Vitale4 15 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on which method is better when running Emby on a W10 x64 install? Should we run it as a service or run at startup under the context of the user logged in? I am asking because all of my media and Cache files was on a WD drive over a gigabit Lan. When I was running as a service I found that EMBY had an issue as the user context it was running as did not have full permissions to the WD Drive. I switched to startup mode and moved the Cache Files back to the default location and left the media on the WD Drive. I am not experiencing any major issues or problems. However, I am experiencing a minor issue when I restart EMBY manually via the Icon in the task bar. When the server restarts, it is not accessible on the local PC or a client computer. I have to reboot the computer EMBY is running on to get it working again. It is almost as if something does not get reset after I do a restart of the server. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37111 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Running at startup with the tray icon is much simpler. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathanio 35 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 I use the service myself. Only because I did have an issue with Emby dying when coming out of sleep. Using the service force restarted it. This happened whilst on a business trip so you can imagine the grief I got! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlbme 13 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 I run it as a service on a separate machine that is on 24x7. Since you're loading it on a Win10 machine and not a server, I'd go with the application method though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianG 11 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 I too run as a service so I don't have to be logged in for Emby to run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legallink 187 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 The other difference is "updates" You have to manually install any updates if it is run as a service. If it is run as an application, you can update through the web interface. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-Highlander 145 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 The other difference is "updates" You have to manually install any updates if it is run as a service. If it is run as an application, you can update through the web interface. See that's what I like about running it as a service, it means I decide if/when I update it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke 37111 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 We already have a setting for that. I wouldn't make that the reason you run as a service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koleckai Silvestri 1150 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) Both have their benefits. If you have a machine with a single user, then running it as an app is a good way to keep things going and you get automatic updates. This works well if you combine it with an HTPC client and you get a good WAF. If your machine is used by multiple users or is headless, I think using the Service is better. It isn't really about updates but you can make sure that the server is always chugging along in the background. This is how I run it. My server OS is Windows Home Server Essentials. Emby runs under its own user and the service is always available. I do other things on the server with another administrator user which is the one I frequently log in with. If there is a power outage or I do maintenance, I know that Emby will come back when power is restored without doing anything on my part. The machine's only user interface is through remote desktop. Decide which works best for you. p.s. you can use scheduled tasks and PowerShell scripts to automatically update Emby running as a service if you want to do so. Edited February 16, 2016 by Koleckai Silvestri 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-Highlander 145 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) We already have a setting for that. I wouldn't make that the reason you run as a service. Heh, no, I over simplified it that's for sure. I'm an I.T. Specialist (although I hate that term) for a living and run a Windows 2008 R2 server in the loft with Hyper-V running several VM's/Domain controller/mail server/web server and Emby etc etc for my internal network and development web site work etc. I don't leave the server logged in and don't wish to, running it as a service with UNC paths for all the media ensures it runs as it should without the need to leave it logged in. I haven't looked at the interface for a while, but I don't remember an option to turn off auto updates, there's definitely an option to switch between release/beta and dev but I don't remember one to disable it to ensure updates are manual? Edited February 16, 2016 by Ian-Highlander Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSattler 387 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Running at startup with the tray icon is much simpler. But a service you can set to restart on failure, and reboot on multiple failures to ensure it comes back up. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy2Play 8296 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) Heh, no, I over simplified it that's for sure. I'm an I.T. Specialist (although I hate that term) for a living and run a Windows 2008 R2 server in the loft with Hyper-V running several VM's/Domain controller/mail server/web server and Emby etc etc for my internal network and development web site work etc. I don't leave the server logged in and don't wish to, running it as a service with UNC paths for all the media ensures it runs as it should without the need to leave it logged in. I haven't looked at the interface for a while, but I don't remember an option to turn off auto updates, there's definitely an option to switch between release/beta and dev but I don't remember one to disable it to ensure updates are manual? When running server not as a service you have a "Enable automatic server updates" option. So you will get a "Update Now" button when updates are available. Everyone has there own needs. Having remote access from anywhere makes either option viable. Unless the server/system dies, then it doesn't matter. Edited February 16, 2016 by Happy2Play added system 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSattler 387 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 When running server not as a service you have a "Enable automatic server updates" option. So you will get a "Update Now" button when updates are available. Everyone has there own needs. Having remote access from anywhere makes either option viable. Unless the server/system dies, then it doesn't matter. HA ESXi Cluster =) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tur0k 143 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on which method is better when running Emby on a W10 x64 install? Should we run it as a service or run at startup under the context of the user logged in? I am asking because all of my media and Cache files was on a WD drive over a gigabit Lan. When I was running as a service I found that EMBY had an issue as the user context it was running as did not have full permissions to the WD Drive. I switched to startup mode and moved the Cache Files back to the default location and left the media on the WD Drive. I am not experiencing any major issues or problems. However, I am experiencing a minor issue when I restart EMBY manually via the Icon in the task bar. When the server restarts, it is not accessible on the local PC or a client computer. I have to reboot the computer EMBY is running on to get it working again. It is almost as if something does not get reset after I do a restart of the server. Thanks If you run emby server on your home theatre computer and you have it logged in all the time, I would recommend running emby at log on. this method is simpler as you can easily see the service in your task bar. additionally, updating emby server is a bit easier when you run it this way. Running the emby server as a service is useful when you have a windows computer or server that you turn on but do not have the system set to auto-logon (at startup) or it isn't a front end Home theatre computer that you will be logging into constantly. Personally, I have my emby server on my main home theatre computer (I don't have a backend server to host this on) running at logon, and that computer is constantly being used to watch movies/manage my recordings. I don't mind running emby server with all my other Home theatre services on the same computer so much because even with all of the applications I host on my Home theatre computer turned on and using resources, my CPU, RAM, HDD, and NIC utilization are nowhere near 60% (I'm running an AMD 6 core CPU overclocked to 3.8 Ghz, 64 GB SSD HDD (System drive), and 4TB NAS grade Data drive, 16GB of RAM and a gigabit NIC). Edited February 16, 2016 by Tur0k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MSattler 387 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 If you run emby server on your home theatre computer and you have it logged in all the time, I would recommend running emby at log on. this method is simpler as you can easily see the service in your task bar. additionally, updating emby server is a bit easier when you run it this way. Running the emby server as a service is useful when you have a windows computer or server that you turn on but do not have the system set to auto-logon (at startup) or it isn't a front end Home theatre computer that you will be logging into constantly. Personally, I have my emby server on my main home theatre computer (I don't have a backend server to host this on) running at logon, and that computer is constantly being used to watch movies/manage my recordings. I don't mind so much because even with all of the applications I host on my Home theatre computer turned on and using resources, my CPU, RAM, HDD, and NIC utilization are nowhere near 60% (I'm running an AMD 6 core CPU overclocked to 3.8 Ghz, 64 GB SSD HDD (System drive), and 4TB NAS grade Data drive, 16GB of RAM and a gigabit NIC). The service instance is actually really easy to upgrade. In the tools section is a EmbyServerUpdate Powershell script that will stop the service, download installer, install, exit, and restart the service without any issue. Just as an FYI. I no longer manually install. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tur0k 143 Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 The service instance is actually really easy to upgrade. In the tools section is a EmbyServerUpdate Powershell script that will stop the service, download installer, install, exit, and restart the service without any issue. Just as an FYI. I no longer manually install. now that sounds pretty cool. I may have to switch to running it as a service just to play with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vitale4 15 Posted February 16, 2016 Author Share Posted February 16, 2016 Thanks to all -- A lot to think about now that I have fully involved with EMBY. I have been using it for sometime now and have recently setup a dedicated Media W10 computer for streaming movies, TV and even LiveTV. As indicated, I currently run it at logon and not as a service (as I did before).but was curious about the feedback on which is better. this was good and provides a lot for me to consider. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFC 25 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 The service instance is actually really easy to upgrade. In the tools section is a EmbyServerUpdate Powershell script that will stop the service, download installer, install, exit, and restart the service without any issue. Just as an FYI. I no longer manually install. I'm not very well versed in this area. Where is the "tools section", and how should I run the update script if I choose to go with the service instance? CFC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14929 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 I'm not very well versed in this area. Where is the "tools section", and how should I run the update script if I choose to go with the service instance? CFC Tools and Utilities 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koleckai Silvestri 1150 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) I'm not very well versed in this area. Where is the "tools section", and how should I run the update script if I choose to go with the service instance? CFC There are two scripts. A PowerShell script to do the work. It reads your Emby configuration to update you to the appropriate release level, downloads the new version, stops the services, runs the install, and then restart the upgrade. You can run this directly as an Administrator or it will ask for Administrator permissions as necessary. The second script is a batch file that can be used if you can't call the PowerShell script directly. You can run this and it will spawn the above script. Just put them in any folder. I have mine in a desktop folder called "Emby Utilities." I just double click the batch file every few days when I am logged in doing other stuff. Could automate through Scheduled Tasks though for the same affect. Edited February 17, 2016 by Koleckai Silvestri 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFC 25 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) Tools and Utilities There are two scripts. A PowerShell script to do the work. It reads your Emby configuration to update you to the appropriate release level, downloads the new version, stops the services, runs the install, and then restart the upgrade. You can run this directly as an Administrator or it will ask for Administrator permissions as necessary. The second script is a batch file that can be used if you can't call the PowerShell script directly. You can run this and it will spawn the above script. Just put them in any folder. I have mine in a desktop folder called "Emby Utilities." I just double click the batch file every few days when I am logged in doing other stuff. Could automate through Scheduled Tasks though for the same affect. Thank you guys. I was thinking "tools" was some Emby task list or folder in my system . Glad I asked. This is the direct link to the thread in the tools section for "Windows Service Updater". CFC Edited February 17, 2016 by CFC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsme_to 0 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Running at startup with the tray icon is much simpler. Running whitout logging in is better. So you can use it 24/7 like it should with music and movies. Everywher eyou are. But its starting to be a local app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsme_to 0 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Heh, no, I over simplified it that's for sure. I'm an I.T. Specialist (although I hate that term) for a living and run a Windows 2008 R2 server in the loft with Hyper-V running several VM's/Domain controller/mail server/web server and Emby etc etc for my internal network and development web site work etc. I don't leave the server logged in and don't wish to, running it as a service with UNC paths for all the media ensures it runs as it should without the need to leave it logged in. I haven't looked at the interface for a while, but I don't remember an option to turn off auto updates, there's definitely an option to switch between release/beta and dev but I don't remember one to disable it to ensure updates are manual? I can second that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy2Play 8296 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I can second that. Well quoting a old post doesn't help anyone. So what are you seconding? Since there options for the last comment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebr 14929 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 "Better" is different for everyone but, for most of our user base, running as a normal app is simpler and not an issue for them. However, we do have a fairly simple method to run as a service if you wish to do that and many do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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