Metadata/Images Management - Need Help Understanding The Big Picture
#1
This spans several pieces of software, but since Kodi is what ends up being the consumer/displayer of the data, it made the most sense to post here.

Basically I am trying to "enrich" my current metadata environment and trying to understand all the components that feed into it.

Currently I have sabnazbd+ downloading content that is queued up and then organized via either sonarr (nzbDrone) for TV series or couchpotato for movies.

In sonarr I have metadata format for Xbmc enabled with it set to include everything that sonarr can include.
In CP, likewise i have the Xbmc format enabled though with fewer than all the options selected.
I just installed OpenElec w/ Kodi on my new ChromeBox, so metadata/scraper configurations there are completely the defaults.

Some of the things I know I'm missing are things like the actor headshots that you can see in the cast info screen for a given title... as well as I would like XBMC to kind of "shuffle" through multiple fanarts for a given show over time (so I'm not always seeing the same image every time I select that show, if this can be done for covers and such that would be awesome too, but less concerned there as a cover is a cover generally).

Meanwhile, in looking into a lot of this via forum searches and such here, I'm not sure what the real "optimal" way to manage all this data is...

Should I have CP/Drone getting metadata or should I leave it completely up to Kodi?
Should I have both doing different things?
How do programs like Ember Media Manager and such complement these? Or are they pure replacements where I should turn off metadata in the CP/Drone and Kodi worlds and just manually gather metadata via Ember (and would I do this after the video has been added to the library of Kodi or before?

Just looking for some thoughts on OVERALL metadata management across multiple programs that seem to have a lot of overlapping functionality here and are thereby making it kind of difficult to asses what the most logical approach to all of this is.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts....
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#2
Personally, I just leave it up to Kodi plus use the addon Artwork Downloader. That pretty much does everything that needs doing.

edit: And at least in my experience programs like Ember MM are primarily for fixing things that Kodi tends to get wrong. So like remakes that get picked wrong or movies with weird names.
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#3
Appreciate the feedback... so assuming everything is named/foldered properly Kodi shouldn't need any nfo file or anything to track down the appropriate meta-data? Or is the nfo required still for Kodi to find the meta-data for the appropriate movies/shows?
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#4
nfos are entirely unnecessary. In fact, if you personally didn't write the nfos or oversee the program writing them, I typically suggest that they be deleted, as wrong nfos cause a major portion of scanning errors.
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#5
I use this combo but I have no idea how/why it works:

Universal Movie Scraper add-on set to poster and fanart from tmdb. All other settings off.
I don't know how or why it scrapes because I have all my content set to Local info only and every time I add a title, the posters, fanart, and synopsis appear. Fine by me.

Artwork Downloader add-on to gain artwork not offered by others like discart, logos, etc. This used to auto d/l when a new title got added but for some reason I have to do it manually now and scan the entire library. Artwork here is rated so if you config it high, you may miss some artwork. I notice this with discart the most and usually access the info window and manually grab from a selection. If I don't care for a piece of artwork, I can exchange it here also.

You mentioned actor thumbs. I use Metadata Actors pre-1.0.0 add-on. Very nice bios enhancement and much more.

Lastly, there seems to be a naming convention between moviename-fanart.jpg and fanart.jpg for example. Both are the same file duplicated. One by Universal, the other AD. Neither speak the same language I guess and don't know the file is present so each add their own version. If you delete them, they reappear. I think it has something to do with 'exporting' the library. I wish there was common ground so folders are cleaner and disk space required is less. Maybe someone more knowledgeable can offer more on some of this?
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#6
brazen1, I like the walkthrough, thanks... like you, I have things appearing out of weird places and can't really tell where things are coming from... I am definitely sensing Artwork downloader is something i need and will add that tomorrow to my setup... other than that, I'm going to try and go minimal and let Kodi get everything else it can by default (we'll see, and I'll try to update here, what i find along the way).

I think the community in general could use to clean up the metadata aspect of this stuff... I think there are far simpler ways to do it than browsing the forums would suggest and that a lot of the tools/options in various programs are there from older days when not everyone had metadata implemented similarly (if at all)... we'll see though.
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