Serviio

Hi all,

I installed Serviio 2.1 on a Linux ClearOS box (RHEL7).
After beeing able to use it, I suddenly get the following error message when attempting to browse to the MediaBrowser:
mediabrowser is only available in the pro edition

I assumed that Serviio 2.1 was free.
When I check the console I see this:
Evaluation license Expires in 1 days

Can someone please help me out here ... ?!?

J.

Serviio is free but the features like mediabrowser are only in the pro version and that has always been. Mediabrowser has never been free only free to try.

As freaknik says, Serviio is free, but it does offer a paid version (Pro) which offers some additional features. Whenever you install Serviio, you get 15 days of Pro use for free, to let you evaluate its value for you. MediaBrowser is the biggest item that the Pro version adds, but there are some others. See this page for more details.

Thanks for clearing that up freaknik & atc98092,

I am new to this, so please forgive me for asking, but ... how can I stream my media (local & online) without using the mediabrowser ... ?!?
I attempted to use Plex, but I was unable to connect to it.

Please advice,

J.

Outside of your home network, Pro is required to stream your media. That is either with MediaBrowser, or using an Android device and the ServiiGo app. Within your network, Serviio makes your media available on any DLNA compliant player. This includes most Smart TVs and Blu Ray players, streaming players such as Roku or Fire TV devices, or even to your smartphone or tablet that is connected via WiFi to the same network your Serviio computer is on. The free version does this without issue.

Plex is just another type of media server. It offers both DLNA and proprietary services. Most Smart TVs have a Plex app, as does Roku Fire TV, and all forms or Android streaming players. I use Plex for when I travel, as my Roku can connect via the hotel WiFi. It's easier than connecting my laptop to the hotel TV and using MediaBrowser. I'd have to get up and made the changes on the laptop, instead of lying on the bed with the Roku remote.

But for my home network use, I far prefer Serviio for several reasons. Plex offers no user control of their device profiles, while Serviio has a single Profiles file that can be tweaked, and even supports a user-created profiles file that won't get replaced or deleted with an update. Plex has a bunch of separate profile files, and it's difficult to determine which should be modified for what you want to change. Plex doesn't support PLS or M3U playlists. Plex will not play one movie after the other without stopping (it will do that for TV shows). In my home, that's a deal breaker.

But I'm honestly not bad-mouthing Plex. It's a good product, and serves many people well. For me, Serviio is simply a more satisfying product.

Disclaimer: while I did author the Roku profiles included with Serviio, and do serve as a moderator here on the forum, I do not work for or receive any payment from Serviio. I simply support the developer of this product.

Thanks for your reply atc98092,

I intend to buy a Serviio 2 license, but I wonder ... when will version 3 come out ... ?!?
I do not wish to pay $25 for a few weeks or months.

Thanks in advance,

J.

Understandable, but I don't think you have much to worry about. 2.0 was released on 21 May 2019, while 1.0 was released on 23 July 2012. So a version 1 license was good for 7 years. While Zip will release new versions often, they are mostly incremental changes. He has indicated in the past that he would only make a major version number change with a significant change to Serviio. For version 2.0, that was adding user accounts and access control. But when he changed MediaBrowser from a Flash to HTML5 player, he didn't make a major change in the version number, even though under the hood it was quite a significant effort.