New Nucleus One install w/ db migration from PC - Initially worked, now client-server connection hangs/connects briefly

[ANewton]

Setup

Nucleus One

OS - Version 2.1 (build 271) production

Server SW - Version 2.60 (build 1629) production

Roon Labs SW - Version 1.0 (build 18) production

Ethernet connection thru TP-Link TL-SG116 switch

Roon remote

Client - Version 2.60 (build 1629) production

Device name 2965AsusNUC
Processor Intel(R) Core™ Ultra 5 125H (3.60 GHz)
Installed RAM 16.0 GB (15.3 GB usable)
Device ID C204FE15-3466-494F-BC1B-C11D9BE8C606
Product ID 00355-61711-61008-AAOEM
System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor
Pen and touch No pen or touch input is available for this display

Edition Windows 11 Pro
Version 25H2
Installed on ‎6/‎19/‎2025
OS build 26200.7840
Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.26100.291.0

Ethernet connection thru TP-Link TL-SG116 switch

Network and firewall

Roon client and server are both connected to the network via ethernet through the TP-Link TL-SG116 switch. Both share the same Netmask and Gateway.

Windows firewall contains inbound and outbound Roon rules, with multiple instances of:

• raatserver.exe (inbound: 6; outbound: 4)
• roon.exe (inbound: 2; outbound: 2)
• roonappliance.exe (inbound: 4; outbound: 2)
• RoonServer (inbound only: 4)

All instances of inbound and outbound rules point to executables in the same locations on the PC, except for raatserver.exe.

• Inbound: 4 point to …AppData\Local\roonserver\application\raatserver.exe. 2 point to AppData\Local\roon\application\raatserver.exe.
• Outbound: 2 point to …AppData\Local\roonserver\application\raatserver.exe. 2 point to AppData\Local\roon\application\raatserver.exe.

Storage

Music location - ReadyNAS 212

~ 123,500 .mp3 files

Ethernet connection thru TP-Link TL-SG116

Background

I was running the Roon client and server on the PC mentioned above for roughly 3-4 weeks. This is not a dedicated computer. The service was fairly stable when the PC was awake, but I found it frustrating that the server wasn’t always available because the PC host goes to sleep. I decided to purchase the Nucleus One so I’d have an “always on” dedicated server.

Configuration and migration path

1. I backed up the database onto a USB HDD per the instructions in Moving Roon to a new Server.

2. I removed the Roon SW from the PC, rebooted the machine, downloaded the application, and re-installed Roon on the PC.

3. I connected the HDD to the Nucleus One and then followed these steps to setup the device. Note that I did not update the Nucleus firmware via the Web UI before I connected Roon to the server the first time.

4. The Roon client discovered the Nucleus One and I chose to restore the db backup on it.

   After some initial activity, Roon displayed the following message:

The new version of Roon installed requires a database update. This improves performance but can take a while. Please be patient.

Eventually, the Roon UI displayed and I specified the music location on the ReadyNAS 212. Roon began indexing the files and I could play music.

Observations and troubleshooting

As Roon was indexing the files, the UI became unresponsive several times. This manifest in three ways:

• The UI would go blank except for the animated Roon icon.
• The UI displayed a “Waiting for Roon Server” message.
• The UI displayed an “Uh-Oh. Something’s not right“ message.

I did not discern a sequence/pattern. I closed Roon and restarted the application several times and the indexing continued.

Several hours into the indexing, the frequency with which the UI became unresponsive increased up to the point where the UI more of less continuously displays nothing but the animated Roon icon. Occasionally and briefly, the UI does display, but almost immediately the “Waiting for Roon Server” message displays and we’re back to the animated icon.

To troubleshoot, I followed instructions in these two articles: Why can’t Roon Remote Connect? and FAQ: Adding Roon as a Firewall Exception.

Currently I’m unable to use Roon :o(

Thanks in advance for your time and help.

[mjw (Father! Father! Resist not! Let us destroy the core! Set us free!)]

@ANewton, welcome to the Roon community.

For reference, when seeking support please use the Get Help link in the Support category. So, Roon staff see your topic I have now moved it to the correct category.

[AceRimmer ("I’m not just a hero; I’m a legend!")]

Is that 123,500 albums or tracks when you state 123,500 MP3 files?

And what are your settings in library for file analysis etc?

[ANewton]

There are ~123,500 mp3 files on the NAS.

Here’s what the Roon Home page (which suddenly I able to actually access) says:

Here are my library settings:

But note the important point above… all of a sudden, after probably 12 hours, I actually have access to Roon and am able to listen to music. No more endless animated icon. Bizarre.

[Rugby (aka Daniel or Big Dan)]

@ANewton

after probably 12 hours

That’s pretty quick for that amount of files. Where it says Throttle, you could turn that to OFF and stop any impact on your system, and then turn it ON when not using the system, like overnight when sleeping.

Personally, I keep the analysis OFF, and just go with on-demand, which means it does the analysis when you start playback, assuming it hasn’t done it already. Depending on your CPU power, it is a slight delay, with my i9 there is no delay.

Keep in mind, that the Nucleus One is rated to 100k files according to Roon, so you are already over that. Not sure how fast your library grows, but, any streaming files added to your library counts towards that total as well.

[ANewton]

Sadly, I was irrationally exuberant above….

I’m now back to a “Waiting for Roon Server” message followed by an “Uh-Oh. Something’s not right“ message followed by the endless animated Roon icon, though for a short while it was accompanied by music playing from Roon. :o)

[ANewton]

Thanks for your reply, @Rugby . Duly noted on the file max. I don’t use the streaming services and plan to pare down the number of files over time.

I can’t use the Roon UI to turn the throttle and analysis settings OFF because I cannot get past the animated icon.

Are these values written into a config file somewhere on the filesystem? And if so, can they be edited manually in a text editor?

[Rugby (aka Daniel or Big Dan)]

@ANewton

Are these values written into a config file somewhere on the filesystem? And if so, can they be edited manually in a text editor?

Not that I know of.. There are very few things you can do with config files in Roon. In this situation, I would try to connect again in a bit. I assumed you had gone through the analysis with your PC. Did you do a database backup on the PC and restore to the Nucleus One during the One’s setup?

BTW, I’m just a fellow user, although I’ve been using the software for 10 years so I think I know some things.

[ANewton]

Yes, I restored the db from my prior Server instance, which was on the PC that I’m now using for the client (Roon remote) only.

I’ll take 10 years of experience any day. Thanks for the help.

[alex_h (Alex)]

Hello @ANewton,

Thanks for reaching out to the Roon Community with this question.

We have reviewed your setup and identified the likely bottleneck. You are currently running a Nucleus One, which comes equipped with 4GB of RAM.

The Issue: Your library has grown to over 120,000 tracks. For a collection of this size, 4GB of RAM is insufficient because Roon needs to manage the entire database structure in real-time memory for fast browsing and playback.

The Solution: To restore stability and performance, we strongly recommend upgrading your Nucleus to at least 16GB of RAM.

You can find the official instructions for performing this upgrade here: Nucleus SSD & RAM Upgrade Guide

Please let us know if you have any questions about the upgrade process or need further assistance.

Thanks.

[ANewton]

Thanks, @alex_h , for this guidance. I will try the RAM upgrade.

On that note, (oddly?) I’m finding it a bit hard on the interwebs to determine exactly how many RAM slots the Nucleus One has. This article uses the singular term “slot” in step 3 of the “Step-by-step guide for replacing Nucleus RAM” section.

This matters because if I purchase the Crucial DDR4 2666 MHz CL19 2 RAM that this article links to, I need to know if I should buy a single 16 GB DIMM, or if I can buy two 8 GB DIMMs. Can you help here?

And interestingly (I’m no expert here), the link from the article takes me to a product that Amazon identifies as “2666 MT/s” while there is an option for the same product that is listed as “2666 MHz.” The one labeled 2666 MHz is substantially more $ than the one labeled 2666 MT/s. The Roon article says “2666 MHz,” but the limited time I spent reading about the differences/similarities between them is short on hard facts and long on opinions. Got any guidance?

[Rugby (aka Daniel or Big Dan)]

I think the Nucleus One only has One RAM slot, so, I would suggest double checking that first as it would guide you on the 1 or 2 RAM stick questions.

Here is a link to a post with a pic

What is the max RAM size can Nucleus One be upgraded to?

Thank you ALL. But it’s too late to take further suggestions from you guys because I was out and bought the 32GB RAM already. It’s okay as the price difference between 16GB and 32GB is about USD10 only. [IMG_8741] Truly, I don’t hear any difference in sound quality with the extra memory. However, whether it’s placebo effect or not, I do feel the machine runs smoother especially when listing my 5000 something CDs in album views, and sorting customized playlists, etc. That’s 100% worth the …

You might also, DM that user directly and ask how many slots, before opening up your PC.

[ANewton]

Hello @Wade_Oram - Over in this thread - What is the max RAM size can Nucleus One be upgraded to? - Roon Software Discussion / Nucleus - Roon Labs Community - you said:

It’s also important to understand the memory architecture of the machine. The Nucleus One only has one SODIMM slot (and the processor only supports a single memory channel) and so whatever amount of RAM you want to fit will have to be provided by a single SODIMM.

This is germane to this thread and my current predicament. Can you confirm that the Nucleus One has only one SODIMM slot? (I see that I was imprecisely referring to a DIMM earlier in this thread and have just Googled to understand the difference.)

Thanks in advance for your time and help.

[Mikael_Ollars]

First of all, you have described your situation and setup in the most commendable way, if only everyone….

I assume that you have restarted your Nucleus One by visiting the web GUI? That will release a lot of RAM usage (even if i agree you would require 8Gb at the very least) and probably allow you access to the Roon Server, to configure.

[Rugby (aka Daniel or Big Dan)]

Well, you could go into the BIOS of the PC and look to see the number of slots listed there.

[Wade_Oram]

@ANewton

Can you confirm that the Nucleus One has only one SODIMM slot? (I see that I was imprecisely referring to a DIMM earlier in this thread and have just Googled to understand the difference.)

Thanks in advance for your time and help.

Whilst I have no personal experience of the Nucleus One, I remember reading that only one SODIMM slot was available on the forum.

I can not find that reference now but there are some photos of the main board of the Nucleus One clearly showing only one slot at:

Nucleus One Performance and Reliability Improvements

I’ll mark this one as “tinkering” since it’s of my own doing. Disclaimer: I performed this update of my own accord without guidance, advice, or approval from the fine Roon team. This probably voided my warranty, and with that I am fine. Proceed at your own risk. I started having problems with my Nucleus One the larger my library became. I can’t compete with many of you, but my library is up to around 150,000 tracks now. Roon software has a an audio analysis feature that you can find in Se…

Note: the upgrade procedure described in this article with the database reset is not necessary. Simply replacing the module is all that is required.

[benjamin]

Hi @ANewton,

@Wade_Oram

I remember reading that only one SODIMM slot was available on the forum.

@Wade_Oram is correct with the above statement - there is only one slot available.

Certainly, let us know if you have any other questions along the way. Thank you!

[ANewton]

Thank you to everyone who chipped in with suggestions. The specific information confirming that the Nucleus One has one RAM slot is very helpful. RAM is ordered and now I just wait for it to arrive and find the time to install it.

[ANewton]

Thank you, @Mikael_Ollars, for helping out.

I have indeed restarted the server via the Web UI, which sadly did not help. But it’s all just part of the learning process, so it’s good to know the ins and outs of what to experiment with.

I’m waiting on the RAM to arrive and then will need to find some time to crack open the unit to do the upgrade. I noted that the documentation does not mention that I should let the cat assist with this and will have to plan accordingly

[benjamin]

Hey @ANewton,

Since some time has passed, I wanted to check in and see how things are going. We’ll be monitoring for your reply and progress, and are here if you have any questions along the way!