the web interface. When the scan is complete you will see
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the log message: "Bulk library scan completed in X sec".
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The very first scan will take longer than subsequent startup scans, since every
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file gets analyzed. At the following startups the server looks for changed files
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and only analyzis those.
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Updates to the library are reflected in real time after the initial scan, so you
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do not need to manually start rescans. The directories are monitored for changes
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and rescanned on the fly. Note that if you have your library on a network mount
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then real time updating may not work. Read below about what to do in that case.
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If you change any of the directory settings in the library section of the
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configuration file a rescan is required before the new setting will take effect.
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You can do this by using "Update library" from the web interface.
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Symlinks are supported and dereferenced, but it is best to use them for
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directories only.
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Files starting with . (dot) and _ (underscore) are ignored.
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## Pipes (for e.g. multiroom with Shairport-sync)
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Some programs, like for instance Shairport-sync, can be configured to output
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audio to a named pipe. If this pipe is placed in the library, OwnTone will
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automatically detect that it is there, and when there is audio being written to
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it, playback of the audio will be autostarted (and stopped).
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Using this feature, OwnTone can act as an AirPlay multiroom "router": You can
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have an AirPlay source (e.g. your iPhone) send audio Shairport-sync, which
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forwards it to OwnTone through the pipe, which then plays it on whatever
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speakers you have selected (through Remote).
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The format of the audio being written to the pipe must be PCM16.
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You can also start playback of pipes manually. You will find them in remotes
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listed under "Unknown artist" and "Unknown album". The track title will be the
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name of the pipe.
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Shairport-sync can write metadata to a pipe, and OwnTone can read this.
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This requires that the metadata pipe has the same filename as the audio pipe
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plus a ".metadata" suffix. Say Shairport-sync is configured to write audio to
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"/foo/bar/pipe", then the metadata pipe should be "/foo/bar/pipe.metadata".
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## Libraries on network mounts
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Most network filesharing protocols do not offer notifications when the library
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is changed. So that means OwnTone cannot update its database in real time.
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Instead you can schedule a cron job to update the database.
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The first step in doing this is to add two entries to the 'directories'
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configuration item in owntone.conf:
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```conf
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directories = { "/some/local/dir", "/your/network/mount/library" }
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```
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Now you can make a cron job that runs this command:
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```shell
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touch /some/local/dir/trigger.init-rescan
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```
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When OwnTone detects a file with filename ending .init-rescan it will
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perform a bulk scan similar to the startup scan.
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Alternatively, you can force a metadata scan of the library even if the
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files have not changed by creating a filename ending `.meta-rescan`.
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## Supported formats
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OwnTone should support pretty much all audio formats. It relies on libav
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(or ffmpeg) to extract metadata and decode the files on the fly when the client
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doesn't support the format.
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Formats are attributed a code, so any new format will need to be explicitely
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added. Currently supported:
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- MPEG4: mp4a, mp4v
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- AAC: alac
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- MP3 (and friends): mpeg
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- FLAC: flac
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- OGG VORBIS: ogg
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- Musepack: mpc
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- WMA: wma (WMA Pro), wmal (WMA Lossless), wmav (WMA video)
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- AIFF: aif
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- WAV: wav
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- Monkey's audio: ape
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## Troubleshooting library issues
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If you place a file with the filename ending .full-rescan in your library,
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you can trigger a full rescan of your library. This will clear all music and
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playlists from OwnTone's database and initiate a fresh bulk scan. Pairing
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and speaker information will be kept. Only use this for troubleshooting, it is
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not necessary during normal operation.
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