Meanwhile, Windows Media Player also has the function to make the computer a UPnP server. To set up a Windows computer as a UPnP server, it is also necessary to install control software such as Universal Media Server. Since not every device has pre-installed control software, it may be necessary to install appropriate apps on the smartphone that can access UPnP servers and load media from a PC or network hard drive. The control software enables cross-device UPnP communication and data transfer via TCP, HTTP, or DLNA protocols. In addition, a device in the network can only offer access to data if it acts as a UPnP server with an active UPnP function or software. Presentation: The presentation URLs (contained in the description XML file of a device) can be used to access other devices from the web browser as an alternative to UPnP.Ī defining feature of UPnP is that each associated device must have an IP address and control software.Event Control: To avoid always having to actively query the status of services and other devices, UPnP devices use subscribed event messages by means of GENA (General Event Notification Architecture).Control: Cross-device communication takes place via the SOAP protocol, which is used to send messages to the device URLs to enable remote control.Description: The control point retrieves device descriptions via the HTTP protocol as an XML file containing details of manufacturer, serial number, driver information, and presentation, control, and event URLs.Discovery: The UPnP device uses the SSDP (Simple Service Discovery Protocol) to identify itself to other devices and control points in the network and is localized via UDP (User Datagram Protocol).Addressing: In an IP network, network-enabled devices usually receive their IP address via the router and can be found and used in the UPnP network.The sequence and structure of UPnP requests usually looks like this: This applies to music and videos on a PC that you access via a cell phone or movies on a computer that you stream via the smart TV. You no longer need to actively connect to devices thanks to UPnP, as they offer their services directly and grant access to files.

The control software is either pre-installed in the network device or downloaded afterwards. The activated UPnP standard makes it possible to automatically identify network-compatible devices with their own IP address via control software and to access them from other devices.

Use plex to control upnp player