<?xml version='1.0' encoding="utf-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE book PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.2//EN"
"docbook/dtd/xml/4.2/docbookx.dtd">
<book>
<title>The Music Player Daemon - User's Manual</title>
<chapter>
<title>Introduction</title>
<para>
This document is work in progress. Most of it may be incomplete
yet. Please help!
</para>
<para>
MPD (Music Player Daemon) is, as the name suggests, a server
software allowing you to remotely play your music, handle
playlists, deliver music (HTTP STREAMS with various
sub-protocols) and organizze playlists.
</para>
<para>
It has been written with minimal resource usage and stability in
mind! Infact, it runs fine on a Pentium 75, allowing you to use
your cheap old PC to create a stereo system!
</para>
<para>
MPD supports also Gapless playback, buffered audio output, and
crossfading!
</para>
<para>
The separate client and server design allows users to choose a
user interface that best suites their tastes independently of
the underlying daemon, which actually plays music!
</para>
</chapter>
<chapter>
<title>Installation</title>
<para>
We recommend that you use the software installation routines of
your distribution to install MPD. Most operating systems have a
MPD package, which is very easy to install.
</para>
<section>
<title>Installing on Debian/Ubuntu</title>
<para>
Install the package <filename>mpd</filename> via APT:
</para>
<programlisting>apt-get install mpd</programlisting>
<para>
When installed this way, MPD by default looks for music in
/var/lib/mpd/music/; this may not be correct. Look at your
/etc/mpd.conf file...
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title>Compiling from source</title>
<para>
Download the source tarball from <ulink
url="http://mpd.wikia.com/wiki/Server">the MPD home
page</ulink> and unpack it:
</para>
<programlisting>tar xjf mpd-version.tar.bz
cd mpd-version</programlisting>
<para>
Make sure that all the required libraries and build tools are
installed. The <filename>INSTALL</filename> file has a list.
</para>
<para>
Now configure the source tree:
</para>
<programlisting>./configure</programlisting>
<para>
The <parameter>--help</parameter> argument shows a list of
compile-time options. When everything is ready and
configured, compile:
</para>
<programlisting>make</programlisting>
<para>
And install:
</para>
<programlisting>make install</programlisting>
</section>
</chapter>
<chapter>
<title>Configuration</title>
<section>
<title>Configuring the music directory</title>
<para>
When you play local files, you should organize them within a
directory called the "music directory". This is configured in
MPD with the <varname>music_directory</varname> setting.
</para>
<para>
By default, MPD follows symbolic links in the music directory.
This behavior can be switched off:
<varname>follow_outside_symlinks</varname> controls whether
MPD follows links pointing to files outside of the music
directory, and <varname>follow_inside_symlinks</varname> lets
you disable symlinks to files inside the music directory.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title>Configuring input plugins</title>
<para>
To configure an input plugin, add a <varname>input</varname>
block to <filename>mpd.conf</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>input {
plugin "lastfm"
user "foo"
password "bar"
}
</programlisting>
<para>
The following table lists the <varname>input</varname> options
valid for all plugins:
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>
Name
</entry>
<entry>
Description
</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>plugin</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the plugin.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>enabled</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Allows you to disable a input plugin without
recompiling. By default, all plugins are enabled.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title>Configuring decoder plugins</title>
<para>
Most decoder plugins do not need any special configuration.
To configure a decoder, add a <varname>decoder</varname> block
to <filename>mpd.conf</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>decoder {
plugin "wildmidi"
config_file "/etc/timidity/timidity.cfg"
}
</programlisting>
<para>
The following table lists the <varname>decoder</varname>
options valid for all plugins:
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>
Name
</entry>
<entry>
Description
</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>plugin</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the plugin.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>enabled</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Allows you to disable a decoder plugin without
recompiling. By default, all plugins are enabled.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title>Configuring audio outputs</title>
<para>
Audio outputs are devices which actually play the audio chunks
produced by MPD. You can configure any number of audio output
devices, but there must be at least one. If none is
configured, MPD attempts to auto-detect. Usually, this works
quite well with ALSA, OSS and on Mac OS X.
</para>
<para>
To configure an audio output manually, add an
<varname>audio_output</varname> block to
<filename>mpd.conf</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>audio_output {
type "alsa"
name "my ALSA device"
device "hw:0"
}
</programlisting>
<para>
The following table lists the <varname>audio_output</varname>
options valid for all plugins:
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>
Name
</entry>
<entry>
Description
</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>type</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the plugin.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>name</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the audio output. It is visible to the
client. Some plugins also use it internally, e.g. as
a name registered in the PULSE server.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>format</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
Always open the audio output with the specified audio
format (samplerate:bits:channels), regardless of the
format of the input file. This is optional for most
plugins.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>enabled</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Specifies whether this audio output is enabled when
MPD is started. By default, all audio outputs are
enabled.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>mixer_type</varname>
<parameter>hardware|software|none</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Specifies which mixer should be used for this audio
output: the hardware mixer (available for ALSA, OSS
and PulseAudio), the software mixer or no mixer
("none"). By default, the hardware mixer is used for
devices which support it, and none for the others.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title>Configuring filters</title>
<para>
Filters are plugins which modify an audio stream.
</para>
<para>
To configure a filter, add a <varname>filter</varname> block
to <filename>mpd.conf</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>filter {
plugin "volume"
name "software volume"
}
</programlisting>
<para>
The following table lists the <varname>filter</varname>
options valid for all plugins:
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>
Name
</entry>
<entry>
Description
</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>plugin</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the plugin.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>name</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the filter.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title>Configuring playlist plugins</title>
<para>
Playlist plugins are used to load remote playlists. This is
not related to MPD's playlist directory.
</para>
<para>
To configure a filter, add a
<varname>playlist_plugin</varname> block to
<filename>mpd.conf</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>playlist_plugin {
name "m3u"
enabled "true"
}
</programlisting>
<para>
The following table lists the
<varname>playlist_plugin</varname> options valid for all
plugins:
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>
Name
</entry>
<entry>
Description
</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>name</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
The name of the plugin.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>enabled</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Allows you to disable a input plugin without
recompiling. By default, all plugins are enabled.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
</chapter>
<chapter>
<title>Using MPD</title>
<section>
<title>The client</title>
<para>
After you have installed, configured and started MPD, you
choose a client to control the playback.
</para>
<para>
The most basic client is <filename>mpc</filename>, which
provides a command line interface. It is useful in shell
scripts. Many people bind specific <filename>mpc</filename>
commands to hotkeys.
</para>
<para>
The <ulink url="http://mpd.wikia.com/wiki/Clients">MPD
Wiki</ulink> contains an extensive list of clients to choose
from.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title>The music directory and the database</title>
<para>
The "music directory" is where you store your music files.
MPD stores all relevant meta information about all songs in
its "database". Whenever you add, modify or remove songs in
the music directory, you have to update the database, for
example with <filename>mpc</filename>:
</para>
<programlisting>mpc update</programlisting>
<para>
Depending on the size of your music collection and the speed
of the storage, this can take a while.
</para>
<para>
To exclude a file from the update, create a file called
<filename>.mpdignore</filename> in its parent directory. Each
line of that file may contain a list of shell wildcards.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title>The queue</title>
<para>
The queue (sometimes called "current playlist") is a list of
songs to be played by MPD. To play a song, add it to the
queue and start playback. Most clients offer an interface to
edit the queue.
</para>
</section>
</chapter>
<chapter>
<title>Plugin reference</title>
<section>
<title>Input plugins</title>
<section>
<title><varname>curl</varname></title>
<para>
Opens remote files or streams over HTTP.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>proxy</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the address of the HTTP proxy server.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>proxy_user</varname>,
<varname>proxy_password</varname>
</entry>
<entry>
Configures proxy authentication.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>file</varname></title>
<para>
Opens local files.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>mms</varname></title>
<para>
Plays streams with the MMS protocol.
</para>
</section>
</section>
<section>
<title>Output plugins</title>
<section>
<title><varname>alsa</varname></title>
<para>
The "Advanced Linux Sound Architecture" plugin uses
<filename>libasound</filename>. It is recommended if you
are using Linux.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>device</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the device which should be used. This can be
any valid ALSA device name. The default value is
"default", which makes
<filename>libasound</filename> choose a device. It
is recommended to use a "hw" or "plughw" device,
because otherwise, <filename>libasound</filename>
automatically enables "dmix", which has major
disadvantages (fixed sample rate, poor resampler,
...).
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>use_mmap</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
If set to <parameter>yes</parameter>, then
<filename>libasound</filename> will try to use
memory mapped I/O.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>buffer_time</varname>
<parameter>US</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the device's buffer time in microseconds.
Don't change unless you know what you're doing.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>period_time</varname>
<parameter>US</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the device's period time in microseconds.
Don't change unless you really know what you're
doing.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>auto_resample</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
If set to <parameter>no</parameter>, then
<filename>libasound</filename> will not attempt to
resample, handing the responsibility over to MPD.
It is recommended to let MPD resample (with
libsamplerate), because ALSA is quite poor at doing
so.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>auto_channels</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
If set to <parameter>no</parameter>, then
<filename>libasound</filename> will not attempt to
convert between different channel numbers.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>auto_format</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
If set to <parameter>no</parameter>, then
<filename>libasound</filename> will not attempt to
convert between different sample formats (16 bit, 24
bit, floating point, ...).
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>ao</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>ao</varname> plugin uses the portable
<filename>libao</filename> library.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>fifo</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>fifo</varname> plugin writes raw PCM data to a
FIFO (First In, First Out) file. The data can be read by
another program.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>jack</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>jack</varname> plugin connects to a JACK
server.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>mvp</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>mvp</varname> plugin uses the proprietary
Hauppauge Media MVP interface. We do not know any user of
this plugin, and we do not know if it actually works.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>httpd</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>httpd</varname> plugin creates a HTTP server,
similar to ShoutCast / IceCast. HTTP streaming clients like
<filename>mplayer</filename> can connect to it.
</para>
<para>
You must configure either <varname>quality</varname> or
<varname>bitrate</varname>. It is highly recommended to
configure a fixed <varname>format</varname>, because a
stream cannot switch its audio format on-the-fly when the
song changes.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>port</varname>
<parameter>P</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Binds the HTTP server to the specified port (on all
interfaces).
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>encoder</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Chooses an encoder plugin,
e.g. <parameter>vorbis</parameter>.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>quality</varname>
<parameter>Q</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Configures the encoder quality (for VBR) in the
range -1 .. 10.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>bitrate</varname>
<parameter>BR</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets a constant encoder bit rate, in kilobit per
second.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>null</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>null</varname> plugin does nothing. It
discards everything sent to it.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>sync</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
If set to <parameter>no</parameter>, then the timer
is disabled - the device will accept PCM chunks at
arbitrary rate (useful for benchmarking). The
default behaviour is to play in real time.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>oss</varname></title>
<para>
The "Open Sound System" plugin is supported on most Unix
platforms.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>device</varname>
<parameter>PATH</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the path of the PCM device. If not specified,
then MPD will attempt to open
<filename>/dev/sound/dsp</filename> and
<filename>/dev/dsp</filename>.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>openal</varname></title>
<para>
The "OpenAL" plugin uses <filename>libopenal</filename>.
It is supported on many platforms.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>device</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the device which should be used. This can be
any valid OpenAL device name. If not specified, then
<filename>libopenal</filename> will choose a default device.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>osx</varname></title>
<para>
The "Mac OS X" plugin uses Apple's CoreAudio API.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>pipe</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>pipe</varname> plugin starts a program and
writes raw PCM data into its standard input.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>command</varname>
<parameter>CMD</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
This command is invoked with the shell.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>pulse</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>pulse</varname> plugin connects to a PulseAudio
server.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>server</varname>
<parameter>HOSTNAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the host name of the PulseAudio server. By
default, MPD connects to the local PulseAudio
server.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>sink</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Specifies the name of the PulseAudio sink MPD should
play on.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>recorder</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>recorder</varname> plugin writes the audio
played by MPD to a file. This may be useful for recording
radio streams.
</para>
<para>
You must configure either <varname>quality</varname> or
<varname>bitrate</varname>.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>path</varname>
<parameter>P</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Write to this file.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>encoder</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Chooses an encoder plugin,
e.g. <parameter>vorbis</parameter>.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>quality</varname>
<parameter>Q</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Configures the encoder quality (for VBR) in the
range -1 .. 10.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>bitrate</varname>
<parameter>BR</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets a constant encoder bit rate, in kilobit per
second.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>shout</varname></title>
<para>
The <varname>shout</varname> plugin connects to a ShoutCast
or IceCast server. It forwards tags to this server.
</para>
<para>
You must set a <varname>format</varname>.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>host</varname>
<parameter>HOSTNAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the host name of the Shoutcast/Icecast server.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>port</varname>
<parameter>PORTNUMBER</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Connect to this port number on the specified host.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>timeout</varname>
<parameter>SECONDS</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Set the timeout for the shout connection in seconds.
Defaults to 2 seconds.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>mount</varname>
<parameter>URI</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Mounts the MPD stream in the specified URI.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>user</varname>
<parameter>USERNAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the user name for submitting the stream to the
server. Default is "source".
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>password</varname>
<parameter>PWD</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the password for submitting the stream to the
server.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>name</varname>
<parameter>NAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the name of the stream.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>genre</varname>
<parameter>GENRE</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the genre of the stream (optional).
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>description</varname>
<parameter>DESCRIPTION</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets a short description of the stream (optional).
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>public</varname>
<parameter>yes|no</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Specifies whether the stream should be "public".
Default is "no".
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>encoder</varname>
<parameter>PLUGIN</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the name of the encoder plugin. Default is
"vorbis". "vorbis" and "lame" are valid encoder
plugins (provided that you enabled them at compile
time).
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>solaris</varname></title>
<para>
The "Solaris" plugin runs only on SUN Solaris, and plays via
<filename>/dev/audio</filename>.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>device</varname>
<parameter>PATH</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
Sets the path of the audio device, defaults to
<filename>/dev/audio</filename>.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
</section>
<section>
<title>Playlist plugins</title>
<section>
<title><varname>lastfm</varname></title>
<para>
Plays last.fm radio.
</para>
<informaltable>
<tgroup cols="2">
<thead>
<row>
<entry>Setting</entry>
<entry>Description</entry>
</row>
</thead>
<tbody>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>user</varname>
<parameter>USERNAME</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
The last.fm user name.
</entry>
</row>
<row>
<entry>
<varname>password</varname>
<parameter>PWD</parameter>
</entry>
<entry>
The last.fm password.
</entry>
</row>
</tbody>
</tgroup>
</informaltable>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>m3u</varname></title>
<para>
Reads <filename>.m3u</filename> playlist files.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>pls</varname></title>
<para>
Reads <filename>.pls</filename> playlist files.
</para>
</section>
<section>
<title><varname>xspf</varname></title>
<para>
Reads <ulink url="http://www.xspf.org/">XSPF</ulink>
playlist files.
</para>
</section>
</section>
</chapter>
</book>