/var/log/metasplo.it: Windows 7 Media Center (MCE) command line recording application

During a previous home automation project using Debian Linux, X10 power management, Asterisk PABX software and Windows Media Center I found a distinct lack of flexibility with Windows 7 MCE command line recording. I wanted to be able to phone my Asterisk VOIP phone number and have it schedule a recording on my behalf.

While Windows 7 MCE is amazing at recording scheduled shows you set via the UI, unfortunately there is no good way to record shows from the command line.

After doing some research I found information on the Microsoft ClickToRecord API and decided to have a crack at building an application with my limited (OK, almost non-existent) C# knowledge.

After toiling away for a few hours I was able to make a working code example.

Binary Link
Source Link

Feel free to take my source and do what you want with it, PLEASE clean it up and send it back to me.

How it works

This is a two step process, first to create the recording XML file, then import it into my schedule.exe.

1. Create an XML file as per below.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<clickToRecord xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:ehome:clicktorecord">
    <body>
        <programRecord programDuration="30">
            <service>
                <key field="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:ehome:epg:service#mappedChannelNumber" match="exact">7</key>
            </service>
            <airing>
                <key field="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:ehome:epg:airing#starttime">2011-10-26T12:00:00+10:30</key>
            </airing>
        </programRecord>
    </body>
</clickToRecord>

You can see the XML file is very simple, I have set up a scheduled record on channel 7 for 30 minutes at 12:00PM on October 26, 2011.

The key properties are:

The program duration, set as 30 minutes in my example.
<programRecord programDuration="30">

The channel number, set as channel 7 in my example.
<key field="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:ehome:epg:service#mappedChannelNumber" match="exact">7</key>

The start time, set as 12:00PM on October 26, 2011 (in UTC + 10:30 hours time zone)
<key field="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:ehome:epg:airing#starttime">2011-10-26T12:00:00+10:30</key>

2. Simply execute the XML with the following command

schedule.exe filename.xml

My Usage

I use an Asterisk script to generate the XML file when I call. First it prompts me for the channel, then program start time and date. Next the MCE is started with a wake-over-lan boot if it is switched off, then XML file is uploaded to the MCE and is then triggered with Sysinternals psexec on the MCE itself.

I hope you find this little utility as useful as I did!

Wednesday, 26 October 2011

Windows 7 Media Center (MCE) command line recording application

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