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Troubleshooting and FAQ

Most questions about a single item are answered fastest by its Details window: open the item's context menu and choose MetaMender > Details. It shows where each value came from and why a field was left alone.

Questions you might have

Will MetaMender overwrite what I or my scraper put there?

Sometimes, on purpose, and never where you told it not to:

  • Fields you did not tick in setup are never touched.
  • An item with an NFO file keeps its values: MetaMender only fills fields that are empty (and keeps refreshing what it filled itself).
  • A folder without a language: MetaMender only fills empty text fields there (and keeps refreshing what it filled itself).
  • Everything else is kept in line with TMDB, TheTVDB and IMDb until the field is settled: a value that differs from the site is replaced. That includes an edit you made by hand in Kodi, if the field is checked again before it is settled.
  • To keep a value as it is, for example after you corrected it by hand, open the item's Details window, select the field and choose Keep this value. MetaMender then leaves it alone for good.
  • When MetaMender replaced a value, it kept the old one. Restore original in the Details window puts it back and locks the field.

NFO files, or switching a field off in setup, protect values from the start.

Why did it leave this field alone?

The Details window says why, in one sentence; the list of reasons explains each one.

Where does this value come from, and where can it go?

See Where your data comes from.

Is it slowing my Kodi down?

MetaMender works in the background and waits a moment between requests to the sites (API rate limit (seconds)). It does not start a scan while a video plays, and a running scan pauses during playback. The first scan visits every item and takes the longest; later scans only check fields that are due, which on most days is a small part of the library.

What does it send over the internet?

Only lookups: an id or a title to find an item at TMDB, TheTVDB or a rating site, with your TMDB key for TMDB. Nothing about your library as a whole, and nothing about what you watch, is sent anywhere.

Can I use it with a library shared between several Kodi devices?

Yes, but install MetaMender on one device. All devices see its changes through the shared library. Two devices with MetaMender would each scan and write the same items.

How do I undo what MetaMender did?

Per field, with Restore original in the Details window. There is no "undo everything": switching a field off stops further changes but leaves the values MetaMender already wrote, and Reset tracker only makes MetaMender check everything again.

How do I remove MetaMender?

Uninstall it under Add-ons > My add-ons. The values it wrote stay in your library.

Something looks wrong

Nothing is being updated

  • Setup not finished, no key, or a rejected key: a MetaMender needs you window says so when nothing plays. Choose Open setup.
  • The field is switched off: check What to fill.
  • The first scan is still running: on a large library it takes a while; a notification says when it is done.
  • Kodi was playing: scans wait until playback stops.

A plot or title is in the wrong language

  • The folder's language is not set or is wrong: check Folders in another language. In a folder without a language MetaMender keeps existing text.
  • The site has no text in that language yet: MetaMender keeps the current text and checks again on its schedule. The fallback language only fills empty fields, so an English plot in a Dutch folder stays until a Dutch one appears.
  • Show and movie titles are only changed with Show and movie titles ticked.

An episode has no title or plot

  • The sites have nothing yet: common for new episodes. The Details window shows the next check.
  • The episode could not be matched: open the Details window and select Ids. "Not matched" means the episode's number points at an episode with a different title and date on TMDB or TheTVDB, so MetaMender used nothing from that site. This happens when your scraper and the site number a season differently; rescraping the show with a scraper that stores ids (TMDB or TheTVDB) usually fixes it.
  • Generic titles such as "Episode 3" are never written.

IMDb ratings are missing

  • Right after installing: the IMDb Ratings module first downloads IMDb's data. Until that has finished, IMDb ratings wait; they appear after a later scan.
  • Rating source is set to TMDB only.
  • The item has no IMDb id, or IMDb has no rating for it.

An age rating looks wrong

  • Wrong country: check Country on the Certifications tab; Automatic follows Kodi's interface language.
  • Wrong prefix for your skin: use Override certification prefix.
  • The American rating is still there: Replace incorrect certifications is off, or no rating for your country was found yet.
  • It was converted from another country's rating: MetaMender replaces it when your country's real rating appears. See Age ratings.

MetaMender changed something I wanted to keep

Open the Details window, select the field and choose Restore original. The old value comes back and the field is locked. See Restore original and the lock.

"A scan is already running"

Only one scan runs at a time. Wait until the background scan has finished, then try Update now again.

Reporting a problem

If something still looks wrong, open an issue on GitHub with:

  1. What you expected and what you saw, for one example item.
  2. A screenshot of that item's Details window.
  3. The log of the scan: switch on Enable debug logging (Advanced level, General tab), let a scan run or use Update now on the item, and attach the newest file from addon_data/script.metamender/logs/ in Kodi's data folder. Kodi's own log helps too; the Kodi wiki explains where to find it on your device.

Look through a log before you post it: it lists the titles and folders of the items it worked on.

Questions, and anything that is not quite a bug, are welcome in the Kodi forum thread.