Frequently Asked Questions XBMC running on the Raspberry Pi.
Template:XBMC FAQ
General FAQ
- See also: XBMC all platforms FAQ for FAQs that apply to all versions of XBMC.
Installing XBMC on the Raspberry Pi
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Is XBMC for Raspberry Pi different from normal XBMC?
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- The current stable version of XBMC for Raspberry Pi is v12.2 Frodo. This is the same code that all of the other platforms (Linux, iOS, Mac OS X, Windows, etc) are using.
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How do I find out what version of XBMC am I running?
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- XBMC main menu > System > Lower submenu > System info. Note the alpha version and/or build date.
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Video and audio formats the Raspberry Pi can playback
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- H.264 (up to High Profile) encoded videos are supported up to 1080P using hardware video decoding. Note: Hi10P will not work.
- For proper HD playback you will need hardware decoding. The Raspberry Pi Foundation offers additional video codec licenses for a few dollars. At the moment you can purchase MPEG2 and VC1, both with support up to 1080P. Others may be available in the future. Read below on how to enable these.
- Some SD content can be played back with software decoding.
- DVD ISOs and DVD menu navigation is early in development and might not always work.
- XBMC on the Raspberry Pi will struggle with DTS audio tracks since it relies heavily on CPU power. The Foundation is reportedly working on a hardware decoding license, meanwhile use passthrough (with a compatible TV and/or receiver) when possible.
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Video and audio output on the Raspberry Pi
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- Video output via HDMI up to 1080P (the GUI will be rendered at 720P, but video will play up to 1080P).
- Video output via the analog component video (RCA) jack will be in SD.
- Analog audio output via the mini phone jack is supported.
- USB audio is currently not supported.
- DTS and AC3 audio passthrough audio is supported (and recommended, as it will reduce CPU load on the R-Pi)
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Enabling additional video codecs
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You can buy additional video codecs (VC-1 - used in some bluray discs, and MPEG-2) from the Raspberry Pi Foundation online shop. After purchase the keys are emailed to you, looking like this (invalid keys used for example):
decode_MPG2=0x1cc591c7
decode_WVC1=0x8aa09876
In order to enable additional video codecs you should modify /boot/config.txt and add these lines literally. The method may vary per distribution:
- Manual: Open /boot/config.txt with a text editor like nano or vi, and add the keys.
- XBian: You can add/remote your keys using XBian-config. After reboot your keys will be entered and ready to use.
- Raspbmc: Navigate to Programs -> Raspbmc Settings -> System Configuration -> MPEG2 codec license/VC1 codec key. Enter your keys with the onscreen keyboard then XBMC will prompt you to reboot. After reboot your keys will be entered and ready to use.
- OpenELEC: Type
mount /flash -o remount,rw to remount the boot partition in read/write mode. The file to edit is located in /flash/config.txt, and contains stubs for the license keys. Add the keys using nano or vi.
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- You can connect to media that's being shared from a computer, HTPC, or NAS device on your local network.
- You can access media on the main SD card or from the USB ports (hard drives, USB stick drives, hubs, all supported).
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- XBMC for Raspberry Pi is a full version of XBMC and will be able to use all non-platform specific add-ons and skins. More feature rich (CPU demanding) skins like AEON Nox might not run smoothly, so keep to "lighter" skins.
- Recommended lite skins include: Confluence (default skin), Metropolis, Quartz, Quartz Reloaded, Slik, xTV-SAF.
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How to properly shutdown/disconnect
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- It is not possible to use traditional "shutdown" on the Raspberry Pi. The only way to power it off is to disconnect the power.
- ALWAYS select the shutdown command in XBMC before powering off the Raspberry Pi. Failure to do so can corrupt the XBMC library databases, other databases, or even other OS files.
- Most users leave the Raspberry Pi on all the time, as it uses very little power (the cost of electricity for a year is about the price of a hamburger).
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- Any Keyboard such as wired, wireless, bluetooth. This includes "keymotes" such as a Rii or Boxee remote.
- Web interfaces, including add-on interfaces.
- XBMC smartphone and tablet remote apps.
- Other IR remotes can be used with USB IR receivers such as the Flirc.
- CEC - Includes information about controlling your Raspberry Pi via compatible HDMI CEC products.
- GPIO IR receiver - A simple bare IR receiver can be connected to the R-Pi's GPIO pins using these instructions.
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- If you are using MySQL library sharing features, please note that your library will only sync with the Raspberry Pi if all your other XBMC instances are running the same version (how to check your version).
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Troubleshooting
Getting more help with XBMC for Raspberry Pi
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- See How-to:Submit a proper bug report for bug reporting details and Debug log for how to post the debug log.
- Userdata folder:
- OpenELEC: /storage/.xbmc/userdata/
- Raspbmc: /home/pi/.xbmc/userdata/
- XBian: /home/xbian/.xbmc/userdata/
- Debug log:
- OpenELEC: /storage/.xbmc/temp/xbmc.log
- Raspbmc: /home/pi/.xbmc/temp/xbmc.log
- XBian: /home/xbian/.xbmc/temp/xbmc.log
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Wrong language displayed in XBMC
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Raspberry Pi known issues
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Performance: video buffering, stuttering, choppiness
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- Switch to a different network protocol (especially if you are using SMB), i.e. NFS, FTP, WebDAV, etc.
- Try sharing the media on another device to rule out a device-specific (or network) issue. Note: The Raspberry Pi can sometimes have a problem supplying enough power to a USB WiFi dongle. Try a wired ethernet cable to rule out this problem.
- Turn off thumbnails, XBMC > Settings > Video > File and deselect 'generate thumbnails'.
- Make sure the video is using the h.264 codec (up to High Profile. Hi10P will not work), or, if a codec was purchased and enabled, MPEG-2 or VC-1.
- Movies with DTS audio tracks will stutter since the Raspberry Pi lacks CPU power to properly decode this. Use audio passthrough if your TV/receiver supports, or consider reconverting the audio track (or add a converted secondary track to preserve the original DTS track). Note: Raspberry Pi developers have written code to process DTS streams in hardware however they are waiting on a response from DTS regarding licensing. See this Raspberry Pi forum entry.
- If your TV/receiver supports it, AC3 can also use audio passthrough to reduce the work on the CPU. To determine which audio codecs your HDMI-connected TV supports, you can log in to your chosen distribution, via SSH, and run this command:
/opt/vc/bin/tvservice -a (on OpenELEC: tvservice -a ).
- If RSS feed is enabled, disable it in settings. This makes the main menu a bit faster.
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