The release of the Gerbera media server 1.9 is now available, continuing the development of the MediaTomb project after its discontinuation. Gerbera supports UPnP protocols, including the UPnP MediaServer 1.0 specification, and allows for streaming multimedia content over the local network with the ability to watch videos and listen to audio on any UPnP-compatible device, including TVs, gaming consoles, smartphones, and tablets. The project's code is written in C++ and is distributed under the GPLv2 license.
Features include automatic thumbnail generation for videos and on-the-fly transcoding of content to output in formats supported by a specified device. Streaming control is managed through a web interface. Metadata is automatically extracted from multimedia files and a collection is created, accessible for navigation from all devices equipped with a web browser. Directories are automatically scanned for new files using inotify or scheduled checks. Additional information about the content can be downloaded from the last.fm service.
In the new release:
- Expanded customization options, including defining resources for album cover downloads, configuring DLNA profiles, and changing UPnP parameters.
- Support for displaying dynamic containers has been added, with content computed during opening (for example, it is possible to display recently added or modified files).
- Support for selective transcoding has been implemented, where video is transcoded only for certain older devices while newer ones are delivered as-is.
- Improved compatibility with Samsung TVs.
- Enhanced content and UPnP device search capabilities.
- In order to simplify maintenance and improve performance, the code managing the database has been redesigned. The database format has been changed (upgrading to version 1.9 is automatic, but rolling back to the old release afterwards will not be possible, so it is recommended to back up the database before updating).
Source: opennet.ru
