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

[fajita]

I have been following the Roon developments with interest, as I would like to move to that program and have been waiting to see how it would integrate with Audiophile Optimizer and Windows Server 2012 in core mode. The posts above answer some of my questions, but lead to others.

 

For example, it seems that the above are meant to be applied to either the full version of Roon or "Roon Server" running on the music server that is directly attached to the DAC. But what if I would like to run one of those programs on a dedicated server that is different from the Audio device/PC that runs WinSrvr and Audiophile Optimizer as I do now? It would seem like "Roon Bridge" would be ideal for that situation, but is Audiophile Optimizer in Core capable of running this and providing benefits for doing so?

 

The more open ended question for Phil is: for those of us who store music on a centralized NAS or Server with multiple networked renderers/devices that access those files, one of which may be an audio PC with WinSrvr 2012 and Audiophile Optimizer, what is the recommended configuration for Roon? It is my understanding that there can only be one Roon "core" which I presume to mean the device that is running Roon or Roon Server.

 

Thanks!

 

Ryan

[fajita]

Thanks for that information... it is much appreciated. Your setup is very similar to how I would be using Roon, so it is reassuring that things work as conceived. In my case, the PC that will be running Roon Server also serves as my home's file server. It runs Windows 10, so I'll have to see if I can run some iteration of AO 2.0 on that machine (when released) without interfering with duties other than audio. I'd rather not have 2 machines on all the time, but adding a second PC as a dedicated music server is always an option.

 

I would imagine that, as the Roon control app is interfacing with the Roon core (server), whether or not there is a shell replacement for Roon Bridge on the endpoint machine wouldn't matter, no?

 

Ryan

[fajita]

After some exchanges earlier in this thread, I am now running Roon Core on my home file server (no audio optimizations) and my previous "audio server" connected to my DAC is now converted to really just a player, running Roon Bridge on AO 2.0 with only a command prompt (no shell).

 

The sound quality is better than before, having been using JRMC on the AO machine directly connected to the DAC, so I am really not complaining. However, outside of adding additional software such as process lasso or HQP, are there any optimizations that can be done on the Roon Bridge machine? For instance, is there any advantage to a shell other than the command prompt?