Do I close the app or leave it open?
There are two components installed. The first is a GUI that’s used to configure the app, but can also rip recordings you select in the foreground. The second is a Windows service (that you can enable/disable). It’s job is to find ‘new’ recordings that match your filters, and rip them in the background. It wakes up once every 5 minutes and takes a look.
So, no, you don’t need to leave the GUI open.
That’s definitely the best time to have it do its thing. There’s an option to set a time window (I use midnight to 6 AM) where the background service will rip new recordings.
PS: if you install the current beta instead of the released version, there’s a new recording list option to ‘display new’ recordings only. That’s helpful when you’re wondering exactly what the background service considers new.
Ok. So I have Tablo Ripper running on my Mac Mini using Windows 10 running on a virtual machine. I have a shared folder between the virtual machine and the Mac Mini that the Tablo Ripper is outputting to. Tablo Ripper will work in the foreground but not in the background. I’ve changed the account that the Tablo Rioper service runs under to the administrative account. Tablo Ripper will run in the background if I use an output file in the C: drive of the virtual machine. Any idea on how to get the Tablo Ripper to work with the shared folder? I run Plex media server on my Mac Mini. The shared folder is on a 4TB hard drive that stores the media for my Plex Server.
Cool! Glad you’ve got it going.
Shared drives - I suspect you have credentials for connecting? Whatever account is running in the background needs permission to connect to your shared drive.
I haven’t added credentials in TabloRipper, so you’ll need that account to have permission by default. One way to accomplish that is to have a special folder that allows everyone full access. Then only use it for rips.
PS: Not sure if this helps, but I posted a link to a post that explains how one person got things going on their Mac.
I would love to do something like this on my Synology too. Docker option to run the java?
Sorry, to the best of my knowledge, there’s no VM for your DiskStation. I originally considered writing TabloRipper for my Synology box, but decided to stick with Windows to reuse the tools available (specifically Ffmpeg and mcebuddy). And way more people have a Windows PC lying around than a Synology box.
You can run either of the Python ripper scripts on your Synology, I would think.
I am trying to reduce the output file size but am unsure of what I need to do.
I want to automatically have Tablo Ripper output a smaller file size since I run it in the background.
Should I modify the “C:\ProgramData\TabloRipper\Settings.xml” and
<FfmpegOptions>-codec copy -strict -2 -c:a aac -threads 0</FfmpegOptions>
What do I change here? How do I make it smaller?
Yes, as noted in the FAQ, you found the right way to modify your ffmpeg options.
I did a quick Google search for ‘ffmpeg reduce file size’, and this was the top result.
You’ll need to experiment a bit to find the best compromise of quality/size for your needs.
This program is awesome! I’ve got 2 questions:
Is there a way to start the Tablo Ripper service when my computer starts?
Is there a way to put my recordings back on the Tablo after MCEBuddy does it’s thing?
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Thanks for the kind words!
First question - the background service is a regular old windows service that’s set to start automatically. When your PC is running, so is that service.
Second question - there’s no way to import videos on the tablo, so you can’t get the from here. Having said that, the are many people using Plex to host their ripped files, including myself. You can download the Plex server for free and run it on the same PC you’re using for ripping.
Thanks for the quick response!
I wasn’t sure if all services start when Windows starts, so thanks for clearing that up.
I use Plex currently, but the forward/rewind of the Tablo works much better in my opinion.
I’m not sure when it improved, but the current plex-pass server supports thumbnails when the FF/RW button is used. I agree, Tablo’s better, but hey, with MCEBuddy you’ll need to skip far less frequently!
PS: The background service stop/start button in TabloRipper merely tells the background service if it’s OK to rip. It doesn’t actually stop/start the service.
Hi there; I have almost filled up my 500 gb hard drive for my tablo. I have a new 2 TB hdd that I can use, but I want to get all my old recordings (From the 500 gb one) on the new one. How should I go about doing that? I am relatively computer smart, but I’m a Mac user.
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There are several other solutions that’ll work on your Mac - check this category:
https://community.tablotv.com/c/tablo-apps/third-party-apps-plex
Or, to run TabloRipper, you can follow the link in this topic:
PS: once you’ve ripped the files on your smaller drive, there’s no way to import them back to the larger drive. Tablo doesn’t do ‘import’.
Thanks for the great app. I have “Delete after ripping” selected. However, the recordings are not being removed from the Tablo. I have to manually delete. This was working but not now. Any suggestions?
First step is to enable logging, rip a show, then look at the log file. If the problem isn’t obvious to you, send it to me using a PM.
@cyclej - Thanks for the adding the new email notifications for schedule conflicts and if my Tablo appears off-line. 
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