Need help with Series with XBMC nfo

Hi,

I'm currently running an ancient version 1.3.1 and I'm attempting to update to version 2.4. However I'm running into an issue with my TV shows not showing up under "Series". It shows up fine under "Folders" and I am able to play them. I've attached screenshots of my current directory structure as well as NFO files. What changes do I need to make to my current 1.3.1 setup to make it work for 2.4? Any assistance is much appreciated. Thanks.

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[atc98092]

I don't use nfo files, so can't offer any suggestions there. But it's possible that old of Serviio might not be parsing the files correctly, especially if there's been any updates to the nfo format specifications. Serviio 1.3.1 was released in Aug 2013, so extremely old and very possibly not capable of parsing the nfo files correctly with today's data.

One problem I've encountered with TV episodes not being listed under Series has been the file/folder naming convention. Especially with multiple versions of the same series names, it's vital to get the file name correct. On rare occasions I've even needed to use the IMDB tag to identify them properly.

I'm curious if the missing series are being listed until Titles and/or Movies, which would indicate Serviio isn't identifying the titles as a TV episode.

I've tried just about everything and at this point I just want it to work. I even switched "Descriptive Metadata" to "online metadata sources" and added the IMDB Id to each video file and it still does not work. I'm fairly certain I'm doing something wrong but I'm just not sure what.

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[atc98092]

First I suggest placing the IMDB tag in the folder name, not every file. The tag number changes with each episode number. Next I would rename the files removing the EP number and either spelling it out (Life on the Reef - S01E01 - Episode 1.mp4) or leaving it out completely. Serviio gathers the online metadata from themoviedb.org (yes, for TV shows as well) and they use the spelled out name as the episode title.

Hi Dan,

I've tried your suggestion but it didn't work either.

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Here's the setting I'm using.

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Looking at the debug logs, it seems as though it never uses online metadata sources even though it is set as such.

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Is this installation broken?

[atc98092]

Is this still Serviio 1.3.1? I'm wondering if that might be the issue. Older versions of Serviio used thetvdb.com for TV episodes, but that no longer works. Version 1.3.1 would not be trying to use themoviedb, and that could be the issue. Your log snippet doesn't show what service it's using, and I'm uncertain if that service is ever even included in the log.

Hi Dan,

No. This is a brand new installation on a separate VM.

[atc98092]

Thanks for that. I just copied a random MP4 file I had and renamed it Life on the Reef - S01E01 - Episode 1.mp4. I put it in a folder simply labeled "Life on the Reef (2015)" and did this on my test 2.4 server. I didn't use the IMDB tag at all. The series appeared within two minutes under the Series presentation, and as the most recent file added under that presentation. And I verified that I could play it in both MediaBrowser and using Kodi on an Nvidia Shield. Of course, I know this was a playable file to begin with, but from the info you've posted from your log it appears Serviio considers it a playable file as well and indeed you can play them from the Folders view.

I am at a loss why it's not appearing under Series. From my test, it doesn't appear Serviio has any issue identifying the correct title and episode, as the complete metadata is shown in my players. Since you're working in a VM, perhaps you can reload a fresh VM OS and try a new install again. This time use the naming convention exactly as I did (no IMDB tag at all) and see if anything changes.

Hi Dan,

Thanks for your help thus far. Here's a copy of the serviio debug log.

serviio.log

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I dumped everything and started a brand new log file. I forced a refresh and rescan metadata. The thing is this is a brand new VM with nothing on it except Serviio 2.4 and a copy of folders I copied from 1.3.1. I'm quite certain I've missed something or done something wrong but for the life of me I can't figure out what it is. It's quite frustrating.

By the way, is there a limit on how deep of a recursive directory search Serviio does? These files are like 3 folders deep and I'm wondering if that has anything to do with it.

[atc98092]

Not to my knowledge, but then I'm not the software designer. I'm just another user that the designer asked to be a moderator here. I'd have to check my folder structure, but I think I have a few that are three folders deep. I'm pretty certain I've heard of users with more folders than that but the number escapes me at the moment.

I'm not quite sure what it was that I did exactly but now it works. However in the process of mucking around, RMP on my TCL TV has stopped displaying external SRT subtitles on my MP4 file. Sigh... I just want this to work...