# Watching recorded shows without active sat signal



## jgmiller31 (Jun 14, 2009)

So here's deal, we're getting a new roof so that means our dish has to come down for about 4-5 days. Since it's the middle of summer it's not a huge issue plus it's the All Star break so I won't miss any MLB. I currently have a lot of shows recorded on our various DVR's, will I be able to watch those recorded shows without an active sat signal?

Thanks

John


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## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

I believe you can, as long as you dont reboot the DVR or lose power. I havent tried it with the current software though. You might just try disconnecting the satellite cable from the back and see what happens before you actually lose the dish.

You could also just set the dish up temporarily on a tripod/pipe in the yard, if you have line of site.


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## Martinrrrr (Apr 5, 2007)

You should be able to w/o any problems. I've watched recorded shows during heavy rain periods when the signal is out. Your are running off of the hard drive.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

I thought DIRECTV required a live sat signal within about 48 hours and if not detected, would prevent playback?

I think the idea to set up a temporary location is the best idea if you can swing it though...


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## carl6 (Nov 16, 2005)

You do need a periodic valid sat signal to retain authorization, but people have reported going anywhere from a day or two up to a month or two without a sat signal and still being able to view recordings. I would expect for the 4 to 5 day period you should be okay. However, you will probably need to have the dish realigned once it is put back up. Don't count on the roofing crew to put the dish back up properly.


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## jgmiller31 (Jun 14, 2009)

Thanks, yeah the roofing crew already said they wouldn't put it back which is fine with me. I just need to figure out the timing to call DTV to have them send someone out for a reinstall.


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## balboadave (Mar 3, 2010)

I haven't had a sat signal for over 4 months (major house renovation) and can still watch my recordings. You'll have no problems.


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## Jive Turkey (Sep 6, 2011)

It seems like several people have had different outcomes with this. For me, I was able to watch channels except for the local ones that I recorded via AM-21. Those would give me a "not authorized" message.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

My understanding is that if you lose power to the DVR, it will not go past the satellite error message if it can't find a signal. Heed the warning up thread to keep the DVR on UPS if you are disconnecting the satellite!


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## balboadave (Mar 3, 2010)

Drew2k said:


> My understanding is that if you lose power to the DVR, it will not go past the satellite error message if it can't find a signal. Heed the warning up thread to keep the DVR on UPS if you are disconnecting the satellite!


You're right, it doesn't go past the error message. But then you press the List button. Voilà, your recordings are ready for viewing.


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## Drew2k (Aug 16, 2006)

balboadave said:


> You're right, it doesn't go past the error message. But then you press the List button. Voilà, your recordings are ready for viewing.


Very cool. Information the OP may need to know!


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## ThomasM (Jul 20, 2007)

Drew2k said:


> Very cool. Information the OP may need to know!


I remember in "the good old days" you could watch recordings for months and months without a satellite signal but the current software doesn't allow that anymore. The big question is HOW LONG you can actually view recordings.

I think it varies depending on the model of the receiver. And I also think it makes a big difference if the receiver is powered down AFTER it loses the satellite signal. It may just think there is a temporary outage if it's not powered down, but if it IS powered down, it KNOWS there is no satellite signal for a different reason.

Maybe having an internet connection (but no satellite signal) makes a difference too, since the receiver can then verify that it is on an active account and what channels it should be authorized for.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Drew2k said:


> Very cool. Information the OP may need to know!


I just shut down one of my 24-500s and removed the sat coax. After it booted up and couldn't find the signals, I hit the List button and got nothing but a "bong".

Damn thing seemed like nothing would bring up the playlist and I was intending to bring it with me to the beach next week. Then, I thought about the Playlist on the Menu and that worked. Got on the Playlist and played a couple programs successfully. First time I've ever used the Playlist on the Menu.

Rich


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## gregftlaud (Nov 20, 2005)

I recently moved and was without a satellite signal for like 5 days. I had to reboot my dvr several times between moving it from the old apartment to the new one and trying to decide where to put my entertainment unit at and i was still able to watch all my recordings.


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## johnsonsm4 (Mar 11, 2011)

I just moved to a new house that I am leasing that will not allow the satellite dish. I hooked everything up and started a playback using the menu button but then the receiver rebooted. It has done this more than once. Is there a way to stop that automatic rebooting process?


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

perhaps connect LNBF ?


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## Jacob Braun (Oct 6, 2011)

johnsonsm4 said:


> I just moved to a new house that I am leasing that will not allow the satellite dish. I hooked everything up and started a playback using the menu button but then the receiver rebooted. It has done this more than once. Is there a way to stop that automatic rebooting process?


There is not. It used to reboot without a satellite signal every 12 hours or so but now it's every 10 minutes or less. This will be corrected in a future software update, but right now no, without hooking up a satellite signal it will keep rebooting.


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## FYRPLG (Nov 11, 2006)

Just tried it on a HR20-700 that has been deactivated for a couple of wks. Cant get past message "receiver id problem.call cust svc"
Unit has been plugged into sat and power during this time.
Called cust svc. Answer no you cannot watch recordings
Was going watch previous recordings, but!!!

.
.


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## peds48 (Jan 11, 2008)

FYRPLG said:


> Just tried it on a HR20-700 that has been deactivated for a couple of wks. Cant get past message "receiver id problem.call cust svc"
> Unit has been plugged into sat and power during this time.
> Called cust svc. Answer no you cannot watch recordings
> Was going watch previous recordings, but!!!
> ...


Yes, the receiver needs to be active on your account in order to watch those recordings.


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## peds48 (Jan 11, 2008)

JBv said:


> This will be corrected in a future software update, but right now no,


Perhaps this is "intentional"


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## SomeRandomIdiot (Jan 7, 2009)

Drew2k said:


> My understanding is that if you lose power to the DVR, it will not go past the satellite error message if it can't find a signal. Heed the warning up thread to keep the DVR on UPS if you are disconnecting the satellite!


Unless they have changed it in the last 3-4 week, that is not the case.

Test it out yourself. Simply disconnect the RG6 and reboot. It will error out (Communication Problem with Satellite - 775). Will continue to try and reboot if you leave it there long enough. But hit menu (you will see 775 cabling problem in PIG). Press startup menu and move to Playlist. It will allow you to play programs off the hard drive.

It will not try a reboot loop when you are in the Startup Menu.

Agree that UPS is best, but it wasn't an issue in late April. UPS would also prevent any Whole Home Authorization issues upon reboot with no signal.

EDIT: I just tried this again with a HR20 and the above comments are correct - at least with a HR20. Have not attempted with a Genie.


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## SVTarHeel (Oct 20, 2010)

Has anyone tried this lately? And, I can see how this would work during an evening watching TV - i.e., unplug the cable and then watch from the menu > playlist, but what happens, say, overnight? Does the machine need to be unplugged from the power so it will reboot from scratch at the next startup? Or just powered off as usual, then back on the next day?


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## Laxguy (Dec 2, 2010)

Your best bet is to see what happens with your setup. Different units have different operations when it comes to that, and software versions can cause more variation. What is certain is that if you de-activate while connected to the sat., you'll not see anything after a power down and re-power. So, once you see what happens overnight, you'll get some info, but no one can say that it'll last for months, weeks, days or a few hours. A crap shoot you might say!


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## bpratt (Nov 24, 2005)

SVTarHeel said:


> Has anyone tried this lately? And, I can see how this would work during an evening watching TV - i.e., unplug the cable and then watch from the menu > playlist, but what happens, say, overnight? Does the machine need to be unplugged from the power so it will reboot from scratch at the next startup? Or just powered off as usual, then back on the next day?


I recently added an HR44-500 (September 2013). My plan was to keep one HR21-700 attached to the SWM 8 and disconnect the other but keep it active until we watched all the recorded shows. I was able to watch shows on the disconnected HR21 for about 3 days, then it would not let me watch anything. I tried all the above suggestions to get it to allow me to watch the recordings with no success. I finally had to re-attach the coax to the second HR21 after running sat setup and telling it to use only one tuner to be able to watch the recorded shows. The second HR21 never lost power and a reboot was not performed.


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## peds48 (Jan 11, 2008)

bpratt said:


> I recently added an HR44-500 (September 2013). My plan was to keep one HR21-700 attached to the SWM 8 and disconnect the other but keep it active until we watched all the recorded shows. I was able to watch shows on the disconnected HR21 for about 3 days, then it would not let me watch anything. I tried all the above suggestions to get it to allow me to watch the recordings with no success. I finally had to re-attach the coax to the second HR21 after running sat setup and telling it to use only one tuner to be able to watch the recorded shows. The second HR21 never lost power and a reboot was not performed.


Wondering what was preventing you from watching. any error messages? Perhaps, a 722 OSD?...


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## bpratt (Nov 24, 2005)

peds48 said:


> Wondering what was preventing you from watching. any error messages? Perhaps, a 722 OSD?...


I got a message that indicated I could not watch recorded shows without a satellite signal. I don't remember exactly what the message said, but everything I tried would not get around it.


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