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Humax PVR query.

gleneagles
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Humax PVR query.

Have been using a Humax PVR 9200T for a number of years with no problem but the other day found all the stuff that had been recorded was missing or at least that part of the menu showing the recorded programs was blank, since then I have been able to record and save several other programs and the missing programs are still on the hard drive of the recorder but not showing in the menu.
I Suspect the problem may have been due to some over the air update which takes place around 3am.
Anyway what I want to know is there any way of recovering these programs ? Would the way the hard disc on the recorder be formatted in the same way as a standard hard drive, ie FAT 32 or NTSC ? Even if I could extract the programs would I be able to play them ?
Anyone else been faced with this problem ?
We are born into history and history is born into us.
13 REPLIES 13
VileReynard
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Re: Humax PVR query.

I got given one of those YouView pieces of junk - which was built on top of a Humax box.
It was so slow to boot (sometimes it refused to boot at all) that I bought a Panasonic PVR.
Anyway I dismantled it the Youview thing.
It was mostly fresh air inside but it did have an internal SATA 500GB drive in it.  Cheesy
Haven't had chance to put it in a PC.
It's unlikely that it uses FAT32 or NTFS as they would have to pay a licence fee to Microsoft.
In addition, it's probably loaded with DRM to stop people getting good quality digital recordings off-air.

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DaveyH
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Quote from: gleneagles

Anyway what I want to know is there any way of recovering these programs ? Would the way the hard disc on the recorder be formatted in the same way as a standard hard drive, ie FAT 32 or NTSC ? Even if I could extract the programs would I be able to play them ?

Its Linux based so the drive will be ext2/3 formatted. Windows doesn't recognise ext2/3 out the box but there used to be a driver you could install.
Though personally i'd just download a Linux distro and create a bootable disc/USB pen and boot into that to mount/access the drive.
The recordings will be .TS files and will playback fine in wmp, vlc etc.
ReedRichards
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Re: Humax PVR query.

I have recovered videos from a failed hard-disk recorder; I don't remember the make and I had to take it to pieces to extract the hard drive.  The hard disk did not use a Windows-type format like FAT or NTFS but I found a translation program that worked under Windows XP.  I could then watch the videos using VLC Media Player.
I cannot find the translation program I used in a quick search of my computer - but if you really need it I will look harder. 
ejs
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Re: Humax PVR query.

LinuxReader allows you to copy files off Linux filesystems and sounds simpler than the driver-based solutions.
VileReynard
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Re: Humax PVR query.

But surely Linux allows you to copy files off of Linux filesystems.  Grin

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ejs
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Linux might not be able to write to Windows 8 NTFS partition if Win8 was shut down with fast restart mode enabled, in that case you'd need somewhere else to copy the files to.
Trevor
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Might also be worth emailing Graham North at Humax - he is always helpful.
VileReynard
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Quote from: ejs
Linux might not be able to write to Windows 8 NTFS partition if Win8 was shut down with fast restart mode enabled, in that case you'd need somewhere else to copy the files to.

Why would you need such a thing?
Surely standard/normal restart performs adequately?  Grin

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gleneagles
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Thanks for the responses.
Having weighed up the options I think the best bet is to consider the programs lost rather than try to recover them.
There is an option on the Humax menu which allows a reformat of the drive so will go down that route rather than attempting to connect the PVR hard drive to my computer and ending up with additional problems.
Also possible that the hard drive of the PVR is beginning to fail so if the problem repeats itself over the next few months a new PVR might be in order, after all this one is over 5 years old and most nights we record a number of programs so it has seen some hard service.
We are born into history and history is born into us.
VileReynard
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Re: Humax PVR query.

They use special drives "designed to powered up and down a lot".
You might find things like power connectors to be a bit non-standard.
Strangely enough, the one I took out was exactly 4" wide - so it wouldn't fit a standard 3 1/2" bay. Sad

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HPsauce
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Re: Humax PVR query.

Interesting, I've taken a few PVR's apart and only ever found standard drives (IDE in some old ones, SATA recently), usually of the "quiet" variety.
VileReynard
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Re: Humax PVR query.

About the disk: Seagate claim
Quote
Seagate Pipeline HD hard drives deliver the reliability, capacity and performance needed by the next generation
of high-definition DVRs and media centers.Seagate Pipeline HD drives deliver unprecedented levels of acoustic, power and vibration performance
for high-definition DVRs. With the ability to support up to 12 simultaneous streams and operate at drive case temperatures of up to 75°C,
they provide reliable storage that enables consumers to take full advantage of premium services like video on demand.
Seagate Pipeline HD drives are the gold standard for high-definition performance and capacity.

Pity the crappy PVR couldn't achieve the same standards.

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rpaco
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Re: Humax PVR query.

@gleneagles  I have had this happen several times on my FVP-5000T, in fact every time there was a power cut or a glitch in the mains supply. I found that disconnecting the power supply and leaving it a few minutes, then re-connecting so that it re-boots from cold has restored the recordings. I suspect it looses its sector count or logical head position during power glitches.  I now have it connected via a small smoothing device.