The Paul's Tech MythTV Project: Phase 3
In Phase 2, we went over the hardware build with particular details on the case. Now, I want to talk about the initial software install as it went for me. Depending on your preferences and the way you get your TV signals, your install may go quite differently. Nevertheless, there are some good general rules in this section to help you in getting things up and running.
The very first thing I wanted to do was to check to make sure the hardware was all functioning properly. This includes making sure that all of the drives and RAM are recognized properly, the performance is decent, and the system is staying sufficiently cool. Mythtv runs on top of an install of Linux. I have used Linux many times before, but I am much more comfortable with Windows by comparison. So, I decided to do a quick Windows install first so I could diagnose all of the hardware. I used a copy of XP, but probably whatever you have will work for this. Doing this install confirmed that the dvd drive was bootable and the hard drive was in good working order. Next, I made sure the processor and RAM were being recognized properly, and I installed the network drivers to see if I could get connected to the internet. All of this went off without a hitch for me. I then downloaded and installed a copy of Motherboard Monitor so I could check the processor and case temperatures and the power supply voltages. All checked out within spec. Next I checked to make sure the front and back USB ports were working by plugging a flash drive into them, and I hooked up the speakers and installed the drivers to see if the sound was working. Once I was convinced all of the hardware was good, I destroyed the partition on the drive and started fresh once again.
The next thing is to choose your flavor of Mythtv. Or to be more precise, which version of Mythtv you will be installing on which flavor of Linux. My first attempt to install Mythtv was with Knoppmyth. Knoppmyth is a bootable Mythtv install that runs on the Knoppix linux distribution. It is a reasonably complete install of Mythtv, and you can get it installed and up and running quickly. You may in fact wish to install it once, whether you are planning to stick with it or not, just so you can get familiar with the Mythtv interface and some of the options available.
I can say that the install went smoothly, but I found that I had problems with some of the plugins. At least two of them didn't work, and after some fiddling, I decided that I wasn't comfortable enough with Knoppix to stick with it. So, I decided to blow it away and start over with an install of Ubuntu Linux.
Ubuntu is another distribution of Linux, and it is one that I have used in the past. It is currently my favorite distribution because of the ease of installing and updating it. It is also one of the more complete distributions in that you can get a lot of precompiled software for it.
Now, you can choose from several different install iso's for your particular machine. I decided to stay relatively mainstream, and went with the 32-bit install, even though I could have attempted the 64-bit install. One thing I did differently was to use the Alternative Install disk instead of the standard Desktop disk, on the recommendation of the Ubuntu documentation. You can get that install from here.
Once you've burned the iso file to a CD (I used Nero Burning ROM), you can get on with the install. From here on, I could reinvent the wheel, and tell you what steps I followed, but basically, I followed the Ubuntu install docs. I suggest you follow along with them at the Ubuntu website.
Ubuntu Community Documentation - Mythtv Combined Frontend/Backend Install
Now, somewhere along the way, you may wonder to yourself, "Do I need to do ALL of this stuff?" My answer is "YES, you do." It takes a lot of pieces of software to make a Mythtv box work and work well. Follow the instructions carefully and do all of it if you can. In fact, there are a couple more things I recommend you do, but I will get to those in a second.
One thing they do is install an OpenSSH Server. This essentially allows you to log into the machine from another computer and access the command line. This is a very very useful thing to have as, if you are like me, you will not have a keyboard hooked up to the box most of the time. Once you have it running, if you need a client for Windows to access it, I recommend using PuTTY. You just need to input the IP address of your Mythtv box, and if you are on the local network, you should connect no problem.
They also recommend setting up your guide data. Again, you will need to do it, but there is a caveat on this one. Tribune Media Services is discontinuing free service for Mythtv users, so signing up with them now is not going to work. You will need to get your listing elsewhere. I recommend you look into SchedulesDirect.org. With the latest version of Mythtv, you should be able to use this new service. Running a Mythtv box without a program guide is not really worth it in my opinion.
One thing they don't mention but that I feel is worthwhile is to install Samba. Samba allows you to share files and printers between a linux box and a windows box. You can find out more about installing Samba here. I set it up to allow me to use Windows Explorer to access my home directory and my media directory on my Mythtv box. This makes transferring videos, music, and pictures around a snap.
One final thing you will want to do is install lm-sensors. This will allow you to monitor the voltages and temperatures of your PC. A good How-To on this is located here. Once you have it working, I will show you a handy way to use it from your Mythtv Frontend in the next installment.
Phewww! That should give you plenty to do. It can take a while to get this all done, so plan to set aside a significant chunk of time. Next time, I will talk about some hitches and difficulties I had to overcome to get everything (or nearly everything) working.
Posted by PH on 09-06-2007 08:35:20 CST
The very first thing I wanted to do was to check to make sure the hardware was all functioning properly. This includes making sure that all of the drives and RAM are recognized properly, the performance is decent, and the system is staying sufficiently cool. Mythtv runs on top of an install of Linux. I have used Linux many times before, but I am much more comfortable with Windows by comparison. So, I decided to do a quick Windows install first so I could diagnose all of the hardware. I used a copy of XP, but probably whatever you have will work for this. Doing this install confirmed that the dvd drive was bootable and the hard drive was in good working order. Next, I made sure the processor and RAM were being recognized properly, and I installed the network drivers to see if I could get connected to the internet. All of this went off without a hitch for me. I then downloaded and installed a copy of Motherboard Monitor so I could check the processor and case temperatures and the power supply voltages. All checked out within spec. Next I checked to make sure the front and back USB ports were working by plugging a flash drive into them, and I hooked up the speakers and installed the drivers to see if the sound was working. Once I was convinced all of the hardware was good, I destroyed the partition on the drive and started fresh once again.
The next thing is to choose your flavor of Mythtv. Or to be more precise, which version of Mythtv you will be installing on which flavor of Linux. My first attempt to install Mythtv was with Knoppmyth. Knoppmyth is a bootable Mythtv install that runs on the Knoppix linux distribution. It is a reasonably complete install of Mythtv, and you can get it installed and up and running quickly. You may in fact wish to install it once, whether you are planning to stick with it or not, just so you can get familiar with the Mythtv interface and some of the options available.
I can say that the install went smoothly, but I found that I had problems with some of the plugins. At least two of them didn't work, and after some fiddling, I decided that I wasn't comfortable enough with Knoppix to stick with it. So, I decided to blow it away and start over with an install of Ubuntu Linux.
Ubuntu is another distribution of Linux, and it is one that I have used in the past. It is currently my favorite distribution because of the ease of installing and updating it. It is also one of the more complete distributions in that you can get a lot of precompiled software for it.
Now, you can choose from several different install iso's for your particular machine. I decided to stay relatively mainstream, and went with the 32-bit install, even though I could have attempted the 64-bit install. One thing I did differently was to use the Alternative Install disk instead of the standard Desktop disk, on the recommendation of the Ubuntu documentation. You can get that install from here.
Once you've burned the iso file to a CD (I used Nero Burning ROM), you can get on with the install. From here on, I could reinvent the wheel, and tell you what steps I followed, but basically, I followed the Ubuntu install docs. I suggest you follow along with them at the Ubuntu website.
Ubuntu Community Documentation - Mythtv Combined Frontend/Backend Install
Now, somewhere along the way, you may wonder to yourself, "Do I need to do ALL of this stuff?" My answer is "YES, you do." It takes a lot of pieces of software to make a Mythtv box work and work well. Follow the instructions carefully and do all of it if you can. In fact, there are a couple more things I recommend you do, but I will get to those in a second.
One thing they do is install an OpenSSH Server. This essentially allows you to log into the machine from another computer and access the command line. This is a very very useful thing to have as, if you are like me, you will not have a keyboard hooked up to the box most of the time. Once you have it running, if you need a client for Windows to access it, I recommend using PuTTY. You just need to input the IP address of your Mythtv box, and if you are on the local network, you should connect no problem.
They also recommend setting up your guide data. Again, you will need to do it, but there is a caveat on this one. Tribune Media Services is discontinuing free service for Mythtv users, so signing up with them now is not going to work. You will need to get your listing elsewhere. I recommend you look into SchedulesDirect.org. With the latest version of Mythtv, you should be able to use this new service. Running a Mythtv box without a program guide is not really worth it in my opinion.
One thing they don't mention but that I feel is worthwhile is to install Samba. Samba allows you to share files and printers between a linux box and a windows box. You can find out more about installing Samba here. I set it up to allow me to use Windows Explorer to access my home directory and my media directory on my Mythtv box. This makes transferring videos, music, and pictures around a snap.
One final thing you will want to do is install lm-sensors. This will allow you to monitor the voltages and temperatures of your PC. A good How-To on this is located here. Once you have it working, I will show you a handy way to use it from your Mythtv Frontend in the next installment.
Phewww! That should give you plenty to do. It can take a while to get this all done, so plan to set aside a significant chunk of time. Next time, I will talk about some hitches and difficulties I had to overcome to get everything (or nearly everything) working.