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MediaPortal / TV-Server 1.0 RC1 released!

Written by Team MediaPortal, on 17-04-2008

With the first Release Candidate of MediaPortal and TV-Server 1.0 we made a big step forward to the next stable release version.

We know that this is very exciting but please read the entire news before you start installing because it contains important information you need to know.

*The first release had a small problem regarding the TV-Server-Installation which could be fixed quickly so we've decided to release a fixed version (MediaPortal_Setup_1.0_RC1_Refesh.exe).*

DeployTool
During the last months we have been working on a tool which simplifies the installation of MediaPortal or a complete TV-Server enviroment.
You just have to answer a few questions and it will take care of downloading and installing the required components.
Not only do we have a "one click installation option" we also have an "advanced mode" which will allow you to install all possible MediaPortal and/or TV-Server configurations easily and provides you with full control about all installation parameters.
The DeployTool also supports "Localization" which means that it can be translated into many different languages.
Although a few languages are already supported we could need your help to offer even more translations for the final 1.0 release. If you want to contribute please have a look at the DeployTool forums where more information about the translation process will be published.

Note:
The DeployTool requires an active internet connection (at least on the first run). We have added an option do only download all required components so you are still able to install MediaPortal in an offline mode on HTPC's without an internet connection.

Please be aware that (because of Windows security restrictions) it is not possible to run a .NET based application like the DeployTool from a network share. You have to download it to your local HDD and start it from there.

TV-Server
The MediaPortal TV-Server is now part of the main package. At first we would like to get rid of a common misunderstanding.
Although it is called "TV-Server" the "Client / Server architecture" is not the main benefit.
Our wiki has a very detailed comparison of the old, MediaPortal inbuilt, TV module and the TV-Server.
The main difference is that the TV module which is still inbuilt in MediaPortal uses Microsoft's StreamBuffer engine and therefore creates those dvr-ms files when you record something. The TV-Server has been developped by us from scratch to overcome many issues and limitations we had earlier.

MediaPortal and TV-Server installation (important!)
To ensure that your installation of MediaPortal and TV-Server will not get compromised by old files or broken databases this release candidate requires a clean installation.

The DeployTool is able to uninstall old versions of MediaPortal and TV-Server but during our tests we have noticed that the old TV-Server installers cause some issues during the uninstallation, which will require an reboot to complete the uninstall process.
This is why we would like to advice you to manually uninstall any old version of TV-Server before you start the DeployTool.
This is only a issue with the old installers it does not occur with the new one we created for 1.0 RC1.

The deinstallation of an old MediaPortal version will cause that community skins and plugins get deleted as well.
Please make sure that you are using recent versions of skins and plugins which have been updated for 1.0 RC1.

During the first start of TV-Server the database will get deleted. If you want to keep your current channel list and recording schedules you have to select the "EXPORT" button in the "TV channels" section and save the file to a safe place outside of MP's directory.

Bug reporting and test builds
This RC1 release will of course still contain some bugs. The purpose of this release is to find and fix them.
This will be much easier now because everyone of us has a common base for testing.
In addition we will change our untested SVN-builds from a daily to a weekly schedule. This will prevent false bug reports about issues which have already been fixed and therefore save some work for you and us.

The first SVN-build (which is based on the 1.0 RC1 release) will be available on Friday, 25th April.
There will be only one build then which contains latest SVN versions of TV-Server and MediaPortal. You will find these threads in a new forum section .

If you use the TV-Server for TV please report any TV related bugs in the TV-Server Bugreport Forum .
Before your start an report make sure that you read the TV-Server Bugreport Rules.

Any other issue must be reported in the MediaPortal Bugreport Forum .
Before your start an report, make sure that you read the MediaPortal Bugreport Rules.

If you encounter problems with the DeployTool please report them in the DeployTool forums.

We hope that you enjoy this brand new release.