When we are going to set up a multimedia center, we usually resort to applications, such as Plex or Emby, which are based on client-server operation and allow us to centralize all of our multimedia content on one computer so that we can access it from other computers on the local network. However, in order to be able to use this type of server it is necessary that the client is available for the device, and many times we find that, for a particular device, this does not happen. If what we want is 100% compatibility with any device, the ideal is to use servers that use UPNP/DLNA standard protocols as is the case with Universal Media Server.
Media Application Server is a free and open-source application for Windows, macOS, and Linux that allows us to turn our computer into a complete multimedia center very simple to use and compatible with virtually any device connected to the network that is compatible with the UPnP and DLNA protocol.
This Java-based application is designed to function as a universal server for the DLNA protocol. Some of the features offered by this application are:
- It has a web server to access multimedia content even from devices without DLNA support.
- Automatically adjusts the bitrate of the videos according to the quality of the network, guaranteeing the highest possible quality.
- It allows us to browse all multimedia files instantly.
- Compatible with subtitles.
- The DTS sound.
- 264 Encoding.
- Customizable through plugins.
- Totally free, both the program and its plugins.
In order to be able to use this application, the first thing we have to do is download the latest version (also version 7.0 came out yesterday) from its main website.
How Universal Media Server works
Once this application is downloaded we install it on our computer (we may be asked to install some dependencies during the installation, which we must accept) and continue the wizard, like any other application, until we have our multimedia server installed correctly.
When we run it for the first time, the program will ask us a few small questions to configure Universal Media Server based on our local network, our language, the options we want to see and the folders where we want our data to be stored.
Once this small configuration wizard is finished, we can see the main window of our new Universal Media Server.
The truth is, unless we want to, or need to for some particular reason, we won’t have to make any additional settings on the server, although, if we move through the main tabs we can see all the options offered by the program.
To start using this multimedia server, all we have to do is copy the videos we want you to control to the folder we selected during the initial configuration. In case you want to change the folder, from the settings we can do the same.
Once we have the files already added to this multimedia server, we only have to restart the server (for indexing) and that’s it. When it starts again, we can find it from any device connected to the local network, whether it is a television, console, smartphone or any other device.
How about Universal Media Server? Do you use another similar server to view multimedia content on the local network?