[HOW-TO] Roon and RoonServer on Windows Server 2012 R2

[AudioPhil]

I finally had some time to get myself "into" Roon last night. Roon & Windows Server have somewhat worked in the past, but the overall experience to get it working was not very convenient. These steps were needed to get Roon or RoonServer working on Windows Server 2012 R2:

 

- Add the Windows Role "Essentials Experience" (which actually converts a standard edition into an essentials edition)

- Add the "Windows Server Essentials Media Pack"

 

So i used the last night to get rid of all this inconvenient steps, and yes it does even work in Minimal-Server Mode now. I focused my testings on RoonServer and these are the needed steps to get a Roon Core working on Windows Server 2012 R2 (no matter if GUI or minimal-server Mode):

 

- Install Windows Server 2012 R2 & all available updates

- Install AudiophileOptimizer 2.10

- Install your DAC Driver

- Install RoonServer

- Stay in GUI mode or switch to Minimal-Server Mode (Core Mode is not supported!)

- Run AudiophileOptimizer in advanced or ultimate mode

- Say yes to "Install Kernel-Streaming and MediaPlayer support"

- Say yes to "Add roon support"

- Say no to "disable network related services"

- Do not disable Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI)

 

 

Enjoy,

Phil

 

 

OPENGL WARNING: If your graphic card driver for Server 2012/2012 R2 offers no OpenGL support (and you get OpenGL Errors when you start Roon) there is nothing AO could do against it. AO cannot change or extend the functionality of a graphic card driver.

 

Consider using RoonServer instead of Roon or switch to Windows 10 if no OpenGL compatible graphic card driver is available for server 2012/2012 R2.

[AudioPhil]

Phil - I'm using AO1.40 and would like to upgrade to AO2.0 latest beta. How do I do this? Do you have to send me an email link?

 

Thanks,

 

Jordan

 

 

Hi

 

like this: http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f28-highend-audiopc-sponsored/audiophileoptimizer-windows-10-beta-thread-26229/#post476921

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

did you try b14 regarding the NAS problems?

[AudioPhil]

A link to that thread would be helpfull too

[AudioPhil]

I think what Phil is saying is that prior to his work with AO 2.0 beta, you had run Win 12 Server Essentials and install the media pack in order to run Roon Server. However, with AO 2.0 beta, you no longer need either of these.

 

Exactly. Did enyone have the time to test MP3 or AAC files in that type of setup?

[AudioPhil]

MP3/AAC issues of Roon on Server 2012 R2 are now fixed with beta 20 of AO 2.00.

 

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f28-highend-audiopc-sponsored/audiophileoptimizer-windows-10-beta-thread-26229/index16.html#post549774

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

there where some important updates for the roon support in b21. Please upgrade to AO 2.00 in a few days when it is released.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

...the countdown is ticking!

[AudioPhil]

...welcome you are! :-)

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

This is a new feature of AO 2.00, it does not exist in 1.40, sorry.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

You have wrong keyboard region settings most likely.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Did you try to kill and manually restart the Roon processes?

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

When you say yes to "disable network related services" then the network adapters disappear in the network control panel of windows. This is by design because some relevant (to display the network adapters in control panel) services are disabled upon request. This did not change in the past years. Please do not use this feature if you want to use roon.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Upgraded to AO2.00. Thanks, Phil.

 

I cannot figure out how to automatically start RoonServer on startup and set shell as HQPlayer in Minimal Server. I've re-read these threads looking for the answer and I've tried adding a shortcut to RoonServer.exe in the Start folder (this works in GUI mode).

 

Can anyone help, please.

 

Thanks!

 

hi

 

launch ServiceTool and select "Shell Replacement". Then Choose Roon, RoonServer and reboot.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

windows knows only one shell, you cannot have two programs as shell. If you need such configuration you need to create a batch file which starts both programs, then set this batch file as shell.

 

Forget about the Autostart Folder, Microsoft designed it to work in GUI mode / minimal-server mode only. The shell replacement is the only way for "autostart" in core/minimal aside from true windows services.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

RoonServer (and no other software as well) does not run automatically in core mode, that's why the shell replacement is needed.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi Tboooe

 

i would be very happy if you'd stop confusing people with wrong instructions. When you tell not to say yes to roon support its VERY confusing and will generate a lot of support requests on our side, so please stop it. You have no knowledge about the technical backgrounds and you also don't know what happens when one does not install roon support, but i do.

to get full functionality of RoonServer including playback of all filetypes incl mp3 it is mandatory to add roon support!

 

Thanks a lot,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Yes, I have right clicked on RoonServer in system tray and selected Start automatically. I verified that it automatically starts in GUI mode then switched to minimal server mode, ran AO, checked after each step and no RoonServer.

 

What happens when you manually start roonserver via taskmanager?

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

Sorry if I was harsh, that was not my intent. It's just very dangerous, people will read what you wrote, and in most cases it will not work like that. And this will end up on my table in the end, that's not good... It took me many months to find out exactly what roon needs and what not, and all this is in AO 2.00 now. I appreciate you want to help germanboxers, so do I.

 

But as said, also for Roon/RoonServer it is absolutely mandatory to say YES to "add roon support" (at least ONE time). Sure, most of it will work if you skip the Roon support and just Install KS & MediaPlayer support, but not all of it. And again, this will end up on my table and it will also make the roon guys very angry and i don't want that because of misleading instructions (even if they are meant to help).

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

Hi

 

i have already explained the limitations of windows (only one shell is possible.) as well as the solution (custom batch starting both HQP and Roon via shell replacement) to start two different programs as shell. So i cannot really understand your frustration? ;-(

 

if this is an often used configuration i can make something ready to run for you guys...

 

but please don't ve disappointed or frustrated when you try something thats not supposed to work.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

OK... i think i have everything ready for you two to test. Please let me know your email-adress (via PM if you like) so i can send you the batch/registry files and instructions.

[AudioPhil]

You can be assured, if something is possible "somehow" -> i'm doing it :-)

 

files just sent via email.

[AudioPhil]

Hi all

 

Sorry dtb300, you are correct about OpenGL but you are not correct about core mode, experience Role and Media Pack.

 

- No version of Roon will work in Core Mode (yet).

- All version of Roon will work on Server 2012 R2 in GUI & minimal server mode, with the help of AO 2.00.

- If you use AO 2.00 you don't need to install the Essentials Experience Role nor the Essentials Media Pack

- If you don't use AO 2.00 on Server 2012 R2 Roon will only work in GUI mode and not all file types (like MP3)

will work, even if Roon officially supports Server 2012 R2.

- Not AO or anything else can add missing OpenGL support to a graphic card driver. Only the vendor of the graphic card can do that.

 

Everything is described in Detail in Post #1 of this thread.

 

Background info: Technically the Essentials Role is not needed at all, but it's a prerequisite for the Essentials Media Pack. AO 2.00's Roon Support feature will install the Essentials Media Pack without the unneeded Essentials Role. Aside from that AO 2.00 will also install all other needed Windows components to make Roon work for 100%, including playback all file types like MP3 etc.

 

Best,

Phil

[AudioPhil]

very welcome

 

baah, we had discount during the pre-order phase!

[AudioPhil]

For instance, is there any advantage to a shell other than the command prompt?

 

Yes indeed. There are three in total:

 

- no need to manually start your media player

- if you combine it with Autologon your machine gets ready to play music by just pressing the power button

- better sound quality since much less processes are loaded (this mainly applies to GUI mode. Minimal-Server and Core are already very tight)

 

Best,

Phil