Hacking Windows7 MediaCenter

Sometimes a Windows Media Player database can become corrupt for any number of reasons. This will obviously also effect Media Center since it runs off the same database for videos and music. Luckily fixing the problem isn’t too difficult.

First thing that needs to be done is to stop the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service. This service controls media sharing over your network but it also locks the database file so it can’t be deleted by the user. To stop this service enter task manager (crtl+alt+del) and select the services tab. Find “WMPNetworkSvc” in the list then right-click and select “Stop Service”. If you receive a denied error you can also stop the service from the “Services” button at the bottom.

Once the service has been stopped open Windows Explorer and go to “\Users\YOUR USERNAME\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Media Player”. It may be hidden so you won’t be able to see it but you can type it into the address bar to access the location. Alternatively, you can also enable hidden folders to be shown on your pc by going to Control Panel > Folder Options and enabling showing hidden folders.

Once you’re in the folder, locate the “CurrentDatabase_371.wmdb” file and delete it. If you receive a permission denied error the “WMPNetworksvc” may not have been stopped or you may need to restart your machine and start again.

Once the wmdb file has been deleted, restart Windows Media Player and the database should begin to repopulate. It may take some time to complete depending on the number of files. That should be all there is to fixing your corrupt Windows Media Player database.

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Written by MHealy | 1 comments

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Tagged As: libraries, programs, windows 7

Adding shared network drives to your Windows 7 Libraries can be easier said than done. Many attempts to add these directories through Windows Explorer result in an error message claiming it can’t be added du to not being indexed. What the heck does that mean? Well, it means you’ve got to get your other box to index those directories.

Windows 7 users will have this ability built-in but boxes using Windows Vista or XP may need to download Windows Search 4 before being able to index the directories properly. Once you’ve everything you need go to your control panel and make sure you’re in the view showing all available control panel items.

Locate “Indexing Options” and hit the “Modify” button at the bottom. Once you get to the location tree find and select all the folders you want indexed and accessible to other computer’s libraries. Once you’ve selected them all return to the main window and press “Advanced.” Once you’re inside the Advanced window press the “Rebuild” button to re-index all the files on your system. This can take quite a while to complete.

Once the index has been rebuilt you should be able to add your shared network locations to your Windows 7 Libraries. If you need help adding directories to your Library see this article for more direction. Remember, if you enjoy the articles on Hack7MC be sure to tell a friend or StubmleUpon It using the easy links below!

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Tagged As: libraries, windows 7

Windows 7 includes a new system for organizing your personal files called “Libraries”.  On the surface they seem to work much the same as the old system but a closer look reveals that, unlike the previous system where each user gets a documents, music and videos folder, libraries can include many different directories.

These directories are important to Media Center users because it’s the basis of where Media Center imports local media such as music.  These can be setup from within Media Center but controlling them from the Windows shell is somewhat easier.

Viewing libraries from Windows is as easy as opening your start menu and clicking the user’s name at the top right under the user’s icon. This brings up an Explorer window showing any libraries that have been setup.  The default ones being Documents, Music, Videos and Pictures. Browsing any of these libraries will make it obvious these aren’t just another set of folders in Windows 7.

Windows 7 Libraries area actually a collection of folders containing the type of file that library is setup for (as well as any other files saved to that library).  These new libraries are essentially just a method to organize your folder structure outside of the basic hard disk structure in Explorer. Adding and removing folders from these collections is fairly simple as well, just click the “library locations” link in the top right corner of the toolbar.

This presents a dialog which allows you to add and remove folders from this library as well as set the default save location.  It also enables the movement of folders up and down in the library display saving unwanted scrolling each time a library is accessed.

Adding new libraries is just as easy. Simply right-click in the libraries display and select “New > New Library”.  As easy as creating a new folder in Explorer a new library has been created.

Entering the new library prompts users to add folders to the newly created library to get it started. That’s all there is to setting up libraries in Windows 7.  A fairly simple process that integrates very well with Media Center.  Adding folders to your Music, Videos and Pictures libraries will affect your folders inside Media Center adding an easy way to manipulate settings outside Media Center.

A really simple feature that is highly functional, everything should be this easy. That’s really all there is to working with Windows 7 Libraries. Also, check out our feature on Windows 7: Play To.

Need to add network folders to your library? Check out this guide on using network shares in libraries!

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Tagged As: libraries, play to, programs, windows 7