22 replies to this topic

[axoid]

Functional description: WHS Transcoder for Handbrake

The add-in will be made up of two components: The WHS UI and the Windows service.

The UI will allow the user to configure the app on the settings panel. The first primary setting is the install location of the HandbrakeCLI.exe app, followed by setting transcode jobs.
In creating a transcode job the user will need the set the read folder, file filter (defaults to *.*), write folder, the Handbreak command line options and the delete on completion flag. There will also be the ability to create presets for the Handbreak command line options that can be selected during the job creation.
Displayed on the add-in main console screen will be a history list of the last 100 files that have been transcoded. There won’t be any real-time interaction between the UI and the service in the first version.

The service will perform the transcoding by calling the HandbreakCLI.exe file that will be set in a configuration xml file. The service will wait 5 minutes after startup before it starts to process transcode jobs to allow the server to completely startup. Also the handbrake processing will be performed at a lower priority to prevent it from interfering with timely processing other server functions.

Feel free to discuss and offer suggestions.

-Bill

Edited by axoid, 09 December 2010 - 09:58 AM.

[HSS-Dave]

I say get it in beta so we can start testing!

[axoid]

I say get it in beta so we can start testing!

I have a console program running that is the functional prototype for the Windows Service, but it needs a couple of tweaks. I'm currently working of the UI portion, but I'm currently having problems with the add-in installer script.

[dvn]

Take this problem to the developers forum for input? Just a thought.

[axoid]

I'm hoping to have a beta ready in a week or so.

[dvn]

Sounds good. Can't wait to see what you've come up with.

[axoid]

I'm looking for a few beta testers to play with the Transcoder add-in. For those who are interested just reply in this thread and say you want to test.

Handbrake just released a new version so I need to do some checking to make sure that the add-in is still good with it.

[Satras]

Hi,

I'm looking for a Handbrake addin for WHS2011 which can automatically convert files found in one folder to mkv files.

Does this do the job ?

[Greg Welch]

I would also like to beta test,

a request for the ability to convert dvd and blu rips to a xbox format, would be great

[pcdoc]

If this is still going on, I would be interested as well.

[axoid]

The beta is over and the add-in is avalible to download by anyone in the downloads section.

http://homeserversho...transcoder-whs/

[Satras]

But this isn't for Vail

[axoid]

It is only for v.1 for now. I'm working on a major upgrade for v.1. I hope to start working on a 2011 version after that.

I'm about to release a new v.1 add-in that performs automated file management.

I still use v.1 for daily server work, but I do have a 2011 box setup for developed testing.

[G. WadeTech]

This is a great idea and I would love to test out when you get the WHS 2011 version in BETA. Nice work so far.

[Satras]

Yepp

Let me know if you want me to test it as well !

Thanx for your work on it

[pcdoc]

Count me out for V1 and in for V2.

[Greg Welch]

Count me in for 2011 as well,

Just a thought, what if the console addin managed the handbrake software that was installed on a separate network pc or vm

[workandhome]

Axoid,
Thanks for the great add-in. Here is a thought for consideration when you are blue-skying future upgrades:

"Hand-brake Army"
In addition to off loading the work to the homeserver, grab each individual piece of the transcoding process and farm it out to volunteer machines on the network. For example, if there are 5 titles (or what would appear as line items in the standard handbrake queue), they get processed in parallel by the workstations and passed back to the designated file on the home server.

It would require some dedicated setup of a shared dvd drive on the server and a client software installation like Asoft Lights out, but the data transfer rates necessary are well below what a regular network is capable of. The load on the dvd drive is pretty minimal also. Granted, once a number of machines start requesting data and writing results back to the server a bottleneck will be reached depending on the processing power of the workstations that are participating.

Still, it make finishing a transcode run happen a whole lot faster even if it is only farmed out to the slower computers that are less utilized.

Just an idea.

[ikon]

Axoid,
Thanks for the great add-in. Here is a thought for consideration when you are blue-skying future upgrades:

"Hand-brake Army"
In addition to off loading the work to the homeserver, grab each individual piece of the transcoding process and farm it out to volunteer machines on the network. For example, if there are 5 titles (or what would appear as line items in the standard handbrake queue), they get processed in parallel by the workstations and passed back to the designated file on the home server.

It would require some dedicated setup of a shared dvd drive on the server and a client software installation like Asoft Lights out, but the data transfer rates necessary are well below what a regular network is capable of. The load on the dvd drive is pretty minimal also. Granted, once a number of machines start requesting data and writing results back to the server a bottleneck will be reached depending on the processing power of the workstations that are participating.

Still, it make finishing a transcode run happen a whole lot faster even if it is only farmed out to the slower computers that are less utilized.

Just an idea.

I'm having flashbacks to my days of 3D rendering using Bryce 5.

[Greg Welch]

Farming the transcoding to vm's and monitoring on whs console. How cool would that be :-)