# WH DVR not working properly on HR34



## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

I need some help and advice. I got my Whole Home DVR service installed this past Monday (8/27/12) by a DirecTV installer. Since that time my HR34 has twice lost connection with two other receivers. I have a total of 4 DVRs(HR24,HR20, HR21, and a HR34) on the network. Each time I have done a red button reset on the HR34 and it reconnects and the playlists show back up on the HR34. I hate to keep having to do this. *Is there anything I can do to prevent this from happening?*

*Also is the red button reset the easiest way to reconnect with the receivers that have dropped off?*

Any other advice would be appreciated. Sorry I know this happens a lot but I did look at several other posts and could not find the specific answer to my problems.

Thanks for any help.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

If you have to reboot it, use the menu restart receiver option in the setup menu.

There is currently a problem with the software on the HR2x national release.
Hopefully this will be addressed shortly.


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

Ok,
Thanks for the info. I will try the restart option on the settings menu on the HR34 rather than the RBR. It is strange that so far my other receivers don't seem to be losing connection in the WH DVR setup just the HR34.

So you are saying the *problem* lies with the most recent update on the HR24,HR20 and HR21 receivers and not the HR34?


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

No, the problem is with the HR34.

Instead of rebooting you can also fix it by re-running the network setup. Takes less time that way.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

RunnerFL said:


> No, the problem is with the HR34.


I'm not sure that it really it. The HR2x update has some issues.


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

veryoldschool said:


> I'm not sure that it really it. The HR2x update has some issues.


I appreciate the information but I have had the WH DVR for 10 days and I like it but it is getting to be a daily routine that I have to restart my HR34 to recover the connection to my other 3 HR DVRS (HR24, HR20, and HR21).

Is there any time frame on when this will be fixed? Or do I have a bad HR34?

It is getting frustrating to have to do a daily restart of my HR34 so I can watch old recordings from my other HD DVRs. 

Thanks again for anyone's advice or help. I really appreciate this forum!


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

As RunnerFL posted, it might be quicker to re-run the network setup than rebooting.

If you're having problems daily, it might be related to your router's DHCP lease time.

One way to check is to remove the internet connection and reboot all the receivers so the change to their internal 169.xxx IP addresses.

Run it this way for a day or two and see if the problem goes away or keeps happening.


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

I am sorry if this is a dumb question but how do I disconnect my internet since I knew how to before but now there are so many coax cables and ethernet cables on back, I am unsure which to pull since DirecTV installed the WH DVR??????

Thanks,


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## RunnerFL (Jan 5, 2006)

mjm76 said:


> I am sorry if this is a dumb question but how do I disconnect my internet since I knew how to before but now there are so many coax cables and ethernet cables on back, I am unsure which to pull since DirecTV installed the WH DVR??????
> 
> Thanks,


Unplug your Cinema Connection Kit (CCK) from either power or your router.


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

Ok, 
I will try that. 

One more question and this is about the HR34. I have noticed that when I turn on my HR34 that whatever channel that I have left it on that there is not a 90 minute buffer on that channel that use to be on my HR24. What I mean by that is that on my HR24 when I turn it on and it is on Local Channel 5 for instance I could rewind and watch the last 90 minutes of the programming from that channel but with the HR34 that does not work.

Is this normal for the HR34?

Thanks again for any information.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

mjm76 said:


> Ok,
> I will try that.
> 
> One more question and this is about the HR34. I have noticed that when I turn on my HR34 that whatever channel that I have left it on that there is not a 90 minute buffer on that channel that use to be on my HR24. What I mean by that is that on my HR24 when I turn it on and it is on Local Channel 5 for instance I could rewind and watch the last 90 minutes of the programming from that channel but with the HR34 that does not work.
> ...


The 34 uses different code, and the buffer doesn't act the same as with the HR2x.


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## markrogo (Sep 18, 2007)

So, in what can only be described as surreal, I have DirecTV again telling me, *There is no issue with the HR34 and Whole Home viewing*.

What's amazing about this is that yesterday, a different tech informed me, "Disconnect your Cinema Connection Kit and your HR34 should stop dropping off the Whole Home network". So the question is: Which DirecTV do you believe:

1) The one who tells you there is a problem when you are 100% certain there is a problem and you are 100% certain you are not the only person with an HR34 that is dropping off the network?

OR

2) The DirecTV that wants to send another technician out to verify your installation when -- and I should be clear -- the technician in #1 insisted there was simply no chance there was anything wrong with the multiswitch and a technician who visited last week to exchange your HR34 (which had the same whole home problem as well as an unrelated problem) also insisted the installation could not possibly be the cause.

This is truly at this point theater of the absurd.

(If there's anyone with Tivo Premier experience, please send me a PM.)


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

markrogo said:


> So, in what can only be described as surreal, I have DirecTV again telling me, *There is no issue with the HR34 and Whole Home viewing*.
> 
> What's amazing about this is that yesterday, a different tech informed me, "Disconnect your Cinema Connection Kit and your HR34 should stop dropping off the Whole Home network". So the question is: Which DirecTV do you believe:
> 
> ...


I get that you're having problems, but it would help everyone if you were to stick to one thread to comment [***** about] your problems.
It makes it easier to follow what has and hasn't been done.

I have NO ISSUES with my HR34 and multiroom viewing.

Are there others that do? yes.
Some will get it resolved with a new software update, but some seem to be having problems with their router causing this.

I don't know what is happening with yours. :shrug:


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## markrogo (Sep 18, 2007)

veryoldschool said:


> I get that you're having problems, but it would help everyone if you were to stick to one thread to comment [***** about] your problems.
> It makes it easier to follow what has and hasn't been done.
> 
> I have NO ISSUES with my HR34 and multiroom viewing.
> ...


The materiality of posting in this thread was solely related to the very specific and recent fact that according to DirecTV Case Management, there is absolutely no know problem with anyone's HR34. This was based on "speaking with engineering" and "confirming" that there is no known problem.

I think it's important for people to realize that while this problem clearly does exist and clearly does affect multiple people, a significant portion of the DirecTV power structure believes there is no problem whatsoever.

I will add that whatever the cause of the problem, removing the CCK was not a fix. Therefore, it is safe to rule out a router cause in my case as my DirecTV Whole Home has no internet connection of any kind and cannot talk to any kind of network.

I would call that "data" in that it suggests that whatever the problem is, the "disconnect the CCK/broadband DECA" fix is working for reasons unrelated to the internet/router and will clearly not work for everyone.

Sorry to "*****" in this thread as well. There are clearly multiple, redundant discussions about this in multiple sub-forums here. I am trying to make it clear to everyone who will listen that this problem is real. It does not matter that some people don't have the problem. That doesn't mean the HR34 isn't "broke" with current software. It means that whatever is broken only manifests itself for some people and not others. DirecTV reps I've spoken with on the phone are incapable of understanding this, so I'll leave the analogy here:

If you and I have the same model of car and it has a design flaw that only manifests itself when climbing multiple 30-degree hills, I might experience the flaw in San Francisco and you might not if you live in Wichita. But we both have the flaw.

I'm without ideas at this point, but I'm re-plugging in my CCK again. Removing it obviously does not cause all instances of the problem to disappear. I am mystified as to why only some people are having the problem but I'm almost equally mystified that no one at DirecTV seems to care about gathering all the Whole Home configuration information and mucking with the multiswitches to even see if that matters.

They want to perform another service call for me; that's what they are going to recommend for anyone who calls in based on what I've been told (again, there is no "known" problem despite what this thread would indicate). What they would possibly even be doing on that service call, I haven't any idea.


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## Diana C (Mar 30, 2007)

I am going to throw out a theory, and a possible workaround...forgive me if this has been already tried by some that are experiencing this issue:

First a little background. The vast majority of home LANs are configured to use DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) whereby each node of the network is configured by a single controller, usually the router that connects the local LAN to the Internet. This includes the address of the node. Therefore, each DVR, upon boot up, is assigned an address by the router. If no DHCP host responds, the DVR assigns itself a random address within a specific range.

I don't claim to know the details of how the DirecTV DVRs handle their peer to peer sessions, but it is does appear that they keep a local table of other DVRs on the LAN. Perhaps something in the HR34, perhaps a bug, perhaps an environmental factor, causes it to corrupt this table during a DHCP lease renewal, which would make it impossible for the DVR with the corrupted table to "see" any other DVRs. For those that seem to fix this problem by removing the connection to the router, perhaps the simpler process of using default values makes this corruption far less likely - but does not always cure it. And a full reset of the LAN configuration, whether by reboot, or forced reconfiguration of the LAN interface, corrects the problem.

As to a possible workaround, if this theory is close to being correct...

Setting the DVRs to static addresses, on the advanced configuration screen, should "lock down" the LAN configurations. Just be sure to use addresses that are outside the range being used by your router. For example, if you look at the DHCP starting address on your router and it says "192.168.1.100" (a fairly common value) then assign the DVRs addresses in the 192.168.1.8x range. The subnet mask would be 255.255.255.0, and the gateway and DNS values would be the same as the address of your router.

This may have no effect, but it might just stabilize some the installations.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

Titan25 said:


> I am going to throw out a theory, and a possible workaround...


Your post has merit, and explains well what has been a problem with some routers dating back to the early days of MRV & coax networking.

One of the problems with markrogo peppering the threads about problems is you need to read all of his/her posts in these threads to get a better idea of what has been done, and for that matter which problem is being discussed.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showthread.php?p=3083240#post3083240


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## markrogo (Sep 18, 2007)

Titan25 said:


> I am going to throw out a theory, and a possible workaround...forgive me if this has been already tried by some that are experiencing this issue:
> 
> First a little background. The vast majority of home LANs are configured to use DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) whereby each node of the network is configured by a single controller, usually the router that connects the local LAN to the Internet. This includes the address of the node. Therefore, each DVR, upon boot up, is assigned an address by the router. If no DHCP host responds, the DVR assigns itself a random address within a specific range.
> 
> ...


Titan, that is a fine theory. My units have static IPs, so it doesn't apply for me personally.

But it might well apply for others and is certainly a worthy avenue of research.


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## llupin (Sep 10, 2006)

I was having the same problem several months ago. After DirecTV could not help me with the problem (they did open a case, and had people calling me once a week to see if it was corrected), I set the DVRs to static IP addresses. I have not had a problem since.


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## lbweber (Nov 28, 2006)

I just had WH installed, added an HR34 and upgraded my DTV to SWiM.

Everything appears to be fine for a few hours (maybe 6) and then my H24 and HR34 can't find the HR20/100. The funny thing is that the HR20 has no problem finding the HR34. Also, I have DirecTV2PC and it can see both DVRs.

My WH configuration is a HR34, H24 and a HR20. The CCK is attached to the the H24. The HR20, being older the than the rest, has some other gizmos to make it compatible with the SWiM (I assume). Also there are two SD receivers. The install was done by DirecTV and it all seemed to look fine when the tech left but then the next day the HR20's playlist was missing from the H24 and HR34. A menu reboot of the HR20 brought it back.

After about 6 hours it disappeared again, a reboot consistently brings it back. The H24 and HR34 have dynamic IP address shown in my router's DHCP tables. The HR20 has a static IP address. I thought maybe Power Saving mode was an issue (before I realized the HR20 had a static IP address. 

I tried redo-ing the network setup on the HR20 and that did not clear the issue. One thing is that the static IP address on the HR20 is in the middle of the DHCP range, could that cause any confusion?

I called the install tech and his answer was that the HR20 should be replaced. Okay but I have my old recording on it so I would really rather get what I have working.


I am grateful for any advice you all can offer.

Larry


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

lbweber said:


> I just had WH installed, added an HR34 and upgraded my DTV to SWiM.
> 
> Everything appears to be fine for a few hours (maybe 6) and then my H24 and HR34 can't find the HR20/100. The funny thing is that the HR20 has no problem finding the HR34. Also, I have DirecTV2PC and it can see both DVRs.
> 
> ...


Having a static IP address on a device that is in the middle of the DHCP range that your router uses is a definite way to have problems.

As for your setup, the device on the back of the HR20 is a DECA unit. The HR24 and HR34 have a DECA built-in, so they don't have one attached.

First thing to do, is to re-run the Network Setup on the HR20 and let it obtain an IP address via DHCP and not assign a static IP. That might resolve the issue.

Also, the HR20-100 has a specific way that the DECA needs to be attached. Take a look at this thread and see if the DECA is attached in one of the two ways pictured. If it is not, that is probably going to be your issue.

If the issue persists, we need to see if the issue is being caused by the router. In that case, you would unplug the PI (power inserter) from the CCK so that your receivers are not connected to your home network. You would then redo the Network Setup. The receivers will then use their internal IP address. After a little bit, the receivers should all see each other. If all works then without issue, we may need to look into going to static IP addresses for all your receivers as the router might be causing the issue.

- Merg


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

The Merg said:


> Also, the HR20-100 has a specific way that the DECA needs to be attached. Take a look at this thread and see if the DECA is attached in one of the two ways pictured.


"Wild guess", but do you mean: http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=2934386&postcount=6 :lol:


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

veryoldschool said:


> "Wild guess", but do you mean: http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=2934386&postcount=6 :lol:


:lol:

I guess my Ctrl-V didn't work as well as I thought it did...

- Merg


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## lbweber (Nov 28, 2006)

Thanks Merg,

I will give your suggestions a try and post the result, it will take a few days because I will have to wait to see whether the HR20 disappears after 6 hours.



The Merg said:


> Having a static IP address on a device that is in the middle of the DHCP range that your router uses is a definite way to have problems.
> 
> As for your setup, the device on the back of the HR20 is a DECA unit. The HR24 and HR34 have a DECA built-in, so they don't have one attached.
> 
> ...


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

lbweber said:


> Thanks Merg,
> 
> I will give your suggestions a try and post the result, it will take a few days because I will have to wait to see whether the HR20 disappears after 6 hours.


Make sure you check out the photo from the link that [strike]I posted[/strike] VOS posted to verify that the DECA is connected to your HR20 correctly.

- Merg


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## lbweber (Nov 28, 2006)

The Merg said:


> Make sure you check out the photo from the link that [strike]I posted[/strike] VOS posted to verify that the DECA is connected to your HR20 correctly.
> 
> - Merg


That was the first thing I did. My connection looks like the second configuration with the splitter feeding the DECA and the filter. The DECA is black so I assume it is just a newer model.

Funny thing, I am now 14 hours since the last reboot of the HR20 and still going strong (knock on wood). The difference is that I reset my router earlier yesterday, before the reboot. I am thinking that your suspicion that the static IP address on the HR20 may be the culprit. I have a range of 50 addresses (100-149) in the DHCP reservation table. My HR20 is set to 120. I plan on watching the reservations as they approach 120 and confirm that the HR20 drops as it gets closer. I could just restrict the reservations to 100-119. I am also thinking I could manually reserve 120 in the table so the DHCP server doesn't attempt to reserve it. Or convert the HR20 to dynamic.

Again, thanks for your help.


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

lbweber said:


> I have a range of 50 addresses (100-149) in the DHCP reservation table. My HR20 is set to 120. I plan on watching the reservations as they approach 120 and confirm that the HR20 drops as it gets closer. I could just restrict the reservations to 100-119. I am also thinking I could manually reserve 120 in the table so the DHCP server doesn't attempt to reserve it. Or convert the HR20 to dynamic.
> 
> Again, thanks for your help.


Either resizing the DHCP range, using DHCP reservations, or switching over to DHCP for the HR20 should all work. You definitely do not want to keep a static IP address within the DHCP range. As for watching the assignments go up to 120, while it may seem that the DHCP server issues the IP addresses sequentially, you cannot count on that to happen either.

- Merg


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## lbweber (Nov 28, 2006)

Merg,

I have not lost the HR20/100 for about a week. I changed the DHCP range to stop before the DVR with the static IP address. I lost the connection to the DVR within 4 hours, I reset the DVR and it has been going strong ever since.

I better solution would have been to convert all DVRs to a static IP address far away from DHCP range but that might introduce other hick-ups. Someday I might do that but for now all is quiet on the western front.

Thanks for the help.


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## wmacson (Nov 13, 2007)

lbweber said:


> Merg,
> 
> I better solution would have been to convert all DVRs to a static IP address far away from DHCP range but that might introduce other hick-ups.


What is the DHCP range? I ask because I plan to assign a static ip address to my Nomad tonight and I would love to avoid that.

Thanks.


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

I just wanted to update everybody on the fix that Old School suggested to me to use to fix my Whole Home DVR problem. He suggested I disconnect my internet and reset all my HD DVRs. 

I have done this and I have not had any HD DVRs drop off for over 3 weeks. So this work around does work.

For me this is OK since I rarely do VOD, but for others that use VOD, they need to look for another fix. Hopefully DirecTV will solve this internet connection problem in the future and I can reconnect my internet without my HD DVR dropping off every week or periodically.

Thanks for your help...........Old School.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

mjm76 said:


> I just wanted to update everybody on the fix that Old School suggested to me to use to fix my Whole Home DVR problem. He suggested I disconnect my internet and reset all my HD DVRs.
> 
> I have done this and I have not had any HD DVRs drop off for over 3 weeks. So this work around does work.
> 
> ...


So now that you know it's related to your router and most likely the DHCP, you might try using static IP addresses that are outside the router's DHCP range.
I guess "I'm lucky" as my 2Wire router doesn't have any issues with DHCP and the receivers.


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## The Merg (Jun 24, 2007)

"wmacson" said:


> What is the DHCP range? I ask because I plan to assign a static ip address to my Nomad tonight and I would love to avoid that.
> 
> Thanks.


The default DHCP range is dependent on your router. What do you have?

- Merg


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## mjm76 (Aug 27, 2006)

veryoldschool said:


> So now that you know it's related to your router and most likely the DHCP, you might try using static IP addresses that are outside the router's DHCP range.
> I guess "I'm lucky" as my 2Wire router doesn't have any issues with DHCP and the receivers.


I am not quite sure how to do that with the static IP addresses. I was able to change my reservations to 7 days from every 24 hrs. That is what I tried before I did what you suggested about disconnecting the internet, but when I changed it to every 7 days, the DVRs still dropped off, they just took longer to drop off.


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## veryoldschool (Dec 10, 2006)

mjm76 said:


> I am not quite sure how to do that with the static IP addresses. I was able to change my reservations to 7 days from every 24 hrs. That is what I tried before I did what you suggested about disconnecting the internet, but when I changed it to every 7 days, the DVRs still dropped off, they just took longer to drop off.


You should see where the DHCP range is. My 2Wire starts @ 192.168.1.64 ans goes to 192.168.1.254. The means anything below x.64 isn't part of the DHCP.
Each router is different and you may be able to change the start/stop.


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