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Hard reboot of DVR or disaster recovery?
My wife has been going nuts since the Y& R soap hasn't been recording on our Moto VIP2250 DVR. What's strange is any program I record on it says it's recording but it really isn't since the red recording light on the front of the boxes isn't on. Luckily I've been streaming in the Y&R in the evenings via my computer from CBS.com so she hasn't missed any episodes. Too bad I had to disable Adblock plus to watch the programs since if you don't get the commercials you won't be watching the videos.
I did a hard reboot of the RG and the DVR by unplugging them at different times while this did not resolve the recording problems. I called tech support and spoke with a helpful gal named Jason. She had me unplug the power cord on the DVR 3 times while having it unplugged for 10 seconds in between plugging it back in. I asked beforehand if this is a disaster recovery and will we lose programs or scheduled recording which she said "no". Sure enough this fixed the problem and the DVR is again recording correctly. Also didn't lose any recorded programs or the schedule for recording them. Thanks Jason and a very helpful rep!
I'll have to admitt I haven't been keeping up on DVR/STB equipment operations or resolving technical equipment problems. I've never heard of unplugging the DVR 3 times to reset it and wonder if others have heard of this and what exactly does it do? Thanks ahead of time for any input!
Accepted Solution
Official Solution
mibrnsurg
Expert
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20.4K Messages
10 years ago
Uni, here's a step by step for Non Destructive Disaster Recovery:
If the DVR functions are still not working, try a Non-Destructive Disaster Recovery.
Unplug the power cord of the DVR from the wall or from the back of the box and wait ten seconds. Plug the DVR back in.
When three white dots appear on the screen, unplug the DVR again. Repeat this process two more times.
Plug the DVR back in on the third time and leave in. Three white dots appear followed by a gear with a status bar at the bottom of the screen.
If the Disaster Recovery screen does not appear, repeat the steps above. If the Disaster Recovery screen appears, wait until completion.
If the Non-Destructive Disaster Recovery does not work, follow the steps for a Force Disaster Recovery
Good luck 😉
Chris
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Uniblurb3
Master
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5.7K Messages
10 years ago
Thanks for the input/answers "my thoughts" and Chris; especially the step-by-step instructions!
The DVR is working great again. Most of all my wife is a happy camper in watching the Y&R every night like she's done for the past 30 years! And here I thought Victor went down with the Titanic!
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BluesBrother
Mentor
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33 Messages
10 years ago
Out of the blue, with no warning, all of my TV's began reporting, "Recording list unavailable. Check to see if your TV is connected to the network, etc." Clearly, my TV's couldn't communicate with the DVR. Furthermore, the TV directly connected to the DVR (as a STB) wasn't working at all.
I tried all of the "usual" options - rebooting the DVR, non-destructive reboot, etc. Nothing worked. Finally (desperate people do desperate things) I performed a so-called "destructive reboot" (referred to here as a "forced reboot", I believe). This is where you disconnect power to the DVR, hold down the OK and down-arrow buttons on the front of the DVR while reconnecting power, continuing to hold down the buttons until the three lights on the control panel (Link, HD, Record) all flash, then releasing them.
This puts the DVR through a complete hard reboot sequence, and (regrettably) re-formats the hard drive, destroying any and all content previously recorded.
Bottom line: When it finished, everything was working again - except all my recorded content was gone, of course. Sigh. Thankfully, the list of Series and Scheduled Recordings IS preserved, so I don't have to re-enter all of that.
Have no idea why this happened, but I won't be surprised if it happens again in the near future, which would suggest that the DVR is going south, in which case I will request a replacement from AT&T.
But for now, it's onward and downward...
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mibrnsurg
Expert
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20.4K Messages
10 years ago
@BluesBrother Unluckily if you'd done a whole house reboot, RG, DVR, STBs in order, that would have set things right and no disaster recovery needed. 😉
Chris
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Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
Need Help? PM ATT Uverse Care (all service problems)
ATT Customer Care(all other problems)
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BluesBrother
Mentor
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33 Messages
10 years ago
Thanks, mibrnsurg. I did reboot the Gateway and the DVR, but not the STB's (I have 4). Granted, had I known that would work, it would have spared my recorded content. I guess my question is: What happens to the system such that this (a whole-house reboot) becomes necessary? And is this a "common" occurrence (I've had my system in operation two years, now, and this is the first time this has happened).
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aviewer
Expert
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10.1K Messages
10 years ago
The one thing you can be sure about is that no- one can be sure what will work. Not being there adds to the unsurity. I believe , it is a sometimes event, i.e. hardly ever happens.
The trick is to work your way up in complexity and damage. Also. is it only the one box or are the communications between the boxes (that allow whole house DVR) just out of synch.
If you get a loss of signal from the TV, it is most likely the HDMI interface.
If you get a loss of signal from the STB, the first thing to do is wait five or ten minutes to see if it comes back. Well, maybe the first thing might be a chan up/down to see if it is the channel. Then wait.
If you think it is the one box, do a pull the plug reboot. If that does not work, do the whole house.
Then there is a complex more powerful non-destructive reboot, followed by the destructive, as a last resort ( to get immediate result instead of waiting for a new DVR).
If your problem was caused because of a stuck update rollout, you needed the destructive reboot. I believe that was your problem (which will never happen again) because that did happen to me - At least I think it did.
You can see that the process is more like going to the casino than rocket science.
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BluesBrother
Mentor
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33 Messages
10 years ago
LOL. Yep, or what I call 50/50/90: A 50/50 chance it will work, and a 90% chance it won't!
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carlaboe
Contributor
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1 Message
9 years ago
I tried this and the three dot screen never came up after several tries. What do I do?
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mibrnsurg
Expert
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20.4K Messages
9 years ago
Well, what do you get? Know from past experience the 3 dots can go very fast, other times it goes slower like on my current moto 1225. I've had a 1216 and 2250, it was the fastest.
The 3 dots eill come on about 5 seconds after you plug it in and can disappear quickly. 😉
Chris
__________________________________________________________
Please NO SD stretch-o-vision or 480 SD HD Channels
Need Help? PM ATT Uverse Care (all service problems)
ATT Customer Care(all other problems)
Your Results May Vary, In My Humble Opinion
I Call It Like I See It, Simply a U-verse user, nothing more
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Lorna19631
Contributor
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1 Message
7 years ago
I don't get the three dots either. I have an Arris VIP 2250. The screen just goes to all-blue, followed by the AT&T logo and the "spinning circle." Then the last TV show I was watching just resumes and that's it. I need my three dots! Help! 🙂
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