How to rescan thumbnail images after having replaced video files?

[herrep 3]

Dear community,

After having fully scanned a library with a series containing several episodes including generating thumbnail images each 10 seconds, I realized that some episodes of the series had the wrong episode number and needed replacement. Therefore, I renamed the video files and performed a metadata update. This worked fine. However, one annoying issue remained: The thumbnail images generated each 10 seconds of video are related to the previous video file. Up to now, I did not find a way as how to ask Emby to re-generate the thumbnail images.

Does anybody know as how to proceed in such a case?

Best regards,
Peter

[rbjtech 4283]

Just delete all the .BIF files in that folder/folders.    Then do a Refresh metadata on the Show/Season, and it will regenerate the correct thumbnail files. (recreate the .BIF files)

Edited March 2 by rbjtech

[herrep 3]

Hi, thanks for the suggestion. This helped a lot!

My settings are not to store thumbnail images in the media folder. So I found out that the .bif files are stored with the metadata below /var/lib/emby/metadata/library. For testing purposes, I deleted one .bif file. Then I had some issues as how to recreate the .bif files. As the tasks I involved are performed with delays, I cannot say by sure which actions causes the recreation of thumbnail images. Even when I select an episode and caus a refresh of exactly the chosen eposiode (including the setting of replacing all images, just to be on the safe side), I cannot see that anything is created within the next minute. Then I tried various manual task executions like "Scan metadata folder", "Thumbnail image extraction" and on library level "scan library". When manually starting a task, I can see once it is completed. I did not see any generated .bif files directly after a manually started task was completed. So I rather assume your suggested refreshing of metadata is responsible, but then it has quite a delay...

I will report again once I have completed the refresh and foiund out more.

 

[herrep 3]

My impression is that you need to invoke the manual task of "Scan metadata folder" (this identifies the changes in the metadata, i.e. the lost .bif files) and then, once the first task is completed, run the manual task "Thumbnail image creation." Then I see the .bif files created one after the other.

[rbjtech 4283]

Hi - Yes, sorry I'm assuming you stored the BIF's with the media - otherwise you have no idea which BIF belongs with which media

Re picking up the removal of the BIF, this really depends if you have Real Time Monitoring Enabled - and if yes, you need to give it a few mins to pick up the change.   You can force it by doing a full scan, or scan metada folder (should be faster than a full scan) - afterwhich you need to then do the metadata refresh and/or Thumbnail image creation.

[Happy2Play 8296]

4 hours ago, rbjtech said:

otherwise you have no idea which BIF belongs with which media

Technically you do as they are still by filename.

[rbjtech 4283]

9 hours ago, Happy2Play said:

Technically you do as they are still by filename.

Ah I guess you can file search for them then - thanks ! 

[herrep 3]

Indeed, I used the following sequence to solve the issue:

# Thumbnail images are stored in .bif files (one file for each media file) in the metadata library below the folder:
/var/lib/emby/metadata/library

# Identify the bif file location:
cd /var/lib/emby/metadata/library
find . -name *.bif -print | grep -i "<name>"

sudo rm '<identified bif file including path below library folder>'

# Go to Emby Server Settings
Run manual task "Scan metadata folder" (this identifies the changes in the metadata, i.e. the lost .bif files)
Then, once the first task is completed, run the manual task "Thumbnail image creation

 

[rbjtech 4283]

21 minutes ago, herrep said:

Indeed, I used the following sequence to solve the issue:

# Thumbnail images are stored in .bif files (one file for each media file) in the metadata library below the folder:
/var/lib/emby/metadata/library

# Identify the bif file location:
cd /var/lib/emby/metadata/library
find . -name *.bif -print | grep -i "<name>"

sudo rm '<identified bif file including path below library folder>'

# Go to Emby Server Settings
Run manual task "Scan metadata folder" (this identifies the changes in the metadata, i.e. the lost .bif files)
Then, once the first task is completed, run the manual task "Thumbnail image creation

 

btw - you can automatically run any task or the refresh/scan at the command line via curl using the emby api..

variables within <variable>  (click on the scheduled task in a browser to get it's id)

curl -X POST "http://<my_emby_server>:8096/emby/Items/<ParentID>/Refresh?api_key=<EmbyAPIKey>" -H "accept: */*"

curl -X POST "http://<my_emby_server>:8096/emby/ScheduledTasks/Running/<EmbyMediaInfoScheduledTaskId>?api_key=<EmbyAPIKey>" -H "accept: */*"

 

Edited March 3 by rbjtech