Overview

How to set up My Films and be up and running in no time! 

First Steps

See Getting Started if you have not already for information about downloading and installing MyFilms, organizing your files or using the Sample Movies DB to give MyFilms a try.

If you use one of the Supported Catalogs you may find specific details about any special considerations or features for your catalog type, or how 'fields' are mapped to MyFilms, in the sub pages:

• Quick Setup MyFilms
  • MediaPortal Setup
  • Setup-Wizard
  • Existing Catalogs
  • Start Settings

See also:

• Supported Media Types - for information about different media types, particularly offline media such as DVDs or Blu-rays.
• Network Setup Guides - if you have a network and wish to use a central database accessible to all clients on the network. 

Database Setup

Before you can access your movies in MyFilms, you need to provide some information about your existing database, or create a new one. My Films provides a Setup or Configuration Tool which includes a Setup Wizard that presets most settings for you based on the movie catalog you use. 

MyFilms setup will open automatically at the end of installation for you to setup your first catalog/database by creating a 'Config' which is similar to a profile. In MyFilms you can create as many 'Configs' as you wish, either for the same database for for multiple databases.

See MyFilms Setup for details of each setup screen and settings.  See the Setup Guides for step by step tutorials how to set up MyFilms for specific configurations or features. 

Existing Catalogs

If you already have a movie catalog(s) in one of the Supported Catalogs (movie catalog apps), it is very easy to get started using My Films:

1. Run the Setup Wizard at the end of Install - select 'Use Existing Catalog - Yes' - most options are preset correctly for you depending on the catalog type you select. 

You may start using My Films right away! See the Existing Catalogs setup guide for step by step instructions. 

New Catalogs

If you don't have a movie catalog, you may create one in My Films.

1. Run the Setup Wizard at the end of Install - select 'Use Existing Catalog - No' - most options are preset correctly for you depending on the catalog type you select and in this case MyFilms will open the Importer at the end of Setup for you to scan the location you chose for your media files and import them along with detailed info and artwork from the website of your choice..

See the 'New Catalogs' setup guide for details.

Convert an existing movie database

You may also 'convert' an existing movie database from

• Moving Pictures plugin - see Importing Moving Pictures DB
• MyVideos (MediaPortal 1.3.x or later) - export from MyVideos using NFO files then see NFO Files
• any catalog that supports NFO files - see NFO Files

Note There are variations in the NFO file format used by different apps, so you may need to adjust the NFO grabber script in some cases - see Grabber Script Editor to learn how to do that..

Common Setup options

Chances are you will want to take advantage of the many additional features My Films offers such as:

• Select Start Settings -  start View, Movie layout/sort, Group Layout/Sort, etc. when starting My Films
• Customize the cover, view, person images and fanart display options or paths in Artwork setup
• Update your data and add or change covers, fanart, person images, etc - see Updating Existing Films 

What's Next?

Once you have your database and basic setup working, see Setup Guides to learn how to setup more advanced configurations and features.

Related

TopicsSetup Wizard
Use the Setup Wizard to configure My Film with ease.
Start Settings
Customize how you start My Films: view, layout, sort, filters, and more!
Tutorials

• MediaPortal Setup (Beginner)
• Existing Catalogs (Beginner)