Operating system

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A computer operating system (OS) that will run MythTV includes many "flavors" of Linux, Mac OS X, and FreeBSD. MythTV was originally built on Linux, but has been extended to other platforms, including Windows, Mac OS X and FreeBSD.


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Linux distributions

A linux distro (distribution) is a complete, installable operating system based around the Linux Kernel.

There are some that are especially good for dedicated MythTV boxes (the kind you'd have on a HiFi stand in the lounge), others are especially suited for use as workstation PCs -- though you can use them to run MythTV as well, if you're sufficiently motivated.

A.M.I.C.U.S.

A.M.I.C.U.S. - An automatic MythTV installer with a guide and menu script specifically designed for new users of GNU/Linux and/or MythTV.

  • Lightweight hardware requirements suitable for older/low end PCs.
  • Available as a script for Debian installs or as bootable CD ISO image
  • Seeking new users, testers, and developers Sourceforge Project Page
  • New major release version 0.04

alt DebianLogoDebian GNU/Linux

Debian GNU/Linux is a widespread distribution; it has a huge community and is probably the most "free" and socially driven distribution — an excellent choice and MythTV is well supported.

There are a couple of guides:

There are also several Debian pages in this wiki.

Fedora.png Fedora

Fedora is a very popular distro.

There are several approaches how to get MythTV running on Fedora:

http://atrpms.net has a broader range of related drivers etc, while http://rpmfusion.org has a broader range of other applications, so using a combination of them might in some cases be a good idea.

You might also read Jarod Wilson's Guide. It is outdated now, but there might still be some valuable information on different types of hardware.

Category:Fedora - All internal pages on Fedora.

Other general support for PPC on Fedora can be found at PlayStation page. A detailed remote page also exists.

Gentoo.png Gentoo

Gentoo - If the command line scares you, Gentoo is not for you. On the other hand the installation is extremely well documented in the Gentoo Handbook. Gentoo is more customizable than other 'binary' distros and each install can be optimized for the specific processor you use.

Gentoo MythTV setup guides:

Official Gentoo MythTV Guide:

Kanotix.png Kanotix

Kanotix is one of the many Debian based Live CDs, which itself is based on the popular Knoppix Live CD, except Kanotix has the ability to be easily installed on to a harddrive, from which a fully working easy to maintain Debian system is had.

Mandrake.png Mandriva

Mandriva - One of the big distributions (formally known as Mandrake) with a large community of users. The distribution uses RPM packages similar to Red Hat and Fedora. The MythTV RPMs for Mandriva are available from the PLF mirrors as Mandriva does not include them in the distribution. Several guides are available to aid the setup of MythTV:

Other guides which describe the install process for older releases of the distribution are also available:

MiniMyth

Minimyth was originally developed to boot over a network and run mythfrontend on diskless Via EPIA mainboards that have either CLE266 or CN400 hardware MPEG2 decoders (e.g. Via EPIA M or Via EPIA SP mainboards). This is great for 'satellite' systems - like having one in the bedroom or kitchen...

Minimyth[1] has since evolved to support more hardware and different boot methods.

Imedia.gif iMedia MythTV

iMedia MythTV is smallest out-of-the-box MythTV distribution for Via EPIA mainboards. It fits in 128Mb Compact Flashes (including 2 weeks of program info) and has ability to store recordings to external usb drives, harddrives, NFS mounts. Is designed to run without any configuration on VIA mainboards and Hauppauge PVR like cards. Support for other hardware can be provided thru custom packages. Includes optimised kernel for i686 and Eden CPU and XWindows drivers for MPEG/3D/DRI acceleration.

Mythdora.png MythDora

MythDora is a Fedora and MythTV "All-In-One" CD/DVD. The install will load a preconfigured Fedora 8 installation on your computer as well as install and configure MythTV-0.21. There are many extras included with MythDora.

Mythbuntu.png Mythbuntu

Mythbuntu, Mythbuntu is an Ubuntu derivative focused upon setting up a standalone MythTV system similar to Knoppmyth or Mythdora. Currently, it is a recognized as a community supported project by Canonical. Mythbuntu can be used to install a stand alone mythfrontend, mythbackend, or combination machines. Unlike similar projects, Mythbuntu keeps close ties with Ubuntu and all development is given back to the Ubuntu Community. This allows easy conversions from a standard desktop to a Mythbuntu machine and vice versa. The development cycle of Mythbuntu closely follows that of Ubuntu, releasing every six months shortly after Ubuntu releases.

Suselogo.png openSUSE

openSUSE, 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 here and you will have access to our Bugzilla database for defect reporting.

mythTV wiki articles

Wikipage.png - OpenSuSE 11.3 mythTV wiki page

Wikipage.png - Opensuse 11.0 - 11.2 mythTV wiki page

Wikipage.png - openSUSE 10.3 mythTV wiki page

Wikipage.png - openSUSE 10.2 mythTV wiki page

Wikipage.png - openSUSE 10.2 upgrade mythTV packages mythTV wiki page

International

Webpage.png - openSUSE 10.3 mythTV wiki page on mythtv.nl (Dutch)

Webpage.png - openSUSE page on mythwiki.de (German)

Additional sources

Webpage.png - Ben Kevenan's openSUSE 10.3/mythTV pages

Webpage.png - MultiMedia and Digital TV with openSUSE - acaciaclose.co.uk

Webpage.png - JArpack


Package repositories

Download.png - pacman.links2linux.org

Pluto.png Pluto

Pluto is the only all-in-one solution for your home that seamlessly combines media & entertainment, home automation, security, telecom and computing. You can control your whole house with a mobile phone, a touch-screen tablet or a web-interface. A Pluto system is like an appliance - not a computer. It is self-configuring, maintaining and updating. No technical skills are required to use or install Pluto. Pluto is above all simple. The devices are all plug and play. Pluto is also an open platform, offering unlimited expansion potential, and requiring no special cabling. This is Pluto: a complete, comfortable and secure solution for your home.

Redhaticon.png Red Hat

Red Hat - Now oriented as more of a commercial/stable distribution and philosophically superceded by Fedora for the bleeding edge, there is nonetheless a howto for RHEL or CentOS RHEL_Installation

Slackware.jpg Slackware

Slackware is one of the eldest linux distributions and still going strong. Historically often used for servers. Exceptionally strong performace from MythTV users who use this for both mythbackend as well as mythfrontend purposes.

Suselogo.png SuSE

SuSE is now called openSUSE.

Commercial (enterprise) versions are called SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED).

UbuntuIcon.png Ubuntu

Ubuntu is a Debian based solution.

Take a look at our comprehensive list of Ubuntu guides. Don't miss out on the official guides!.

Category:Ubuntu - All internal Ubuntu pages.

Furthermore there is another Ubuntu distribution: Mythbuntu.

It's an Ubuntu just for your Multimedia PC. After installing it, MythTV ist already installed and there are different possibilities to configure IR remote controls etc.

Non-linux distributions

FreeBSDLogo.png FreeBSD

FreeBSD isn't a Linux distro, but MythTV runs on it too. FreeBSD as with all "flavors" of BSD is Unix-based, and Linux is also Unix-based.

Mac OS X

Yes, Mac OS X is Unix-based, as I'm sure you already know from Apple's Mac OS X site, and MythTV runs there too!

Microsoft Windows

The official mythfrontend will run natively on Windows. For now no binary version is distributed, so you need to build it yourself with MinGW/MSys. It builds easily using the MythInstaller.bat and win32-packager.pl scripts.