Automatic Editing of MASS Playlists to Automatically Include New Songs

[homeauto-git]

This guide outlines how to use Music Assistant and Home Assistant to edit a playlist. Using a custom Python script executed via a Shell Command for automatic inclusion of new songs.

Link to Yt-dlp Addon

• Work in Progress

Prerequisites

• Shell Command and folder watcher integration enabled
• Basic knowledge of YAML and Home Assistant configuration files

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Step 1: Create a Playlist in Music Assistant

1. Open Music Assistant:

   • Navigate to the Music Assistant integration in your Home Assistant dashboard.

2. Add Tracks to Playlist:

   • Search for tracks or browse your library, then add them to a new or existing playlist.

3. Save Your Playlist:

   • Give your playlist a name, such as My Favorite Tracks.

   The playlist is now available in Music Assistant's library.

---

Step 2: Export Playlist to M3U Format

2.1 Enable Shell Command in Home Assistant

1. Open your configuration.yaml file.

2. Add the following under shell_command:

   shell_command:
     create_playlist: "python3 /config/scripts/create_playlist.py {{ audio_folder }} {{ m3u_file }}"

3. Restart Home Assistant to apply the changes.

2.2 Add the Python Script

1. Create a folder named scripts in the /config directory of your Home Assistant setup.

2. Create a file named create_playlist.py in the /config/scripts/ folder.

3. Paste the following Python code into the file:

   import os
   import sys
   
   # Paths from arguments
   audio_folder = sys.argv[1]
   m3u_file = sys.argv[2]
   
   if not os.path.exists(audio_folder):
       print(f"Error: Folder '{audio_folder}' does not exist.")
       sys.exit(1)
   
   # Create the M3U file
   with open(m3u_file, "w", encoding="utf-8") as file:
       file.write("#EXTM3U\n\n")
       for filename in sorted(os.listdir(audio_folder)):
           if filename.lower().endswith((".mp3", ".wav", ".flac", ".aac", ".ogg")):
               relative_path = os.path.relpath(
                   os.path.join(audio_folder, filename),
                   os.path.dirname(m3u_file),
               )
               file.write(f"#EXTINF:0,{os.path.splitext(filename)[0]}\n")
               file.write(f"{relative_path}\n\n")
   
   print(f"Playlist saved to {m3u_file}")

2.3 Configure Media Folder

Ensure your audio files are located in a media folder accessible by Home Assistant, e.g., /media/audio. Update the paths in the Shell Command service accordingly.

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Step 3: Call the Shell Command

1. Go to Developer Tools > Services in Home Assistant.

2. Select shell_command.create_playlist.

3. Call Service.

   action: shell_command.create_playlist
   data:
     audio_folder: /media/audio
     m3u_file: /media/like.m3u

The script will generate an M3U file in the specified location. You can confirm the operation by checking the /media/like.m3u file.

---

Step 4: Advanced Automation

4.1 Enable Folder Watcher Integration

1. Add the following to your Integrations Menu to set up Folder Watcher:

https://www.home-assistant.io/integrations/folder_watcher

2. Add the folder that you want to watch for changes, e.g., /media/audio.

4.2 Create an Automation to Trigger the Shell Command

1. Go to Settings > Automations & Scenes and create a new automation.

2. Use the following YAML configuration:

   alias: Update Playlist on File Addition
   description: >-
     Automatically update the playlist when a new file is added to the audio
     folder.
   triggers:
     - trigger: state
       entity_id:
         - event.folder_watcher_media_audio
   conditions: []
   actions:
     - data:
         audio_folder: /media/audio
         m3u_file: /media/like.m3u
       action: shell_command.create_playlist
   mode: single

3. Save the automation and enable it.

4.3 Test the Automation

1. Add a new audio file to the /media/audio folder.
2. Check the /media/like.m3u file to verify that the playlist has been updated.

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Additional Notes

• Trigger Limitations: The Folder Watcher integration triggers on file creation events, which means it should handle all new files, but ensure the folder path is correctly set.
• Debugging: If the automation doesn’t work, check the logs to see if the Folder Watcher event fired and whether the Shell Command ran successfully.
• I am new to programming and I came up with this idea when I tried manually editing the .m3u file and it worked. I wanted to keep it exactly how Music Assistant made it but I do not know a command to get out the length of the audio file in seconds like it does but setting to 0 seems to work
  Feel free to share, customize, and expand this guide! 🚀

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Disclaimer

This guide is provided for informational purposes only. Use it responsibly and ensure compliance with all applicable copyright laws. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any audio files used with this system are legally obtained and that you have the rights to download, store, and play them. The author of this guide is not responsible for any misuse or legal issues arising from its implementation.

[OzGav]

Not sure if this also achieves what you were after but if you are using the remote share provider you can create a playlist which is stored on that.

[homeauto-git]

I'm not entirely sure I understand what you're suggesting, but I'm using a local disk provider. When I create playlists there, I haven't found an efficient way to automatically add new songs when I download them. If you have read-write access to the share, I’m sure it could work for automatically adding songs to the playlist as well.

[OzGav]

Your opening paragraph says that this creates a M3U playlist file. I just indicated that MA can already do that but your statement above suggests you are looking for an automated system of playlist creation so as a suggestion you might like to explain a little more what this does for other readers.

[homeauto-git]

Yeah sorry I changed the title to make what I wanted more clear.