SHOUTcast Authhash Management

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Shoutcast Home | Shoutcast Server (DNAS) | Shoutcast Developer (API) | Shoutcast For Business & Revenue Generation | Shoutcast DSP (encoder Plug-In for Winamp)


Introduction

One of the key aspects of the new YP2 directory infrastructure is an authorization key (authhash) which is used to validate your server when it tries to connect to the YP2 infrastructure for any of the station(s) you run. Once this key is obtained, it will be valid for all root servers of the station being broadcast.

You can obtain multiple authorization keys if broadcasting the same stream content at different bitrates so they will appear separately in the SHOUTcast Directory listings. This is not needed if broadcasting the same content in MP3 and AAC+ formats as the SHOUTcast Directory will automatically list those streams separately.

Make sure you are using a recent version of the DNAS which can be downloaded from http://www.shoutcast.com/broadcastnow.


When is an Authorization Key needed?

The DNAS server can be run in two modes:

  • Public - If you want your station to appear in the SHOUTcast Directory listings
  • Private - If you do not want your station to be listed e.g. an internal company station

If you want the station to be public then you will need an authorization key, otherwise it is not needed for private stations.

If you want to run the DNAS privately then you can change the appropriate setting in the stream source being used. Otherwise you can change publicserver or streampublicserver (if needing stream specific control) to be never in the DNAS's configuration file e.g. publicserver=never.

Management

File:Summary.png
DNAS Summary Page
File:Starting.png
Administrator Summary Page
To obtain a unique authentication key you first need to have setup the DNAS and have a source (such as the Source DSP or Transcoder) correctly connected so the stream is recognised by the DNAS. This can be determined from looking at the DNAS Summary page which will show any active stream(s) - if there are none then you will need to re-check the source is showing it is connected to the DNAS server.


The next step is to login to the Administrator Summary page which is accessed via the Administrator Login on the DNAS Summary page (found at the top right as shown in the image of the DNAS Summary page). If DNAS server is running on the same machine then you can usually access it directly at http://127.0.0.1:8000/admin.cgi. If you have changed 'portbase' then change 8000 to the value specified for 'portbase' in your config file.

To login, the username is admin and the password is the configured adminpassword

If you are accessing the DNAS server remotely or on another machine then you will need to change 127.0.0.1 to the appropriate IP address of the machine you are trying to access.

On the Administrator Summary page, you will see all streams with a source connected to them, with Create Authhash, Update Authhash and Remove Authhash options shown as appropriate beneath the stream number.


Creating

File:Editing.png
Creating an Authhash
File:Completed.png
Created an Authhash
To create an authhash for a stream then you need to click the Create Authhash link. This will take you to another page where you need to fill in the missing fields as applicable for your stream as the DNAS attempts to fill in fields with the information obtained from the connected source. Once all of the required information has been entered then click the Create Authhash button.

If there is a missing field or something is not right when attempting to create the authhash, then you will see a message showing what needs to be entered or changed or what to do to get additional help.

On successful creation, the new authhash will be saved into your configuration file either in the root configuration file or one where there's an empty streamauthhash entry matching the stream identifier. When you go back to the Administrator Summary page the Create Authhash link will have changed to Update Authhash and Remove Authhash links.

It can take up to 10 minutes for the new authhash to be fully recognised so if you have made a mistake or are trying to get listed quickly, please allow the required time for your changes to take effect.

Updating

Updating an authhash is the same as creating an authhash just with the existing information of the authhash shown in the fields allowing for them to be edited. If there are no issues and the authhash can be updated from the machine used (with it having the same external IP as used to create the authhash) then any changes made should be updated in the YP system.

If there is a missing field or something is not right when attempting to create the authhash, then you will see a message showing what needs to be entered or changed or what to do to get additional help.

It can take up to 10 minutes for changed details to be fully recognised so if
you have made a mistake or are trying to get listed then you will need to wait.

Removing

File:Removed.png
Removed an Authhash
Removing an authhash is a simple action of clicking the Remove Authhash link. If there are no issues and the authhash can be removed from the machine used (with it having the same external IP as used to create the authhash) then it will be removed from the YP system and also from your configuration file.


Duplicating

If you want to use the same authhash on another stream (e.g. if only the stream format is different or you want to group the same stream content) then you will need to manually edit you configuration file by setting the relevant streamauthhash entry for the required stream configuration group and use the Reload All Stream Configuration(s) option on the Administrator Summary page.


Management Issues

Updating or removing an authhash requires the same external IP of the machine to be found by the YP against what was used when the authhash was created. If this external IP has changed then you will need to contact support via this forum thread ensuring all required information is provided as is detailed.

If you experience other issues with managing your authhashes via the options provided, make sure you follow any information provided to attempt to resolve the issue. If that still does not work then you will need to contact support via this forum thread ensuring all required information is provided as is detailed.


Supported Browsers

The following browsers have been tested and are supported when using the authhash management pages:

  • Firefox 3.6.x to 7.0 (tested on Windows and Linux)
  • Internet Explorer 8 & 9
  • Google Chrome 12 & 13 (will likely work on older versions)
  • Safari 4.x (only tested on Mac)


The following are browsers which have been tested and are known to have issues causing reduced functionality (not related to security options which can be changed):

  • Opera (tested on Windows against 11.51)


Currently DNAS v2.0.0 Build 29 will show the following message when using this browser:

Problem was experienced retrieving the details for the dropdown options.

You will need to change your browser's security settings to allow remote
content to be downloadable in this domain. Please fix and refresh this page.

Future versions of the DNAS will show the more appropriate message of:

Unable to download the details for the dropdown options. You need to
use a browser with 'Cross Origin Resource Sharing' (CORS) support.


Using Internet Explorer

Using a different browser is recommended as changing security levels is not ideal and is done at your own risk.

If using Internet Explorer (8 or 9), you will need to do the following to allow the browser to access the remote content needed for the drop-down options which the page uses.

Go to Options -> Security -> Select 'Trusted Sites' -> Click 'Sites' and then add the current page to the list (unchecking the HTTPS option). Then change the 'Trusted Level' to Medium-low or Low and refresh the authhash management page.

Choosing Medium-low will cause a prompt to appear on loading the pages in IE8 (but not normally in IE9) which you will need to choose 'Yes' to allow the page to load. Choosing Low will not show a prompt.