How I solved my WMP12 and Xbox Shared Video Problem >:(

Windows Media Center isn’t playing nice with me so I opted to go with the simpler Xbox 360 approach. Oh yea, that ones been causing pain for me as well as it failed to show the videos I had linked in the library (exactly where I left off when I had the exact same intentions). Well I fixed it. After trying to find a simple guide to confirm (with nice pictures) which would show me the step I missed on setting it up, I realized there was no guide. At least, no guide that Google wanted to show me, as it was busy showing cries for help from forums.

The Problem

I have videos in D:\Videos. Straight forward. I  went into WMP12, and right clicked a library and had add clicked “Manage Videos Library”. I click add, select d:\Videos and await for them to start showing up. They didn’t. All I could see was “Recorded Tv” and “Shared Videos” libraries on the main partition. Awesome.

The Solution (?)

In WMP12 goto Tools -> Advanced -> Restore Media Library. Proceed to next paragraph. If you are still here wondering where this is. That’s a DAMN GOOD QUESTION: Hit Alt. Continue. After clicking everywhere looking to see what options I had, then finding this by sheer luck, makes me question our Microsoft overlords.

Next, for good measure, I selected Stream and “Automatically Allow Devices to Play My Media” and made sure it was running.

I then proceeded to D:\Videos, right clicked and viewed properties. Make sure it is shared. Under ‘Advanced Sharing’ I gave full control to the Everyone user. Next, in Security, I made sure the HomeUsers user had Read&Execute, List folder contents, and Read permissions. Next give WMPNetworkSvc the same. Be sure to click Advanced once done, along with Change Permissions, then Select Include Inheritable and Replace All… and hit OK to propagate these changes. Done? Beauty. You may have to disable ‘Use Sharing Wizard’ in Explorer Folder Options to get these tabs.

Lastly, back in WMP12, under stream, if it says “Turn on Media Sharing” click it, enable, and hope that does it because thats where mine took off (I believe it gets disabled once Restore Media Library is clicked).