Develop Bugs

[Q] wired networking question

is the wired networking like many of the android and arm devices running through the usb bus? also is it 100 or 1000? reason i'm asking is because of something i've noticed, i got the ouya like a lot to use for emulators and a multimedia box. so far i like it however when play certain movies over the network from any of my nas boxes i get hiccups playing the video. However when i play from a usb stick it plays smooth. It is not my network or the nas's. It is managed switched gigabit and the nas's are qnap and synology (atom core and above) they stream to any pc fine so again i'm sure that is not it so it brings me back to the ouya's wired network causing congestion for some reason. if anyone has input on this it would be appreciated.

I also find that netflix etc runs choppy compared to my ps3
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda app-developers app

Code:
[email protected]:/data/data/com.teslacoilsw.quicksshd/home # lsusb
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 0424:9e00
The first two are the built-in hubs. The last one seems to be just that, Ethernet controller. Or probably some combination of devices:
https://www.google.com/search?q=1d6b:0002

robinscp said:
I also find that netflix etc runs choppy compared to my ps3
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's 100mbit and yes its usb based, had I know they we're going to cheap out and not use the tegra3 phy ethernet I'd have probably not bought it. I have no need for playing off usb attached HD media thats what my diy freenas is for. The usb controller adds a huge amount of cpu overhead and maxes out at 12MB/sec before overhead.

Highest priority
chewyboy said:
is the wired networking like many of the android and arm devices running through the usb bus? also is it 100 or 1000? reason i'm asking is because of something i've noticed, i got the ouya like a lot to use for emulators and a multimedia box. so far i like it however when play certain movies over the network from any of my nas boxes i get hiccups playing the video. However when i play from a usb stick it plays smooth. It is not my network or the nas's. It is managed switched gigabit and the nas's are qnap and synology (atom core and above) they stream to any pc fine so again i'm sure that is not it so it brings me back to the ouya's wired network causing congestion for some reason. if anyone has input on this it would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what i would do is check your router, and set your Ouya's Ethernet IP or mac address in the router to the Highest priority possible or if there is no priority levels you will have to set KB or MB manually. that should help. I hate using wifi for video

MrOuya said:
what i would do is check your router, and set your Ouya's Ethernet IP or mac address in the router to the Highest priority possible or if there is no priority levels you will have to set KB or MB manually. that should help. I hate using wifi for video
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will look into this, however having the bad feeling and now the verification that it is usb based really gets me down on this unit. Who knows maybe the cm firmware will do better but i doubt it, usb networking overhead will kill it.

Highest priority: QOS
chewyboy said:
I will look into this, however having the bad feeling and now the verification that it is usb based really gets me down on this unit. Who knows maybe the cm firmware will do better but i doubt it, usb networking overhead will kill it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
also Look for QOS or Quality of Service in your router that may have different settings like , browsing , video, p2p or files sharing, try the video or streaming option.

MrOuya said:
also Look for QOS or Quality of Service in your router that may have different settings like , browsing , video, p2p or files sharing, try the video or streaming option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
on a switched gigabit network not going to the outside world for files just internal nas's this isn't the problem. Thanks for the advice hopefully it will help someone else.

[Q] german AFTV root and 24p problem

hey guys,
i have some trouble with my german version of the AFTV. I hope you have some good news for me to get out of the "amazon ecological system"
- At first i have a german firmware installed: "51.1.4.0_user_514006420" this is the latest at the moment and i think there is no possibility to gain root access to the AFTV....? I hope you have a good answer to me.....
- What server addresses i have to block in my router that amazon stops that autoupade. I want to use the amazon services but not the autoupdate feature.....
- do you have a 24p problem in the US? in germany the picture is stuttering. the AFTV have no 24fps support. so all movies stuttering. Its terrible to watch. this also apply to amazon content.
thanks for your support
best regards
Vince

As far as I know, Android 4.x output framerate is fixed. Auto framerate change will only be possible with Android 5/L...
So yes, always stuttering with 24p movies ?

With latest firmware "51.1.4.0_user_514006420" is no working root solution known.
Concerning forced amazon updates try blocking:
amzdigitaldownloads.edgesuite.net
softwareupdates.amazon.com
BTW: there is no special "german" version of the firmware. It is the same firmware globally used everywhere in the US, UK, GER etc.

Also on the lookout everyday if someone finally finds a solution to gain root access on the latest firmware, but besides that I'm pretty much happy with my purchase.

@Jacktheskipper
the missing 24p is no problem for you? Because of that, I hate the AFTV and Iam very unhappy with my purchase.
@Calibaan
When I block these URLs with my Router, the AFTV have problems with the network connection. iI can see that this fault desciption is not correct because XBMC is fully working.
The main problem when i block this URLs is, that I cannot see the apps in the Amazon menu and on ervery page the information that the network connection is not correct. When this fault occur, the starting of XBMC is very extensive... i think you know what i mean.
@shaksbeer
Do you live with this problem or what you have done to minimize the stuttering? Iam glad about every hint to solve that. It makes me crazy.
@all
Thanks for your support!

Vince0815 said:
@Calibaan
When I block these URLs with my Router, the AFTV have problems with the network connection. iI can see that this fault desciption is not correct because XBMC is fully working.
The main problem when i block this URLs is, that I cannot see the apps in the Amazon menu and on ervery page the information that the network connection is not correct. When this fault occur, the starting of XBMC is very extensive... i think you know what i mean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn´t try these URLs actually before posting because my FireTV is already on the latest unrootable firmware but they should work. Have a look at this guide:
http://www.aftvnews.com/how-to-block-amazon-fire-tv-update-to-ensure-rooting/

Vince0815 said:
When I block these URLs with my Router, the AFTV have problems with the network connection. iI can see that this fault desciption is not correct because XBMC is fully working.
The main problem when i block this URLs is, that I cannot see the apps in the Amazon menu and on ervery page the information that the network connection is not correct. When this fault occur, the starting of XBMC is very extensive... i think you know what i mean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like FritzBox
If you add URLs to the Blacklist, the FritzBox blocks these and ALL connections to IP-adresses, no matthere if they belong to these URLs or not. You can add IPs in a IP whitelist, but you have to check which are the relevant ones for the AppStore

d1dd1 said:
Sounds like FritzBox
If you add URLs to the Blacklist, the FritzBox blocks these and ALL connections to IP-adresses, no matthere if they belong to these URLs or not. You can add IPs in a IP whitelist, but you have to check which are the relevant ones for the AppStore
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are right. It is a FritzBox. The IP blocking of that box annoyed me in some other applications too. This is the first annoying problem with a fritzbox i ever had... sometimes the box block intern (VPN) used ip addresses..... i added all for me relevant VPN IP addresses to the whitelist.... very curious and useless.
How i can find out, which IP addresses I have to add to the whitelist?
This is what i have found:
Code:
54.231.32.161 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.96.201 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.1.33 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.18.121 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.0.233 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.65.9 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.96.209 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.65.89 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.32.193 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.0.169 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
54.231.33.9 s3-1-w.amazonaws.com
and so on.......and so on
I have to put all that IPs to the whitelist? all of them are belong to amazon? ..... a little bit exaggerated, amazon......
@Calibaan
thx for the link. I found that page lately, but it create that fritz box IP-blocking problem which I have.

Finally my AFTV is being shipped. Ordered as Prime member on the 5. September 2014.
I'll have 2 AFTVs in the house, one from US (rooted) and one from DE (not rooted yet).
@Vince0815, you could use opendns, AFAIK it works.

loplo said:
Finally my AFTV is being shipped. Ordered as Prime member on the 5. September 2014.
I'll have 2 AFTVs in the house, one from US (rooted) and one from DE (not rooted yet).
@Vince0815, you could use opendns, AFAIK it works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
opendns is not free of charge, or? why use another service when i have the (bugged) hardware at home use of opendns is a litte bit excessive for my intent.

For personal use is free.
I have a FB too, but I hate 50% of it.

loplo said:
For personal use is free.
I have a FB too, but I hate 50% of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OT: oohh okay... why? in my opinion it is the best router i erver used. But I can change my opinion.
Do you have a good alternative router with the same features?
Is it enough to allow one of these IPs i have wrote down, in post #8?

The thing I like on the FB is the DECT and the VOIP. I'm stuck with FB because my ISP providing internet via CATV, and they have some kind of monopole in this area.
In my opinion the best routers are those running on modified firmware (openwrt/ddwrt), for example the TP-LINK. The best would be the Linksys WRT1900AC, but is very expensive.
I own and use 2 TPLINKs for different things (beside my FB), and manage 3 more in different locations.
BTW, my AFTW just arrived.

I am quite happy with my Fritzbox too. Although I have to use it as a combined CableModem/Router.
I can configure almost everything I need to. My old TP-Link Router with DD-WRT obviously was something else.
Since I have the exact same problem, that I can't block the two update-domains in my fritzbox without loosing complete functionality (why is that, I don't understand) I am curious about how to use openDNS for blcking the updates (I am still hoping for a root option in the future).
The problem is that I want to use the unblock-us DNS servers so I can access US-netflix content. At the same time I would have to use the openDNS servers to block the updates.
Any recommendations how to set this up?

Concerning the Fritz!Box trouble try in your Filter settings: to enable the HTTPS protocol (Internetseiten filtern -> HTTPS-Abfragen erlauben) so that they are not blocked in general.

Calibaan said:
Concerning the Fritz!Box trouble try in your Filter settings: to enable the HTTPS protocol (Internetseiten filtern -> HTTPS-Abfragen erlauben) so that they are not blocked in general.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am pretty sure I tried that. As soon as I set a certain profile for the fireTV i loose all access. (I can still start XBMC via settings but Instant video and all my Apps are gone from the homescreen). The very second i diable the profile, the fireTV regains access to all features.
I guess the fritzbox is doing something wrong.

Phil402 said:
I am pretty sure I tried that. As soon as I set a certain profile for the fireTV i loose all access. (I can still start XBMC via settings but Instant video and all my Apps are gone from the homescreen). The very second i diable the profile, the fireTV regains access to all features.
I guess the fritzbox is doing something wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same here and I think it is the IP blocking "feature" of the fritz box. It is auto activated, when you activate the black- and whitelist in the fritzbox.
The AFTV also connect via IPs and the fritzbox block them automatically. which IP this are for example you can see it in post #8 of this thread. But there are much more IPs which the AFTV tries to connect.
Iam not sure that it is enough to allow one of that IPs is enough to use the Amazon services. I dont want to allow all of that IPs.... this looks a little bit to much for me....
strange is, that it will work sometimes without a change and sometimes not. thats not WAF compatible

Vince0815 said:
same here and I think it is the IP blocking "feature" of the fritz box. It is auto activated, when you activate the black- and whitelist in the fritzbox.
The AFTV also connect via IPs and the fritzbox block them automatically. which IP this are for example you can see it in post #8 of this thread. But there are much more IPs which the AFTV tries to connect.
Iam not sure that it is enough to allow one of that IPs is enough to use the Amazon services. I dont want to allow all of that IPs.... this looks a little bit to much for me....
strange is, that it will work sometimes without a change and sometimes not. thats not WAF compatible
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got sick of the Fritzbox and switched to OpenWRT.
just add the blocked hosts to /etc/hosts and set them to 127.0.0.1, restart dnsmasq -- done.

Vince0815 said:
hey guys,
i have some trouble with my german version of the AFTV. I hope you have some good news for me to get out of the "amazon ecological system"
- At first i have a german firmware installed: "51.1.4.0_user_514006420" this is the latest at the moment and i think there is no possibility to gain root access to the AFTV....? I hope you have a good answer to me.....
- What server addresses i have to block in my router that amazon stops that autoupade. I want to use the amazon services but not the autoupdate feature.....
- do you have a 24p problem in the US? in germany the picture is stuttering. the AFTV have no 24fps support. so all movies stuttering. Its terrible to watch. this also apply to amazon content.
thanks for your support
best regards
Vince
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello , I too have the same problem of stuttering with xbmc file 24Hz . I do not understand why but if I play the file with VLC, movie can be seen much more fluid. You also have observed the same thing?
regards

blackwolf78 said:
Hello , I too have the same problem of stuttering with xbmc file 24Hz . I do not understand why but if I play the file with VLC, movie can be seen much more fluid. You also have observed the same thing?
regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't get it, 24hz is a worldwide standard for movies, and US hard+software of the fireTV are the same.
So EVERYONE should have these issues?!
On another note, does someone know if the firmware the UK/German FireTV comes with runs well with s/xbmc?
Would like to block updates from the beginning.

Mysql xbmc shared database

I currently have a fireTV, two fireTV sticks, and a Raspberry pi all running XBMC (my plan is to replace the Raspberry pi with one of the sticks eventually). Each of these units currently keeps it's own database which makes them a pain to keep in sync. What I would like to do is move to a shared mysql database to keep track of my library, watched status, etc.
I know this can be done on a computer which is always on, but I would rather not have a PC running constantly just for this purpose. Is there any way to host the mqsql server on the FireTV (which is always on anyway)? Has anyone tried this?
I tinkered a little bit just trying to get it to work on my tablet using Ulti Server but could never get XBMC to successfully connect to the database.
My other option is to try and host it on my RT-N66U asus router as explained here: http://www.hints.dk/en/2013/03/13/mysql-server-on-rt-n66u-or-rt-ac66u-for-shared-xbmc-library/ but that requires a bit more modification than I really wanted to do.

collindv said:
I currently have a fireTV, two fireTV sticks, and a Raspberry pi all running XBMC (my plan is to replace the Raspberry pi with one of the sticks eventually). Each of these units currently keeps it's own database which makes them a pain to keep in sync. What I would like to do is move to a shared mysql database to keep track of my library, watched status, etc.
I know this can be done on a computer which is always on, but I would rather not have a PC running constantly just for this purpose. Is there any way to host the mqsql server on the FireTV (which is always on anyway)? Has anyone tried this?
I tinkered a little bit just trying to get it to work on my tablet using Ulti Server but could never get XBMC to successfully connect to the database.
My other option is to try and host it on my RT-N66U asus router as explained here: http://www.hints.dk/en/2013/03/13/mysql-server-on-rt-n66u-or-rt-ac66u-for-shared-xbmc-library/ but that requires a bit more modification than I really wanted to do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Where is your media coming from? If a NAS or HTPC... why not host MySQL on there?
2. If you plan to retire the Pi, host the DB on there. This isn't as speedy as some would like but I haven't researched this recently and only had a 256mb Pi at the time.
3. If you have a hosted domain, it most likely comes with a MySQL DB (or several). You could use this option but again, it may not be the fastest due to latency.
3. From my experience on the Windows side, the problem with your UtilServer DB is probably related to a firewall. You need to figure out how to let Android openly communicate on port 3306.

fairplay89 said:
1. Where is your media coming from? If a NAS or HTPC... why not host MySQL on there?
2. If you plan to retire the Pi, host the DB on there. This isn't as speedy as some would like but I haven't researched this recently and only had a 256mb Pi at the time.
3. If you have a hosted domain, it most likely comes with a MySQL DB (or several). You could use this option but again, it may not be the fastest due to latency.
3. From my experience on the Windows side, the problem with your UtilServer DB is probably related to a firewall. You need to figure out how to let Android openly communicate on port 3306.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the response!
1. Media is hosted by the RT-N66U wireless router. It can be modified to host MySQL but it requires some hacking to make it happen. Doable but not as elegant as I would like.
2. Yes, I considered that option but I have another project in mind for the pi. Still might go this route though.
3. No hosted domains
4. Certainly a possibility, although when I tried it I had the UtilServer DB and SPMC on the same tablet and still couldn't get a connection using the localhost address. I don't remember the exact errors I was getting (this was a few weeks ago).

This is actually a really interesting question. I know that there is android software to host a MySQL server, but never considered sideloading it on the FireTV for XBMC/Kodi library until now. I'm going to look into this prospect this weekend. I'll report my findings.

I haven't tested this being hosted from the FireTV yet, but I can confirm that I can host the database for Kodi on Android via my phone. I used Servers Ultimate Pro to do it and was able to connect from my phone as well as from the FireTV. I'd assume that it would work just fine from the FireTV as well, but still need to confirm.

AFTV XBMC Buffering Annoying - Options?

I've been reading forums all over the place related to the buffering issues I'm experiencing using Gotham 13.2 on my new Fire TV box.
The settings that get me the best results here: (Can't remember what forum I found them on)
<network>
<autodetectpingtime>30</autodetectpingtime>
<buffermode>3</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>708669603</cachemembuffersize>
<curllowspeedtime>5</curllowspeedtime>
<curlclienttimeout>30</curlclienttimeout>
<readbufferfactor>4.0</readbufferfactor>
</network>
The streams start really quick, but if it's 1080p, it buffers every 2 minutes 22 seconds or so. 720p works fine.
I've tried many many settings I find here and at other forums with worse results. With this one I tried the buffermode at 1 and 3.
There must be a setting I'm missing to try out.
I'm using the exact same networking connection as my old WDTV LIVE that had zero problems with these files. I just wanted to replace it with the Fire TV. Tried wired and wireless, same issues.
Thanks for any help anyone might have here.

Thered a tweeks xml that gets copied to your drive and helps with buffering.
Basically it caches some of the stream and you play catch up viewing.
Or if u pause it make coffee or wat ever the whole thing will cache for you and you can watch with our stops.
I use it and it works well.
Some more than others
Id link you but a quick google search will get you what your looking for

mychaelp said:
<buffermode>3</buffermode>.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
from kodi wiki:
0 Buffer all internet filesystems (like "2" but additionally also ftp, webdav, etc.) (default)
1 Buffer all filesystems (including local)
2 Only buffer true internet filesystems (streams) (http, etc.)
3 No buffer
So....
<cachemembuffersize>708669603</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>4.0</readbufferfactor>
aren't really helping; since buffer needs to be enabled to be cached or read.
Also; default readbufferfactor is 1 but all examples use 10 or 20 rather than placing a decimal such as you did. Your setting may be resulting in a factor of 0.40 due to formatting
I am using mode 1 and caching to disk rather than use RAM.
The wiki warns this may shorten disk life (but I think I can afford another $10 usb stick if this one fails)
Never have any buffering issues with these settings on latest SPMC.
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>0</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>

Here is the "official" Kodi thread: http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Modify_the_video_cache.

gurnted said:
from
0 Buffer all internet filesystems (like "2" but additionally also ftp, webdav, etc.) (default)
1 Buffer all filesystems (including local)
2 Only buffer true internet filesystems (streams) (http, etc.)
3 No buffer
So....
<cachemembuffersize>708669603</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>4.0</readbufferfactor>
aren't really helping; since buffer needs to be enabled to be cached or read.
Also; default readbufferfactor is 1 but all examples use 10 or 20 rather than placing a decimal such as you did. Your setting may be resulting in a factor of 0.40 due to formatting
I am using mode 1 and caching to disk rather than use RAM.
The wiki warns this may shorten disk life (but I think I can afford another $10 usb stick if this one fails)
Never have any buffering issues with these settings on latest SPMC.
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>0</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the input and tips to test out. Family is visiting right now, but shortly after the holiday I will test out. It seems there is no one-size-fits-all approach to get things working over a network with the Fire TV. Yet with my old WDTV Live player, absolutely zero issues.
I had found the settings I posted on another forum. They had the best results with zero buffering unless 1080p.
Will report back with results

gurnted said:
from kodi wiki[/URL]:
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>0</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, reporting back. These settings causes rebuffering every 20 seconds or so. My settings I posted above get me to about a minute in. It appears with my setup I won't be able to use this to play 1080p movies and will need to use my ancient WDTV box for that. I had high hopes but maybe XBMC just isn't set up to work as easily as the ancient WDTV's?
I hooked them up to HDMI1 and 2, tried each in succession and the WDTV plays flawlessly while the Amazon Fire TV buffers over and over again.
I may hold on to it in case someone comes up with a method or there is a special fork just for it that works better with my system.
Thank you for your easy to read analysis. It's appreciated. But it appears by googling, that many others are having my issue as well and have returned the boxes.

gurnted said:
from kodi wiki:
I am using mode 1 and caching to disk rather than use RAM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you allow kodi to cache to disk instead of RAM? Isn't the disk flash based and less likely to get worn out compared to a spinning disk? I don't know but it seems like there is nothing to wear out if isn't spinning...
If you allow it to cache to disk then if you were to pause a movie and your sd had enough space, would it download the whole movie to disk and delete when more space is needed?
If so is there a setting where we allocate a maximum amount of disk space for the temporary downloads to fill so kodi knows when to delete other cached videos?
edit: I found the answer to my questions... setting buffer size to 0 and the temp download is deleted when the video is stopped.

От: реставрация на автомобили по света и у &#1
I am using mode 1 and caching to disk rather than use RAM.
The wiki warns this may shorten disk life (but I think I can afford another $10 usb stick if this one fails)
Never have any buffering issues with these settings on latest SPMC.
____________
Arslan1

smithdevil1 said:
I am using mode 1 and caching to disk rather than use RAM.
The wiki warns this may shorten disk life (but I think I can afford another $10 usb stick if this one fails)
Never have any buffering issues with these settings on latest SPMC.
____________
Arslan1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you monitor your network's activity or just watch the buffer available as the greyed out area increases when you pause a video it will show much cache is building up. I have also set it to cache to disk and it does not cache very much of a video by using cache to disk.
I posted a question about this on kodi.tv They said that kodi will only cache about 1Gb of data per 3.5Gb of free disk space, as that is the amount of free space i had at the time of posting, not sure of official caching numbers. But there is no way that kodi cached a full gigabyte as it only showed network activity for a few moments when I was trying to stream the interview through kodi's youtube.
The wiki warns about disk life but I think that pertains to spinning disks that get worn out with constant use.

mychaelp said:
I've been reading forums all over the place related to the buffering issues I'm experiencing using Gotham 13.2 on my new Fire TV box.
The settings that get me the best results here: (Can't remember what forum I found them on)
<network>
<autodetectpingtime>30</autodetectpingtime>
<buffermode>3</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>708669603</cachemembuffersize>
<curllowspeedtime>5</curllowspeedtime>
<curlclienttimeout>30</curlclienttimeout>
<readbufferfactor>4.0</readbufferfactor>
</network>
The streams start really quick, but if it's 1080p, it buffers every 2 minutes 22 seconds or so. 720p works fine.
I've tried many many settings I find here and at other forums with worse results. With this one I tried the buffermode at 1 and 3.
There must be a setting I'm missing to try out.
I'm using the exact same networking connection as my old WDTV LIVE that had zero problems with these files. I just wanted to replace it with the Fire TV. Tried wired and wireless, same issues.
Thanks for any help anyone might have here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
set your advanced setting to 0 cache file, this will cache to your hard drive. You can use program such as xunity maintenance or maintenance tools to do this, just go into one of these program, i think it is under tweaks or fixes. It works great most of the time i am using this setting on my raspberry pi and on my fire tv. i have watched full 1080 movies and shows without any issue.
The buffering also depends on your internet speed. Have you try Ethernet connection if you are on wifi?
Also, test your internet speed to make sure. It also depends on the source it self, your connection may be fast enuf but the source it self is just slow or too much traffic.
Thank you

ashsha7877 said:
set your advanced setting to 0 cache file, this will cache to your hard drive. You can use program such as xunity maintenance or maintenance tools to do this, just go into one of these program, i think it is under tweaks or fixes. It works great most of the time i am using this setting on my raspberry pi and on my fire tv. i have watched full 1080 movies and shows without any issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will look into xunity maintenance since I'm new to XBMC and have not heard of it. I have a SMB share from an old laptop. Old laptop may be the reason 720p works well but not 1080p. It's just odd how the WDTV Live works perfectly. Oh, I tested wired and wireless and they both give me the same issues. I thought about buying a NAS, but I read here that many still have buffering issues.
Here are the latest settings I ended up with that give me the best results. 1080p gives a cache full error and rebuffers every 30 seconds or so. 720p is perfect. I can't recall where I found these, might have been here somewhere, or other forum. Tested way too many and getting tired of it.
<advancedsettings>
<network>
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>20971520</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>
</network>
</advancedsettings>
So thank you for the information, it appears I need to read up as to what xunity is and how it might help me or where tweaks/fixes are within XBMC (hope I don't need to buy anything new).
Maybe with the popularity of the Fire TV there will be more guides on it one day. I got the box for $14 with an amazing deal so probably will keep it at least for streaming and use the ancient WDTV for movies if I can't figure this out.

mychaelp said:
I will look into xunity maintenance since I'm new to XBMC and have not heard of it. I have a SMB share from an old laptop. Old laptop may be the reason 720p works well but not 1080p. It's just odd how the WDTV Live works perfectly. Oh, I tested wired and wireless and they both give me the same issues. I thought about buying a NAS, but I read here that many still have buffering issues.
Here are the latest settings I ended up with that give me the best results. 1080p gives a cache full error and rebuffers every 30 seconds or so. 720p is perfect. I can't recall where I found these, might have been here somewhere, or other forum. Tested way too many and getting tired of it.
<advancedsettings>
<network>
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>20971520</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>
</network>
</advancedsettings>
So thank you for the information, it appears I need to read up as to what xunity is and how it might help me or where tweaks/fixes are within XBMC (hope I don't need to buy anything new).
Maybe with the popularity of the Fire TV there will be more guides on it one day. I got the box for $14 with an amazing deal so probably will keep it at least for streaming and use the ancient WDTV for movies if I can't figure this out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) just add this path under file manager http://xfinity.xunitytalk.com
2) add XunityTalk_Repository
3) go to add on --> get add-ons
4) click on .xunitytalk repository
5) click on programs add-ons
5) click on xunity maintenance and install it
6) then run xunity maintenance --> tweaks --> click on "Add 2 cache advanced xml"
You can also use Maintenance Tools program which is under http://fusion.xbmchub.com (fusion) --> xbmc repos --> TVaddons repo --> program add-ons --> Maintenance Tools --> systems tweaks --> "ZERO CACHE"
here is link for advance settings....
http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Modify_the_video_cache
thanks

ashsha7877 said:
1) just add this path under file manager http://xfinity.xunitytalk.com
2) add XunityTalk_Repository
3) go to add on --> get add-ons
4) click on .xunitytalk repository
5) click on programs add-ons
5) click on xunity maintenance and install it
6) then run xunity maintenance --> tweaks --> click on "Add 2 cache advanced xml"
You can also use Maintenance Tools program which is under http://fusion.xbmchub.com (fusion) --> xbmc repos --> TVaddons repo --> program add-ons --> Maintenance Tools --> systems tweaks --> "ZERO CACHE"
here is link for advance settings....
http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Modify_the_video_cache
thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you certain they're still using the old xbmchub address for fusion? I used http://fusion.tvaddons.ag to set up a ouya the other day. Add-on installer installed but wouldn't work and config wizard gave a script error on 4 different builds (2 SPMC, xbmc for ouya and Gotham 13.2) Couldnt get it to work. Also I've had on & off issues with aftv even though I did get add-on installer working with helix and 13.2
Does it matter? What I mean is if fusion shows up at that point does the address used make a difference? Just trying to make sense of issues I didn't have before the hub became tvaddons.

KLit75 said:
Are you certain they're still using the old xbmchub address for fusion? I used http://fusion.tvaddons.ag to set up a ouya the other day. Add-on installer installed but wouldn't work and config wizard gave a script error on 4 different builds (2 SPMC, xbmc for ouya and Gotham 13.2) Couldnt get it to work. Also I've had on & off issues with aftv even though I did get add-on installer working with helix and 13.2
Does it matter? What I mean is if fusion shows up at that point does the address used make a difference? Just trying to make sense of issues I didn't have before the hub became tvaddons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you click on http://fusion.xbmcub.com it will take you to tvaddons so they are both good. It does not matter which one you use since both http are being pointed at one location.
on my ATFV i am using this path http://fusion.xbmcub.com and it works fine. I have used the config wizard and it is ok but i like to add the addons only i want to keep, to keep my set up clean. As far as add on installer it is generally ok but i used this file manager to add repo http://i.totalxbmc.tv this is one has all the repo in one place and easy to find, i like it better than add on installer when i want to add 3rd party repo's.
Thank you

ashsha7877 said:
1) just add this path under file manager http://xfinity.xunitytalk.com
2) add XunityTalk_Repository
3) go to add on --> get add-ons
4) click on .xunitytalk repository
5) click on programs add-ons
5) click on xunity maintenance and install it
6) then run xunity maintenance --> tweaks --> click on "Add 2 cache advanced xml"
You can also use Maintenance Tools program which is under http://fusion.xbmchub.com (fusion) --> xbmc repos --> TVaddons repo --> program add-ons --> Maintenance Tools --> systems tweaks --> "ZERO CACHE"
here is link for advance settings....
http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Modify_the_video_cache
thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very good info. Thanks!
In a strange twist , I'm now having issues with a videos crashing on both aftvs, both 13.2 Gotham. This keeps occurring on 2 1080p videos. I assumed the op was trying to play movies from an add-on which could be effected by the speed of the server greatly.
No buffering for me. It plays perfect then crash. The files are 5 and 8 gb. Typically I watch tv shows and if I do play 1080p they're compressed mkvs.
I found messing with buffer size can cause other issues but can't say I've got much experience with it--didn't really need to. Would pushing a advanced settings.xml to increase buffer size help? Any other suggestions?

There really seems to be some variability and misinformation regarding this stuttering, so I wanted to share my observations by experimentation so far:
Testing setup is full switched gigabit network with FireTV at 100FDX. Server is capable of 1Gbps full throughtput and is sharing files via SMB/CIFS. The network is stable.
Test PC on wired ethernet on same switch can stream any speed up to 1G
Test PC on wireless ethernet can stream any speed up to typical speed of 802.11n @ 5Ghz double-width channels (approx 200Mbps).
Appears to only affected WIRED FireTV boxes. Switching to wireless with good signal removes the buffering issue experienced.
FireTV stick is not affected (wireless only obviously).
Only applies to large bitrate MKV files (typically 1080p @ > 20 mbit). Anything lower (e.g. 720p or less) is not affected as the low throughput via wired is able to keep up.
This affects any variant of XBMC that I've tried:
Gotham 13.2
Kodi 14.0
SPMC 13.X
Affects at least 51.1.4.0_user_514006420 & 51.1.4.1_user_514013920 versions of FireOS.
None of the internet-suggested settings for the advancedsettings.xml file appears to alleviate the issue even though there are posts suggesting otherwise.
This may be true for those users, but not for all. I can't find a commonality besides the "being wired" issue.
It may be a combination of factors (OS, settings) that produce the symptom.
I'd really like to hear comments on this. Perhaps this is a network stack issue with the FireTV. Perhaps this is a buffer handling problem. I've heard others using Plex that experience these issues as well, so perhaps this leans the issue towards something on FireOS. I'm not familiar enough with detailed network settings on this OS to diagnose.
Other observations:
Oddly, setting <cachemembuffersize>XXX</cachemembuffersize> to any value causes it to be halved when in use. I've set it to 50MB, and the cache readout shows 25MB when full. Is this right?

smartymcfly said:
The wiki warns about disk life but I think that pertains to spinning disks that get worn out with constant use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a word of caution: this warning also pertains to flash based memory (such as the onboard storage on the FireTV). If you're caching to disk (or the sdcard, in this case), you'll wear out the flash memory rather quickly. The flash memory used in the FireTV is not designed to write/rewrite it's data all the time. It might take a couple of years (maybe 3ish), but it will eventually wear out due to high read/write operations. After that you're kinda SOL...
If you have the RAM space available, and your internet connection is fast enough, I strongly suggest using that for caching rather than disk. I'm currently evaluating the advancedsettings.xml below. For me, they've made a significant difference in my ability to stream video to my FireTV box. It will cache 150.9Mbytes of data while streaming both local and internet content (requires ~450MBytes of free RAM for XBMC). Assuming you're streaming a 5Gbyte file (that's a very high estimate, online HD video is compressed to around half that), it will cache at least 5 minutes of video. If I run into any issues I'll try upping the RAM available for caching and let you guy's know what changes I make.
Code:
<advancedsettings>
<network>
<buffermode>1</buffermode>
<cachemembuffersize>157286400</cachemembuffersize>
<readbufferfactor>20</readbufferfactor>
</network>
</advancedsettings>

sirwoogie said:
There really seems to be some variability and misinformation regarding this stuttering, so I wanted to share my observations by experimentation so far:
Testing setup is full switched gigabit network with FireTV at 100FDX. Server is capable of 1Gbps full throughtput and is sharing files via SMB/CIFS. The network is stable.
Test PC on wired ethernet on same switch can stream any speed up to 1G
Test PC on wireless ethernet can stream any speed up to typical speed of 802.11n @ 5Ghz double-width channels (approx 200Mbps).
Appears to only affected WIRED FireTV boxes. Switching to wireless with good signal removes the buffering issue experienced.
FireTV stick is not affected (wireless only obviously).
Only applies to large bitrate MKV files (typically 1080p @ > 20 mbit). Anything lower (e.g. 720p or less) is not affected as the low throughput via wired is able to keep up.
This affects any variant of XBMC that I've tried:
Gotham 13.2
Kodi 14.0
SPMC 13.X
Affects at least 51.1.4.0_user_514006420 & 51.1.4.1_user_514013920 versions of FireOS.
None of the internet-suggested settings for the advancedsettings.xml file appears to alleviate the issue even though there are posts suggesting otherwise.
This may be true for those users, but not for all. I can't find a commonality besides the "being wired" issue.
It may be a combination of factors (OS, settings) that produce the symptom.
I'd really like to hear comments on this. Perhaps this is a network stack issue with the FireTV. Perhaps this is a buffer handling problem. I've heard others using Plex that experience these issues as well, so perhaps this leans the issue towards something on FireOS. I'm not familiar enough with detailed network settings on this OS to diagnose.
Other observations:
Oddly, setting <cachemembuffersize>XXX</cachemembuffersize> to any value causes it to be halved when in use. I've set it to 50MB, and the cache readout shows 25MB when full. Is this right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am seeing exactly the same behaviour and have come to a similar conclusion that there maybe some hardware/OS specific issues.
I have a gigabit lan to which the fire tv is connected and experience buffering during playback of "raw" bluray mkv rips. I've tried to disable the cache/buffer but I'm not convinced if this is making any difference. I have a wired PC running the same Helix build and advancedsettings.xml file. I see from task manager that during playback the Ethernet connection bursts between 35 mbps up to 89/90 when connected at 100 mbps, and as high as 300 mbps when I've enabled gigabit speeds. This is even with the cache apparently disabled. These bursts seem to correspond with the cache filling up.
It feels like there are wired Ethernet throughput issues that when combined with the read ahead buffer result the "Buffering n%" messages. Plus the setting to disable the cache in advancedsettings.xml doesn't seem to work either due to a bug or because I'm not configuring it correctly.

sskuk said:
I am seeing exactly the same behaviour and have come to a similar conclusion that there maybe some hardware/OS specific issues.
I have a gigabit lan to which the fire tv is connected and experience buffering during playback of "raw" bluray mkv rips. I've tried to disable the cache/buffer but I'm not convinced if this is making any difference. I have a wired PC running the same Helix build and advancedsettings.xml file. I see from task manager that during playback the Ethernet connection bursts between 35 mbps up to 89/90 when connected at 100 mbps, and as high as 300 mbps when I've enabled gigabit speeds. This is even with the cache apparently disabled. These bursts seem to correspond with the cache filling up.
It feels like there are wired Ethernet throughput issues that when combined with the read ahead buffer result the "Buffering n%" messages. Plus the setting to disable the cache in advancedsettings.xml doesn't seem to work either due to a bug or because I'm not configuring it correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FYI , firetv only has a 10/100 nic so it wont get gigabit speeds.

I may have stumbled upon a fix for my buffering issues. I've checked over and over so many things these days with my network (router, modem, laptop with SMB external drive) and began moving in a different direction than just the advanced xml file (I tired about 100 options!). I looked at how to speed up serving up my files in case it really is just that simple. I found postings of editing Samba settings in the registry, but it was way beyond what I was willing to try. Then I stumbled on this blog
http://night-ray.blogspot.com/2010/03/improving-windows-xp-smb-file.html An old post from 2010 which looked promising. Since it's an old laptop I'm using I gave it a shot. Tested through 12 movies and no rebuffering yet. This may have given me just enough extra serving power to get enough data transferred. If you're brave as well and have XP (or maybe something similar can work for other versions) give it a shot.
I still have the huge buffer of 400mb someone posted in my settings but I've been clicking play about 2 seconds into it, so I probably need to adjust that down quite a bit and see how it goes.
The guy's blog is pretty interesting as I looked at it more, strange mix of topics, but I'll be writing him a thank you!

Firestick plays some mkv files better than FireTV, why?

I have been using XBMC on my FTV that is hardwired and also have a FireTV Stick connected to 5Ghz band on my router. I was playing a 720p MKV of Interstellar. It would cause the FTV to buffer especially at the scene around 3 minutes where the cornfields are shaking from the winds.
I then play the same file wirelessly on the FireStick and it has no problems playing this same scene.
Is the video processor on the stick better than regular FTV?

I think something is wrong with your fire tv or connection.. I just watch interstellar 1080p 15 gig mkv file without any buffering issues on a wired line.
try switching to wifi.
The fire stick is much much less powerful in video and processor speed.

There are issues with the FireTV hardwired connection that makes it SLOWER than wireless. If you did wireless on your FireTV, it would work better.

Speed tests have consistently showed 5ghz to be faster than wired on my network, but I keep it wired because it's generally stronger with less interference, plus my speeds are more than fast enough for 1080p.
I'd try different Ethernet cables (simplest solution first.) I did that and found a discrepancy of over 20 Mbps.

Sizzlechest said:
There are issues with the FireTV hardwired connection that makes it SLOWER than wireless. If you did wireless on your FireTV, it would work better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OMG Thanks! I didn't every think to try the wireless on my FTV. This fixed the buffering on Intersellar MKV I was getting when I was hardwired.
That is so weird that the hardwired connection is slower than wireless?
How did you find out about FTV being slower hard wired?

yazyazoo said:
OMG Thanks! I didn't every think to try the wireless on my FTV. This fixed the buffering on Intersellar MKV I was getting when I was hardwired.
That is so weird that the hardwired connection is slower than wireless?
How did you find out about FTV being slower hard wired?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's been a known issue, but it's not totally common knowledge. There's other tidbits like you should probably use SPMC vs. Kodi and how to create an advancedsettings.xml that can improve performance, too.

Sizzlechest said:
There are issues with the FireTV hardwired connection that makes it SLOWER than wireless. If you did wireless on your FireTV, it would work better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My testing has shown the opposite. On multiple different network setups in different locations. In some network setups that could possibly be true. But I wouldn't attribute it to the FireTV.

Wow, I never heard of wired ethernet performance issues. Good to know if I ever run into issues, and good to know if I upgrade my wifi I can reliably wifi stream everything I already do. Personal experience with live TV through XBMC (MythTV + HDHomeRun backend), my hardwired FTV is flawless, but my older 802.11n 2.4Ghz connected FTV stick has buffering/stuttering issues with some of the stations. Not a true comparison to a 1080p H.264 mkv, but it sounds like if I buy a new 5ghz wifi router I might be able to get live tv working better on my stick.

Never used this on the FireTV/SPMC, but works very well @ OpenELEC:
http://kodi.wiki/view/HOW-TO:Modify_the_video_cache
I just said cache _any_ source to RAM, like 150MB (watch out as 150MB cache means *3 = 450MB RAM usage) and never had any issues after that, even on an unstable connection. You can also set how aggressive the cache should work etc, very handy tool.