DLNA / UPnP

TorrPlay includes a built-in DLNA / UPnP ContentDirectory service, allowing you to discover and stream torrent media directly to Smart TVs, game consoles, media players, and set-top boxes on your local network.

Supported Clients

The DLNA server is compatible with standard UPnP / DLNA media players, including:

• Smart TVs: LG webOS, Samsung Tizen, Sony Bravia, Android TV / Google TV
• Media Players: VLC Media Player, Kodi, Infuse
• Consoles: Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox

Features & Hierarchy

• Category Browsing: Organizes torrents into structured folders: Movies, Series, and custom categories (category:<name>).
• UPnP Pagination: Supports standard StartingIndex and RequestedCount parameters for fast, lag-free navigation across large libraries.
• GENA Event Subscriptions: Implements UPnP eventing (SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, NOTIFY), notifying Smart TVs in real time when torrents are added, updated, or removed.
• Automatic Authentication Handling: When TorrPlay authentication is enabled, the DLNA ContentDirectory service automatically embeds scoped playback tokens into stream URLs, allowing TVs to stream media without manual login.

Configuration

DLNA settings can be managed via the settings API (/api/v1/settings) or through the Web UI.

Parameters

Enabling DLNA via API

To enable DLNA and set a custom server name:

curl -X PATCH http://localhost:8090/api/v1/settings \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "enable_dlna": true,
    "friendly_name": "Living Room TorrPlay"
  }'

You can also toggle DLNA through the Web UI under Settings → DLNA.

How It Works

    sequenceDiagram
    autonumber
    participant TV as Smart TV / Media Player
    participant DLNA as TorrPlay DLNA Server
    participant Engine as TorrPlay HTTP Stream Engine

    DLNA->>TV: SSDP Discovery Broadcast (UPnP ContentDirectory)
    TV->>DLNA: Browse ContentDirectory Tree (Categories & Items)
    DLNA-->>TV: Active Torrents List & Authenticated Stream Links
    TV->>Engine: GET /api/v1/stream/{hash}?path=...&token=...
    Engine-->>TV: Chunked HTTP Video Stream Data (Range Requests)
  

1. When enable_dlna is enabled, TorrPlay announces itself on your local subnet using SSDP (Simple Service Discovery Protocol).
2. Devices on your network will show TorrPlay in their network media source menu.
3. Browsing the TorrPlay DLNA source presents your active torrent library formatted as video streams.
4. When a video file is selected on your TV or media player, TorrPlay streams the piece data directly over HTTP with full Range request seeking support.