Tag: Miracast

Get Miracast working on Surface Pro original with TH2 10586

Posted barbbowmanPosted in Miracast, Surface, Windows 10

 

I wrote about how Microsoft broke Miracast for Surface Pro original users when Windows 8.1 was released http://digitalmediaphile.com/index.php/2013/10/26/how-to-make-miracast-work-on-surface-pro/ and surprise, surprise, they’ve done it again with TH2 Build 10586. The supplied driver for the Marvell Wireless is not Miracast enabled. I don’t know why, as the chip is the same as the Surface Pro 2.

Here’s an unsupported way to get Miracast to work on your SP original with 10586.

Go to http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=49042 and download Surface Pro 2\SurfacePro2_Win10_150818_0.zip. Open the archive and copy the WiFi folder from SurfacePro2_Win10_150818_0.zip\SurfacePro2_Win10_150818_0\Drivers\Network\WiFi to your desktop or other place where you can easily find it. Then follow these instructions:

  1. Type Device Manager in the Cortana/Search box and open it.
  2. Find Network adapters, expand it, right-click on Marvell AVASTAR Wireless-AC Network Controller, and then select Update Driver Software.
  3. Select Browse my computer for driver software.
  4. Select Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer.
  5. Click Have Disk.
  6. Click Browse.
  7. Navigate to the Wifi folder (it has the INF file for the wifi driver), then click Open.

Go to the Action center, select Connect and your Miracast device should be discovered. Connect and enjoy!

mira sp1 working

Above shows a successful Miracast streaming session with my Surface Pro original happily connected to a Microsoft Display Adapter.

Windows 10 Home Entertainment (Should you Upgrade?)

Posted barbbowmanPosted in Windows 10

 

Windows 10 is officially launching in just two days. There are lots of great improvements, but if you are a Home Entertainment enthusiast, there are things to consider before making the decision to upgrade. I’m very happy with Miracast for screen mirroring, but not so happy about the lack of great support for streaming to DLNA DMR devices which was present in 8.1 but has gone missing in 10.

Everyone needs to make their own decision on whether or not to upgrade, and if you are a Home Entertainment user and doing a lot of streaming, my observations may help you decide.

It’s been announced everywhere that Windows Media Center is kaput/gone/dead. You CAN run your Windows 7/8.1 Media Center computers and you do not have to upgrade them. So if you want to keep WMC, just stay where you are. If you have the Get Windows 10 icon and were able to run the compatibility checker, you would have been informed of this (and you should get another warning if/when you run the Windows 10 upgrade):

pcready

If you are currently using DLNA “Play To”, your choices in Modern/Universal Apps will be limited. In Windows 8.1, from the File System (classic Windows Explorer Interface) you could right click a file, then Play To – and any DLNA DMR devices would be available. In Windows 10, this is still present, but it’s called Cast To Device. This isn’t as nice an interface as the one provided by Modern Apps (in my opinion).

play to

In Windows 8.1, Modern Apps could implement something called a “Play To” contract, which enabled you to stream to DLNA DMR devices. I use this constantly with my Surface Pro 3 and Music to send music streams to my Sonos Living Room Speaker. I can also send to me WDTV Live Hub which is connected to my receiver, etc.

music 8

The new Groove Music in Windows 10 doesn’t have the ability to stream to DLNA devices. Yes, it can stream to my Bluetooth headphones or any other Bluetooth device like Bluetooth speakers, but I’ve been using DLNA, and now it’s gone missing.

groove music w10

The Connect Tab in Windows 10 supports Miracast and Bluetooth audio. But if I want to stream to my Sonos or WDTV Live Hub, I’m out of luck.

Similarly, Windows Photos in Windows 8.1 allowed me to play slide shows to my TV or through my WDTV Live Hub:

 

photos 8

Windows 10 has no such functionality in the Photos App. Only Miracast is supported through the Connect tab. There’s no Cast To DLNA functionality.

 

pictures w10

The ONLY Microsoft App that I’ve found that currently has DLNA Cast To functionality is Movies and TV (and it is not that obvious that it is there)

movies and tv W10

 

In Windows 8.1, there were multiple store apps that supported the Play To feature. MediaMonkey, VLC, etc. This functionality isn’t present for these apps in Windows 10 and these apps have other issues under Windows 10. So as of now, I really don’t have a way to stream Music to my DLNA devices OTHER than through Windows File Explorer. And that disturbs me.

Miracast – is it better in Windows 10? Microsoft has made some changes and more of this functionality is handled by the operating system. But many folks in the Windows Insider Forums are actually reporting that systems that worked properly with Miracast under 8.1 aren’t doing so well with Windows 10. On some systems, this may be due to drivers. But it’s worth noting that there are plenty of reports of “not working”.

 

Intel WiDi – Older systems from the Vista era may have included Intel’s proprietary Wireless Display technology. The upgrade disables this apparently and while Microsoft has said that customers can just reinstall the Intel WiDi app, reports from customers say otherwise, that it won’t install.

Bottom line, take a good look at your multimedia streaming needs, watch the Microsoft Forums, and don’t rush out to upgrade on day one.

Update Your Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter Firmware

Posted barbbowmanPosted in Miracast, Surface

 

Microsoft has released a firmware update for the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter which may help some users experiencing connection problems (black screens, disconnects, etc. The “gotcha” is that in order to update the firmware, you have to have access to a TV/Monitor where you can make a successful Miracast connection and run the Windows Store App http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/microsoft-wireless-display/92ecc09f-9f01-4f9d-9e04-dd412d758b1a that lets you update the firmware. Once you have connected successfully to a Miracast session, here are the steps to update the MWDA:

 

1. You need to create a password in order to access settings and update firmware, minimum six characters. Create this password and confirm it.

 

 mwda1

2. Update message will appear (close the app and sign back in if needed). Select Download.

 

 mwda 2

3. Tap/click the blue update button

 

 mwda 3

4. Tap/click the Start button

 

 mwda 4

5. You can view the progress bar (and also you can view on the connected TV; the update is very fast and you might miss it if you blink!

 

 mwda 5

6. You will see a success message (hopefully).

 mwda 6

7. Close the app and verify you can connect to the TV that you used to perform the update.

8. Connect the MWDA to the TV you previously experienced problems and see if your issue is resolved.

Having trouble getting MS support to give you a link to a HOTFIX work around

Posted barbPosted in Microsoft, Miracast, Surface, Windows 8.1

 

Here’s a trick if you are desperately trying to get your hands on a hotfix from Microsoft that requires you to contact support and are getting a run around. Do this at your own risk. Make sure you need the fix and have created a restore point if things go wrong. I won’t support you and Microsoft won’t support you.

 

You need to know the KB number of the hotfix you need. Find a hotfix (OK, I’ll do it for you) for a different item where the download is available without going through contacting support again. Like http://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2955769 

 find one

Click the Hotfix Download Available button.

 

After selecting that link, an URL will appear in the address bar like https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/hotfix/kbhotfix?kbnum=2955769&kbln=en-us

Copy the URL in the address bar and paste into Notepad.

Replace the KB 2955769 number with the one you are having difficulty getting. So that you have a link like https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/hotfix/kbhotfix?kbnum=XXXXXXXX&kbln=en-us where XXXXXXXX is the KB number you are having trouble getting.

Now you can get your hotfix.

Again, I won’t support you and Microsoft won’t support you, but maybe you can fix your problem without multiple calls to support and incompetent poorly trained support agents.

How Miracast Communicates Over Wifi Networks

Posted barbPosted in Miracast, Windows 8.1

 

Miracast adapters like the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter and the Netgear PTV3000, etc. negotiate a connection with the source device. To do this, they broadcast a message that basically announces that they are available for a connection. To do this, the adapter will use one of the three non-overlapping 2.4GHz 802.11 channels (1, 6 and 11) which in essence are the lowest common denominator and would be the most broadly available and used channels. (For this reason, if you are on a device that allows 5GHz only connections and suppresses 2.4 GHz, you cannot connect). Therefore, 2.4GHz is a requirement to negotiate a connection using Miracast.

1. If 2.4GHz is the only frequency supported by your router, then issues might occur due to saturated channels from nearby routers in your environment. You might try changing the channel on your router to see if conditions improve. To see all the Wireless channels nearby, open a cmd prompt and type:

netsh wlan show networks mode=BSSID [press Enter]

2. If you are connected to your router using a 5GHz channel, the Miracast frequency can be negotiated to use 5GHz (but remember, the negotiation initiates over 2.4 GHz).

3. If you are not connected to a WiFi network, the Miracast connection will always be negotiated on 2.4 GHz

A Miracast session creates a virtual, second network on a direct, peer to peer basis between your host computer/device and the target Miracast display/Miracast enabled TV/Miracast adapter. You can see this in the Network and Sharing Center in Windows 8.1 after a connection is successfully made:

 

 

miracast virtual adapter