Where do I put the cover and backdrop images?

Covers (also called icons or posters) can be shown for every folder in Media Browser by placing the artwork in the right location.

On supported views with backdrops enabled it is also possible to show a background image (also called backdrop) for the current item. You can use backdrops on almost every level.

Notes:

  • Instead of a .jpg image you can also use .png images
  • JPG images must use the extension .jpg and not .jpeg as the latter will not work correctly.

Icon and Backdrops for movies, series, seasons:

Place the poster and background images in the movie or TV series folder and name them “folder.jpg” and “backdrop.jpg” respectively.

  • folder.jpg is the poster image of the movie or series
  • backdrop.jpg is the background image that will be shown if enabled in the configuration and/or theme
  • banner.jpg is the banner image that will be shown if enabled in the theme and/or view. (this only applies to tv series)

Please note that:

  • banner.jpg images can only be shown on themes and views that support them.
  • backdrop.jpg images can only be shown on themes and views that support them.
  • you have “Show Fan Art on views” (which is Tier 1) enabled in the configuration menu for the theme to show your backdrops on supported views.
  • artwork stored in these folders can and will be used by all network computers that have this folder added in a Media Collection.

Backdrops for Startup Screen / Initial folder:

If you want a specific background to show for your startup folder you need to put your “backdrop.jpg” or “backdrop.png” in the following folder:

C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\StartupFolder

Please note that:

  • The ProgramData folder is a hidden folder in Windows by default.
  • You have “Show Initial Folder Background” (which is Tier 2) enabled in the configuration menu and “Show Theme Background” disabled.
  • This artwork needs to be stored on the local machine on which you have Media Browser installed. If you have multiple computers with Media Browser installed, then you need to repeat this process on all machines. You do not have to repeat this for extenders like an Xbox.

Icons and Backdrops for Media Collections:

To show backdrops for the Media Collections on the Enhanced Home Screen or initial screen, you will need to create a new folder in the ImagesByName\General folder.

  • Make sure you have an ImagesByName folder setup.
  • Create a new folder in the ImagesByName\General folder named identically to your Media Collection. For example “Movies By Name”.
  • Place the poster and background images in the “Movies by Name” folder and name them “folder.jpg” and “backdrop.jpg” respectively.

Please note that:

  • You can also select an icon for the Media Collection from the configurator. Keep that in mind to prevent confusion. Having both and icon set in the EHS and the IBN folder can cause inconsistent behaviour.
  • This artwork needs to be stored on the local machine on which you have Media Browser installed. If you have multiple computers with Media Browser installed, then you need to repeat this process on all machines. You do not have to repeat this for extenders like an Xbox. Alternatively you can move your ImagesByName location to a network location.
  • You have “Show Initial Folder Background” (which is Tier 2) enabled in the configuration menu and “Show Theme Background” disabled.

Icons and Backdrops for Plugins:

Some plugins are shown on the Enhanced Home Screen in Media Browser. To assign a custom icon or backdrop for a plugin you need to do the following:

  • Make sure you have an ImagesByName folder setup.
  • Create a new folder in the ImagesByName\General folder named identically to what the plugin is named on the Enhanced Home Screen. For example “Music Library”.
  • Place the poster and background images in the “Music Library” folder and name them “folder.jpg” and “backdrop.jpg” respectively.

Please note that:

  • Some plugins allow custom names. These can be changed on the plugins tab by selecting the plugin and pressing the “configure” button. Make sure the name that is configured for the plugin matches exactly to the folder name you configured in “General” subfolder. Examples of plugins that allow custom names are “Media Browser Trailers”, “Music Support”, “Favorites” and others.
  • This artwork needs to be stored on the local machine on which you have Media Browser installed. If you have multiple computers with Media Browser installed, then you need to repeat this process on all machines. You do not have to repeat this for extenders like an Xbox. Alternatively you can move your ImagesByName location to a network location.

Rotating backdrops:

If you want multiple, rotating backdrops for a movie or series, you need to add multiple image files and name them backdrop.jpg, backdrop1.png, backdrop2.jpg, etc.

  • You have to have the images in sequence. There can be no gaps. You can’t have backdrop, backdrop2, backdrop3. It has to be backdrop, backdrop1, backdrop2.

The backdrop.jpg will be the primary image that is shown and Media Browser will then rotate to the next image after a few seconds (which would be backdrop1.jpg, and then backdrop2.jpg).

As of Media Browser 2.2.4 (codename Cronos), there are additional options in the Configuration Menu for rotating backdrops.

Rotate: This will turn on/off the rotation of multiple backdrops.
Random: If selected, this will cause a random backdrop (from the available ones) to be selected each time a backdrop is displayed. This will not ensure that all backdrops are seen but will provide for much more variety than the previous implementation.

  • If Both of these are turned off, only the primary “backdrop.jpg” will be shown for each item.
  • If Both are turned on, backdrops will rotate like they did pre-Cronos but randomly on each display.
  • If only Randomize is turned on, only one backdrop will show but it will be a random one each time (Note: will be random for each MB session).
  • If only Rotate is turned on, it will perform as it did pre-Cronos.

Not all themes support rotating/randomized backdrops on all views.

Examples:

Movie example:

E:\Movies\2012 (2009)\folder.png
E:\Movies\2012 (2009)\backdrop.jpg
E:\Movies\2012 (2009)\backdrop1.jpg
E:\Movies\2012 (2009)\backdrop2.jpg

Series example:

E:\Series\NCIS\folder.jpg
E:\Series\NCIS\banner.jpg
E:\Series\NCIS\backdrop.jpg
E:\Series\NCIS\Season 7\folder.png
E:\Series\NCIS\Season 7\backdrop.jpg
E:\Series\NCIS\Season 7\backdrop1.png

StartupFolder example:

C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\StartupFolder\backdrop.jpg

Media Collection example:

C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Movies by Name\folder.png
C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Movies by Name\backdrop.png
C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Series\folder.png
C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Series\backdrop.png

Plugin example:

C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Music Library\folder.jpg
C:\ProgramData\MediaBrowser\ImagesByName\General\Music Library\backdrop.jpg

Additional information:

More details about Tiered Backgrounds can be found here: How do the Tiered Backdrops work?

Why are my backdrops not showing up in Media Browser?

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