1 year, 8 months ago
via answers.hackaday.com
Turn a DD-WRT router (with a USB port) into an internet media server (similar to PogoPlug)?
Essentially, I've been trying to figure out if it's possible to turn a wireless router (with a USB port) into an internet media server from which one could playback their music/videos through any device (especially smartphones) with an internet connection. I know that I could set up my computer to do this, but many of us don't always leave our computers on, whereas our broadband connections and routers are probably on 24/7. Also, I'm aware that there are cloud-based services for this as well, but it would be nice to not have to pay for online storage and rather provide it on our own, with our own USB flash drives or hard drives and broadband which we already pay for. Preferably it would be compatible with a front-end software (like Orb Live, Twonky, etc.) that has an app for different smartphone operating systems (especially Android! - sorry...just me being selfish here). I know a lot of routers have built-in media servers that can stream music and movies to DLNA clients locally, so I wonder if they would be able to stream it anywhere through a broadband connection (although not many smartphones are DLNA certified...which is why I was hoping it would be compatible with third-part streaming software).
I've been trying to figure this out on a Buffalo WZR-HP 300NH router with DD-WRT firmware on it. Hopefully if this would work, it would be through DD-WRT (or Tomato or OpenWRT), that way the hack could be a bit more widespread by being compatible with any custom firmware compatible router of any brand with a USB port (or built-in USB media server capabilities).
Thank you.
I've been trying to figure this out on a Buffalo WZR-HP 300NH router with DD-WRT firmware on it. Hopefully if this would work, it would be through DD-WRT (or Tomato or OpenWRT), that way the hack could be a bit more widespread by being compatible with any custom firmware compatible router of any brand with a USB port (or built-in USB media server capabilities).
Thank you.
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M$1 Answer
Audio clients based on an openwrt router platform have been listed by hackaday.com before (example: first link below).
But I haven't seen one for video other then the recent one using a Samsung monitor (as a terminal/monitor) which has a built in USB/Video-dongle-thingy. I've got one of those USB/Video dongle things and while it is great at adding a 2nd monitor w/o opening up your PC, it does not play video worth a darn (maybe 2 to 4 frames a second update rate?).
So, music, yes. But you may have to come up w/your own client software. I haven't used it recently, but there are years of open source effort that has poured into Logitec's PERL based Squeeze-Center (aka Slim-Server). Creating a client is a moderate task. Oh, that's right, you wanted to be autonomous from a server. Hum, I think once you get into this you will change your mind (Squeeze-Center uses mySQL to organize your music. Hardly something you could do in openWRT). But that's a different subject.
For video, I don't think it will be practical. I'm thinking by the time you add the hardware you might as well have built a small computer. And, at that point, I would install Mythtv (which sounds like it addresses most if not all your needs) instead of trying to use openWRT.
There are a box full of off the shelf media players that may satisfy your needs. They are based on SigmaDesign (Chinese) media chips built around a common processor (an Arm processor?). They are not much liked in the open source community. Even though the OS is Linux, SigmaDesign has not published enough information to allow open source efforts. You can find these chips in everything from LightOn DVD players to Netgear Media boxes. In general I think their software is lacking (i.e. Don't expect the iPod experience. Not even close.). But it does sound like the features you want are in there. (Kind of like, yes a Yugo is a car (FYI: second link below)).
(As I'm making fun of a failed gas-efficient-small-car of the 90's, I remind my self what the recently announced X prize winner ($5*10^6) runs on - gas (FYI:third link below)).
Ok, I'll stop now...
But I haven't seen one for video other then the recent one using a Samsung monitor (as a terminal/monitor) which has a built in USB/Video-dongle-thingy. I've got one of those USB/Video dongle things and while it is great at adding a 2nd monitor w/o opening up your PC, it does not play video worth a darn (maybe 2 to 4 frames a second update rate?).
So, music, yes. But you may have to come up w/your own client software. I haven't used it recently, but there are years of open source effort that has poured into Logitec's PERL based Squeeze-Center (aka Slim-Server). Creating a client is a moderate task. Oh, that's right, you wanted to be autonomous from a server. Hum, I think once you get into this you will change your mind (Squeeze-Center uses mySQL to organize your music. Hardly something you could do in openWRT). But that's a different subject.
For video, I don't think it will be practical. I'm thinking by the time you add the hardware you might as well have built a small computer. And, at that point, I would install Mythtv (which sounds like it addresses most if not all your needs) instead of trying to use openWRT.
There are a box full of off the shelf media players that may satisfy your needs. They are based on SigmaDesign (Chinese) media chips built around a common processor (an Arm processor?). They are not much liked in the open source community. Even though the OS is Linux, SigmaDesign has not published enough information to allow open source efforts. You can find these chips in everything from LightOn DVD players to Netgear Media boxes. In general I think their software is lacking (i.e. Don't expect the iPod experience. Not even close.). But it does sound like the features you want are in there. (Kind of like, yes a Yugo is a car (FYI: second link below)).
(As I'm making fun of a failed gas-efficient-small-car of the 90's, I remind my self what the recently announced X prize winner ($5*10^6) runs on - gas (FYI:third link below)).
Ok, I'll stop now...
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M$
Thank you for responding to my question.
The router I'm trying to use can actually do all these things with the stock firmware, only locally though. The router's USB port can be hooked up to an external hard drive to take care of the media storage issue. For media streaming, locally, the router is capable of video as long as it has to simply stream it, without transcoding it; essentially the device on the client end has to support whatever codecs are used. I believe with a hard drive being used as NAS, my router actually support remote access to files as well, which is exactly what I want...except the limitation being only through a web browser, which is far less than ideal.
So it seems like on the hardware side of this, I would be covered as the router can essentially do almost everything that I need with the stock firmware... it's just now a matter of getting different software on there that would make it compatible with a polished app for Android (or other mobile phone OS's)...unless there's mobile phone software out there that's already compatible that I don't know about.
That's embarrassing, you wanted a media server, not a media client.
Hum, that's going to be hard. A Pogo is a computer. It's actually a Linux based SheevaPlug. Even then, getting most people's media in one box requires a hard drive. That's just the start of your physical problems. There is the issue of processing power and memory space on a router box.
For instance, the above mentioned Squeeze-Center music server once was ported to a SLUG (no longer made NAS). But recent software feature upgrades has made that difficult. Remember, Squeeze-Center needs a PERL interpreter and a mySQL data base server. Not light weight stuff.
If you are talking NTSC resolution, you might be able to stream video. The router ports should be able to handle it. What I am worried about is getting data to the ports. My thought, you will probably start having problems when you stream HD videos.
And we haven't even started in on trying to get a video server like twonky or SwissCenter to work on an openwrt box. Does anyone know if that is possible?