How To Update Wd Tv Media Player

Roydon Cerejo May 01, 2012 11:55:49 IST

The demand for media players are increasing, equally they are at present highly affordable and moreover are capable of playing full HD 1080p videos. But what you get from any media thespian is just bones playback of 5.1-channel audio, HD video and photos. If they are network-enabled, you can stream media content from the Internet, likewise. These include YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, Flickr, Weather, Radio and a few more. What you did non know is that some of these media players have the ability to practise much more than than conventional Hd media players past installing a third-party firmware. Information technology is a similar environs when yous install DDWRT firmware on a regular wireless router and tap additional features and functions, such as high wireless power boost, bridge modes, repeater modes, Bittorrent, FTP service and much more.

Breath new life into that aging box

Jiff new life into that crumbling box

At nowadays, Western Digital WDTV series of media players tin can be flashed with open up-source firmware called WDLXTV to tap a lot of features and enable the media player to do more what it is supposed to do. In this workshop, nosotros shall show you lot how to flash the firmware of the WDTV live HD media thespian with WDLXTV and enable additional features that you tin apply.

Hither are some features that can exist enabled using WDLXTV:

Bittorrent client (rtorrent + rutorrent)
Usenet download client (nzbget)
DAAP/Roku server (through mt-daapd)
NFS sharing (client and server)
User-generated flick sheets
Apache spider web server
FTP server
SSH server
Streaming from online sources through tertiary-party plugins, allows you access to services such as Picasa, Grooveshark, Apple Trailers, and much more - over xxx plugins available at this time
Shoutcast
YoutubeHD
Custom applications through app.bin or Optware, adding applications such as Asterisk, Mediatomb, etc...
WDTVExt, assuasive custom plugins that tin modify the functionality of the 3rd political party OSD themes
Custom wallpaper and screen saver image
Customizable IR remote functions

Requirements:

A WDTV Alive Hd media histrion
A 512 MB USB pen drive (minimum)
A desktop PC An net connection

Select the correct version

You first demand to download the latest firmware for your WDTV live. You may choose to flash it or update your WDTV from the Internet, only nosotros shall non need information technology equally nosotros are going to install the WDLXTV firmware on it. Y'all might need the original firmware, in case you plan to re-wink it to the original firmware. You can download the firmware from 'forum.wdlxtv.com' and information technology is available under the thread 'Lath alphabetize - General Information - Firmware Releases - WDTV Live'. The latest firmware, as of today is the '1.05.04_V-WDLXTV-Live-0.5.one.ane' version. Those who accept another version of the WDTV live can too endeavour out this workshop, only will have to find the right firmware from the forum website and check if information technology is compatible with your model type. There are 2 types of firmware for each thespian and each version. The one which mentions 'Flash' volition wink the firmware permanently, while the one which states 'Not-flash' will kick from the USB pen drive and will not affect the original firmware in the player. You may try whatever one yous wish. We shall show yous the flash version. Download the flash version from the link on the forum or simply click here. The file is around 106 MB and is a zip file. Once you have downloaded the file, extract the contents on your desktop in a new folder.

Update in progress

Now format a USB pen drive using the FAT32 segmentation organisation. Y'all can utilise whatever pen drive, which has a minimum space of 512 MB, if you are using the flash version. If you are using the not-wink version, we recommend at least a 1GB pen drive. Once done, but copy all the contents of the folder containing the firmware you but downloaded to the root of the pen drive (don't make whatever folders). After the firmware is now copied on the pen drive, just plug it into the WDTV Live media player's USB port and switch on the power. (Restarting from the remote won't do. You will have to switch off and switch on the power adapter). That'southward information technology. The media player will boot up and automatically discover the new firmware and ask you if you want to install it. If y'all select to go ahead, the device volition reboot once and install the new firmware. Information technology should take around 2 – 5 minutes. Afterward rebooting again, WDLXTV will be installed.

VER file

Locate the .ver file

Those who have the original firmware version 1.06.15 will have a small trouble. The device will non observe the WDLXTV firmware and nil will happen. This is because the WDTVLX firmware version number i.05.04 is older than the present original firmware version number i.06.15. You volition need to cheat the media actor, so that it thinks there is a new firmware available and only then will it install WDLXTV. To practice this, plug the USB pen drive back to your figurer, open My Computer and browse to the USB pen drive. In the pen drive, yous will find a few files. Simply open the file 'wdtvlive.ver' in notepad and you shall notice just a line 'VERSION='ane.05.04_V.WDLXTV_LIVE-0.v.one.one'LOCATION='wdtvlive.bin' written there. Merely change the line to 'VERSION='2.05.04_V.WDLXTV_LIVE-0.five.1.1'LOCATION='wdtvlive.bin' and save it. Now y'all can update the firmware of the WDTV without any bug as the media histrion volition sense a new version for the firmware and install it. After the firmware is installed, you can format the USB pen bulldoze and re-insert information technology into the USB port. The pen drive will now be used for downloading add-ons in the side by side phase.

Installing Add together-ons and plug-ins
Once you lot are done installing the new firmware on the WDTV media thespian, you tin can start using it equally usual. Simply if you want more features, such as additional net video and radio channels, file and torrent downloading options, services and such, you need to configure the WDLXTV to do so. This involves downloading add-ons and plug-ins and configuring them accordingly. This process is fairly simple and needs an active Internet connection.

Web front-end

Spider web forepart-end

Connect your WDTV media actor to the network, which has an active Internet connection enabled, and information technology should be on the same network connected to your PC. Now open any Internet browser and type in the IP address of the WDTV alive. To know the IP address, you tin can bank check it on your WDTV in the 'Settings – Network settings' department. You shall be asked for the username and password to configure the WDLXTV settings. Blazon in 'wdlxtv' (all lower case) as the username and password. The username and countersign is mentioned in the 'Readme' file in the firmware file y'all had downloaded earlier. You tin change this password once you enter the configuration page.

Add-ons manager

Add-ons managing director

Your configuration webpage will take icons on the acme layer and device details on the bottom and left layer. These icons are Add-ons Managing director WDLXTV Config, Telnet Client, File manager and Remote. Click on the Add-ons Director icon and yous shall be taken to a new webpage. Here you tin can choose the services in the sections, such as Download, Editors, multimedia, Networking and other sections. Simply choose the drive (SDA1) from the drib down list nether the 'State' column. Do this for all that y'all crave and at the finish of the page click 'Save and Use'. The add-ons volition exist downloaded to the pen drive (SDA1) and will exist applied. After this, click on the 'UMSP Plugins' tab and select the media channels you wish to add to your device and finally click on the 'Salvage and Apply' push button. Once done, y'all can reboot the devise and savor your newly added media channels. If you want to download torrents and files from HTTP servers, you can get dorsum to the browser and hit the device's configuration webpage again.

Choose which plugin should be enabled

Choose which plug-in should be enabled

Here you can become to the corresponding service, which is represented as an icon on the main page and configure information technology. You will need to plug-in a big USB storage drive to the WDTV media player in order to download files. In the configuration page, setup the location for download, feed in the torrent file or the download URL and brainstorm downloading. You can scan through many other services and features and employ them as and when you require.

Torrent client up and running

Torrent customer upwards and running

Annotation: We are not responsible for whatever damage caused to your equipment due to this workshop procedure. Exercise this at your ain risk. We propose you to read upward online for the pros and cons before attempting whatever of the following methods. Some might witness the username and password errors while configuring the WDTVLX configuring the device. The password can be reset by using telnet from windows. The commands are as follows:

Run these commands from the command prompt and printing enter at every line.

Telnet 192.168.xxx.30 (Type in the IP address of the WDTV media role player)
SU (login as a super user - no password required)
rm /conf/htpasswd
config_tool –southward
reboot

One time done, the WDTV media player volition reboot and yous tin login to the configuration webpage using the username and password 'wdlxtv'. For those who have queries or run into trouble at any stage, y'all can log on to the different forums where users and developers can help you. Some useful links for WDLXTV Live are given beneath.

WDLXTV
WDLXTV Forum
WDLXTV wiki
B-Rad

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