Network Share
From NMTWiki
Easy and suitable for everyone.
A network share allows the NMT to stream media stored on external devices such as PC's, NAS devices or servers that are connected to the same network. Currently, the NMT supports Samba (SMB), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Network File System (NFS/NFS-TCP).
If you are looking for ways to share media stored on the NMT with other devices, please refer to NMT Network Share.
Contents |
Setting share links on your NMT
Sharing a folder/drive on your Windows PC
This is known as Simple File Sharing or SMB shares. You will be able to stream and play your files, including ISO files, via this method. SMB streaming peaks at slower speeds than http. Therefore it is best practice to have both a method that enables ISO playback and also http streaming available, as it is the quickest streaming method.
In order to link to a folder the folder has to be shared first on your PC. The NMT cannot access a folder/drive that has not been shared on your PC and that your PC will not allow you to access.
Setting up your PC Network options and enabling a Guest Account
I shall use Vista as there is already an XP Guide but both are similar and with Windows 7 coming out soon Vista rather than XP will make the Guide more useful long term.
- Open Control Panel>Folder Options. Then select the middle tab called View and ensure that you have a check in the Use Sharing Wizard (Recommended) box.
- Again open Control Panel and this time select User Accounts. Then choose Manage User Account and check to see that you have a User shown as Guest. If not then add/enable the Guest user account.
 Folder Options - Ensure Sharing is selected |
 Manage User Accounts - select the option to enable the Guest Account |
 Guest Account Added - make sure you have it enabled |
- Then visit the Vista Networking & Sharing Center via Control Panel>Networking and Sharing Center, or via selecting the Networking icon in the system tray.
- If you have not set a Network on your PC previously read on, otherwise skip down to the next step. When in the Networking Center select Create Network and give your Network a name and select Private Network. This means that your network is just for you.
- In Network Center ensure there are some further options to select. Make sure that you allow Media Sharing ON, File Sharing ON, Public Folder Sharing ON, Network Discovery ON for devices in your workgroup, and password protected sharing OFF.
 Network & Sharing Center - turn ON the required options |
 Creating Network - add your own private network |
 Network Created - make sure its private and you have turned ON your sharing settings |
PC folder sharing settings
Now we move on to actually share the folder that you want to be able to see on your NMT.
- Go to the folder and right-click, choose the Share option. A browser will appear with the name of the account that you are currently using shown as a User of the folder.
- Add the User 'Guest' by selecting the drop-down box to the right of the User name, choose Guest, then click Add. You should see the user Guest added to those that are allowed to access the shared the content. If not then you need to visit Control Panel User Accounts and enable the Guest user.
 Right-Click - to select share. and open the sharing browser window |
 Sharing Permissions - current sharing permissions for the shared folder |
 Add User Guest - adding the user Guest with read permission |
 Sharing' - now the user Guest will be able to access the shared folder and read its contents. |
- To check your permissions right-click on the folder/drive and select 'properties'. Then select Sharing tab and the Advanced Sharing and Permissions. This will show you who can access the share and how they can access. You can give read, write or total control. For access from the NMT you only need to give the Guest User read access.
- You will see an icon showing that a folder/drive has been shared. In Network Sharing Center you can also select Show me all the shared network folders option to see all of your shared content.
NMT Samba (SMB) Share Setup
Goto Setup->Network Share, you can browse your SMB network and add the path to the list, or manually enter the path to your SMB share, e.g:
smb://<hostname or ipaddr>/foldername
Share Name
- You can enter whatever details you would like the share to be shown as on your Media Sources screen in the Share Name field.
URL
- Enter the path or browse to enter the path in the URL field.
User Name
- Enter the user name in the User Name field, can of course be left blank for Guest access.
Password
- Finally enter a password if you are not using a Guest account and require a password to access your PC share.
- Select Add to create the share on your Sources screen.
For the example above with a Guest account enabled on your PC you would enter:-
- Share name - whatever you want the folder/share to be seen as on your NMT Sources screen
- URL - use the Browse button to navigate through to your Vista PC Network Workgroup and shared folder.
- User Name - leave blank.
- Password - leave blank.
You can enter your Vista User Account and Vista password in the User Name and Password fields if you have not turned OFF password protected sharing and do not want to do so.
NMT NFS Share Setup
Goto Setup->Media Server->Network Share, type in the full path to your NFS share, e.g:
nfs://<hostname or ipaddr>:/foldername (colon after hostname required)
You can select the protocol (TCP or UDP) used for the NFS connection:
nfs:// <-- UDP nfs-tcp:// <-- TCP
Some firewalls, including the WinXP firewall, will block critical parts of udp NFS server connections, even if correctly configured. If you experience a "No content found" error when using udp, try switching to tcp.
Some gigabit switches has problems with udp (D-Link DGS-1008D for example) and it will not be possible to stream data but viewing files are ok. If you have this problem, try switching to tcp.
Limitations
Under the current release of the firmware, only one Network Share can be mounted (or 'active') at a time (why this is so). The Network Share setup screen only defines the Network Shares, it does not mount them. A Network share is mounted when it is used. This can cause issues for users wishing to use Jukeboxes referencing more than one share. For example, if a Jukebox is accessed via a Network Share called 'MediaJukebox', then only media accessible via that share is available to the Jukebox.
