I got a RCA dwd49re. i was able to test it and both tuners were OK. It wants to download. I go ahead with it and it got to 111 files the dropped. I try to reconnect and it just sit stupid. I unplug the unit and and have to let it sit for about 10 min. I try again and it drops again. I have been fooling with this thing all day. Any suggestion would be appreciated. Thanks Is there a different access number than what it is dialing? Also wanted to mention my telephone line is a dsl line. It has line filters at every jack. I don't know if this would make a difference.
Need Help with upgrade
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If you have a box on the side of your house where you can disconnect all other phones and then run a line from the UTV to it (with a DSL filter) you might get better results. Trying late a night has worked for some people too (don't ask me why).
If none of that works and you are computer hardware savy you can remove the drive from the UTV and unlock/zero it and apply the image to it.
kazak
If none of that works and you are computer hardware savy you can remove the drive from the UTV and unlock/zero it and apply the image to it.
kazak
If I go to someone who has a plain telephone line, can I just bring the receiver and download the upgrade? Also I seem to be having a problem shutting down the box. Any tips. Now my old box wont work. I tried a refresh from Direct tv with no luck.. Thanks for the above info..
lowjones
lowjones
A bit of a hassle but an extension of Kazak's running a line from your home's Network Interface Box is to "borrow" someone's old school "land line" for a few hours. Maybe a friend, neighbor, or family member would be willing to help you out.
To help avoid possible interference the Network Interface Device (the box Kazak mentioned) is an easy way to avoid problems from noisy devices (like a bad Surge Suppressor,Modem,Phone for example that is adding noise to the line). Pulling the extension(s) may also be helpful.
A lesser realized option to consider is to disable the Call Waiting function. The few times I've had dropped or interrupted downloads I've manually disabled (via a phone extension) Call waiting (*70 on my system) before sending the 8675309 command code to force a download... For some reason the UTV(s) I had didn't want to disable Call waiting properly themselves.
To help avoid possible interference the Network Interface Device (the box Kazak mentioned) is an easy way to avoid problems from noisy devices (like a bad Surge Suppressor,Modem,Phone for example that is adding noise to the line). Pulling the extension(s) may also be helpful.
A lesser realized option to consider is to disable the Call Waiting function. The few times I've had dropped or interrupted downloads I've manually disabled (via a phone extension) Call waiting (*70 on my system) before sending the 8675309 command code to force a download... For some reason the UTV(s) I had didn't want to disable Call waiting properly themselves.
I am definitely going to take the RCA someplace else and download the upgrade. The Sony I have will not boot or shut down. Should I be able to boot up without the access card. How can I tell if the drive went bad. Also if and when it does boot should I get any kind of a picture. Seems like a coincidence that it died as well. I now have nothing. I just got off the phone with D* and they are offering me the HD DVR for $99 including install and $49 for the SD DVR. They are also selling a wireless adapter for the units. I am half tempted to buy one. Going high def would be 5 cents more a month. I would really hate to switch because I have always liked Ultimate tv.
You don't need the access card to boot up the UTV. Nor do you need it to download the software. Just when you want access to the MY SHOWS or DirecTV programming.
One of the "signs" of a possible bad hard drive is that it won't shut down (constant "flashing green light of death") or doesn't seem to boot up properly. (Black Screen/No Video, a "Repair Required" screen, or WebTV/MSNTV Screen)
If you don't hear the internal fan and the hard drive power up when plugging in the UTV... It might be a bad power connection or possibly a blown fuse (on the UTV's Power Supply). You can check the Hardware info. from a properly functional UTV while turned "off" by entering the UTV Code 411 (which should cause a Multi-Color flash on the front panel and on Power Up should take you to the Info. screen). If for example you are getting a MSNTV/WebTV download screen the UTV might not be seeing the Hard Drive. The 411 screen in this case would probably not "see" or report the Hard Drive's ID/Model #.
If you were getting either the No Video/Black Screen or a Green Light of death and you had tried most other tricks (power down/cool down or reset) I'd recommend disconnecting the Hard Drive (PULL THE ACCESS CARD FIRST!) and seeing if the UTV will respond properly without the drive. (It'll probably show a screen requesting a download of the OS, even when it has no where to download too)
If it does respond properly and you reconnect the drive and it starts malfunctioning again... I'd suspect a Hard Drive issue. You could "swap" the drive and see if that resolves the issue. You could then attempt an "unlock" on the "bad" drive (Check the FAQ) and see if it still works in a PC...
As for "upgrading"... you'll have to decide that but I'm personally going to wait until they pry those UTVs out of my cold dead hands OR they die of natural causes...
One of the "signs" of a possible bad hard drive is that it won't shut down (constant "flashing green light of death") or doesn't seem to boot up properly. (Black Screen/No Video, a "Repair Required" screen, or WebTV/MSNTV Screen)
If you don't hear the internal fan and the hard drive power up when plugging in the UTV... It might be a bad power connection or possibly a blown fuse (on the UTV's Power Supply). You can check the Hardware info. from a properly functional UTV while turned "off" by entering the UTV Code 411 (which should cause a Multi-Color flash on the front panel and on Power Up should take you to the Info. screen). If for example you are getting a MSNTV/WebTV download screen the UTV might not be seeing the Hard Drive. The 411 screen in this case would probably not "see" or report the Hard Drive's ID/Model #.
If you were getting either the No Video/Black Screen or a Green Light of death and you had tried most other tricks (power down/cool down or reset) I'd recommend disconnecting the Hard Drive (PULL THE ACCESS CARD FIRST!) and seeing if the UTV will respond properly without the drive. (It'll probably show a screen requesting a download of the OS, even when it has no where to download too)
If it does respond properly and you reconnect the drive and it starts malfunctioning again... I'd suspect a Hard Drive issue. You could "swap" the drive and see if that resolves the issue. You could then attempt an "unlock" on the "bad" drive (Check the FAQ) and see if it still works in a PC...
As for "upgrading"... you'll have to decide that but I'm personally going to wait until they pry those UTVs out of my cold dead hands OR they die of natural causes...
You might pull both the IDE and Power Cables just to play it safe that the UTV isn't "seeing" something and causing a problem...
Yes you may swap the drives between UTVs. However, just be warned that the contents of that drive will be lost as the UTVs will "unlock",reformat, and "Lock" the drive to the new UTV. Sometimes called "Married". FYI, you may use any ATA-3 compatible (a Security feature) IDE Drive in your UTV (which should be almost any newer IDE drive made in the last 5-6+ years). As IDE Drives are a bit harder to find these days you may not find a 120/160GB Drive (137GB useable) so you might be forced to use a much larger drive... they should recognize as a 137GB Drive and ignore the unused space...
If you are suggesting the Sony is "dead" without booting or "anything" I'd check/verify the fuse in the Power Supply is OK... check the Cable (Sony)/Ribbon(RCA) connections between the Power Supply and Main Board. A bad connection could be the problem and in the past some have brought back a UTV by simply pulling/checking/reseating the connections. a loose or dirty contact might be to blame...
Keep us posted.
Yes you may swap the drives between UTVs. However, just be warned that the contents of that drive will be lost as the UTVs will "unlock",reformat, and "Lock" the drive to the new UTV. Sometimes called "Married". FYI, you may use any ATA-3 compatible (a Security feature) IDE Drive in your UTV (which should be almost any newer IDE drive made in the last 5-6+ years). As IDE Drives are a bit harder to find these days you may not find a 120/160GB Drive (137GB useable) so you might be forced to use a much larger drive... they should recognize as a 137GB Drive and ignore the unused space...
If you are suggesting the Sony is "dead" without booting or "anything" I'd check/verify the fuse in the Power Supply is OK... check the Cable (Sony)/Ribbon(RCA) connections between the Power Supply and Main Board. A bad connection could be the problem and in the past some have brought back a UTV by simply pulling/checking/reseating the connections. a loose or dirty contact might be to blame...
Keep us posted.
Hi again,
I replaced the drive in the RCA with a WD800BB from an external drive unit I had. It seems to be booting up fine. The problem I have is when I connect to download the new software, it connect, starts downloading. The connected light on my receiver flickers and everything seems OK. It can abort at any number of the files it is downloading. It has stopped at 1, 11 ,33. When I reconnect the light never flickers and I have to enter the code 8675309 then it starts from file 1. Is there any way to resume from a known good earlier file?
Will it eventually get the download off the dish? I did in fact run some jumper wire to the outside junction box isolating anything inside as Kazak mentioned. Same problem..Also what is the prompt for a code number when it first boots after I type 8675309?
I replaced the drive in the RCA with a WD800BB from an external drive unit I had. It seems to be booting up fine. The problem I have is when I connect to download the new software, it connect, starts downloading. The connected light on my receiver flickers and everything seems OK. It can abort at any number of the files it is downloading. It has stopped at 1, 11 ,33. When I reconnect the light never flickers and I have to enter the code 8675309 then it starts from file 1. Is there any way to resume from a known good earlier file?
Will it eventually get the download off the dish? I did in fact run some jumper wire to the outside junction box isolating anything inside as Kazak mentioned. Same problem..Also what is the prompt for a code number when it first boots after I type 8675309?
The "simple" fix might be to find someone that will let you use their "old fashioned" Land Line Service (hopefully "clean" and doesn't have poor audio quality... which means a slower connection speed or more of the dreaded drop outs)
As for the "Freeze" ups and it's not resuming after reconnect. Have you given it a few minutes to reacquire or dropout again? I know I've had issues were a download has dropped out/requested a reconnect and it has taken it's sweet time to reacquire.
In the past when I've questioned if the UTV was doing anything I'd "listen in" on the line. If it's disconnected, I'd check for a dial tone and then "reconnect" while listening on the line... As it dials out and reacquires I'll usually hang up... Give it 5-10 minutes and "listen in" if needed to verify a connection.
As for a "Code" during the OS download. Not sure there are any "active" codes available to use. Just leave it blank. In the past it was my understanding if there were "Beta" or special OS versions available that you could request a specific OS download by using a certain code.
With that said... there is of coarse the possibility that there are problems with downloading the OS via the MSNTV Servers. There have been times in the past were UTVers couldn't access/download because of undefined problems on MSNTV's side...
I'd suggest like earlier posts that you connect at various times of day... there is even an old trick (is it listed in the FAQ?) that would force the UTV to dial alternative access numbers, in case a specific number is "bad" or overloaded. I think the trick was to pull the phone cord and let the UTV attempt to dial the other local number(s)...
As for the "Freeze" ups and it's not resuming after reconnect. Have you given it a few minutes to reacquire or dropout again? I know I've had issues were a download has dropped out/requested a reconnect and it has taken it's sweet time to reacquire.
In the past when I've questioned if the UTV was doing anything I'd "listen in" on the line. If it's disconnected, I'd check for a dial tone and then "reconnect" while listening on the line... As it dials out and reacquires I'll usually hang up... Give it 5-10 minutes and "listen in" if needed to verify a connection.
As for a "Code" during the OS download. Not sure there are any "active" codes available to use. Just leave it blank. In the past it was my understanding if there were "Beta" or special OS versions available that you could request a specific OS download by using a certain code.
With that said... there is of coarse the possibility that there are problems with downloading the OS via the MSNTV Servers. There have been times in the past were UTVers couldn't access/download because of undefined problems on MSNTV's side...
I'd suggest like earlier posts that you connect at various times of day... there is even an old trick (is it listed in the FAQ?) that would force the UTV to dial alternative access numbers, in case a specific number is "bad" or overloaded. I think the trick was to pull the phone cord and let the UTV attempt to dial the other local number(s)...
Hi lgodave,
I went to a friends and after numerous tries I was able to download all 297 files. I was then given the option to power down or connect to msn. I chose power down. I then brought my unit home booted it up and am getting checking for upgrade. Should I try to connect again? What steps do I need to boot to the OS..Thanks
8/5/09
I was able to download from the site, My unit keeps trying to download the upgrade again when I turn it on. Any ideas?
I went to a friends and after numerous tries I was able to download all 297 files. I was then given the option to power down or connect to msn. I chose power down. I then brought my unit home booted it up and am getting checking for upgrade. Should I try to connect again? What steps do I need to boot to the OS..Thanks
8/5/09
I was able to download from the site, My unit keeps trying to download the upgrade again when I turn it on. Any ideas?
Have you tried using the 411 UTV code (when "off" enter 411 using UTV Remote, Pressing Menu-Options 3 times then 411 is optional, if 411 doesn't "take" try pressing Menu-Options 3 times first.) you should get a multi-color flash from the UTV's front panel and when powered up it should give you access to a hardware information screen. One of the items listed should be a Hard Drive ID/Model # next to "Storage:". If that is blank or missing from the list... the UTV isn't seeing the drive... You'd want to verify your power/data cable(s) are good and making good contact with the Hard Drive. (REMOVE ACCESS CARD FIRST!!! Opening the UTV Case may cause the Card/Card Reader to bend/break. Repairs can be done but it isn't fun...)
IF you do have a Hard Drive listed next to "Storage:" and the UTV OS is installed/running properly you should be able to access your UTV GUI (User Interface)
from the 411 info screen. Press Menu-Options (RCA) or Options (Sony) and from the Menu select HOME and it should take you to the UTV Home Screen. From there you should be able to access menus as normal...
Typically if you are unable to get the UTV to "see" the Hard Drive... it will just continue to look for the OS and not finding it... it will continue requesting to download it.
The usual fix for this problem is to replace the Hard Drive.
As you've already tried replacing the Drive at least once... this might be a Jumper setting issue (Master or Single Mode is best... on the earlier WD drives it was advised to PULL ALL JUMPERS... That provided Single vs Master Mode if I recall... hopefully the drive has Jumper Settings included for more detail.) OR possibly either a bad drive or non ATA-3 compatible drive (WD BB drives should be ATA-3 compatible... Try the "IBM" Drive Fitness Test program if you'd like to confirm ATA-3 and/or the drive(s) you have are viable... http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm#DFT )
IF the UTV was able to at least recognize or "Lock" the 80GB drive you could attempt to switch back to the old (40GB drive?) and have it "Remarry" to that drive... While if you were having problems with that drive it isn't usually a good idea to try it again, but it could be a good troubleshooting diagnostic OR you could attempt to "unlock" the drive for regular PC use (after running some a "fitness" test).
Recently saw a 320GB IDE Western Digital Drive at OfficeMax on clearance for $60. Kind of excessive for a UTV... but if you have any other smaller IDE Drives around (maybe 120/160/200GB... I have a 30GB ATA-3 Western Digital which "should" be UTV compatible) you could "upgrade" your PC's older IDE Drive and transfer all the data to the much larger drive (and use it all)...
Let us know what you discover/decide but it looks to me like a Hard Drive Tweak/Upgrade is due.
IF you do have a Hard Drive listed next to "Storage:" and the UTV OS is installed/running properly you should be able to access your UTV GUI (User Interface)
from the 411 info screen. Press Menu-Options (RCA) or Options (Sony) and from the Menu select HOME and it should take you to the UTV Home Screen. From there you should be able to access menus as normal...
Typically if you are unable to get the UTV to "see" the Hard Drive... it will just continue to look for the OS and not finding it... it will continue requesting to download it.
The usual fix for this problem is to replace the Hard Drive.
As you've already tried replacing the Drive at least once... this might be a Jumper setting issue (Master or Single Mode is best... on the earlier WD drives it was advised to PULL ALL JUMPERS... That provided Single vs Master Mode if I recall... hopefully the drive has Jumper Settings included for more detail.) OR possibly either a bad drive or non ATA-3 compatible drive (WD BB drives should be ATA-3 compatible... Try the "IBM" Drive Fitness Test program if you'd like to confirm ATA-3 and/or the drive(s) you have are viable... http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm#DFT )
IF the UTV was able to at least recognize or "Lock" the 80GB drive you could attempt to switch back to the old (40GB drive?) and have it "Remarry" to that drive... While if you were having problems with that drive it isn't usually a good idea to try it again, but it could be a good troubleshooting diagnostic OR you could attempt to "unlock" the drive for regular PC use (after running some a "fitness" test).
Recently saw a 320GB IDE Western Digital Drive at OfficeMax on clearance for $60. Kind of excessive for a UTV... but if you have any other smaller IDE Drives around (maybe 120/160/200GB... I have a 30GB ATA-3 Western Digital which "should" be UTV compatible) you could "upgrade" your PC's older IDE Drive and transfer all the data to the much larger drive (and use it all)...
Let us know what you discover/decide but it looks to me like a Hard Drive Tweak/Upgrade is due.
During an upgrade to a new (old) receiver a couple of months ago, I too had issue with the MSN download. I set the modem to dial my local ISP and it downloaded the first time. So, if you have access to a dialup ISP ... give that a try.
Let us know if it works.
Let us know if it works.
That is a good idea to remember if you do have dialup issues with MSN... you can attempt to use a different dialup ISP (if you have access to one).
Now lowjones was able to get the download but it didn't "take" which suggest a hard drive issue... either a jumper issue, power/data cable problem, or a bad hard drive.
For future attempts if a dialup ISP is an option for downloading using that as a "stable" connection to get the UTV OS download (avoiding the need to move it around the house or take it to a friend's house) I'd try it. Yet regardless how you get the download... once it has downloaded and "installed"... if it doesn't take... it isn't MSN or your ISP at fault it's a local hardware issue.
Now lowjones was able to get the download but it didn't "take" which suggest a hard drive issue... either a jumper issue, power/data cable problem, or a bad hard drive.
For future attempts if a dialup ISP is an option for downloading using that as a "stable" connection to get the UTV OS download (avoiding the need to move it around the house or take it to a friend's house) I'd try it. Yet regardless how you get the download... once it has downloaded and "installed"... if it doesn't take... it isn't MSN or your ISP at fault it's a local hardware issue.
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