New software update...0x02CB (and 0x02B0)

[Xram]

Looks like they are forcing a new update. Downloading now...0x02CB

[pfarrell4]

Yup, mine too. I didn't even notice the 02CA one, but it just popped up to download 02CB. It's @ 97% and seems to be hanging there.

[Stuart Sweet]

We'll find out more and get back to you.

[yuppers519]

yup me too 02CB on HR22-100

[compnurd]

same here 02B0 on my hr22-100 and r22-100

[pfarrell4]

Seems to be working now--finally got to 100% and is rebooting.

[mworks]

Was just watching tv and the box reset.
Loading 02B0 on hr22-100

Was the update that important to have to do it now ?

[compnurd]

mine gave me the option to do it later

[Mixer]

Directv stirkes again. Download and installs right in middle of recording. Directv sucks! HR21-700 sucks. They all should be fired! When my area gets Fios, Directv can go F#ck itself!

On mine it asked if I wanted to do it later. Highlighted choice was to download later if nothing was selected. Odd that didn't happen for you.

[Stealth87]

Just got done d/l and rebooting. I don't notice anything different but my guide is a lot faster and scrolling through my recordings is faster also.

[Scott B.]

I wish they would give the option to upgrade or upgrade later if you were actively using the box at the time of the forced upgrade.

[tim32672]

WOW no option to do it later it just started to download... anyone know why now and not overnight?

[Lightning]

Same here, I walked away for a few moments and when I came back, my HR21-700 was rebooting from the update. This is after my DVR tried 3 times unsuccessfully to update to the 0x02CA release this morning, finally being successful on the fourth time.

I was actually worried that the HR21-700 was suffering problems now after the three failed updates at 3 AM, 4 AM, and 5 AM.

Anyone know what 0x02CB fixes? When the DVR finsihed updating first, the Guide wasn't displaying right, only displaying a pixelated "guide" image on top of the news that I was watching. But its acting normal now.

[tnflyboy]

I got it at 5:27pm today. Right in the middle of a storm with possible tornadoes. So much for being able to watch the weather.
No problems so far except for rain fade. Lousy timing on the update.

[ncxcstud]

I wish they would give the option to upgrade or upgrade later if you were actively using the box at the time of the forced upgrade.

I got the option to download now or later..., I chose to download and 20 minutes later everything was done...not a biggie in my book.

[bwaldron]

Saw the thread, and now see that my HR20-700's are getting the update (after just getting 2CA yesterday AM). My HR21-100 isn't, though (it's on 2CA).

[spartanstew]

Directv stirkes again. Download and installs right in middle of recording. Directv sucks! HR21-700 sucks. They all should be fired! When my area gets Fios, Directv can go F#ck itself!

How are they to know when you won't be watching TV/recording? And if it's correcting a problem, would you really they waited until 2am and run the risk of a problem re-occuring during prime time?

I don't know if it's being done on my machines, but if it is, I'm glad they're doing it sooner rather than later.

[Ken S]

It seems this is to be expected with DirecTV updates in the last year. Generally, there's an update, system-wide problem, and then the emergency patch. Better at 5:30PM (ET) than 8PM I guess.

[Scott B.]

I got the option to download now or later..., I chose to download and 20 minutes later everything was done...not a biggie in my book.

Well typically it wouldn't be a big deal but we are having bad thunder storms with possible tornado's. Right now watching the weather is more important rather than upgrading my stb now without an option to delay the upgrade.

[Visman]

My HR21-700 just asked me if I wanted the update.

[Grentz]

My guess would be that they have identified the problem that caused the issue this morning for quite a few and are shooting out a patch/upgrade before primetime hits tonight to keep those shows/recordings from being affected.

Remember with the time change they are trying to appease a lot of crowds and keep it out of primetime, plus probably were working on it all today to get the update ready.

All guesses, but I think pretty accurate.

Your receivers should ask you as well, that is the normal thing they do when they sense an update...

[phatmatt1215]

JUst now getting the 02CB update. We'll see if I notice anything new :)

[DodgerKing]

Was just watching tv and the box reset.
Loading 02B0 on hr22-100

Was the update that important to have to do it now ?

Yes. Many people lost their To Do List today and had recording issues with their DVRs. This update is supposed to fix this problem.

[bwaldron]

JUst now getting the 02CB update. We'll see if I notice anything new :)

I would think that this is an "under-the-hood" sort of update.

[Visman]

Just a question does anyone know what the NR software for a H21-100 because it looks like one mine went back to it the release that it shows me is 4080 is the the most resent one???

[Stuart Sweet]

This is now the only discussion thread for downloads on February 11th, 2009. I'm still awaiting confirmation, but for those who know hexadecimal, you'll note that 2CB is one more than 2CA, and 2B0 is one more than 2AF. That should set your expectations as far as what's going to be in the new code.

[oldschoolecw]

Same here, and no big deal with the time

[Doug Brott]

As Stuart noted earlier .. When we know .. you'll know.

To this point, I haven't heard anything about a download other than what you folks are seeing posted here.

[John4924]

Only updating receivers on the last NR. Nothing yet on those with the latest CE.

Just turned the TV on to watch the 5:00 news, and it is downloading software 02CB...I thought they did this early in the morning? Is this something new doing this in the afternoon like this?

[Mertzen]

That should set your expectations as far as what's going to be in the new code.

I'm sure this is just a bug fix. No real new NR for a long time i'm sure.

[andunn27]

Just got the message right at the end of Enterprise on Sci-Fi. I chose to download it later.

[compnurd]

This is now the only discussion thread for downloads on February 11th, 2009. I'm still awaiting confirmation, but for those who know hexadecimal, you'll note that 2CB is one more than 2CA, and 2B0 is one more than 2AF. That should set your expectations as far as what's going to be in the new code.

This is confusing as crap then. Why are they pushing 2B0 out then if it is older then 2CB and 2CA when 2AF was working fine?

[DrummerBoy523]

why at 4:30PM??? there are several kids shows we have set to record between 3 and 5 each day. Why not at 3am?? Geez...

Ok, I feel better now. Thanks for the update D*, but c'mon man!!!! 4 freakin 30 in the afternoon?? Think about your customers!

[nneptune]

yeah said i could do it later, bu decided to just do it.

we'll see what bugs this brings on...

[sswheeler]

Mine gave me the option to update now or later. That was on my HR-22? My R-22 hasn't updated yet.

[sigma1914]

http://www.unltd.org.uk/blogs/files/panic.jpg ;)

[JoeTheDragon]

This is confusing as crap then. Why are they pushing 2B0 out then if it is older then 2CB and 2CA when 2AF was working fine?

I did not get 2CA and now 02b0 is being forced on me.

[tas3986]

:sure: At least they asked if I wanted the download first. This is a much better way to do it.

Anybody know what's in 2B0 except for the mentioned TODO list fix?

[mchaney]

This is confusing as crap then. Why are they pushing 2B0 out then if it is older then 2CB and 2CA when 2AF was working fine?

Exactly my question! Had 2AF on both my HR20 and HR22 and they are now sucking up 2B0. What's going on and why can't I have 2CB? What's the distinction between 2B0 and 2CB?

Mike

[Beckzilla]

How are they to know when you won't be watching TV/recording? And if it's correcting a problem, would you really they waited until 2am and run the risk of a problem re-occuring during prime time?

I don't know if it's being done on my machines, but if it is, I'm glad they're doing it sooner rather than later.
Totally disagree with your point. Doing these updates in the early AM is much less disruptive to most peoples viewing habits. Duh! You mean to tell me that you dont realize this?

[Mertzen]

This is confusing as crap then. Why are they pushing 2B0 out then if it is older then 2CB and 2CA when 2AF was working fine?

Probably different code for different IRDs

[andunn27]

What is this upgrade? I currently have 0x2af

[Stuart Sweet]

I have the official word; there are no added features in 0x02B0 and 0x2CB. Please report issues in the threads for those versions; I'm going to "stick" the 0x02AF thread so you can report there.

[compnurd]

I did not get 2CA and now 02b0 is being forced on me.

same here

[Grentz]

why at 4:30PM??? there are several kids shows we have set to record between 3 and 5 each day. Why not at 3am?? Geez...

Ok, I feel better now. Thanks for the update D*, but c'mon man!!!! 4 freakin 30 in the afternoon?? Think about your customers!

I think they are...obviously they thought the bug important enough to fix before primetime tonight and thus wanted to get it out now. They probably could not do it earlier as it was not ready yet.

[Jeremy W]

Probably different code for different IRDs
2CA completed testing on all IRDs. I see absolutely no reason for 2B0 to be pushed out right now, and really can't understand why they would be doing this.

[Beckzilla]

Not getting any updates here?! HR22-100. Stuck on 0x2af.

[mchaney]

I have the official word; there are no added features in 0x02B0 and 0x2CB. Please report issues in the threads for those versions; I'm going to "stick" the 0x02AF thread so you can report there.

OK, but what's the difference between 2B0 and 2CB and why push 2B0 on receivers that had 2AF?

Mike

[HIGHWAY]

mine gave the option to do it now or later. they did it right.:)

[Jeremy W]

OK, but what's the difference between 2B0 and 2CB and why push 2B0 on receivers that had 2AF?
The difference is, one is based off the old NR, and the other is based off the new NR. Why they're continuing with two versions is beyond me.

[jonny4]

Mine did the download then when it restarted it never urned back on after 30 minutes of waiting, it seems like i have a brick.

[Doug Brott]

Mine did the download then when it restarted it never urned back on after 30 minutes of waiting, it seems like i have a brick.

Did you try the power button?

[Grentz]

The difference is, one is based off the old NR, and the other is based off the new NR. Why they're continuing with two versions is beyond me.


Maybe they identified some issue related to moving from the old to the new and thus are keeping the two on separate release paths until they can get an update that works universally across the board again.

They had been rolling out the update before very slow it seemed like (I had not gotten it on either of my HD-DVRs).

[Jeremy W]

Maybe they identified some issue related to moving from the old to the new and thus are keeping the two on separate release paths until they can get an update that works universally across the board again.
I doubt it. My HR20-700 just updated to 2CA at 3:30 this morning, so the rollout has still been progressing.

[Grentz]

Well no idea then :lol:

I was just hypothesizing, considering we will probably never know their true reasoning!

[diggerg56]

I went straight from 0xbe to ox2cb on both my HR700's as well.

[jonny4]

Did you try the power button?
i am not a moron i tried the power button, then when that didn't work several times i tried a reset after that didn't work i then tried the good old unplug the unit trick and no dice.

[dndell]

2 HR21s. Got the 2ca upgrade last night. Now I have nothing on my To To list. All the Record Series entries are still there. On hold to Directv now.

[Jeremy W]

2 HR21s. Got the 2ca upgrade last night. Now I have nothing on my To To list. All the Record Series entries are still there. On hold to Directv now.
No need to call DirecTV. All you need to do is reboot your receivers.

[murry27409]

Some1 just got home 2 verify that the TODO list had been hosed. A/O 6PM, EST, there was only 1 item in the TODO list. RBR'd the rec and checked in 20 min later. TODO list repopulating, and all primetime shows appear to b scheduled to record. No new s/w being pushed 2 rec, yet....

[Z28Taxman]

No need to call DirecTV. All you need to do is reboot your receivers.


How long should it take to start rebuilding the to-do list? I rebooted over an hour ago and still nothing. :(

[jdspencer]

My HR20 just gave me the option to download now or later.
I selected later. Anyone know when "later" is?

[Mertzen]

My20-100 just got the ping., prompted first the now working on 02B0

[Mertzen]

My HR20 just gave me the option to download now or later.
I selected later. Anyone know when "later" is?

Sometimes it's about 10 minutes, sometimes shorted. It will prompt again.

[Doug Brott]

i am not a moron i tried the power button, then when that didn't work several times i tried a reset after that didn't work i then tried the good old unplug the unit trick and no dice.

never suggested you were .. I've actually had that exact problem myself in the past. Sounds like you need to call Customer Service on this one ..

[Jeremy W]

How long should it take to start rebuilding the to-do list? I rebooted over an hour ago and still nothing. :(
Depends on when you should have things recording. If you didn't have anything tonight, it could take a while.

[murry27409]

How long should it take to start rebuilding the to-do list? I rebooted over an hour ago and still nothing. :(

My list had partially repopulated in ~ 20 mins. It was enuff 2 pick up all the primetime programs.

[CopyCat]

Forced to take 02B0 at 6:42PM EST, what's up ?

Something must be really broke or their server clock is hosed up. :D

[Jeremy W]

Forced to take 02B0 at 6:42PM EST, what's up ?

Something must be really broke or their server clock is hosed up. :D
I guess you haven't been around here today. Something is really broke, you need the update right now.

[shedberg]

Interesting, my HR20-700 has the new software but not my HR20-100.

[Doug Brott]

How long should it take to start rebuilding the to-do list? I rebooted over an hour ago and still nothing. :(

The next few hours should show up quickly (nearly immediately) and then the remainder (~12 days in the future) should trickle in over the next 24-48 hours.

[jdspencer]

Sometimes it's about 10 minutes, sometimes shorted. It will prompt again.
Oh goody. That means I'll have to baby sit this unit so it doesn't mess up scheduled recordings.

Why not have it download and then restart at 3am?

[Z28Taxman]

Depends on when you should have things recording. If you didn't have anything tonight, it could take a while.

Yeah, sorry, looks like I jumped the gun. It picked the one night I don't have anything scheduled. I just checked and I don't have any guide data on most channels after 3am. I'll see what happens later....

Thanks.

[inkahauts]

i am not a moron i tried the power button, then when that didn't work several times i tried a reset after that didn't work i then tried the good old unplug the unit trick and no dice.

If your unit is trying to download new firmware, it might not turn on and it could seem dead for quite a while when thats happening.. I've had that problem. I'd say plug it in, and leave it alone for an hour, and then hit the power button and see what happens.

[offrovin]

Here in Henderson NV our HR22-100 got 2BO at 3:30 PM PST; had choice of now or later. If ToDo, etc, is all messed up, rebooting = unplugging, then plugging back in? It's our 1st experience with knowing we're getting a software update - had 3 DRD435RH's prior in house; still using a 4th in the RV - never knew when or if they were updated.

[cartrivision]

I have the official word; there are no added features in 0x02B0 and 0x2CB. Please report issues in the threads for those versions; I'm going to "stick" the 0x02AF thread so you can report there.

In other words, the "official word" is "no comment". I guess that means that there will be no official confirmation of what many suspect... that this NR is to fix something related to last night's guide data glitch.

[Kithron]

Had the option to do it later or now on my brand new Hr20-100

Lucky i wasn't watching anything important

[bnglbill]

Geeesh, what a day, first my HR20-700 was bricked by last nights activities and now my temporary replacement my HR20-100 reboots and starts downloading in the middle of my show.:nono2:

[Jeremy W]

rebooting = unplugging, then plugging back in?
No need to unplug. Either press the red button behind the access card door, or do a reset through the menus.

[murry27409]

Interesting, my HR20-700 has the new software but not my HR20-100.

My HR20-100 has not rec'd the new s/w as well........yet.

[hoos51]

In layman's terms...HR21/100, from 2af to 2b0. Just what frickin level should I be at and should I plan on another update or 2?

[Jeremy W]

In layman's terms...HR21/100, from 2af to 2b0. Just what frickin level should I be at and should I plan on another update or 2?
You should be at either 2B0 or 2CB. If you're at one of those, you're all set.

[Kodok]

I have 3 HR21-200. 2 of the receivers have been updated to 0x2cb about 30 minutes ago (they had 0x2af since Dec 08). 1 of the receiver had an activity recording a show (while the other 2 got a new software). I cancel the recording and try to force the update, and it still shows 0x2af on the download screen. Not sure what's going on ?Nothing breaks, so I'm going to leave it until DirecTV push the 2cb to the receiver.

On the side note, I listen to XM The Pulse almost daily (Ch. 818). Today tho, something is not right with the sound from that channel. Like it's over synthesized (if there is a word for that). I thought it's my speakers or my stereo receivers. I checked on the other receiver and it sounds the same.

[xIsamuTM]

maybe itwas a preemptive "Fix this before we brick some X-million receivers" download? I remember working at Dish a few years ago (I think it was like 4 or 5) when a faulty signal knocked out just about every receiver. never seen a 500 call queue before that... easy fix but multiply it that many times and you can have a few problems.

[hoos51]

Thank you so much. I thought one of these updates was supposed to fixed the Tuner 2 low readings...hr21-100

Am I all wet? :)

[offrovin]

Whole process took 20 minutes; ToDo, List, Guide all appear intact with no issues. :-)

[Jeremy W]

On the side note, I listen to XM The Pulse almost daily (Ch. 818). Today tho, something is not right with the sound from that channel. Like it's over synthesized (if there is a word for that). I thought it's my speakers or my stereo receivers. I checked on the other receiver and it sounds the same.
It's a transmission problem, not related to the receivers.

[jackdinla]

I just received the new release (Los Angeles 3:30PST)..but the to do list still only shows the programs I manually added for tonight after I first discovered the problem. It did not rebuild the scheduler with any other shows

[RunnerFL]

Directv stirkes again. Download and installs right in middle of recording. Directv sucks! HR21-700 sucks. They all should be fired! When my area gets Fios, Directv can go F#ck itself!

Please, don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel...

[RunnerFL]

I wish they would give the option to upgrade or upgrade later if you were actively using the box at the time of the forced upgrade.

They do. If you were watching the DVR you would have seen a box popup and ask if you wanted to do it now or later.

[jdspencer]

Is it safe to assume that the 2b0 update is for those that had not yet received 2ca and that 2cb is for those that had?

[dgobe]

My HR20-100 just got the 0x2B0 download here in Illinoise...no problems and it prompted before the download.

[Kodok]

It's a transmission problem, not related to the receivers.

I thought so too. Just wondering if anyone has the same issue as well tho probably it's not on the right thread/forum.

Btw, regarding my first question, how come only 1 of my receiver is not updated and why the force download doesn't work either ?

I'm just wondering here...

[Jeremy W]

I thought so too. Just wondering if anyone has the same issue as well tho probably it's not on the right thread/forum.
Everyone will have the issue, it's being sent out that way by DirecTV.
Btw, regarding my first question, how come only 1 of my receiver is not updated and why the force download doesn't work either ?
They're staggering it. Your other receiver will get it soon.

[LameLefty]

Oh goody. That means I'll have to baby sit this unit so it doesn't mess up scheduled recordings.

Why not have it download and then restart at 3am?

You won't have to babysit anything - your Guide should have the first 12 - 24 hours worth of data before it gets back to live TV. The rest of 14 days worth will come in over the next couple of days. By tomorrow you'll probably already have a week or more's worth.

As for the timing, obviously this was a fix for something urgent, probably related to Guide data.

[Kodok]

Everyone will have the issue, it's being sent out that way by DirecTV.

They're staggering it. Your other receiver will get it soon.

Thanks Jeremy.

[Tybee Bill]

No need to unplug. Either press the red button behind the access card door, or do a reset through the menus.

I had an HR lock up and menu and RBR did nothing. Unplugging for 30 minutes brought it back.

I'm just sayin'

[AdMaven]

They do. If you were watching the DVR you would have seen a box popup and ask if you wanted to do it now or later.


I was reading the paper with MSNBC on and suddenly no sound. Looked up and it started the download. I assume that by default if you don't catch the popup, it automatically does the download?

[Jeremy W]

I had an HR lock up and menu and RBR did nothing. Unplugging for 30 minutes brought it back.

I'm just sayin'
I understand that there are cases where unplugging is necessary, but he was just asking about a regular reboot.

[grithermonster]

HR20-100 just downloaded and now none of the buttons on the front of the unit work.

[Goldlexus]

I lost my ToDo list today(this morning). The reciever just updated to 2cb and I still have no ToDo list! Only those recordings I reset this morning for shows on tonight and tomorrow. Do I have to purge my Prioritizer then re-do all my recordings again? As of now all programs in the Prioritzer say they are 0 upcomong episodes which is not true.

[Jeremy W]

I was reading the paper with MSNBC on and suddenly no sound. Looked up and it started the download. I assume that by default if you don't catch the popup, it automatically does the download?
Correct.

[dgobe]

And I just checked my HR20-700 downstairs and it has 0x2CB. I guess if you aren't there to answer the prompt it downloads and installs automatically. Assuming it did in fact display the prompt.

So my HR20-100 has 0x2B0 and the HR20-700 has 0x2CB for those keeping score.

[Jeremy W]

I lost my ToDo list today(this morning). The reciever just updated to 2cb and I still have no ToDo list! Only those recordings I reset this morning for shows on tonight and tomorrow. Do I have to purge my Prioritizer then re-do all my recordings again?
No, this is perfectly normal. It takes 24-48 hours for all of the guide data to be downloaded.

[cmeans]

Saw that my HR21-100 had an empty To Do list. Performed a menu reboot.

I saw that I only had 4 minutes of Voyager from 2am this morning, so maybe the device rebooted...

Here's hoping that my ToDo list will rebuild soon. I've manually reminded it about some programs...

[LameLefty]

Just for giggles I decided to reboot proactively and force a download on one of my boxes, but it tried to revert to 0x2af (this box is on 0x2ca). I aborted the download with an RBR and when my box came back up, my Guide data had been dumped. This box still has not had 0x2cb forced to it yet tonight. If it happens, it better happen within the next 30 minutes or there will trouble on the homefront.

Meanwhile, my HR20-700 and R22-200 both got 0x2cb shortly after 5:00 p.m. tonight.

[jdspencer]

You won't have to babysit anything - your Guide should have the first 12 - 24 hours worth of data before it gets back to live TV. The rest of 14 days worth will come in over the next couple of days. By tomorrow you'll probably already have a week or more's worth....When I said babysit, I meant babysitting the message about downloading now or later, not the scheduled recordings.

[Jeremy W]

I saw that I only had 4 minutes of Voyager from 2am this morning, so maybe the device rebooted...
It probably didn't reboot, it just stopped recording because of the guide data issue.

[Doug Brott]

Not everyone will get this update just yet ..

[homebase]

what are the differences between 02B0 and 02CA ??

[RunnerFL]

I was reading the paper with MSNBC on and suddenly no sound. Looked up and it started the download. I assume that by default if you don't catch the popup, it automatically does the download?

Yes, you only get so long to respond to the popup before the unit assumes you are not there to respond and carries out the upgrade.

[Doug Brott]

what are the differences between 02B0 and 02CA ??

From post 1994920
I have the official word; there are no added features in 0x02B0 and 0x2CB. Please report issues in the threads for those versions; I'm going to "stick" the 0x02AF thread so you can report there.

Although I've temporarily closed those threads so that the "reboot" chatter is contained in this thread. I'll open those threads again later tonight.

[Fenway]

mine gave me the option to do it later

So did mine. I did opt to do it later - any idea on when it might happen?

[Doug Brott]

So did mine. I did opt to do it later - any idea on when it might happen?

Normally it would wait about 20 minutes and ask again, but it is possible in this situation that it will not ask again and you will be updated overnight.

[cartrivision]

I guess things could be a lot worse than a guide data glitch... today an Iridium satellite collided in space with a Russian satellite. This event poses no danger to DirecTV's satellites though. They were satellites in low earth orbit, nowhere near the orbit of geosynchronous satellites.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090211/ap_on_sc/satellite_collision

[KoRn]

Just got the update. It is 02xb0 for the HR22-100 we have. Hope fully we will know what its for later.

[SParker]

Both my HR21 and 20 have the release candidate but my parents HR20 have this new update.

[veryoldschool]

My HR20 just gave me the option to download now or later.
I selected later. Anyone know when "later" is?
For me [this weekend] "later" was every 20 min.

[Jeremy W]

HR20-100 just downloaded and now none of the buttons on the front of the unit work.
Reboot.

[Indiana627]

If this comes down during Lost tonight, I'm going to lose it!

[Jeremy W]

If this comes down during Lost tonight, I'm going to lose it!
Just tell it to download later. But it sounds like they won't be forcing anymore downloads until the overnight hours anyway.

[Herdfan]

Not everyone will get this update just yet ..

Is there any explanation why 2 of 3 HR20-700's got it, but one didn't? Plus my HR21-700 got it as well.

Just to be safe, Lost is recording on my HR10. And D* just doesn't understand why I don't want to give it up.:confused:

[m4p]

I just got it around 5:30 pm today. I came home and saw the blue circle all lit up. When I got the previous update a couple days ago, my closed captioning stopped working, but it seems to be working fine now.

[Stanley Kritzik]

At 5:30 PM CST, I came home, and there was 0X02cb downloading. I anticipated one problem or another, but everything went smoothly. Both tuners seemed to be working, my "to do" list was intact, etc.

In fact, I even got a bonus. One local OTA channel in Milwaukee was not coming in on my AM21, and the OTA meter read "0". I didn't care about it, and figured the signal was too weak. Imagine my surprise when 18.1 came back to life, and at a decent signal strength. Something must have happened in the software -- such as maybe the old software was looking at the wrong digital channel. Anyway, it's fixed, and everything else works to perfection, so far as I can tell.

All in all, it appears to be a good release.

One question -- what's the difference between 02ca and 02cb? Timing, or something else?

Stan

[shendley]

One of my HR20-700s got the update but one didn't. When I turned on the one that didn't this evening, I got gray screens on all channels and even recorded programs. The GUI worked fine, lost nothing in the to do list or prioritizer, but nothing played. A menu reset brought everything back to life.

[Doug Brott]

Is there any explanation why 2 of 3 HR20-700's got it, but one didn't? Plus my HR21-700 got it as well.

Just to be safe, Lost is recording on my HR10. And D* just doesn't understand why I don't want to give it up.:confused:

If you were recording, it would have preempted the download ..

[Doug Brott]

One of my HR20-700s got the update but one didn't. When I turned on the one that didn't this evening, I got gray screens on all channels and even recorded programs. The GUI worked fine, lost nothing in the to do list or prioritizer, but nothing played. A menu reset brought everything back to life.

Sounds like this particular receiver had some other issue which required a reset.

[Jeremy W]

what's the difference between 02ca and 02cb?
We assume it's a fix for the guide data issue that occured this morning. Other than that, nothing.

[studdad]

From post 1994920


Although I've temporarily closed those threads so that the "reboot" chatter is contained in this thread. I'll open those threads again later tonight.

Your link doesn't say what the difference is, just that nothing new for either one. I received the BO on my 22-100, yet someone else with the same HDDVR has CA. So DVR model must not be the difference.

[Doug Brott]

Your link doesn't say what the difference is, just that nothing new for either one. I received the BO on my 22-100, yet someone else with the same HDDVR has CA. So DVR model must not be the difference.

OK .. the version numbers are different .. :shrug: .. Just passing on the information we were given.

[denvertrakker]

Would an R22-100 (down-rezzed HR22, AFAIK) get a different firmware update than a true HR22? Mine reports 0x2af, pushed on 2/8, rather than what y'all are reporting.

[Herdfan]

If you were recording, it would have preempted the download ..

Well, the one machine that didn't get it did have a recording scheduled for 5:30, so all is well there.

But one machine that did get it also had a recording scheduled for 5:30 and I ended up not getting the first 10 minutes of PTI.:(

[studdad]

OK .. the version numbers are different .. :shrug: .. Just passing on the information we were given.
Ok, thanks, I thought maybe you knew if there was going to be a difference between the two. I guess we will find out later.

[dcowboy7]

they didnt update the comedy central HD channel logo or SNY HD logo either.

[dcborn61]

I got the 0x02CB, installed at 5:35pm EST according to my info screen. Delayed recording of PTI on ESPN SD 206. When the recording started at 5:40pm, video was from ESPN, audio was from another channel (not sure which). HR20 returned for the first time since summer to having 771 issues. Machine became unresponsive, did RBR, came back but HD channels are pixelating.

So hard to believe that almost 2.5 years into having this machine, they introduce bugs so severe that they have to force reboot during the day, wipe out planned recordings and introduce the undiagnosable 771 errors again.

I've had just about enough, I do believe I hear FiOS calling my name.

[Jeremy W]

they didnt update the comedy central HD channel logo or SNY HD logo either.
Why would they?

[dcowboy7]

Why would they?

because someone said it would be in a future software download.

[Jeremy W]

So hard to believe that almost 2.5 years into having this machine, they introduce bugs so severe that they have to force reboot during the day
What's harder to believe is that this is the third time this has happened in less than a year. But it's true, and it's really distressing.

[Jeremy W]

because someone said it would be in a future software download.
They're not going to do anything like that in a "quick fix" download like they did today. This download was only to address a single issue, that's it.

[Doug Brott]

Would an R22-100 (down-rezzed HR22, AFAIK) get a different firmware update than a true HR22? Mine reports 0x2af, pushed on 2/8, rather than what y'all are reporting.

Yes, this is possible .. Also, if you forced a download it will not necessarily grab the "new" one.

[hoos51]

Jeremy, i still have the tuner 2 low signal issue, wasn't a fix incorporated in to fix that problem?

HR21-100

[Doug Brott]

So hard to believe that almost 2.5 years into having this machine, they introduce bugs so severe that they have to force reboot during the day

If you were watching the receiver at the time, I believe you could have rejected the download this time. A "non-response" is equivalent to an "OK," though.

[dcowboy7]

They're not going to do anything like that in a "quick fix" download like they did today. This download was only to address a single issue, that's it.

but its not a single issue...the release notes say its for:

New On-Screen Displays to warn when there is no Advanced Program Guide Data

Improved/Updated:
Stability
UI polishing
Improvements to hard drive check at bootup
Performance improvements while using MediaShare

[Jeremy W]

but its not a single issue...the release notes say its for:
I don't know where you got those release notes, but they're not addressing the changes that were made in the two versions that were released today.

[dcowboy7]

I don't know where you got those release notes, but they're not addressing the changes that were made in the two versions that were released today.

oh....thats for 0x02cb while today was 0x2cb.

[t_h]

I suppose those release notes are applicable to the people who still had 2af, since I'm guessing that what we're getting now is was was in the very slowly deploying NR from last week, plus a fix for whatever happened last night.

Or is what we're getting now simply 2af content again, with a fix for what happened last night, but without all the features that were in the NR that started going out in the last week?

[Jeremy W]

Or is what we're getting now simply 2af content again, with a fix for what happened last night, but without all the features that were in the NR that started going out in the last week?
If you got 2B0, that's what you got. It's the same as 2AF. If you got 2CB, then you got the newest NR, with all of the stuff from 2CA.

[t_h]

Now why in the world would they put the fix into the old release and jam that out in the middle of the day, rather than put it into the newer NR, and then come around again in the next week or two and give me the new NR? Unless of course the new NR they were putting out had a problem, which would explain why its releasing so slowly.

[2dogz]

Jeremy, i still have the tuner 2 low signal issue, wasn't a fix incorporated in to fix that problem?

HR21-100

If you got 02b0, then that appears to be just a patch of 02af. The tuner 2 issue is addressed in 02ca/02cb. We'll just have to wait as the progressive rollout works its way from west to east. We know thatr D* can slamdunk a release to everyone in an hour or so, but the progressive release must be to allow customer support the address issues over a longer period and not get too overwelmed all at once.

This is what I surmise anyway. D* plays their cards very close to the chest. The old IT data center concept that if the customer doesn't know there has been a problem, then the customer is happy happy.

[tim99]

One of my HRx's (hr21-100) did not get the update today.

The todo list is gone and my primetime recordings missed.

[bonscott87]

2CB came down on both receivers around 5:30 EST. Neither one of us even knew since we didn't turn the TV on until 6 or so. Everything working fine as far as we can tell.

[The Merg]

Wife called me up to tell me that our ToDo list was empty and that all shows in the Prioritizer had 0 upcoming episodes. I had her check the version number and I am still at 0x2CA, which I downloaded during the CE process on 01/31. Anyone else have their ToDo list wiped without getting a download? Or did I really get 0x2CB, but the Info page for some reason did not update correctly?

I have a R22-100.

- Merg

[davemayo]

Wife called me up to tell me that our ToDo list was empty and that all shows in the Prioritizer had 0 upcoming episodes. I had her check the version number and I am still at 0x2CA, which I downloaded during the CE process on 01/31. Anyone else have their ToDo list wiped without getting a download? Or did I really get 0x2CB, but the Info page for some reason did not update correctly?

I have a R22-100.

- Merg

Yes, my ToDo list was wiped with no download. I had to manually add back in all the upcoming recordings. Unfortunately, I missed half of tonights Americal Idol before I figured out what was going on.

[booradly]

my receiver is not coming back from the update. It is stuck in checking sat settings. I have rbr twice. Still not working. Not sure what to do now.
Michele

[Jeremy W]

Now why in the world would they put the fix into the old release and jam that out in the middle of the day, rather than put it into the newer NR, and then come around again in the next week or two and give me the new NR?
No idea.
Unless of course the new NR they were putting out had a problem, which would explain why its releasing so slowly.
That didn't seem to be the case, because my HR20-700 was update to 2CA at 3:30 this morning.

[JACKIEGAGA]

my receiver is not coming back from the update. It is stuck in checking sat settings. I have rbr twice. Still not working. Not sure what to do now.
Michele

Try unplugging it for 5minutes

[wilmot3]

Ok this sounds crazy but mine looked up around that time info on the channel i was on locked couldn't get it to changed channels ....i discovered this a little while ago...reset reciever and everything works fine now but no upgrade ...figure that out:confused:

[Doug Brott]

my receiver is not coming back from the update. It is stuck in checking sat settings. I have rbr twice. Still not working. Not sure what to do now.
Michele

How long is it stuck? It sometimes takes a little longer than you might expect.

[dcowboy7]

why does my release say its 0x2cb yet the thread title says its 0x02cb ?

why am i missing a 0 after the x ?

[runner26]

I had the same experience with the CC.

[Jeremy W]

why does my release say its 0x2cb yet the thread title says its 0x02cb ?

why am i missing a 0 after the x ?
I believe the info screen cuts off leading zeroes.

[Doug Brott]

why does my release say its 0x2cb yet the thread title says its 0x02cb ?

why am i missing a 0 after the x ?

Because DIRECTV chooses to drop the leading zero when printing the information on their receiver. The title here simply has the leading zero added. Either way, it's the same hexadecimal number ..

[booradly]

It has been stuck for over an hour. I unplugged it and then it came back with a disc error which i have never seen. Not it is back at the checking sat settings. We shall see what happens next. This receiver i think is on its last leg. We have a tech coming out to i am sure replacing it on sat. Luckily we have 2 hd receivers and I was able to get all my shows taped on that one. Strange though this is the only one giving me problems. This one must be more sensitive.
Michele

[Doug Brott]

It has been stuck for over an hour. I unplugged it and then it came back with a disc error which i have never seen. Not it is back at the checking sat settings. We shall see what happens next. This receiver i think is on its last leg. We have a tech coming out to i am sure replacing it on sat. Luckily we have 2 hd receivers and I was able to get all my shows taped on that one. Strange though this is the only one giving me problems. This one must be more sensitive.
Michele

:nono2: .. sounds like you have a different "not so happy" problem .. :(

Glad to hear you already have a tech coming.

[Richierich]

Because DIRECTV chooses to drop the leading zero when printing the information on their receiver. The title here simply has the leading zero added. Either way, it's the same hexadecimal number ..

WOW, talking about things like "hexadecimal numbers", you must be a "Goofy It Guy!"!!! :lol::lol::lol:

Seriously though, all my DVRs are Running Lickety Split like Greased Lightning and I couldn't be happier. Now come on MRV!!!

[booradly]

i guess so. he did the scan disk error again. ugh why now!!! I guess it is good i have another one for now. but still this sucks!! As we have like 50 season passes. luckily i was smart enough to list them all out. LOL

[dhhaines]

Wow... looks like a busy day was had by all here today. :eek2:

At this point outside of not having any TO DO list this morning on my HR22, both my HR20-700 and HR22-100 are running 0x02ca with no problems.

Is this a rolling update or should my receivers be getting 0x02cb tonight after recordings end?

[KoRn]

I might have missed it. Why is this being pushed if it does nothing? Is it just to prepare for the next official update some people already have?

[vikingguy]

This is the exact reason I have a hr10-250 around to back up important recordings on my HR20 DVRs. I am not at home to baby sit a reboot on my HR20s. Any ideas when the 922 comes out again? Since the new tivos are most likely not coming out. I am just getting fed up with the hr20s.

[Richierich]

I might have missed it. Why is this being pushed if it does nothing? Is it just to prepare for the next official update some people already have?

Good question, why is this being pushed if it does nothing?

[Richierich]

Yes, gotta have my 2 HR10-250s as backup but luckily I am having ZERO PROBLEMS!!!

[azarby]

This monring both of the HR20-700 had come out of standby, but the HR21-700 and HR23-700 were still sleeping. All four boxes were at 0x2ca. My wife called this afternoon and said that all four were downloading and knocked her off the air with a recording she was watching. When I came home from work, I checked and all four were a 0x2cb. Don't know what happened overnight, but it may have been an aborted attempt as I already had 0x2ca on all units.
There must hyave been some real nasties out there for a new release to come so quickly and then in the middle of the day.

Bob

[Richierich]

Yes, it reminds me of that last Glitch we had when there were serious Guide Data Problems and it locked up an awful lot of DVRs so they had to Force a Daytime Download.

[Jeremy W]

Why is this being pushed if it does nothing?
Good question, why is this being pushed if it does nothing?
Who said it does nothing? Do you really think they would have pushed out a new software version in the middle of the day if it did nothing? They clearly put in a fix to deal with the guide data issue that occured early this morning.

[ATARI]

It seems this is to be expected with DirecTV updates in the last year. Generally, there's an update, system-wide problem, and then the emergency patch. Better at 5:30PM (ET) than 8PM I guess.

This does seem like deja vu all over again.

[Richierich]

I guess I meant to Quote that Post and then ask what is the Specific Problem that it was meant to fix but then I realize that we never get that info so we just have to postulate!

[ATARI]

Yes, it reminds me of that last Glitch we had when there were serious Guide Data Problems and it locked up an awful lot of DVRs so they had to Force a Daytime Download.

I'm sure the problems that some people were experiencing early this morning is directly related to why we are being forced this update now.

[Paznos]

The update erased everything on my external Hard drive...... :mad: did it happen to anyone else?

[Halo]

To Do List is empty. Nothing recorded today. The Laker game in History says "Partial" but nothing was recorded. Very soon I may be "Partial" to DishNetwork.

When are they going to fire some of the ITT Tech rejects they have "working" on this and hire some skilled firmware people? Years go by and it still has more bugs than an anthill.

[LOCODUDE]

Just came in, found this thread and to my utter dismay, saw my todo list utterly empty. Also none of my scheduled programmes were recorded. Bummer................. :( {R22-100} No updates either...

[Flyer]

Just forced a download on my HR20-100. It just reloaded 0x2af again. Still no To Do List, though it looks like ll the shows are still set to record. It didn't change a thing.

Guess I'll keep waiting. Then I'll have reset the local off-air stations, again, like always. This thing is becoming a hobby I no longer have time for.

[finaldiet]

Got the update on one HR20 about 5:20 pm. Did not lose to do list. Other HR20 hasn't gotten it yet. I have eternal hard-drive and now worried about losing it, and also my to do list.:(

[Crypter]

Wow... so a lot of people lost their TODO lists?

This is just bad... thank god I had all my recordings mirrored on my HR20-100 the HR22-100 that was affected was on the last CE I wonder if that was the problem.

[Uncle Lar]

my to do list items are all gone, (menu->manage->to do list), but it still records shows it was supposed to. if i look at the guide,the season series are still high lighted, and they did indeed record tonight. weird.

[The Merg]

Just came in, found this thread and to my utter dismay, saw my todo list utterly empty. Also none of my scheduled programmes were recorded. Bummer................. :( {R22-100} No updates either...

Well, that's three people now with an R22-100 whose ToDo lists were wiped without getting a download. Any others out there? I see a trend starting...

- Merg

[Canis Lupus]

Are you sure you're not looking at your internal drive?


The update erased everything on my external Hard drive...... :mad: did it happen to anyone else?

[gene1138]

Yep To Do List completely empty. But as far as I can tell I'm still on 0x2d0. Missed recording LOST tonight. Thanks DirecTV.

[Paznos]

Are you sure you're not looking at your internal drive?

Positive since I've already checked and the internal hard drive still has recordings on it, I've restarted, unplugged both the DVR and external HDD twice and it's still showing 100% available and my to do list is empty.

[Flyer]

After the reload of 0x2af, my To Do List is beginning to repopulate. So it looks like it may work out. Guess we'll see after I get the new software.

[studdad]

If you were watching the receiver at the time, I believe you could have rejected the download this time. A "non-response" is equivalent to an "OK," though.yes, I was given the option while watching

[jetcobra]

Positive since I've already checked and the internal hard drive still has recordings on it, I've restarted, unplugged both the DVR and external HDD twice and it's still showing 100% available and my to do list is empty.

When I got home this afternoon two of my HR20's were okay with no change to the TODO list or any recordings. The other one, however, had the recordings (and there were a lot of them) missing from the "List" showing 100% available. I have reset the HR20 twice with no joy. All of my units updated to the new download this afternoon, and only this one has this problem. Also I was able to set up new recordings in the guide. Anyone got any ideas on recovering the recordings???

[Jeremy W]

Anyone got any ideas on recovering the recordings???
They're gone.

[bwaldron]

I'm still waiting on the update on my HR21-100 running 2CA with an empty to-do list. Tried a reboot but didn't help. Trying a software update wanted to send me the older 2AF version, and I didn't want to go backwards.

(Both HR20-700's got 2CB earlier)

[spartanstew]

Totally disagree with your point. Doing these updates in the early AM is much less disruptive to most peoples viewing habits. Duh! You mean to tell me that you dont realize this?

So, let me get this straight. There's potentially a guide data problem that resulted in many people losing their todo lists (and missing recordings). There's a possibility it may happen again at any time. They have a fix. Instead of them forcing the download in the middle of the afternoon to prevent problems during primetime, you'd rather they waited until 3am to do it? Running the risk of millions of subscribers missing all their primetime shows, just to spare a few from missing their recording of Dora or PTI or Judge Judy?

Please tell me your job doesn't include decision making.

[bwaldron]

Instead of them forcing the download in the middle of the afternoon to prevent problems during primetime, you'd rather they waited until 3am to do it?

I am wondering the opposite -- why one of my units didn't get an update this afternoon and is still sitting with an empty to-do list. :)

[spartanstew]

If I were to be upset, I'd certainly be more miffed about that bwaldron, then about the download in the middle of the afternoon.

[denvertrakker]

Would an R22-100 (down-rezzed HR22, AFAIK) get a different firmware update than a true HR22? Mine reports 0x2af, pushed on 2/8, rather than what y'all are reporting.

Yes, this is possible .. Also, if you forced a download it will not necessarily grab the "new" one.

So, now I'm gettin' nervous. Will I not get the most current update, because it's an R22, not an HR22? Different firmware for crippled box?

And what about my sad old R15 - it's reporting last update from October.

[bwaldron]

If I were to be upset, I'd certainly be more miffed about that bwaldron, then about the download in the middle of the afternoon.

Yep, I completely understand why they do it that way when these problems occur.

[blindraccoon]

The update erased everything on my external Hard drive...... :mad: did it happen to anyone else?

Oh great. This is excatly the circumstance where my external drive got wiped last time (a daylight forced update and reboot). Can't wait to see how high my blood pressure goes if I lose ANOTHER season of Steelers football.

[GordonT]

The last time I got a new NR (02AF back in December) my HR20-100 was in standby (like it usually is in the early morning) and after the download it was non-responsive so I had to unplug it, wait and then plug it back in. When it came back up, it was using the internal drive instead of the external. I had to go though the whole power down both the DVR and external drive and then power them back up to get it to recognize the external drive.

Since I was anticipating the new NR (0C2A) for the past few days, I decided to leave my DVR on all the time. So today when the forced download happened, I was anxious to see what happened with the external drive. Well, after the DVR rebooted, I went to the List and saw that it was still using the external drive :jumpingja and all my recordings were still there :icon_da: .

Should it really make a difference if the unit is "on" when the download occurs (as far as the external drive is concerned)? I'm seriously considering leaving it on whenever a new NR is announced, but of course that won't help for the emergency downloads like today's.

[Doug Brott]

So, now I'm gettin' nervous. Will I not get the most current update, because it's an R22, not an HR22? Different firmware for crippled box?

All receivers will be updated to the newest national release in short order .. there's nothing to be alarmed about here.

[bwaldron]

Can't wait to see how high my blood pressure goes if I lose ANOTHER season of Steelers football.

In case you haven't watched the games, the season turned out OK for 'em :)

[bwaldron]

All receivers will be updated to the newest national release in short order .. there's nothing to be alarmed about here.

Thanks, Doug.

(I'm not alarmed.)

[denvertrakker]

(I'm not alarmed.)

Me neither - quantum leap from "nervous" to "alarmed". Not gonna go there. Wouldn't be prudent.

[HDinMA]

Our HR22-100 had to be reset manually twice (after the first reset, the unit would not respond to the remote). Our HR21-700 went down and came up on its own and gave a message indicating there's a new list feature for on demand HD movies, or something like that, by pressing the green button.

Does anyone have the details about this new feature and why they had to push it out in prime time?

[spartanstew]

The last time I got a new NR (02AF back in December) my HR20-100 was in standby (like it usually is in the early morning) and after the download it was non-responsive so I had to unplug it, wait and then plug it back in. When it came back up, it was using the internal drive instead of the external. I had to go though the whole power down both the DVR and external drive and then power them back up to get it to recognize the external drive.

Since I was anticipating the new NR (0C2A) for the past few days, I decided to leave my DVR on all the time. So today when the forced download happened, I was anxious to see what happened with the external drive. Well, after the DVR rebooted, I went to the List and saw that it was still using the external drive :jumpingja and all my recordings were still there :icon_da: .

Should it really make a difference if the unit is "on" when the download occurs (as far as the external drive is concerned)? I'm seriously considering leaving it on whenever a new NR is announced, but of course that won't help for the emergency downloads like today's.



I leave my units on all the time anyway (well, 2 of the 3).

[Tom Robertson]

I finally have a moment to comment on Ken S' post:All four of our units were hit. Programs from last night were not recorded...one locked up. Third time this type of thing has happened in under a year.

This is a quote from another thread, but I would guess it applies here too:A comment.

A device must never, ever barf on incorrect/malformed/garbage data input. Any such looping or lockups is bad programming. (There might be some allowance for a legitimately formed reply that says "turn over to other side" and the other side says "turn over to other side" as an example.)

But any and all information must be validated. If PCH is failing on garbage data, they likely have a huge security hole waiting for day zero.
Tom

First and foremost, I completely stand by my statement. (Good thing, since I made it a strong statement.) :)

IF (always got that caveat thing going) the DVRs in today's "glitch" had simply responded to the data error and stopped recording, then when the correction arrived, restarted recording, that would be very likely quite acceptable behavior pursuant to my statement above. Properly formed data that "looks" good, might cause some strange behaviors. :)

Since many (not gonna characterize as most or not most) DVRs did correct without a real issue, I take this as a very good sign that the DVRs are getting more robust. (small) woohoo for that. :) Improvement is good.

Since many (still not gonna characterize as most...) did not quite correct themselves without some issue, DIRECTV obviously still has some work to do. And they know that.

And one tiny wiggle with a big caveat. Since the datastream in this case was from a protected source, this obviously is not a likely means to a security hole as I indicate in my earlier post. So, in theory, the programmers might not have to be extremist in their vigilance of that datastream validation inside the DVR.

Now the big caveat: Robust programming is quite easy once you get into the habit. So it is best to get into the habit, stay there, and never, ever let yourself slack off. :) (I remember the same arguments about "structured programming" being "hard to do"....) :D

Now as to the "glitch" itself.... I'm not privy to enough information, so I'm guessing that was unfortunate at the serving end. I'm sure DIRECTV is taking steps to correct that from happening again.

Cheers,
Tom

[veryoldschool]

Now as to the "glitch" itself.... I'm not privy to enough information, so I'm guessing that was unfortunate at the serving end. I'm sure DIRECTV is taking steps to correct that from happening again.

Cheers,
Tom
"I watched it" live.
Was watching a recording and it "went blank" [hadn't reached the end].
Guide was blank [not even "regular programing] and the time was 7.5 hours "ahead".
The "live tuner" had nothing.
Changed DVR to see what it was doing. By the time I got it into the guide, "regular programing" was displayed.
My HR21 was recording, stopped for five min, then started recording again [two parts in playlist this morning].
My HR20 was recording, stopped & never started again. I did a manual restart of recording, but this morning the "second part" wasn't there.
After the "missing five min", I noticed my H21 was powered up.
My NR DVR had the same missing five min.
"If I were to guess", the guide data was corrupt starting just after 12:00 AM PST.
None of my DVRs needed to be rebooted or lost their todo lists. [seems like I was lucky] :)

[Ken S]

Tom,

The problem is this is the third time in about six months we've seen the same type of issue with these devices. I think it's also four NRs now that have had emergency patches issued shortly after release. As for the "serving end" if they haven't made effective changes to their process after the last two lockups...should we really expect anything to happen this time?

At some point we have to consider that there's something seriously wrong with the way this software is being developed/tested and released. Let's also remember we're getting close to three years from release and at least five years since development began on the HR2x.

You can say that they don't have to be too vigilant on how they handle their own stream, but your original quote was from a thread where DirecTV had (and continues to) screw up basic UPnP queries. They have also had issues with record commands coming from their remote scheduler causing issues. Should we just expect that the "robustness" of the programming is going to be better on the network side? I just don't see too much vigilance happening anywhere. As for the secure stream...I'm sure many at HBO thought things were secure right up until Captain Midnight went on the air.

You're willing to give them small praise for not locking up all the machines this time around...that may just be nothing more than luck. How about we hold off on the kudos until they do quite a bit better than they have over the past year?

These are the kind of problems that get executives to thinking it may just be better to go with an outsourced solution.


I finally have a moment to comment on Ken S' post:

First and foremost, I completely stand by my statement. (Good thing, since I made it a strong statement.) :)

IF (always got that caveat thing going) the DVRs in today's "glitch" had simply responded to the data error and stopped recording, then when the correction arrived, restarted recording, that would be very likely quite acceptable behavior pursuant to my statement above. Properly formed data that "looks" good, might cause some strange behaviors. :)

Since many (not gonna characterize as most or not most) DVRs did correct without a real issue, I take this as a very good sign that the DVRs are getting more robust. (small) woohoo for that. :) Improvement is good.

Since many (still not gonna characterize as most...) did not quite correct themselves without some issue, DIRECTV obviously still has some work to do. And they know that.

And one tiny wiggle with a big caveat. Since the datastream in this case was from a protected source, this obviously is not a likely means to a security hole as I indicate in my earlier post. So, in theory, the programmers might not have to be extremist in their vigilance of that datastream validation inside the DVR.

Now the big caveat: Robust programming is quite easy once you get into the habit. So it is best to get into the habit, stay there, and never, ever let yourself slack off. :) (I remember the same arguments about "structured programming" being "hard to do"....) :D

Now as to the "glitch" itself.... I'm not privy to enough information, so I'm guessing that was unfortunate at the serving end. I'm sure DIRECTV is taking steps to correct that from happening again.

Cheers,
Tom

[veryoldschool]

Tom,

The problem is this is the third time in about six months we've seen the same type of issue with these devices. I think it's also four NRs now that have had emergency patches issued shortly after release. As for the "serving end" if they haven't made effective changes to their process after the last two lockups...should we really expect anything to happen this time?

At some point we have to consider that there's something seriously wrong with the way this software is being developed/tested and released. Let's also remember we're getting close to three years from release and at least five years since development began on the HR2x.

You can say that they don't have to be too vigilant on how they handle their own stream, but your original quote was from a thread where DirecTV had (and continues to) screw up basic UPnP queries. They have also had issues with record commands coming from their remote scheduler causing issues. Should we just expect that the "robustness" of the programming is going to be better on the network side? I just don't see too much vigilance happening anywhere. As for the secure stream...I'm sure many at HBO thought things were secure right up until Captain Midnight went on the air.

You're willing to give them small praise for not locking up all the machines this time around...that may just be nothing more than luck. How about we hold off on the kudos until they do quite a bit better than they have over the past year?

These are the kind of problems that get executives to thinking it may just be better to go with an outsourced solution.
Ken, FWIW "this time" seems to have been slightly different that previous times.
"Before" I'd be watching a "live" program and the receiver "crashed", rebooted, etc.
"This time" nothing crashed, no reboot, and "came back" in 5 min.
What does seem to be "common" is the time frame. After 12:00 midnight and before 12:40 AM PST [going back five years, so not just the HR20 doing this].

[vikingguy]

Tom,

The problem is this is the third time in about six months we've seen the same type of issue with these devices. I think it's also four NRs now that have had emergency patches issued shortly after release. As for the "serving end" if they haven't made effective changes to their process after the last two lockups...should we really expect anything to happen this time?

At some point we have to consider that there's something seriously wrong with the way this software is being developed/tested and released. Let's also remember we're getting close to three years from release and at least five years since development began on the HR2x.
You can say that they don't have to be too vigilant on how they handle their own stream, but your original quote was from a thread where DirecTV had (and continues to) screw up basic UPnP queries. They have also had issues with record commands coming from their remote scheduler causing issues. Should we just expect that the "robustness" of the programming is going to be better on the network side? I just don't see too much vigilance happening anywhere. As for the secure stream...I'm sure many at HBO thought things were secure right up until Captain Midnight went on the air.

You're willing to give them small praise for not locking up all the machines this time around...that may just be nothing more than luck. How about we hold off on the kudos until they do quite a bit better than they have over the past year?

These are the kind of problems that get executives to thinking it may just be better to go with an outsourced solution.


I bolded the important parts but you hit the nail on the head. This is just getting to the point of being comical. Direct TV should of not been so damn greedy and let tivo do the MPEG4 boxes from the start. Atleast we would have a reliable DVR.

I would of missed lost if not for my old reliable HR10-250 as my hr20-700 must of locked up during the reboot on the upgrade. Since I was at work it just sat frozen all night till I got home.

[bighoopla]

All I know is that I had 11 shows scheduled to record on my HR22 on 2/11/09 between the hours of 10am and 1am. In that 15 hour period, they all say "Canceled" in the history except it did successfully record a show at 8pm & 11:35pm. But then at 12:06am it went back to failing to record Jimmy Kimmel. It says it took a software download at 5:30pm.

Why would it fail to record several times, successfully take the software update, then record one program, fail to record a few more times, record a second program successfully, then fail yet again? It both suceeded and failed to record both before and after the software update.

As I said, mine did take an update. Here's what my system info says:

Original Ver: 0x256

Past Upgrade: 0x2b0, Yesterday at 5:48p

Should I expect DTV to screw me out of my recordings whenever they send me a software update?

Sorry, I'm new and clueless as to why this is going on.

[bighoopla]

All receivers will be updated to the newest national release in short order .. there's nothing to be alarmed about here.

How can you tell if your version is the National Release or some other release? Why are there different releases anyways? Are they regional or something like that? I know how to view my software version, but they're just numbers and letters to the Average Joe.

Here's what my system info says:

Original Ver: 0x256

Past Upgrade: 0x2b0, Yesterday at 5:48p

[reubenray]

The update option (now or later) popped up yesterday afternoon. I clicked later and fully expected it to pop up again later. It never did so I assumed it would do the update during the night. As for as I know it never did. Usually there would be a message stating an update was performed when I turn the receiver/TV on. I looked at my info, but could not find the software update number.

Am I looking at the wrong place?

[kdonnel]

Well this release was a big steaming pile of crap for my receivers.

I have two HR21's and both have been locked up at 9:00pm or so when I have turned on the TV the past two nights.

Neither has successfully recorded anything in the last two nights.

Yeah DirecTV!!!!

I have to pull the plug and reboot them. They seem to be working when they finally reboot but I imagine they will be locked up tonight and not record anything again.

Yeah DirecTV!!!!

[Prince Oz]

My upgrade showed up at 4:48 and asked me to download now or later, I choose now. By 4:58 I was watching TV again. I have a HR23-700. The 771 error that shows up when changing channels is gone. My guide came right back up after the download and still had all recorded shows. The menu is a lot faster as is going from one channel to another. Hats off to D* for the quick download and fixing the lag and 771 issues. I never got the 2CA, just the 2CB last night. Good work D*.:grin:

[finaldiet]

Both HR20's upgraded. One yesterday evening and one this morning. Both are working great. No missing TO DO lists and all previous recordings are ok. Was worried about external hard-drive, but its fine. Everything works as it should!:D

[Rob77]

These are the kind of problems that get executives to thinking it may just be better to go with an outsourced solution.

How true Ken, the current guys that are doing the software have proven time and time that they are not able to do the job. They should be replaced.

[Prince Oz]

Until we now the percentages, how can anyone say that D* screws up on the updates. There are thousands probably even millions of people getting these upgrades that we have no idea how it went for them. For just a hand full of people reporting bad experiences here means that maybe they are just the unlucky ones. Does anyone know what the percentages are on the upgrades sent out nationaly? We do not know. It could be that 5% had issues while the other 95% had no issues, and those 5% are posting while the rest of us are just enjoying our D*. Or just the other way around. I for one would be very interested in knowing what the National numbers are for the upgrades. It is quite possible I am wrong, but also possible I am right.

[Mike Bertelson]

How true Ken, the current guys that are doing the software have proven time and time that they are not able to do the job. They should be replaced.Why?

What is it that they're unable to do?

We're getting new features and they work.

Help me out here, what am I missing? :scratchin

Mike

[Richierich]

Why?

What is it that they're unable to do?
Mike

It does seem like they do not adequately test all of the software fixes in a Real World Production Environment with Real World Data. I worked in IT with a large Nationally known bank and we had to relentlessly unit test in controlled environments but then had to test in Real World Situations using Real World Data in large volumes called System Integrated Stress Testing and I don't see that being done as maybe there is a Rush to get it in place and if it doesn't work we will quickly fix it in a production environment and then rush the fix out the door to the unwashed masses.

[Doug Brott]

How can you tell if your version is the National Release or some other release? Why are there different releases anyways? Are they regional or something like that? I know how to view my software version, but they're just numbers and letters to the Average Joe.

Here's what my system info says:

Original Ver: 0x256

Past Upgrade: 0x2b0, Yesterday at 5:48p

Your system is always on the most recent national release available for your receiver unless you are part of the Cutting Edge Team (view this forum (http://www.dbstalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=118) for more information).

As for release notes .. Check the "Issues" threads at the top of this forum for the release notes relevant to your receiver.

[Doug Brott]

The update option (now or later) popped up yesterday afternoon. I clicked later and fully expected it to pop up again later. It never did so I assumed it would do the update during the night. As for as I know it never did. Usually there would be a message stating an update was performed when I turn the receiver/TV on. I looked at my info, but could not find the software update number.

Am I looking at the wrong place?

If you rejected the update this time, then it was not offered again. It should update automatically over the coming days.

[Ken S]

Ken, FWIW "this time" seems to have been slightly different that previous times.
"Before" I'd be watching a "live" program and the receiver "crashed", rebooted, etc.
"This time" nothing crashed, no reboot, and "came back" in 5 min.
What does seem to be "common" is the time frame. After 12:00 midnight and before 12:40 AM PST [going back five years, so not just the HR20 doing this].

VOS,

Except during the process one of my receivers did lockup and the others were left with empty to do lists six hours later. I had to reboot all of them to get the prioritizer/todo list to start repopulating.

So, yes maybe not as bad as a total lockup but, at least for me, the effect was the same...it took human intervention to get them all operating properly again.

Even if I was just the unlucky one this time around and your experience was the norm...don't you think after the previous two issues this wouldn't be happening again...at least not this soon?

[Ken S]

I bolded the important parts but you hit the nail on the head. This is just getting to the point of being comical. Direct TV should of not been so damn greedy and let tivo do the MPEG4 boxes from the start. Atleast we would have a reliable DVR.

I would of missed lost if not for my old reliable HR10-250 as my hr20-700 must of locked up during the reboot on the upgrade. Since I was at work it just sat frozen all night till I got home.

I don't know if Tivo is the group...they've been given a chance though, but they still have to prove they can deliver a working product on time.

[Mike Bertelson]

It does seem like they do not adequately test all of the software fixes in a Real World Production Environment with Real World Data. I worked in IT with a large Nationally known bank and we had to relentlessly unit test in controlled environments but then had to test in Real World Situations using Real World Data in large volumes called System Integrated Stress Testing and I don't see that being done as maybe there is a Rush to get it in place and if it doesn't work we will quickly fix it in a production environment and then rush the fix out the door to the unwashed masses.That's basically an assumption on your part.

There is real world testing done on real world receivers with real world configurations and equipment.

It goes on constantly. If there is several months between releases it's because it is in real world testing.

You can see for yourself here.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?t=90847

Further, it's self evident in that the firmware is continually getting better, NOT worse, with each new release.

Mike

[Ken S]

Until we now the percentages, how can anyone say that D* screws up on the updates. There are thousands probably even millions of people getting these upgrades that we have no idea how it went for them. For just a hand full of people reporting bad experiences here means that maybe they are just the unlucky ones. Does anyone know what the percentages are on the upgrades sent out nationaly? We do not know. It could be that 5% had issues while the other 95% had no issues, and those 5% are posting while the rest of us are just enjoying our D*. Or just the other way around. I for one would be very interested in knowing what the National numbers are for the upgrades. It is quite possible I am wrong, but also possible I am right.

Why?

What is it that they're unable to do?

We're getting new features and they work.

Help me out here, what am I missing? :scratchin

Mike

We know that last three national releases had to have emergency patches sent down shortly after release. We know that three times in the last year the data stream caused the machines to malfunction...and twice caused system-wide lockups. So, at least in those cases we pretty much know how it went for everyone.

So to answer Mike's question...these machines are unable to operate in a stable manner because of numerous bugs. Those new features don't always work and many have been in beta for years (mediashare, channels I get, parental controls, UI speed, etc.)

[Stuart Sweet]

This is not the right thread for discussions of TiVo products.

[hoos51]

So, is it my understanding those that have 2b0 can expect a further update to 2ca or 2cb?

[The Merg]

Well, I just checked my ToDo List and Prioritizer and it looks like it has repopulated itself. I don't know why it was wiped to begin with since I didn't get an update yesterday, but at least it's back.

- Merg

[Mike Bertelson]

We know that last three national releases had to have emergency patches sent down shortly after release. We know that three times in the last year the data stream caused the machines to malfunction...and twice caused system-wide lockups. So, at least in those cases we pretty much know how it went for everyone.

So to answer Mike's question...these machines are unable to operate in a stable manner because of numerous bugs. Those new features don't always work and many have been in beta for years (mediashare, channels I get, parental controls, UI speed, etc.)I believe that’s a generalization and is inaccurate.

While there are problems, they aren’t affecting the majority of subs.

Myself, I’ve had very few problems with my HR2x’s. I don’t have 771 errors and never have. I’ve missed a hand full of recordings with my three HR2x’s over the last two years.

My friends with DirecTV don’t the severe issues that read about here.

If these problems were the norm we would see the number of subs would be plummeting by now.

Based on this, I think it’s a reasonable conclusion that the severe problems that are posted here are not wide spread throughout the subscribers.

I do agree that things like CIG, and Parental Controls should be working and working flawlessly.

Mike

[wrj]

My HR22-100 is still at 0x2ca from Jan 31 CE download. Should my DVR have updated to 2cb or what?

[Vinny]

My HR20 did not receive an update and it was effected by the deleted To Do list.

I posted the below in the issues thread.

HR20-700 lost the To Do list like lots of other people early Wed. morning.

Since the HR20 is in my bedroom, I didn't notice it until this morning Thurs). There were no recordings all day yesterday and still nothing in the To Do List.

I did an RBR which didn't finalize normally. It got to about 10% in Step 2 of 2 and went right to live TV. So I RBR'd again, this time it got to 85%..."rebuilding scheduler list" appeared on the bottom of the screen (as it should) and then went to live TV. Nothing was in the To Do List and the prioritizer shows no programs found for any of my series links. The guide data was populated. It passed all system tests.

I couldn't wait to see if the the To Do list began populating because I had to go to work.

This did not happen to my HR23 (which is networked). Both DVRs are running the latest software.

What has been everyone's experience in how long it took to repopulate the To Do list???

Thanks
Vinny

[Kapeman]

They're gone.

Jeremy, you and I have had some heated exchanges in the past, but I have to say, and I feel it should be done publicly and not via IM, that your responses in this thread have been above and beyond the call of duty.

VERY nicely done, Sir!

[SFNSXguy]

Let's see, in the last three days my HR20-700s have had three different software versions. Yeah, D* has its programming act together. Not!

[Jon J]

Both my HR20 and HR21 had update ready screens yesterday afternoon about 4:30. The HR21 was responsive to remote control commands and downloaded the update correctly. The HR20 would not respond to the remote or front panel controls so I did an RBR. It successfully rebooted.

The HR20 downloaded the software update overnight and seems to be functioning properly today.

[hasan]

Micro-beta said,

"Based on this, I think it’s a reasonable conclusion that the severe problems that are posted here are not wide spread throughout the subscribers."

I agree, at least in part. We see the good, the bad, and the ugly. I interact with "normal" D* users frequently (not as a D* employee), and the vast majority of them are completely unaware of 99% the issues we see here. They don't even know there are "problems", because of how they use the boxes. Doing nothing more than recording a program and watching it later is the most common activity of the "casual" users I chat with. They don't do anything else.

Guide, Record, Play...for these rudimentary features, the boxes work well most of the time. So much so, that in those cases where it doesn't do one of these functions properly, they routinely say to me, "I must have done something wrong." :)

This is not an apologetic for the significant bugs we report here, just a description of how differing demographics have a totally different "experience" with the very same boxes that we beat to death, or at least put a fine eye on.

Ken has a point, when viewed from our perspective. We can all list the many significant and frequently experienced shortcomings of some features (even basic ones). It used to be much worse. There was a time when I could and would not recommend getting a D* HD-DVR to a "casual" consumer. That is no longer the case, and hasn't been for a very long time.

For very basic functions, most of the time the boxes are perceived as doing well, at least in the eyes of "casual" users that I interact with. They literally do not know what they are missing and many times, do not even recognize that the box is mal-performing.

Like most things, whether or not something is "horrible" or "working well", depends solely on one's point of view. We are here to be picky. They are there to watch TV.:)

[Dr_J]

Got mine at 5:36 p.m. Eastern time last night. Good thing I wasn't recording anything.

[ATARI]

Why?

What is it that they're unable to do?

We're getting new features and they work.

Help me out here, what am I missing? :scratchin

Mike

You're being obtuse.

[jetcobra]

One of my HR20's had all of its recordings wiped - It is a 1 TB external drive that was about 85% full. Some of you are saying that DTV has improved this unit as it has released new SW, but there should never, ever be a case where all recordings are deleted (never to be recovered again). And just because it does not happen to everyone does not excuse their inability to prevent it. I still have one active HR-250 that has been cooking along ever since I got it (early adopter) with no problems like this. Even if a few of us (and it appears that a much more significant number from the responses in these threads) had experienced these ongoing problems, that is a major problem in itself. You can say they have improved all you want, but the bottom line is that two years into this, you should never have an occasion where you lose all your recordings.

[Stuart Sweet]

A reminder, there is no official support for eSATA drives and losing your recordings when using an unsupported configuration is a risk that you take.

[veryoldschool]

VOS,

Except during the process one of my receivers did lockup and the others were left with empty to do lists six hours later. I had to reboot all of them to get the prioritizer/todo list to start repopulating.

So, yes maybe not as bad as a total lockup but, at least for me, the effect was the same...it took human intervention to get them all operating properly again.

Even if I was just the unlucky one this time around and your experience was the norm...don't you think after the previous two issues this wouldn't be happening again...at least not this soon?
My "input" was more as a description, than a "comment" on the status of how well or not DirecTV is doing to resolve "this problem".
Being on the west coast, I have tended to be using my DirecTV when this has happened and "they" [guide glitches] have been around since I first got my Sony HD SAT200. The guide data seems to be corrupted [rarely], which has forced a reboot before. This time, it seems there was a "time stamp" off [for 5 min], which sent everything into a "strange state". How each receiver "handled" this seems to have varied. My H21 "simply" can out of standby, where my DVRs "stopped & restarted" the recording with two and "simply stopped" the recording on my third.
"It seems like" had this glitch been like the previous ones, and caused a reboot, then ToDo lists wouldn't have been affected [stuck @ zero] like they were.
Should all of our receivers be able to handle everything thrown at them? Sure. It just seems like this was a new curve [ball] thrown this time.

[hasan]

You can say they have improved all you want, but the bottom line is that two years into this, you should never have an occasion where you lose all your recordings.

You are correct...but appear to be suffering from the "Illusion of Central Position". The problem you report is indeed, severe...but it is more rare than it is severe, which was the whole point of my prior post. The vast, vast, vast majority of "casual" users have never experienced a loss of all recordings. You have (Central), so it seems overwhelmingly horrible. (and is, for you). Extrapolating your isolated event to the general public is where the error is.

I have never (in nearly 3 years) talked to a single "casual" consumer who has lost all their recordings. That is 0 in a sample of hundreds.

This doesn't mean the problem isn't there. It doesn't mean it shouldn't be fixed. It doesn't mean that it shouldn't have been fixed long ago. It simply means that the problem is NOT widespread amongst the general public.

We can get somewhat myopic in these forums, hence my reference to the Illusion of Central Position....sometimes we think our experience is everyone else's...not so, and in this case, not even close. We are the "special" case, they are the "general" case. We see and experience far more problems than they do, and that was my point. (not that the problems aren't there)

[Crypter]

I own 4 HD-DVR's (one from at least each gen) I have been through at least 6 HR20's since the HR2x series started I currently still own one of my original HR20's (although I went through 3 replacements originally on that one too) but it has worked solid for over 2 years now.

Anyhow I recently got an HR21 and an HR22 and I have to say they seem to get worse and worse in terms of performance. Lately the performance on my HR21 and HR22 have been nothing short of painful. Seconds pass between guide scrolls and Recording List scrolls. Even trying to enter a channel number has become a challenge. I find myself having to enter channel numbers 2 or 3 times because the receiver does not respond and then I press a number again thinking it did not catch my last key press then both key presses show up at once. Horrible!

Deleting programs is not as bad but it has gotten worse. I find it kind of ironic that those 2 have the stock drive in them and my trusty old HR20-100 has had an external 750GB drive hooked into it for over a year and outperforms my HR21 and HR22 in every aspect.

Yesterdays update knocked out my TODO list on my HR22 and if not for the fact that I was mirroring all my recordings on my HR20 I would have missed some of my shows.

While I appreciate that DTV has added tons of cool new features to their boxes I think they neglected the one KEY thing I would rather have RELIABILITY and PERFORMANCE! Get these things operating reliably and FAST. After 3 years+ of development they have only gotten slower and LESS reliable!

I have been patient and always been quick to praise DTV and recommend their service and DVR's to friends and family. But I will no longer do so.

I have not seen or played with the DISH HD-DVR's but how do they stack up in terms of PERFORMANCE and RELIABILITY against the HR2x????

[Mike Bertelson]

How true Ken, the current guys that are doing the software have proven time and time that they are not able to do the job. They should be replaced.

You're being obtuse.Not at all.

I don’t think I wrote a dull or slow witted post.

Rob77 posited that the current programmers were unable to do their job.

I was merely interested in the basis for such a comment.

Mike

[wilbur_the_goose]

In the words of Dan Collns, "It's just TV".

[Stuart Sweet]

Folks, let's be a little more respectful to each other.

[David MacLeod]

one thing I've wondered is if the guide is truly (and that is the key word here) cached why can't the unit revert to the cache during a stream malfunction.

[MattDing]

Why?

What is it that they're unable to do?

We're getting new features and they work.

Help me out here, what am I missing? :scratchin

Mike
What it's been unable to reliably do is its core function - record what I tell it to and play it back when I want. It has been unable to do that without an unnecessary amount of babysitting on my part. New features are great but if the core feature - the thing the box was designed to do - isn't reliable then what's the use?

It's like owning a car and having the dealer tell you "This is a nice machine. Every once in a while the transmission slips and it won't go until you get under there and whack it with a hammer - really easy, no big deal. Plus we just added some more cup holders and heated seats so it's all good." What the hell is the point of putting lipstick on a pig if it doesn't get you where you want? These units started behind the curve and never bothered to get the fundamentals ironed out because they were in a race to keep up.

People say that the complaints here are not a representative sample of what is happening with the "millions" of units out there. I call B.S. Do you think these problems hit us because we post on a specific internet forum? If it hit a bunch of us here then it also hit the other people that have never heard of DBSTalk. They don't come here and post about it. They call DirecTV support or figure out how to reset the unit themselves and grumble about what a PITA it is.

Don't fool yourselves. Bad experiences breed negative impressions. It is simply human nature. There are many people here that say that they haven't had any problems and they are very happy with their HRs. I don't doubt that for a second. If you've had a good history with a product you will like it. What you can't do, unless you put blinders on, is ignore that when people do have trouble they start to think negatively about a device. Right or wrong it's a fact.

People can try and convice others that the problems are no big deal or that they shouldn't be upset when a glitch occurs but these are real customers out in the real world forming real opinions about a company and its products.

If the impression they get is negative no amount of informing them about your perfect experience is going to change that.

[Mike Bertelson]

One of my HR20's had all of its recordings wiped - It is a 1 TB external drive that was about 85% full. Some of you are saying that DTV has improved this unit as it has released new SW, but there should never, ever be a case where all recordings are deleted (never to be recovered again). And just because it does not happen to everyone does not excuse their inability to prevent it. I still have one active HR-250 that has been cooking along ever since I got it (early adopter) with no problems like this. Even if a few of us (and it appears that a much more significant number from the responses in these threads) had experienced these ongoing problems, that is a major problem in itself. You can say they have improved all you want, but the bottom line is that two years into this, you should never have an occasion where you lose all your recordings.Use of an external drive is UNSUPPORTED by DirecTV. I agree that it is horrible to lose all your recordings.

You need to consider that you were using a completely unsupported and undocumented feature at your own risk. :grin:

Mike