Folder Content Not Updating

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AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

I have set up some shared folders, which display on my TV.
However, whenever I open a folder there is nothing displayed and the TV shows 'reading'. After a delay of several seconds the folder contents are listed.
If I come out and go back in I get the same response. I would have thought that having updated to list the details would be stored, but this doesn't appear to be the case.
How do I get USM to scan the folders even while offline, update its content list automatically and display the content without the delay.
As a comparison, I have just moved from Serviio which doesn't have any delay in listing the contents using exactly the same equipment.
Regards
Nadahar
Posts: 1990
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:57 pm

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by Nadahar »

UMS does scan the folders in the background, and does cache the results so that the content is displayed faster. But, it doesn't do it "completely" - which I suspect many other servers (like Serviio) do.

The simple scenario probably employed by most is that folders are scanned, the content indexed in a database, and then all browse requests from renderers are fetched exclusively from the database. UMS does this differently, it actually checks the content of a folder each time you enter it, and then looks in the cache if the information for each file has been cached. If it has, the information is gotten from the cache, if not it is parsed and stored in the cache. Either way, the folder contents will be enumerated each time.

This has advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that changes are reflected (to some extent, but there are other issues that means that's still not always the case), the disadvantage is first and foremost the speed. That said, entering a folder should be fairly quick if the cache has been populated, as the files themselves doesn't need to be analyzed.

There's another thing that happens as well, and that is that UMS "calculates" in what form the media can be presented to the renderer. This depends on what the renderer supports and other factors. This happens every time regardless of whether the media information itself is cached or not. If a folder has a huge number of files, this can take some time, but for "normal" folders that's reasonably populated, this shouldn't be too bad. I think that this process could be made quite a lot faster though, but that would mean some significant rewriting of the code.

So, the only thing you should make sure is that you haven't disabled the cache/database, and that there aren't any errors in your log (or that the profile folder with the database is on a very slow storage volume). As long as this in as default, there is nothing further you can do to speed up the process.
AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

So what is the 'Scan shared folders on startup' doing, if not scanning the folders and creating a cache?
Nadahar
Posts: 1990
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:57 pm

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by Nadahar »

It's supposed to do exactly that.
AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

If it's supposed to do what the applied settings indicate, and it doesn't, then something needs rectifying.
So how can I modify settings / make changes to files to get it to do what it should?
Nadahar
Posts: 1990
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:57 pm

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by Nadahar »

From your description of the issue, it seems like a bug. That means that there's no setting you can change. But, it's impossible to determine what is happening as long as you don't post debug files as described in red on the top of the page.
AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

ums_dbg.zip
(31.83 KiB) Downloaded 326 times
For what its worth here's the debug file.
You will note that it reports an issue with port 6000. It gives this message with every port I have tried.
Looking at the ports used it appears UMS creates at least 50 entries for this port. It appears that Java is waiting for something (many times), so I think there is a bug here too.

Also, you will note that UMS does not update the shared folders on caddy drives after they are turned on.
If I can't get to see my files there is no poInt in having a media server!
regards
Nadahar
Posts: 1990
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:57 pm

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by Nadahar »

You didn't make the debug files in trace mode, so there isn't much information there. That said, the database error and bind failure strongly indicates that you're starting UMS multiple times.

You must make sure that UMS isn't already running when you start it. That also applies to UMS' Windows service if you have installed it. If you have installed the service, you should uninstall it - or never start UMS manually. As long as you have the database error, caching won't work. Likewise, as long as you have the bind error, things won't work.

When it comes to external drives, you're right. UMS doesn't handle that, it's a "known issue" without an easy solution. There are two technical reasons that I know of why this doesn't work, and neither of them are trivial to solve.
AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

When it comes to external drives, you're right. UMS doesn't handle that, it's a "known issue" without an easy solution. There are two technical reasons that I know of why this doesn't work, and neither of them are trivial to solve.

I think that, as every other piece of software I have installed manages to interrogate and list the drive and folder contents, that it is not the major work to resolve as you claim. Serviio appear to manage it ok!
AnnieBody
Posts: 56
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 3:12 am

Re: Folder Content Not Updating

Post by AnnieBody »

After reinstalling I use the 'Start with Windows' checkbox. So when opening I do so from the task bar.
After a reboot I checked windows processes and only one instance is running. I then tried opening a second instance manually. You can see the difference in the attached files.
Processes 1.jpg
Processes 1.jpg (185.92 KiB) Viewed 8380 times
So I have no doubt that after reboot I only ever have one instance running.
I also attach the debug following a reboot.
Processes 2.jpg
Processes 2.jpg (178.43 KiB) Viewed 8380 times
Attachments
ums_dbg.zip
(23.49 KiB) Downloaded 334 times
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