compatible third-party apps with Beebo (beta)
Beebo can speak enough of the compatible client protocol for compatible third-party apps to browse and play your library. This guide records the compatibility preview introduced in Windows 0.1.58. It is off until you turn it on; a current real-client result has not been established in this review.
Compatibility preview · off by default Status: This mode is in Beebo for Windows 0.1.58, off by default. It is covered by automated tests, including a check of its answers against the official compatible client API description and SDK. It has not been tried with any real compatible third-party app, and testing it with real apps has not started. Compatibility mode is independently implemented by Beebo. It is not an endorsement or certification from another app’s developer.
Evidence update, September 23, 2026: the protocol-level checks described below are historical documentation, not a new full-client test. Read current release evidence.
What it is
Many free apps for TVs, phones and computers can connect to a compatible media server. This mode lets those apps connect to your Beebo PC instead. Beebo does the work: your library, sign-ins and settings all stay in Beebo, and the apps just ask for lists and video. The implementation routes sign-in and library access through Beebo’s authentication and permission checks. Real-client validation of restricted profiles, private history and sign-in remains required; do not treat protocol-format checks as proof of every access-control boundary.
It is a separate, optional door into the same library, not a second library. Photos and private folders are not exposed to these apps.
Step by step
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Update Beebo to Windows 0.1.58
The setting is in Windows 0.1.58 and newer. If you have an older version, update first. What’s new lists the changes.
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Turn it on
On the Beebo PC, open Settings and tick compatible client API (lets compatible third-party apps connect). It is off unless you turn it on.
What you’ll see: Under the tick box, Beebo lists the addresses to use, such as “On your home network:
http://192.168.1.50:47811”.Screenshot coming. The compatible client API checkbox and address list in Settings.
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Add the server in the other app
In the compatible third-party app, choose add server and type one of the addresses Beebo shows. Start with the home-network one while you are on the same Wi-Fi.
What you’ll see: The app finds a server named after your Beebo, and asks you to sign in.
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Sign in with your Beebo login
Use your own Beebo username and password. Some apps also offer Quick Connect, which shows a code that you approve from another signed-in app. Verify which profile and permissions are being approved before accepting a Quick Connect request.
What you’ll see: Your Movies, TV Shows, Music and Collections, but only the ones that are not empty.
Client cases being evaluated
We checked Beebo’s answers against the official compatible client API description and drove it with the official typed SDK in our automated tests. That proves the format of the answers, not any particular app. Nobody has run any of these apps against Beebo yet. Everything below comes from each app’s public source or documentation, so read the middle column as what we expect, not what we have seen.
| App | Where | What we expect | Tried with real app? | Known limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compatible client 1 | iPhone, iPad, Apple TV | Expected to work | No | Remote control from other apps is not offered. |
| Compatible client 2 | Apple TV, iPhone, iPad, Mac | Expected to work in Direct mode | No | Closed source, so we only know its documentation. Library mode with its sync plug-in is not expected to work. |
| Compatible client 3 | iPhone, Android | Expected to work | No | Creating playlists from the app is refused. Live library-changed nudges are not sent. |
| Compatible client 4 | Linux | Expected to work | No | Creating playlists is refused. |
| Compatible TV client 5 | Android TV, Fire TV | Partial | No | Its setup may refuse a server whose reported product name does not match the one it expects. Beebo reports its own name. |
| Compatible client 6 | Android | Partial | No | The same product-name check. Files that cannot be played directly have no fallback. |
| Compatible browser client 7 | Browsers | Partial | No | Beebo does not host that web app; it would have to be hosted elsewhere and pointed at Beebo. |
| Compatible add-on 8 | an external media-center app | Partial | No | Converted playback uses the add-on’s own URL, and its width limits are ignored. |
| Compatible music client 9 | iPhone, Android (music) | Partial | No | Playing your music files directly is expected to work. Its converted-audio path is missing. |
| Home-automation integration | Home automation | Partial | No | It can show what is playing but cannot control playback. |
| Library-sync add-on 10 | an external media-center app | Not expected to work | No | It needs a server plug-in that Beebo does not have. |
“Expected to work” means the calls the app makes are implemented and checked at protocol level. “Partial” means it should work with the stated limit. “Not expected to work” means a needed piece is missing. Compatible client 2 is mentioned for its Direct mode only. We have not confirmed that an app on another network can use the “From anywhere” address in Settings, so treat your home network as the case to try first. compatible third-party apps on Samsung, LG, Roku and Xbox are not in this table because we have looked at none of them. Client numbers are neutral labels for the documented compatibility cases; they are not the Company A/B/C labels in the comparison chart. Tell the tester team the actual app and version privately so a result can be attached to the correct case.
What is not supported
- Live TV, plug-ins, group-playback synchronization and remote control between devices, and the WebSocket that live “now playing” screens rely on. Apps that need them show them as unavailable.
- Lyrics, and chapter pictures. Seek-preview thumbnails, chapter names and intro and credit markers are offered.
- Two-factor accounts cannot sign in with their normal password from these apps. The owner makes an app password for them in Settings.
- Auto-discovery: apps that scan the network for servers will not find Beebo by themselves, so type its address.
- Downloading files through the app, and anything that changes the server (users, libraries, restart). These answer “not allowed”.
- Only Movies, TV Shows, Music and Collections libraries. A file you just added can take up to a minute to appear.
- If you restore an older backup, apps may need to re-sync their library the next time they sign in.
If something goes wrong
The app says this is not a compatible media server
The mode is off, or you typed an address the app cannot reach. When it is off, Beebo answers those requests with a plain “not found” so apps report an unknown server. Tick the box in Settings and try again.
An app I use does not work at all
Compatibility is still being verified. Please tell us which app and version at testers@beeboentertainment.com, and what it showed.
Can I see the whole library from a restricted profile?
No. The mode asks Beebo’s own library for each request as that person, so blocked titles, bedtime and daily limits still apply.
Related pages
Written for Beebo for Windows 0.1.58 and the Beebo Android app 1.40, as of September 21, 2026. Found something that doesn’t match what you see? Tell us at testers@beeboentertainment.com. It is a plain email, with no form and no sign-up.