Getting Started with the SlimServer

Version 5.4.0

Thank you for downloading the latest version of the SlimServer for Windows. Click on the following links to learn about each topic.

Installation
Remote Playlist Management
MoodLogic Support
Slim Windows Service
AAC Playback

If you have any questions or problems, please check the documentation built into the SlimServer web interface, or view the FAQ, visit our user forum at http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss or contact our tech support team at support@slimdevices.com.

Thanks,

The Slim Devices Team

Installation

To get started, follow these steps:

Double click on the "SlimServer" icon.
From the Options menu, choose "Set Music Library Folder..."
Choose the folder that contains your MP3 music, and press the OK button.
If you want to be able to save playlists that you create with your Squeezebox or SLIMP3, choose "Set Saved Playlists Folder..."
Choose the folder where you want to save your playlists.

If you'd like to control your SlimServer using a web browser, you can do so by opening up your browser and entering a URL like this:

http://localhost:9000/

Replace localhost with the IP address of the server computer.

Firmware Update

If you own a Squeezebox Player, you may be prompted to update your firmware when it first connects to the SlimServer. Press and hold the Brightness button on the remote control until the firmware update begins.

If you own a SLIMP3 player, this release includes an updater application for the SLIMP3 Player firmware. Open "Firmware Updater" and follow the displayed instructions to update the the firmware on your player to version 2.3. You can check the version number of firmware installed on your SLIMP3 by reading the number at the lower right-hand corner of the display when you plug in your SLIMP3 player.

Remote Playlist Management

The SlimServer was designed to stream MP3 music to a Squeezebox or SLIMP3 Network Music Player. However, it can also stream the same music over the Internet to any software player that supports MP3 streaming.

First, install the SlimServer software and make sure the computer to be used as a SlimServer can be reached over the Internet. If not, you will need to forward port 9000 on your router to the SlimServer computer. (Consult your router documentation for instructions). Then:

Use your MP3 player software to open a stream to the the URL: http://localhost:9000/stream.mp3. (Replace "localhost" with the IP address of the SlimServer computer). If you are using the SlimServer's password security, you'll need to use a slightly modified URL like this: http://username:password@localhost:9000/stream.mp3. Some MP3 players will prompt you to enter your username and password.
Launch the SlimServer web interface running on the remote computer by opening the web page http://localhost:9000 (Replace "localhost" with the IP address of the remote computer). You will notice a new "player" corresponding to the IP address of the computer with the MP3 software player.
Use the left pane of the SlimServer web interface to browse and select files and playlists to be played. When music is selected, it will appear in the right pane of the web interface.
Click on "Play" in the right pane of the SlimServer web interface to launch the music.
After a couple of seconds, you will hear music playing through the MP3 software player. (The delay is due to buffering in the MP3 player software.)
To change the content playing, use the SlimServer web interface on the remote machine.

AAC Playback

This version of the SlimServer for Mac or Windows can play back iTunes AAC files on Squeezebox or SLIMP3. Squeezebox owners don't need to install any additional software. To enable this feature on SLIMP3, you'll need to install the free (and high quality) LAME MP3 encoder. For more information about LAME in general, click here . LAME is free, but in some countries you may need to pay a license fee in order to legally encode MP3 files. There are several ways to install LAME, including the excellent iTunes-LAME Encoder (for Macintosh) or from Rarewares (for Windows).

Once you have LAME installed, you should be able to playback iTunes-ripped AAC files (.m4a) as well as the audio from any QuickTime movie (.mov). Music purchased from the Apple Music Store (.m4p files) is protected and cannot be played back with SlimServer until Apple provides the necessary hooks to enable this. In the mean time, it is possible to burn your Apple Music Store songs to CD and re-rip them.

Note that LAME-based encoding to MP3 for playback can use a substantial amount of CPU power. We continue to recommend high bit-rate MP3 encoded files for best performance, highest audio quality, and best compatibility.

MoodLogic Support

This version of the SlimServer software for Windows supports integration with the MoodLogic MP3 mix management software and associated metadata service. Install MoodLogic on your PC and identify your songs (regardless of tag information) and let MoodLogic automatically organize your collection by MoodLogic data (genre, mood, tempo, release year, etc). Once all your music is 'active' your Slim can interact with your music in exciting new ways!

Features:

Browse your songs on your Squeezebox or SLIMP3 player by clean genre and artist information.
Create MoodLogic Instant Mixes directly with your remote!

How to create an Instant Mix:

Select a genre, artist or song that has an 'm' icon (mixable) in the top right corner.
Press AND HOLD your play button for a 2-3 seconds.
MoodLogic will create a playlist 'on the fly' with songs that fit your current mood! (for genres and artist you will be able to select one of the available moods presented)

Installation

Make sure your SlimServer and player are installed as described in this documentation.
Install MoodLogic from http://www.moodlogic.com.
Add your music to the same music folder that SlimServer uses.
Activate your music (the trial service allows 100 free activations).
Buy 10,000 activation credits to activate more songs or profile your own tracks.
Shut down MoodLogic and restart the SlimServer.
After restarting, the SlimServer will automatically detect MoodLogic. You are ready to go!
You can turn MoodLogic on and off see your server preferences in the web interface.

Known Limitations

No Mac or Linux support
Currently no album support
No way to trigger song based Instant Mix for the currently playing song
Not all skins supported (the best support is in the Default and Light skins, available under the Additional Server Settings)
The MoodLogic support doesn't work if the SlimServer software is installed as a service. Use the Control Panels->Administrative Tools->Services application to stop the SlimServer service and use the SlimServer application if you'd like to use the MoodLogic integration.

Feedback

For questions about MoodLogic and SlimServer integration, please email: chris@moodlogic.com

SlimServer as a Windows Service

You can optionally run the SlimServer as a Windows Service under Windows NT, 2000 or XP. On these platforms, the SlimServer installer should install and start the SlimServer service automatically.

To install and run the SlimServer Windows service by hand, follow these instructions:

Open a "cmd" window and type "cd C:\Program Files\SlimServer\server".
Type "slim.exe -install auto" to install the SlimServer software so it will automatically start as a Windows Service the next time you reboot.
You can start or stop the service manually by using "net start slimp3svc" or "net stop slimp3svc" respectively, or by using the Control Panels->Administrative Tools->Services application.
You can uninstall the service by stopping it, then typing "slim.exe -remove"

Windows 98/ME users can use the "Scheduled Tasks" icon to schedule the "SlimServer" application to start automatically when the computer starts. This will also work for Windows NT/2000/XP users who don't want to use Windows Services.