Network your music with DAAP for Linux

[mauricio]

DAAP is the protocol used by iTunes to share your music library between multiple computers. Apple iTunes is not available on Linux, but there are daap servers, which allow you to share your music via this protocol. This option is useful if your media are on a Linux server, and want to access it from XBMC on the one hand, and from other computers on your network that has iTunes on the other. Digital Audio Access Protocol is a protocol for sharing music over a local network created by Apple and implemented in applications such as Rhythmbox, Amarok, iTunes and others. Firefly Media Server is a DAAP server implementation that is available in the repositories of Linux under its previous name mt-daapd-as expected, its installation is quite simple: just install via the Synaptic Package Manager or via console sudo aptitude install mt-daapd.

The server will start automatically the next time you login. It has a web administration interface, which can be accessed through Firefox or another browser on http://localhost:3689 with the admin user and password mt-daapd. From this panel you can change this password, add your music folders and more. Some of the graces of Firefly Media Server is that you can share music in FLAC, OGG or other formats that decodes the fly (they served as WAV) and support for smart playlists ... oh, and btw, is fully compatible with Linux, the Unlike recent versions of iTunes that broke compatibility thanks to a change introduced by Apple in the authentication method
Many people have a NAS to store their media such as movies, pictures, music to make them accessible from anywhere via network. But any time a problem arises with regard to music, especially when one is in possession of a large music library. Indeed it is not very easy to navigate through a file explorer for listening to music, so applications with a suitable interface such as iTunes exist. You will therefore understand that our goal will be to make available our mp3 library so that it can operate directly in iTunes via the network.

Server’s daap

Firefly Media Server - Without doubt the most comprehensive media servers for iTunes. This is free software that runs on Linux, Windows, MacOSX and soon. It is compatible with most audio formats and is configured via a Web interface.

Tangerine: The easiest to use because it has a very intuitive GUI. Runs on Windows and Linux. There are other Linux servers daap (DAAP, daapd), but whose development is less active and have fewer functions.

Client’s daap

In addition to XBMC, you can access your shared music by daap from computers on your network through software compatible.

Windows

• iTunes
• It Together (Client Java, compatible with systems that have a JVM)

MacOS X

• iTunes

Linux

• Rhythmbox
• Banshee
• Amarok
• SongBird (via an extension DAAP)

FireFly Media Server

Firefly is a server for streaming audio (like iTunes). Firefly Media Server is a streaming server, an open source multiplatform and available. It lets you use iTunes or a Roku Soundbridge to access music stored on a computer on your network. Many devices are supported by the server that can even be installed on certain media routers such as those from Linksys or Buffalo. If you have multiple PCs and you tend to listen to music all day. It is possible to copy your music wherever you want to listen, and enjoy yourself to synchronize when you have new title and centralize your music somewhere, and let the firefly distribute throughout your network. Firefly uses the DAAP protocol, compatible with many audio players (rhythmbox, songbird, winamp) either natively or through plugins. To easily share music via iTunes with your Home Server, Firefly offers us a free and easy to use. This applies to all non-HP servers (HP proposes that sharing with another add-in owner).

Firefly has in recent weeks made a name change: Previously, the project was called Mt-daapd, and still are not all the aftermath of this name change has subsided. So there is hardly a recent distribution of finished packages, on the magazine CD contains binaries of the current stable version 0.2.4 for Debian and Fedora Core 3 and 4. For other distributions, you need it or not, Firefly translate. , You can use the stable source archive from the CD booklet. Since the firefly but development is currently in the river, get the best Firefly latest source code from the SVN directory of the project.

The DAAP protocol

The protocol DAAP (Digital Audio Access Protocol) was created by Apple and implemented in version 4.0 of iTunes. Similar protocol (HTTP listen port TCP/3689) it allows you to share playlists and broadcast in streaming music over the network.

The first problem with DAAP, or at least with the original Apple version of it, is the 5 unique IP addresses thing. In fact, It Means That If a sixth buddy comes to you house and wants to join your music-sharing LAN, he will not know Able to Do That Because of limit. That's why iTunes sharing is intended only for personal needs, and it works great for that, because in your house there usually Are not More Than 4-5 persons with a personal computer. That in the software uses a reverse-engineered version of DAAP (Firefly Media Server, Banshee, Tangerine etc) this limit Seems to not exist (I did not test it myself, just because I own 3 computers).

If you runs iTunes 7.0 + But your buddies are stuck with iTunes 6.0 (or earlier) or they prefer to third-party DAAP-compatible player (like the Banshee good for Linux), You Will Be Able to stream music from their libraries But They Will Not Be Able to listen from your computer, authentication Because of the different method. Partially this problem can be solved by upgrading your copy of iTunes to the latest available: version 7.0 brings the nice features in it and Coverflow Supports multiple libraries, so the upgrade is well worth I think.

Sharing the folder of your files: Fairly inefficient and shared music library is not sorted and it will be difficult to find the media you want to play.
Using a Media Server: Fairly easy and convenient to use, once you have configured the server, customers can access it by knowing the IP and port by which listens for requests. Our player does not take even 5 seconds to add an average of 10000 songs (I say this from experience, on a network not too saturated), and all media information (title, artist, duration, album, etc) will automatically download.

Considering the above premises will implement a protocol server DAAP (Digital Audio Access Protocol, Protocol Digital Audio Access.) This is a proprietary protocol developed by Apple for use on iTunes its already known multimedia file sharing between users of this application. Apple has not released the specifications of this protocol but with reverse engineering has achieved a free DAAP, is itself becoming a standard as some commercial houses of players already implemented. The setup is pretty simple, no more than 10 minutes making your own. Without further wordiness, go to the configuration.

[mauricio]

Fire Fly Media Server:

It left us in launching the installation of Fire Fly Media Server (formerly named mt-daapd). He that will stream music and playlists.

NOTE: You must be ROOT to execute commands in this:

apt-get install mt-daapd

Nothing complicated here you simply install mt-daapd. Now if you have not already done so, start the process mt-daapd using the following command:

  / Etc / init.d / mt-daapd start

Now you should have access to the configuration interface via your browser at the following address: localhost: 3689. The default login: login: mt-daapd

/ password: mt-daapd.

By default, firefly broadcasts on port 3689, and the web administration interface is also accessible via the same port. The default password of admin. is mt-daapd (the login account must be a user of the machine). The configuration is stored in the file / etc / mt-daapd.conf. Once the folder of your music collection (legally of course) Is entered, the server is operational. I suggest you take a look at the advanced settings.

Configuration

Two solutions are possible: use the conf file in / etc / mt-daapd.conf or if you're more lazy use administration interface via the browser. That I would opt for this choice.

Go therefore on the interface tab configuration:

Name Server: As its name suggests it is the server name as it will appear in your list of sharing in iTunes or your client DAAP.
Admin password: admin The password to access the configuration interface on which you are.
Music Password: If you want to protect your server by a password. For example, your customer will enter this password to access the music server.
Music Folder: The folder in which your server should look for your music files (mp3, wav, aac). As you can see you can add multiple folders. Caution must be absolute paths, you have to leave the root system. Example: / home / nas / media / music
Extensions: Extensions will be sought by your server in folders that you specified. Separate with commas, like this:. Mp3, wav.. Aac,. M4a
Scan Type: The type of scan that is performed when searching for music files. I do not know the difference between the proposals, select 'Normal' if you're not on you.
Rescan Interval: The time interval between each scan. At the time you finish that fits you the best. Know that you can always do a manual scan on the tab Server Status.

These are the essential settings are there. For those who want to go into detail know that you can see the configuration advanced by clicking the link Show advanced config, then you can refine your configuration.

Clients :

As DAAP server and access it from various clients: Rhythmbox, Winamp, Amarok. In this way the audio files on the server can be heard on all systems.
How to install and set up a DAAP server on Debian and Ubuntu:
apt-get install mt-daapd
It should then edit the file / etc / mt-daapd.conf paying attention to this setting:

mp3_dir 
Indicates the directory that contains files to be shared, e.g.: 
mp3_dir = / home / media / music 
Perform a restart of the service: 
/ Etc / init.d / mt-daapd restart

Test with iTunes

As you can see our server is well recognized by iTunes and we have not done any further manipulation. The name of your share corresponds to the field Server Name that we entered in the server configuration. If your server does not appear in iTunes or your client DAAP, go into settings and make sure that your client is looking for shared libraries on the network, such as iTunes:

Create playlists :

• You can even create playlists, why go to the tab Smart Playlists
• You can click on Wizard to add filters to your playlist. I do not go into details as the handling is simple.

With the name change was accompanied Firefly that an additional protocol (Roku Server Protocol, RSP) is supported. This is related to daapd, but faster and not dependent on Apple. Therefore, it also works with a Pinnacle SoundBridge , so the daapd does not support licensing reasons. Firefly is now also the data of iTunes ® installed to read all the rating, playlists are well provided. In addition, Firefly is very fast and resource efficient, runs invisibly in the background and is continuously developed so that Firefly mM best choice is when you need to be uPnP not.

[mauricio]

Vortexbox server

In the current version 1.5 of the Linux distribution Vortexbox server is the DAAP been renewed. The new version gets along well with current versions of iTunes. The corresponding server is started automatically and is iTunes automatically release available. This can be played on Apple's music management on the server stored songs. Vortexbox promises , discarded computers in a few minutes in a stream server to turn for music. Vortexbox can also DLNA devices (Digital Living Network Alliance) communicate. These include the Playstation 3 or Xbox, and PC with installed Windows 7.

Also brings Vortexbox with an already installed server Squeezebox from Logitech, the music on the output can be controlled at the server, for example where it is connected to a stereo system or equipped with speakers. Important components of the server are controlled via a web interface installed on the additional software can be. This can be misused as Vortexbox Twonkymedia or Sonos Web server. Vortexbox the network is also reachable via SSH. On the console can be installed via the web by using any software from Fedora Yum repositories.

In the network Vortexbox is available as a Samba server and can be fed with additional music through file shares. Alternatively, simply an audio CD into the drive of the server to the courts. Vortexbox copy the music in both FLAC and MP3 format to the appropriate directories and brings an image of the CD cover from the Internet. The current version of Vortexbox is available for free download is available . About the website of the project can also pre-configured with appropriate hardware Vortexbox server for 380 U.S. dollars are purchased . The Vortexbox appliance includes an Atom processor at 1.6 GHz, 1 GB of RAM and a DVD drive.

Amarok Music Server - Share the music Networking with Amarok

Installation :
Commands for Debain & Ubuntu - sudo apt-get install mt-daapd libid3tag0 avahi-daemon
Commands for Fedora, CentOS & Redhat - sudo yum install mt-daapd libid3tag0 avahi-daemon

In the Firefly website there are instructions to install the binary or compile the source in different distributions.

Settings :

Service : sudo mt-daapd-f

• The-f option is to see the service messages (recommended for the first time to verify everything is OK).
• The configuration file is - /etc/mt-daapd.conf but can also be configured via a web interface. For this we go to http://localhost:3689 . We leave the username field blank and as we enter password - mt-daapd

In the configuration section to change a few things we have to start a basic server:
Admin password: To stop using the default password (recommended)
Music folder: Here we add the (s) folder (s) containing the songs you want to share.

Other options that can change (but not vital) are: Server Name (the name that will be seen by customers), Music Password (if we want customers to enter a password to access the music) and Rescan Interval (how often we want to find new songs Firefly directories, important if you constantly add new music).

Extra Settings

There is a setting to which we must pay attention: Run As (is accessed by clicking the link to show advanced options). This option specifies how the service user shall bear the Firefly and the default is to - mt-daapd (at time of installation, the user is automatically created in the system).

If the user - mt-daapd does not have read permissions on the folder where the audio files, the server can not add to the library. We have 2 options:
Change the Run As a root which is simpler but less desirable (and insecure). If the server is in a safe environment (your house, not accessible from internet, etc..) Could use this option.

Give the user mt-daapd permissions on folders. This is also simple, but involves some extra steps.

The way I have it set up is this: the music folder belongs to plugdev group (the group has read / write permissions on the directory and files) and mt-daapd user belongs to the group plugdev. It may sound complicated, but it is easy to configure.

Rhythmbox

If for example we have at home desktop PC probably contains all of our songs and we want to hear from our laptop, it is not necessary to copy songs from one machine to another, and do not make much sense having to share the folder on the PC to accessed from the laptop, which is highly elegant and practical. The best option is to use the DAAP support that's second most audio players.

• Open Rhythmbox and go to Edit > Add-ons
• After this we will make sure you enable port 3689 on TCP (default port used for DAAP) on the firewall. Go to System > Administration > Firewall.
• Provide the administrator password, the key in, we give you information close to the window and already in the application window in the left pane select Other Ports, then choose Add to the right side of the window, it will open a new window ports, looking down the scroll bar tcp port 3689 and DAAP service, select OK and the main application window select Apply, then close the window and that will suffice. And then select the Share Music for DAAP > go to Configure found in the right window. This opens a new window and select Share my music.

Open Rhythmbox and go to: Edit > Add-ons. After that select the Share Music for DAAP. So here is sufficient and we do not want to share music from the laptop if only from the desktop. The laptop does not need to configure the firewall.

ITunes Server

ITunes is by far the most popular these days program to play music on the PC, with Banshee is a convenient equivalent for Linux. Linux user shows you how to use the Firefly Media Server [1] not only via iTunes and Banshee on your local network cross-platform listening to music, but DVB and Shoutcast radio streams also transport.

In your network, there are two stationary computers, and then you use a notebook as a portable workstation. An older PC acts as a gateway, print and file server. In the three working computers in each store parts of your library. If you go with a notebook in the house, you have only the songs available to be stored on the notebook. To access the complete library may have to run all the computers in the house. It is also very uncomfortable to share the music via Samba or NFS shares.

ITunes offers a convenient solution to this problem: About DAAP, a protocol developed by Apple for the sharing of music, can iTunes-compatible client in the network access to shared songs each. ITunes running on your computer, you see every iTunes user on the local network your shared music and hear this click. However, iTunes only runs on Mac OS or Windows - it would have to provide a computer with one of these operating systems that fit with your music and let the supply of the other clients are operational. This particular problem dealing Firefly.

The Firefly Media Server provides a free implementation of the DAAP protocol and works as an iTunes client: It scans the hard drive for music tracks and sends information to the local network. There evaluate DAAP-compatible programs from the offer and show it to the user. To listen to a piece, click the program in his play on the title, whereupon the Firefly server delivering it over the network. Put it bluntly, it is therefore a kind of streaming on demand.

If you now play your music from all computers in the network to the already permanently switched router and then the Firefly media server install must run no more computers to access from any PC in the home network to the central audio library.

Some Recommended Music Servers

Most media clients such as the Roku SoundBridge need a server software they provide you with media. The management of media files is done so on the server software, the sorting or filtering (e.g. the list of all the songs of a given artist) as well. One advantage of this is that the music is managed centrally and all clients on the network the same information is available therefore.

As a client without the server computer is not working as a server requires that always runs as possible (at least always, if you want to hear music). For this purpose, can be used PC's Age. But I prefer an extra server on the basis of a Unslung NSLU2. The advantage is that this is a cheap, energy-efficient, quiet solution. Some clients bring your own server software. The disadvantage is that if you want to use different clients, you must work with different servers and these servers usually are available only for Windows. Here I am a music server to the client bound to a non-specific. On video or image server I shall not, as I hereby do not have any experience so far.

Apple iTunes

In the iTunes software from Apple that it is for Mac and Windows, a media server is integrated directly. Presets in iTunes Share My Music and simply check off names for the server and you can assign a client to access the music.

ITunes is both server (see above) and client: All iTunes music servers automatically appear in the left hand list of iTunes, if Look for shared music in the preferences was activated. ITunes as a server is a simple and elegant way to run a music server. The downside is that iTunes is not available for Linux (e.g. not for the NSLU2) and that Windows is not running as a background service - it must always be someone registered and have a client running iTunes.

Note also that in the Internet music purchased from iTunes so far not to third-party clients such as the SoundBridge can play, as apparently Apple does not license the protocol for this.

TwonkyVision

TwonkyVision is an interesting alternative to mt-daapd, if a server on a NAS like the NSLU2 would like to use. Linux has a version for Mac and Windows. Twonky side is a commercial server that it is in two versions: music server just for music files and as 'Media Server', then the films and images supported.

Windows Media Connect

The counterpart to iTunes, Microsoft Windows Media Player with Windows Media Connect (WMC) as a media server. While the Media Player is part of Windows, you have to WMC separately download and install now. Only with WMP 11/Windows Vista WMC is Windows Media Player built into.
One advantage over iTunes is that WMC is a background service, regardless of the media player can always be active by. WMC course, there are for Windows only. WMC has (even compared to iTunes) the advantage of being purchased, copy-protected music (WMA with DRM, not iTunes) informed of non-clients like the SoundBridge can play.