# Usb flash drive as external hard drive?



## Raymond255

Has anyone tried using a USB flash drive as an external hard drive for those time when you want to watch just one or two show on DVR in a different room? I figure it has to be easier to sneaker-net a flash drive than an external hard drive.


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## n0qcu

Well, since the minimum size for an EHD is 40 Gig & I haven't seen any 40 gig flashdrives yet, I would think not.


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## SaltiDawg

n0qcu said:


> Well, since the minimum size for an EHD is 40 Gig & I haven't seen any 40 gig flashdrives yet, I would think not.


Terrible answer. :lol:

http://www.nextag.com/Sandisk-64GB-Cruzer-Ultra-649296851/prices-html

What's the *real* reason it won't work?


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## Stewart Vernon

n0qcu said:


> Well, since the minimum size for an EHD is 40 Gig & I haven't seen any 40 gig flashdrives yet, I would think not.


My father recently bought a 32GB USB flash drive... and I've also seen 64GB as well.

I know larger ones are being tested... so if you have the money to blow/test, you could probably find out soon.

IF it happened to work... I suppose I could see using it for that purpose... but consider that it would still take the same time to transfer the recording to the thumb drive as a hard drive... it means you couldn't do spur-of-the-moment viewings in another room in the way you are probably thinking...

i.e. You'd have to decide to move the program to the thumb drive... wait for it... and then take it to the other room. As opposed to archiving with the rest of your recordings on a larger hard drive while you are sleeping.


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## digital223

Raymond255 said:


> Has anyone tried using a USB flash drive as an external hard drive for those time when you want to watch just one or two show on DVR in a different room? I figure it has to be easier to sneaker-net a flash drive than an external hard drive.


I think it's a great idea. Especially for a friend that doesn't sub to cable or satillite. If they have a computer you could bring your usb drive when visiting to have them watch a movie or a video event you made.

I seem to remember that the USB t/d has to be High Capacity formatted NTFS.
Or am I mistaken.
I have some favorite movie clips on an 8Gb SDHC card which I shuffle between my digital camera and my computer. It is formatted FAT, and works well.
I seem to remember coping a complete movie to the same SDHC card but playback seemd to stutter. I don't think my computer will format this SDHC card to NTFS.


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## Jim5506

The question with USB flash drives is are they fast enough and will the OS format them?


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## P Smith

digital223 said:


> I think it's a great idea. Especially for a friend that doesn't sub to cable or satillite. If they have a computer you could bring your usb drive when visiting to have them watch a movie or a video event you made.
> 
> *I seem to remember that the USB t/d has to be High Capacity formatted NTFS.
> Or am I mistaken.*
> I have some favorite movie clips on an 8Gb SDHC card which I shuffle between my digital camera and my computer. It is formatted FAT, and works well.
> I seem to remember coping a complete movie to the same SDHC card but playback seemd to stutter. I don't think my computer will format this SDHC card to NTFS.


Not NTFS. Yes, you are.


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## n0qcu

n0qcu said:


> I haven't seen any 40 gig flashdrives yet.


OK, now I have.
Don't know if it would work or not, going to need to try it.


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## PokerJoker

digital223 said:


> I think it's a great idea. Especially for a friend that doesn't sub to cable or satillite. If they have a computer you could bring your usb drive when visiting to have them watch a movie or a video event you made.
> 
> I seem to remember that the USB t/d has to be High Capacity formatted NTFS.
> Or am I mistaken.
> I have some favorite movie clips on an 8Gb SDHC card which I shuffle between my digital camera and my computer. It is formatted FAT, and works well.
> I seem to remember coping a complete movie to the same SDHC card but playback seemd to stutter. I don't think my computer will format this SDHC card to NTFS.


Dish DVR hard drives are in a Linux format, I forget which one right now.

Plus, the recordings on the external drive are encrypted and can only play on a DVR on the same household account. You can't take it to someone else's house and play it on a PC.

But a big enough USB drive, or maybe even a USB-port-equipped SSD, should work as a Dish external drive. If you try it, let us know how it turns out. 

Keith


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## SaltiDawg

digital223 said:


> I think it's a great idea. Especially for a friend that doesn't sub to cable or satillite. If they have a computer you could bring your usb drive when visiting to have them watch a movie or a video event you made. ...


The video on an EHD used with a Dish VIP receiver is encrypted and also can only be played back on a VIP receiver registered to the users account.

Additionally, I believe this has been discussed before and a USB drive will not work to save VIP recordings. We'll see.


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## RasputinAXP

PokerJoker said:


> Dish DVR hard drives are in a Linux format, I forget which one right now.
> 
> Plus, the recordings on the external drive are encrypted and can only play on a DVR on the same household account. You can't take it to someone else's house and play it on a PC.


Dish uses the EXT3 filesystem.


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## digital223

Thanks to all that made suggestions re my post.
I do not have an ehd. Also I am aware of E*'s encrption.
I have been successful transferring movies and clips to a usb t/d, and at times my laptop hdd, using VLC and Keepvid.
Many oldimers in my area do not have cable or sat. I bring my laptop and they are able to watch some of the vintage musicals and other movies they remember seeing when they were kids !


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## Ron Barry

We have definitely ran into situation where EHD without power supplies will not work. My guess is ThumbDrives will also not work for similar reasons. 

We have had no reports here that I am aware of where someone has had one work and I don't recall reading any where it did not work. Having said that, I really doubt one would work. 

My recommendation would be is get a EHD with a power supply if you want to give the best shot at having it work. There is a thread here where people report what has worked and what has not and I would suggest using that as a guideline.


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## digital223

This is a correction of my previous post, which could have been misunderstood.

Thanks to all that made suggestions re my post.
I do not have an ehd. Also I am aware of E*'s encrption.
I have been successful transferring DVD movies and clips to a usb t/d, and at times my laptop hdd, using VLC and Keepvid.
Many oldimers in my area do not have cable or sat. I bring my laptop and they are able to watch some of the vintage musicals and other movies they remember seeing when they were kids !


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## SaltiDawg

digital223 said:


> ...
> I have been successful transferring DVD movies and clips to a usb t/d, and at times my laptop hdd, using VLC and Keepvid.
> ...


Many business travelers bring their movies along on a USB Flash drive so as to conserve battery power on the plane. Depending on the laptop and the movies involved, one might get to view two complete movies on one laptop battery charge.

I still maintain that you will not be able to use a USB Flash Drive as an EHD on a VIP receiver.

EDIT: Based on the post next following this one, I am mistaken/wrong.


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## kutchins

I attached my Sandisk 64G Thumbdrive via the USB cable to my 622. It thought about it for a while, then formatted the disk on which I then was able to download saved programs. They playback just fine; but, as others have said will only work on VIP Receivers, not PCs.


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## Ron Barry

Interesting kutchins, Glad to get a confirmation that it worked. I would have thought it would not. I still would not recommend it, but good to know someone has tried it successfully.


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## P Smith

SO, there is a possible way to use 32 GB or smaller as EHD: format it as normal EHD, make two EXT3 partitions, first should be fixed size ( you could find posts here with the part info), next one initially should make as rest of space, then using hexeditor program to change max sector value to that what would be bigger then 40 GB. Using such EHD with high precaution - better use for one continuous run of transfer to it and cumulative size must be less then REAL size of second partition. Perhaps the method should be used once per transfer. Next time it would require same format procedure.


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## ShapeShifter

P Smith said:


> Using such EHD with high precaution


Yes, I would say so that you would need to be careful. Seems like you could indeed fool the the DVR into thinking that the drive was bigger than stated, and therefore maybe it will allow its use. But, boy, it sure could get _interesting_ if you run past that physical boundary into non-existent space. Caution, indeed! (Probably not a good idea for the casual user...)


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## P Smith

Perhaps you did read zillion stories about fake big flash drives selling from China. That would be another method, but it will require special software.


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## shortspark

I record from my vip 622 to a small flash drive all the time and have done so for a couple years now. I record while watching live shows and those I have archived on my dvr and even my external hard drive. The ones I use are Kingston 8gb (must be in FAT format). As others have said, there is no way to put the small capacity drive directly to the 622's port and expect it to work. Another device must be used to make the transfer and that device is called Neuros: http://www.neurostechnology.com/osd.

You must use the tv2 output from the 622 because the Neuros can not record HD, only SD (although newer models may have overcome that but those models would probably require huge and expensive large capacity memory drives). The model I have is easy to operate. You connect the analog audio/video outputs from the 622 to the Neuros, create a file that can be played on either tv, Ipod or other media players - the choice is yours. I have mine set up so that my recording will playback on tv. However, the same file will play on your computers if you enable Quick Time player (it may work with other applications such as Windows Media Player but I have not tried it as Quick Time works perfectly).

As long as you have a way to hook up your laptop to whatever tv you are going to use, you are all set to take the movies anywhere. I often take my little flash drives and laptop on trips and it sure makes the air travel go faster, not to mention the down time waiting for connections. I can carry a whole bunch of movies, concerts, sporting events, audio clips - whatever I want right in my shirt pocket.

The Neuros is a tad expensive but it is bullet proof and you can archive all your home movies and old vcr tapes or dvd disks onto these convenient little flash drives. It can also record to Compact Flash Cards but I have not bothered to try the cards. There are similar, less expensive devices that do the same thing but, as I understand it, the Neuros is one of the very best, if not the best.

The bottom line is that although I am pleased with the ability to take anything I record and place it on a flash drive, the reality is that I question the necessity. Unlike an external hard drive, you must record to the pen drive in real time and that is a royal pain in the butt. Because of that, you could do the exact same thing with a dvd recorder and blank disks and pop them into your laptop disk drive just as easily as putting the flash drive into the usb port. The flash drives are cooler, more convenient and far more efficient than disks but the principal is the same. But if someone really, really wants to download programs from our Dish receivers to small capacity flash drives (and understand the Neuros will not do HD, at least the older model I have won't) the way I have described is the best way I know how to do it.


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## P Smith

Best way would be if you could make HD transfer.


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