Why are some of my NVIDIA Shields streaming MSS suddenly failing?

Question

We have some 2017 and 2019 model NVIDIA Shields that we use to test MSS streaming. Over the past few weeks, the 2017 shields have totally stopped working with MSS. I created a post on the NVIDIA forums that said that MSS support was phased out in Shield OS 9.2.1 and that Microsoft shut down their shield servers. These devices have not been upgraded to that version, so OS is not the problem.

I'm assuming the Shield servers mentioned have to do with the DRM process and MSS, but can someone help shine some light on this process/issue? We really need to know if this is going to impact our 2019 model shields soon as well.

Thank you!

Answer 1

Hi Sikes, Riley,

Thank you for posting your question here!

The older 2017 NVIDIA Shields stopped working with Microsoft Smooth Streaming (MSS) because NVIDIA removed the PlayReady DRM files that MSS needs in a newer system update called Shield Experience 9.2.1. When those files are gone, MSS can’t play anything anymore, and people confirmed this directly downgrading back to 9.2.0 makes MSS work again. At the same time, Microsoft has been moving away from MSS for a while now since it’s an old streaming format, and their Smooth Streaming system works through standard HTTP servers, not any special “Shield server,” so if the DRM checks for older devices stop working, streaming will fail even if the Shield OS didn’t change. Because both NVIDIA and Microsoft are stepping away from these older systems, your 2019 Shields will eventually run into the same issue.

Let me know if you need further assistance, feel free to ask me by clicking "Add Comment" or "Add Answer" if you cannot add comment so your response will be visible. Thank you and I appreciate your effort.

Regards,

Angelique P.