Host your own Madsonic server on Windows Server
Subsonic is an excellent music server tool for Windows Server users. However, it costs money and isn’t updated often. A great alternative, for those that want to host a music service of their own, is Madsonic. Madsonic is an open-source fork of Subsonic.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to set up your own Madsonic music server on Windows Server. We’ll also go over how to use your Madsonic music server, and how to access it on mobile too.
How to download Madsonic on Windows Server
To get your hands on the latest Madsonic server release for Windows, head over to the download page. Once you’re on the Madsonic download page, locate “Windows installer” and download the version that is right for your system.
When the file is done downloading, it will appear in your “Downloads” section. Open up Windows Explorer, and select the “Downloads” folder to access your “Downloads.”
In the “Downloads” area, extract the ZIP file you’ve downloaded from the Madsonic website. The ZIP file contains the Madsonic installer EXE file. Once the installer EXE is extracted, move to the next section of the installer to get Madsonic working on your system.
How to install Madsonic on Windows Server
To install the Madsonic music server on Windows Server, start by launching the Madsonic EXE installer extracted previously. Once it launches, you’ll see “Java 8 was not found and will now be installed”. Click the “OK” button.
After selecting the “OK” button, you will see a pop-up installer asking you to set up Java. Select the “Install” button to install Java 8 on Windows Server. Once Java is installed, you will see a message that says “You have successfully installed Java.”
With Java installed, you’ll be taken to the next step in the Madsonic installer. Read the “Welcome to Madsonic Setup” message. Then, click on the “Next” button to move to the next page.
On the next page, you’ll need to choose the Madsonic components that will be installed. Select the components in the installer. When done, click on the “Next” button to move to the next page.
You’ll now need to choose where Madsonic will be installed. By default, the location is “C:\madsonic.” If you wish to change the install destination, click the “Browse” button, and locate a new place to install Madsonic.
When the installation is complete, close the installer. Then, open up a web browser and move on to the next section of the guide.
How to set up Madsonic on Windows Server
To set up Madsonic, open up a web browser on the Windows Server, and visit the following URL.
http://localhost:4040/
Alternatively, you can also load up the Madsonic UI on any computer connected via the network.
http://windows-server-ip-address:4040/
Once you’ve loaded up the URL, you will see a login screen for Madsonic. In this login screen, you’ll see a message. This message states “Madsonic is not secured. Please log in with username and password “admin”, or click here. Then change password immediately.”
Log into the Madsonic interface with the provided username and password. Once you’ve logged in, find the “Getting started” area. Then, select “Change administrator password” area, and click on it. You can then change your password.
After changing your password, open up the “Settings” area. If you cannot find the “Settings” area, you can access it directly with the following URL.
http://localhost:4040/adminSettings.view?
Or
http://windows-server-ip-address:4040/adminSettings.view?
Once in the “Settings” area in Madsonic, find the “Media folders” button, and click on it with the mouse. In the “Media folders” area, add the location of your music files to Madsonic.
Alternatively, if you prefer, you can add your music files to the existing Madsonic “Artists” directory. Just open up Windows Explorer to the location below and place your files in the folder.
Note: you may need to create this directory if it is not in your Madsonic directory by default.
c:\madsonic\Media\Artists
When you’ve added your media location to Madsonic, find the “Scan all media folders now” button, and click on it with the mouse. Media scanning can take a while to complete. When the process is finished, select “Artist Index” to view your media.
How to listen to Madsonic on mobile
There are a lot of ways to access your Madsonic server on a mobile device. We recommend the official Madsonic app for Android, or iSub for iPhone/iPad. However, if you do not like these apps, there are quite a few Madsonic-compatible apps you can download to listen to music from your newly spun-up Madsonic server.
