Archive for the ‘Windows Home Server’ Category

Convert DVD to WMV: Focus on Streaming from Windows Home Server to Xbox 360 Media Center via the My Movies Add-in

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

NOTE: I started this project, but may not fully complete the instructions because I have found a much better work-around that I have posted here.

Background:

I have a Windows Home Server (HP EX475) in my home and I want to back up my DVD library for playing on other PC’s and Media Extenders (an Xbox 360) in the home over a combined wired and wireless LAN. I am currently using Windows Media Center on these PC’s and on an Xbox. I have My Movies set up to distribute full .ISO copies of my DVD’s. However, I also need to serve media to an Xbox 360, which will not accept streaming directly from an .ISO copy and has specific media requirements for playback.

 

Introduction:

The following is meant to be a very comprehensive and geeky “step by step” guide on how I have been able to back up a small DVD collection for storage (and streaming to my Xbox 360). The Windows Media file format is used for compatability purposes and I have tried to emphasize quality of the end product over size (these are stored on a large server) because I want these movies to be nearly indistinguishable from the original MPEG-2 source. I am sure that there are methods to do this conversion that require less steps, but I have tried to incorporate various steps that I have found to make the best quality end product possible. Plus, this is an exercise in pure geekage.  (more…)

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Posted in Help and How-To, Windows Home Server | 1 Comment »

How to add folders from your Windows Home Server to Media Center on the Xbox 360

Sunday, November 9th, 2008

Let me say that I’ve been searching around to find a way to do what I am about to detail below for a few months now. Maybe I’m stupid or blind, but I could not find this anywhere, and what I could find had nearly convinced me that the following is impossible to do.

1. Set up your Xbox 360 to access Windows Media Center on a PC (Not your server, a different PC with MCE 2005, Vista HP, or Vista Ultimate – Instructions are found here). You will need to keep this computer on while setting up your Xbox with your server, and also at any time that you run media center on your Xbox (I have confirmed this by turning off my PC and then losing my connection to the server from within MC on my Xbox).

2. Open your Windows Home Server Console

(more…)

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Posted in Hacks, Help and How-To, Windows Home Server | 1 Comment »