The network stream function requires the exact URL of the exact streaming resource (in a format VLC can access). Now, to be clear, using this feature is not as simple as plugging in the URL of a YouTube video or Netflix video. The final method, which works for both video and audio streams, is to dump the URL of the streaming source into the address box in the “Network Stream” tab. This tab also, rather conveniently, maintains a list of both the previous URLs you’ve entered there as well as the URLs you’ve entered via the remote control web interface we looked at in the previous section. Network Stream: From The Internet to Your TV The cached files will be automatically deleted by the operating system if additional storage is needed. This is a pretty handy feature if you’re watching kids’ movies or TV shows that will be watched over and over again. Whether you send the video files from your computer or mobile device the files will play on your Apple TV and have the added bonus of being cached to your Apple TV’s local storage.
#SPECIFIC UPNP PLAYER ADDRESS VLC PC#
While you’ll need to be on a PC in order to drag and drop files, if you load the same remote playback URL on a mobile device (where you can’t drag and drop) you can still tap the + symbol to select media on the device. Then you can browse the shared folders just like you would on your computer, albeit with the Apple TV remote. To access the files, simply select any given entry in the local network tab and, if applicable, enter the login credentials for that file share or FTP server.
#SPECIFIC UPNP PLAYER ADDRESS VLC HOW TO#
RELATED: How to Install Plex on Your Apple TVĪs an aside, if your primary use for VLC would be accessing your Plex Media Server, you may want to just install the free Plex Apple TV app for a more polished media center experience.Īlthough not seen in our screenshot above, VLC’s local network function also supports playback from local FTP servers. In the screenshot above, you can see how VLC has automatically discovered a few detectable file shares on our local network, including three machines with Windows (SMB) shares enabled, two machines with UPnP file sharing enabled, and one Plex Media Server (which also uses UPnP). The local network view is the default view when you launch the VLC app. If you’ve set up file sharing on your local network, either through Windows network shares or by UPnP file discovery, then you can easily access files in those directories via the “Local Network” tab in VLC for Apple TV. RELATED: How to Turn Your Computer Into a DLNA Media Server Local Network Playback: Great For File Shares