Multiple systems, one XLobby ? Or ...

[cooldog]

Folks,

I've got two HTPCs running here, in two separate "theaters". Both are running 24 x 7. Both pull their content from a multi-TB Linux-based server in the basement. Both machines are similarly configured, and any differences can be "hidden" by Girder (i.e. XLobby triggers a Girder event, XL_TV_ON, and doesn't need to know the details of what kind of display that "TV" really is).

Currently, each HTPC has its own copy of XLobby running in a normal mode, with no relation between them.

In the past, I've not really used XLobby that much in the upstairs theater --- I've most driven "manually", so to speak, with mouse and keyboard.

Downstairs, I've got the prerelease version running pretty nicely.

I'm now on a mission to get thing into better shape upstairs, and I have a question: should I be looking at trying to run a single copy of XLobby to run two HTPCs, or must each one run its own instance???

It would be nice to reduce the maintenance tasks by running just one ...

Any thoughts?

[cmhardwick]

if you want to not have to run updates on each one as far as new content, you could run a thick-client on the one upstairs. Just have it connect to the main one downstairs via xNet, that way it can have it's own events and skin, but will share the databases with the one downstairs. It copies the databases over on startup. I'm not sure how additions to the "server" databases are propagated though. meaning I dont' know if you'd have to exit and restart the upstairs "client" copy to get the updated databases.

[cooldog]

I'd like to share the skins and events too ... basically have an identical user interface in both places.

I'm not using the internal player, since I've never found a single player that manages to work with all the various hi-def formats and codecs, and I would think that this should make it easier to create a "play on client" event.

Do you know if the Windows thin client has any "execute on client" functionality?

[cmhardwick]

it doesn't, it executes on the server as far as video, etc, is concerned since it's just a "controller" basically.
to use the thick-client and keep same events and skins as well as the database, you could update on and just copy the stuff over to the other machine using your network. This is what I do between my developement and production systems.

[S Pittaway]

why not have the xlobby install on the server share?

you can then run it independently on both machines but only have one set of xlobby files/database/skins?