Qnap as itunes server (home sharing)

Question

Level 1

0 points

Qnap as itunes server (home sharing)

I have been wanting to move all my Movies and Tv programs from my 3TB seagate USB3 drive to a sever or NAS (want 4 bays, RAD 5) and stream all data to an ATV3.

I have read many threads looking at different ways to a have "home sharing" without having itunes (including a Mac/PC) running, but none are a solid solution.

I then came across Qnap severs/NAS which i could buy with 4 bays and configure to RAID 5, it also has apps which can be pre-installed, I read through the app center on there website ( http://www.qnapstore.com/pages/no-parent-page/app-center.html ) and came across QAirplay.

Description:

QAirPlay lets you stream photo, music, and video from NAS to Apple TV. You may also use mobile app Qfile to browse the media content on the NAS and play the content on AirPlay-supported players.

does this mean its running as a home sharing device and therefore doesn't need itunes to be open?

also in the app center is QiTunesAir

Description:

With the iTunes Server alternative, the QiTunesAir QPKG audio files stored in the Turbo NAS can be streamed and played with AirPlay-enabled players such as AirPort Express and Apple TV. With the “Remote” app installed on iOS devices, controlling music playback becomes as easy as using a remote to control a conventional audio set in the house.

but doesn't say anything about movies or TV programs (anything in MP4/M4V format).

all I want to know is, does ever one of these apps for the Qnap run home sharing that will stream video without itunes to a ATV3?

Cheers

Posted on Jun 27, 2013 1:43 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Jul 2, 2013 9:06 PM in response to flexifoil28

Yes, you are correct. The solution of QAirplay+QNAP NAS does not require that the iTunes being turned on. Please note that QiTunesAir only streams music, while with QAirplay you can install Qfile on iOS devices and then connect to the Turbo NAS to select video/music/photo to stream to Apple TV.

Hope this helps.

Good luck.

Reply

Answer 2

flexifoil28 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jul 4, 2013 9:40 AM in response to Edward Lin

when you say you can download Qfile to an IOS device and then connect to the turbo NAS to stream to the ATV do you mean play the file on the IOS deivce and airplay to the ATV?

what about seeing the DVD cover and details about the movie or TV program.

Becuase in the format your explaining it will just be a file and the only detail will be the file name right?

Is there anyway of doing it where you can still see the details and DVD cover?

Cheers

Reply

Answer 3

Jul 5, 2013 3:23 AM in response to flexifoil28

To answer your first question, there are 2 ways to stream videos on QNAP Turbo NAS to Apple TV with Qfile:

Browse videos on the Turbo NAS, WITHOUT using QAirPlay app (installed on the Turbo NAS) and directly stream videos to Apple TV. This method forces the videos to route through the iOS device.
Browse videos on the Turbo NAS, choose to stream videos to the Apple TV via QAirPlay (it's an option on Qfile while streaming videos). This method forces the videos to stream directly from the Turbo NAS to Apple TV without routing to the iOS devices, thus saving battary life.

Due to Apple TV's restriction (correct me if I am wrong), only .mp4 files are supported. Below is a screenshot of Qfile browsing movie trailer videos on the Turbo NAS. You will be able to identify the videos by thumbnails and file names.

Hope this clarifies.

Thanks,

Edward

Reply

Answer 4

DocIgor

Level 1

0 points

Aug 22, 2013 9:53 AM in response to flexifoil28

I really like QNAP NASs--my latest is a pricey TS-269 Pro--but QFile as a multimedia controller (remote for QAirPlay) is just not acceptable although it does work to some degree.

Example limitations and/or bugs:

It has no volume control for video playback;
you can't multi-select audio files (e.g. every second file) in a folder for playback;
some M4A and AVI files won't playback or have caused Qfile to crash but they play back fine on my ATV when accessed using QAirPlay's web interface, which, unfortunately, is only accessible from my NAS's admin account;
you can only search audio files by name, date and size (no user-specified rating, artist, genre, etc.)

I think trying to use a general purpose file-access app like QFile as a multimedia controller is doomed from the start. It has too many file-centric functions that aren't relevant and if everything necessary for media playback is also crammed into it (someday, perhaps), it would be overly complicated.

I think the future for QAirPlay on a QNAP NAS is great but only if QNAP builds an equally powerful remote.

DocIgor

Reply

Answer 5

Flipkay

Level 1

14 points

Nov 22, 2013 8:51 PM in response to flexifoil28

QiTunes Air was removed from the App Center: http://forum.qnap.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=77629

Reply