Difference between revisions of "Opensuse 11.0"

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As root start 'yast2 runlevel', select mythbackend and make sure it's started at boot time.
 
As root start 'yast2 runlevel', select mythbackend and make sure it's started at boot time.
  
==  Add TV listings to your system (XMLTV) ==
+
==  Get the program guide into your system (XMLTV) ==
The most difficult part of installing/configuring MythTV is getting the data, name and frequency of all the channels in the database. Since there must be more MythTV users in your area, chances are that someone already did this. So check the country specific information and with some luck you can import a setup file to your database.
+
The most difficult part of installing/configuring MythTV is getting the data, name and frequency of all the channels in the database. This can be done from mythtv-setup. Since there must be more MythTV users in your area, chances are that someone already did this. So check the country specific information and with some luck you can import a setup file to your database.
  
 
The program guide in mythTV is a listing of TV shows that you receive over the network.
 
The program guide in mythTV is a listing of TV shows that you receive over the network.
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|}
 
|}
  
For most European countries you need XMLTV and the grabbers.
+
For most European countries you need XMLTV and a grabber.
  
  
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add some links to the important sections on this wiki
 
add some links to the important sections on this wiki
 
}}
 
}}
 
+
= Use and configure mythTV clients (frontends) =
 +
== Integrated LCD or VFD panel (LCDProc) ==
 +
== Remote Control (LIRC) ==
 +
== Audio setup ==
 +
== Connect your system to a TV ==
  
 
[[Category:OpenSUSE]]
 
[[Category:OpenSUSE]]

Revision as of 21:00, 8 June 2008

Other openSUSE version

Introduction

Benefits of using openSUSE 11.0 for mythTV
  • Best hardware support available today with kernel 2.6.25 - compared to openSUSE 10.3 (kernel 2.6.22) - what's new in 2.6.23, what's new in 2.6.24, what's new in 2.6.25
  • Software installation (package management) is improved in openSUSE 11.0 and super fast. (libzypp)
  • openSUSE 1-click install technology, packages or package bundles can be installed with 1 click (No need to compile)
    • mythTV packages are available as a bundle with 1-click install on pacman
    • restricted formats (proprietary, patented formats) like MP3, Codecs, encrypted DVD support etc. are available with 1-click install on opensuse-community
    • proprietary video drivers for both AMD/ATI and NVIDIA are available with 1-click install
    • additional packages for the advanced user are also available with one 1-click install from software.opensuse.org (e.g. lcd support)
  • New and super fast installation, completing in roughly just 35 minutes (including mythTV software)
  • Improved ACPI functionality for suspend and wake-up to reduce power consumption
  • Good openSUSE, mythTV documentation and a friendly community ;-)

read more

http://gk2.sk/countdown/full.png


Myth suse.jpg


About openSUSE

SUSE Linux, one of the oldest Linux distributions, was originally developed by a German company. SuSE is an acronym in the German language for “Software und System-Entwicklung” which translates as software and system development.

The openSUSE project is a community program sponsored by Novell. With the launch of the openSUSE project, openSUSE is now developed in an open model—public development builds, releases, and sources will be posted frequently and users will have access to the Bugzilla database for defect reporting.

Functional diagram.png

For rich, reliable and secure home computing like mythTV, there's no better choice than openSUSE. It features an easy-to-install Linux operating system that includes most of the required mythTV components standard in the box. While the official mythTV documentation attempts to be as distribution-agnostic as possible, this document is geared specifically toward building a mythTV system on the openSUSE Linux distribution.

openSUSE, in combination with the PackMan (thanks Herbert Graeber for building the rpm's) repository, provides you with an easy installation and all the latest packages of the mythTV rpms, ivtv, lirc, xmltv, php, mysql, mplayer, xine and many more that are necessary for a fully functional mythTV box.

The following instruction might be specific for
openSUSE 10.3
. Please update if it is outdated.

Webpage.png - openSUSE official documentation

Webpage.png - System requirements for openSUSE

Webpage.png - All packages included in openSUSE

Wikipage.png - mythTV Executive_Overview mythTV wiki page

While mythTV can take quite some time to install, the result will be a fast box that can do nearly anything to entertain. Furthermore, the system is incredibly reliable, and if you leave it on, you can expect runtimes that last for years with little to no maintenance to be done (aside from updates if desired). We've also experienced that the WAF (Wife Acceptance Factor) for mythTV is enormous. As soon as you start playing with it, you need a second box because it becomes the most mission critical system in your house. I hope this document will help you in your quest for your ultimate mythbox. Remember this: "MythTV can be a time machine; hours can disappear for no reason at all."


Hardware considerations

Installing mythTV all starts with good hardware. The first requirement is a machine capable of running openSUSE x86 or x86-64 and that can be connected to the Internet. You will also need a decent audio card and a video card, a hard drive with as much storage space as you desire, as well as a TV tuner capable of performing hardware-level video encoding. Many people run mythTV without any problems on older hardware; however, if you are planning on doing anything with high definition video or complex transcoding jobs, you will need to have sufficient memory and processing power. Check this wiki and the mailinglist before you purchase any new hardware.

You might also find it useful to look at http://www.silentpcreview.com/ if you build a machine for your living room, in order to get advice on low power-consumption, low noise setups.

Wikipage.png - Bare_Bones_System mythTV wiki page

Wikipage.png - Cases mythTV wiki page

more

Join the community and get some help
Subscribe to the mythTV users mailing list

mythTV user mailing list www.mythtv.org/mailman/listinfo/mythtv-users

mythTV user mailing list archive www.gossamer-threads.com/lists/mythtv/users/

Chat with other mythTV users

IRC irc.freenode.net #mythtv-users

Initial system setup and considerations

openSUSE 11.0 Media (DVD and/or CD)

For users new to Linux, the supported version of openSUSE may be the best choice—you'll get complete end-user documentation, installable media for x86 and x86 64-bit systems, plus 90 days of end-user installation support. Others just download openSUSE from one of the sources.

Download.png - Download openSUSE 11.0

Webpage.png - Buy online (including 90 days support, a real manual and a fancy DVD)


Partitions and File Systems

openSUSE ships with a number of different file systems, including ReiserFS, Ext2, Ext3 and XFS, from which to choose at installation time. Each file system has its own advantages and disadvantages that can make it more suited to a scenario. Professional high-performance setups may require a different choice of file system than a home user's setup.


Earlier versions of openSUSE used ReiserFS as the default filesystem. From openSUSE 10.3 and on, ext3 is the default file system.


FILE SYSTEM RECOMMENDATIONS

Use ext3 as your default file system. Consider using XFS for your video data. XFS is very good at manipulating and deleting large files and performs well on high-end hardware.


OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS

Make sure you understand what hardware you have - especially if you have issues an need to Google.

lspci -v and lsusb and hwinfo


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Wikipage.png - File Systems mythTV wiki page

Webpage.png - SUSE Linux Enterprise documentation about file systems

Install mythTV software on openSUSE

Package.png
INSTALL, THE EASY WAY
STEP (1 of 4) - repositories

Add the required software repositories

Information.png Tip: Describe howto add/check the required repositories.


STEP (2 of 4) - multimedia

This will install the Restricted Multimedia Formats ranging from MP3 Codecs to playing Encrypted DVDs

Install Restricted Multimedia Formats for KDE users
Install Restricted Multimedia Formats for GNOME user


STEP (3 of 4) - requirements

Install the prerequisite packages with zypper by copying and pasting the following into a terminal (as root)

The following instruction might be specific for
mythTV 0.20 or openSUSE 10.3
. Please update if it is outdated.

sudo zypper in alsa audit-libs dvb flac gcc ivtv ivtv-firmware kernel-source libao libdvdread3
sudo zypper in libid3tag lirc mjpegtools mysql php5 python xine-ui xmms fame libcdaudio libfame lame MPlayer
sudo zypper in phpMyAdmin pvm transcode xvid apache2 yast2-http-server apache2-mod_php5


STEP (4 of 4) - mythtv

This will install the mythTV packages for both frontend and backend from the packman repository.

Install mythTV from packman

Configure mythTV server components (mythbackend)

The server components within mythTV are referred to as the mythbackend.

Because the configuration of the mythTV application itself is not openSUSE specific, you find mainly links to the information.

http://www.mythtv.org/modules.php?name=MythInstall mythtv.org Documentation

Wikipage.png - Manual mythTV wiki page

Start required services

Make sure all required system services are running on startup: As root start 'yast2 runlevel' and enabel the following services and click OK after popup dialog

  • ntp
  • mysql

Notice there is a mythbackend option, would suggest that you do not enable "mythbackend" just yet, until you have tried running in a terminal window as below. If all steps below work then enable this to run.


Information.png Tip: On openSUSE, you can manually add things to /etc/init.d/boot.local, that should happen directly after booting

Create the database (mysql)

mythTV uses MySQL to store it's settings, listings, recording schedules, and other information. So we have to make sure openSUSE starts MySQL when it boots, and we have to initialize the database with some basic information that mythTV can work with. The database is probably the most important component of mythTV because without it, absolutely none of mythTV can function.

openSUSE 10.3 ships with mysql 5.0.45 (A True Multiuser, Multithreaded SQL Database Server)


TROUBLESHOOT/CONFIGURATION TIPS

1.) The MySQL deamon (mysql) is not started automatically by default after a reboot. As root start 'yast2 runlevel', select mysql and make sure it's started at boot time.

2.) Create the database If the database is not started, start mysql (as root) by typing

/etc/init.d/mysql start

Watch for errors. Set up a root password by typing

mysqladmin -u root password <yourpasswordhere>

Once MySQL is setup, install the mythTV Database. This is done by running:

mysql -u root -p < /usr/share/doc/packages/mythtv-doc/database/mc.sql

(and key-in the previously entered password) You should see no output - this is a good thing!


By default, the database is named mythconverg and contains a set of tables that interact with one-another.


Information.png Tip: make the database multi user, so you can access it from more than 1 machine; this will assign a user named "mythtv" with a password of "mythtv " to the "mythconverg" database:

mysql -u root -p mythconverg

You will then be connected directly to the database. Enter the following commands at the mysql> prompt.

mysql> grant all on mythconverg.* to mythtv@"%" identified by "mythtv";
mysql> flush privileges;
mysql> quit;

MythTV backend setup application (mythtv-setup)

mythtv-setup

Wikipage.png - User Manual mythTV wiki page




.


List-add.png Todo: a few notes, important things ?


NOTE
When everything works. The mythserver process (mythbackend) is not started automatically by default after a reboot.

As root start 'yast2 runlevel', select mythbackend and make sure it's started at boot time.

Get the program guide into your system (XMLTV)

The most difficult part of installing/configuring MythTV is getting the data, name and frequency of all the channels in the database. This can be done from mythtv-setup. Since there must be more MythTV users in your area, chances are that someone already did this. So check the country specific information and with some luck you can import a setup file to your database.

The program guide in mythTV is a listing of TV shows that you receive over the network.

XMLTV is a set of utilities to transfer and store EPG (Electronic Program Guide) in a XML format for various countries.

It's good to understand the following components before you begin:

  • XMLTV Grabber = country specific module to grab EPG (Electronic Program Guide) info from a source and translates it to XML format.
  • XMLTV ID = Value that exists in the XMLTV data and in the Channel table. It's the link/mapping to get the information on the correct channel.
  • CHANNELS = Your TV channels, with their channel number and frequencies as defined in mythtv-setup
  • CHANNEL_ICONS = Bitmaps that are displayed by mythfrontend as a graphical representation of the channel. (example: CNN logo)
  • mythfilldatabase = An mythTV application that uses the XMLTV grabber that you defined in mythtv-setup and stores the information in the MySQL database.


The most essential data in your database is the channel mapping: The mythconverg_channel table in the database links/maps the following information channel number frequency name of the channel XMLTV number Without this information the EPG (Electronic Program Guide) can not work.

Install XMLTV from pacman

For most European countries you need XMLTV and a grabber.


The first thing you should do to get listings into the database is to set up your channels. In mythtv-setup, after you have set up your card, you can configure a video source based on your geographic location. The video source config page has a field for "grabber"; select your country there and mythTV will be ready to run a program called "mythfilldatabase" that will use XMLTV and tv_grab_XX, where XX is your country specific method. So, XMLTV works by running a custom grabber for your country. This grabber collects guide data from the sources appropriate to your country.


Country specific information Netherlands, North America, UK, more


Information.png Tip: For some countries, providers, areas there are channel.sql files available that hold all channels and frequencies for your area and that can be imported directly into the mySQL database. See the XMLTV page for more details about your country specific information.

Different countries and providers have different ways of configuring XMLTV.

Wikipage.png - XMLTV mythTV wiki page

to see specifics for your country about XMLTV and the EPG:


TROUBLESHOOT/CONFIGURATION TIPS
What user

The grabber for your country may have it's settings stored in the users home directory (~./.xmltv or ~./.mythtv). Normally your should run mythfilldatabase as user and not as root.


Have a quick look in the database

This will show channel numbers, xmltvid etc.

mysql -u<username> -p<password> mythconverg -e 'SELECT name, freqid, chanid, channum, xmltvid  FROM `channel`  WHERE sourceid = "1"  ';


List-add.png Todo: generic tips (not country specific) about home/.xmltv and home/.mythtv, the mythfilldatabase process etc,

TV Channels and XMLTV ID

add some links to the important sections on this wiki

Use and configure mythTV clients (frontends)

Integrated LCD or VFD panel (LCDProc)

Remote Control (LIRC)

Audio setup

Connect your system to a TV