|
|
|---|
Windows Home Server RC1 on the Book Server - Page 3
Windows Home Server - Streaming and Remote File Access
I tested the DLNA video streaming features of WHS using the PS3 as the media receiver. Unlike TVsersity which transcodes all video into Mpeg2, WHS streams the files natively. This revealed itself by providing increased bit rate and responsiveness for file browsing with the PS3. The benefit for TVersity is that the transcoding allows one to play almost any file type on the media receiver since the file is streamed into a format compatible with the receiver. In this case AVI files (or flavors of AVI such as XVid) do not play on the PS3 without transcoding. The inability for WHS to transcode left me with the ability to view MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 SP and MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 and not AVI files. One can convert the AVI to a PS3 supported format to play the files, so this is not really a roadblock.
12/23/07: The PS3 firmware version v2.10 now supports DivX and VC-1 (WMV) video playback support. The PS3 is finicky regarding encoding format and not all XVid and DivX files will play.
Directory browsing was noticeably faster than TVersity.
Streaming MPEG-2 was smooth and with a decent bit-rate of 6.8 Mbps with 189 kbps for Mpeg audio.
Remote file transfer performance
Below is a download test from a remote computer using different Internet Providers to the Windows Home Server:
The WHS 'Book Server' is connected to the internal network via Gigabit switch which is connected to a Linksys Router. The router is connected to a Linksys cable modem.
Internet connection speed for WHS per DSL Reports:
Download - 5421 kb/s
Upload: 522 kb/s
Latency: 20 ms
File Download Speeds using Web portal
| City,State | Provider | Download Speed kb/s |
| Seattle, WA | Comcast | 95.9 |
| Vista, CA | ATTIB | 82.6 |
| Oceanside,CA | T3 (DS3) | 73.6 |
| San Marcos (intranet to internet) | Cox | 364 |
Copying a 1.18 GB file from the Windows shared folder from WHS directly using Windows Explorer to a computer on the the home network took ~2 minutes.
It appears that there is a bandwidth limitation when accessing WHS from the internet which doesn't appear to be dependant on the provider or remote computer's Internet access speed. I am not sure if this is a limitation imposed by the 'livenode.com' relay.
Using Remote Desktop is doable, but doing any intensive work using it would be slow going. Hopefully when Windows Home Server is released and all associated technologies go from testing to production that the bandwidth issues may decrease.
08/11/07- Experiences after upgrading Cox Cable Internet connection to the Premier service
After upgrading the internet connection used with WHS to Cox Premier from Preferred, the bandwidth increased about 2.5x for download and ~1.75x for upload. The connection upgrade also required that I also upgrade my cable-modem from a DOCSIS 1.0 to a DOCSIS 2.0 compliant model. The previous bandwidth reported may have been hampered a bit by the older Linksys DOCSIS 1.0 modem. The old and new modems were both Linksys. Below is the current WHS internet connection speed as reported by DSLreports.com:
Current bandwidth for intranet to internet (browser based download within the intranet) was significantly better than previous. The increased upload speed from 522 kbps to 925 kbps (varies up to 1054 kbps) provided a necessary boost for remote users.
WHS remote download speeds using web portal:
| City,State | Provider | Download Speed kb/s |
| Seattle, WA | Comcast | 127 |
| Oceanside,CA | T3 (DS3) | 139 |
| San Marcos (intranet to internet) | Cox | 4000 |
The increased bandwidth made for a more pleasurable experience when accessing the computer through the internet using the remote access functionality. Still a bit slow, but very usable.
Conclusions:
I am overall very happy with Windows Home Server for its DNLA support and automated system backups. Using the web portal allows me to to share pictures with family members and friends and they too can share their pictures by uploading it to WHS. The File Transfer performance for the web portal from the internet to WHS needs to be enhanced, but overall the system works well. I am looking forward to comparing my experiences in RC1 to the RTM version when it becomes available to integrators.
Please e-mail info@terracode.com with any comments or questions.
Terracode copyright 2007