Adding video sources

Video library

Management

Adding video sources

A video source is a kind of media source. Media sources are the links that tell Kodi where your content is stored and what type of content is contained within each one.

You can have multiple sources for each media type.

You can use local media, file shares, removable USB drives, etc.

Note: UPnP won't work with the library features (scanning data in like summaries and movie covers) in Kodi, but just about all the other options should be fine.

Adding sources

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  Step 1: Select VIDEOS in the home screen menu.

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  Step 2: Select FILES, then select ADD VIDEOS....Note: For Android users with devices running Android 7 & up (possibly Android 6) and attached storage, do not select ADD VIDEOS as attached storage will not display in the Browse for new shares list. Instead, select the storage which should display in FILES, or navigate to the folder you wish to add on the storage, then press C on a keyboard or long press the Enter/OK button on a remote to pull up the Context Menu and select SET CONTENT.

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  Step 3: The ADD VIDEO SOURCE window will be displayed. Then select the BROWSE button. Note: You can also type a local or network file path directly into this box, if you already know the address/path. For example, smb://192.162.0.4 or smb://Your_Device_Name could be typed in directly and saved, which will skip the "browsing" step.

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  Step 4: Now browse the path where you keep your videos stored. Note: You must open the source/folder for the correct path to be added. Once you have found the folder you keep your videos in, select the OK button. If you keep them shared on a network drive, read the Configuring PC Shares article for more information about setting up a share on your computer first.

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  Step 5: Name this Video Source however you like. If it is a movie folder, you will probably want to name it Movies, and if it is a TV Show folder then you will probably want name it TV Shows. The name doesn't matter to Kodi. Then select OK.

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  Step 6: The set content window will display, this is where you tell Kodi what type of media is in the folder. Select This directory contains and in the new window select the media type(in this example movies).

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  Step 7: There are a number of options underneath, see Setting content and scanning to check what options to enable. Then select "OK"

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  Step 8: Press Yes to scan the content to the library (if no is pressed, it can be scanned later).

Adding Remote sources

For details on the supported protocols and configuration

See: File sharing

Follow the steps (above) for adding a source, but when you get to the 'browse' section (step 4), you need to do one of the following:

If your remote device is visible from one of the existing choices (e.g 'Network File system' , 'UPnP Devices' etc)

• Select a remote location, and you should be able to browse to the remote server.

If the device is not visible, or

• It is a remote NAS
• It is an SMB server

You will need to add a new network location:

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  Select Add network location... from the Browse for new shares' list.

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  In the new window select the correct Protocol for your Network Share, then select Server Name.

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  Type in either the IP Address or the Device name of your server. Note: if you use a dynamic IP for your NAS you could lose access to your shares if the IP changes. It is recommended that you use a static IP if adding your share this way.

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  In the Share folder section, type in the name of the folder you wish to add. Then if your share requires a Username and Password enter them in the appropriate sections. Then select OK and your share should appear in the Browse for new share list.

Making one source from multiple locations

You might notice that Kodi has an "ADD" button in addition to a "BROWSE" button when you are adding a source. After you add your first location, you can add a second location (network or local. you can even mix them) and Kodi will show both folders as a single folder/source.

Kodi will also combine the subfolders within the source/locations. For example, if you had a hard drive for TV shows, but ran out of space, you could make a second hard drive with the same folder paths and Kodi would merge them together to a single directory path. Such as

Hard drive 1/TV shows/


Hard drive 2/TV shows/

and the same is true for an additional nested folder with the same way:

Hard drive 1/TV shows/American Dad/


Hard drive 2/TV shows/American Dad/

You could have half of a show on one hard drive, half on another, and Kodi will show it to you as if it was in a single location by using multiple locations in a single source.

Note: This only impacts the basic "Files view". The default Library nodes will combine things by show even if their files are spread across multiple drives. Most users will not really benefit from using multiple paths in a single source.

Password protected sources

See: Media sources#Locking

See also

• Media sources
• File sharing