Help! How long should it take for a manual software update (H3)?

[docdaddy]

I saw I was at 334, EHD problems since I've had this with the "Waiting to spin up" issue on my EHD, so I did a manual update. Just hit the button that said "Manual Update" in the Tools section.

That was a bit more than an hour ago. I get the screen that shows Hopper 3 with Sling....starting up. It sits there for a bit blanks for a moment, comes back, then I get the "Please Wait - Refresh in Progress 9999" box in the lower right of the screen. Then back to the Hopper 3 starting up.screen. A reboot. This happens over and over. A few minutes ago I got a :"Vital Program Information will now be downloaded to your receiver" screen and a progress bar. Figured I must be close to done! It got part of the way through the progress bar filling up, then I heard the NFL playoff game on in the background, then the game showed up on the screen - woo hoo! Done! It was up for a second, then it rebooted. Back to the same old cycle.

Is it just going to do this over and over and over???? It's now been an hour and 15 minutes of this. I'm afraid if I just pull the power it will screw things up, but I'm afraid if I just let it do what it's doing it will go through this cycle over and over without stop!

Help!

 

[docdaddy]

Well, after an hour and 45 minutes, it finally came back. Watching the game now. BUT I'M STILL ON U334!!!

So after an hour and 45 minutes of cycling through screens and "downloading vital information" etc. it finally boots back up to "normal" but never actually updated the H3. I am SOOOOO ticked off right now!

Any suggestions for getting updated to 336?

 

[JSheridan]

Make sure any connected Joeys are turned off and no recordings are in progress or scheduled for at least an hour. Then turn off the H3 and leave it alone and it should do it's thing. Probably when you go to bed tonight would be a good time.

 

[DWS44]

Yeah...most folks that have had similar problems reported that the update ran successfully on its own during the next regular nightly reboot. I bet you have 336 when you get up in the morning!

 

[docdaddy]

Well, THAT did not go well.

I waited until we turned out the lights to go to bed, around 11:00 PM CST, checked to make sure nothing was recording or scheduled to be recording (the next recording was at 5 am.) Made sure the Joeys were turned off. Then hit the software update button, watched to make sure it was starting up, it did its thing like last time for a few minutes, so I turned off the TV (not the receiver) and went to bed.

Since the H3 is in the bedroom (Joeys in the other rooms) I could hear the drive on the receiver running during parts of the process, and I would wake up at times and wait, listen, hear it running and see the light on the H3 on and then off as it rebooted. Woke up about 7 AM this morning, and it was still cycling. When the H3 light was off I hit select on the remote, and the TV came right up, everything was fine from a viewing point of view, but it still showed 334.

BUT - big problem. Nothing I am recording is showing up on the list of recorded programs. I record Good Morning America,so it didn't throw me that it wasn't showing, even though the red record circle was showing next to it, since it was scheduled to start before I stopped the cycle. But I hit record for another show (CBS morning show) that was running, red circle SHOWED it was recording, but it doesn't show up on my DVR list. Also - I recorded Hunted last night before I started the update again (and after I went through what I went through last night) and it doesn't show up in my DVR list. Time on the clock is correct. I set it to record a show starting at 7:30 - at 7:30 it showed it was recording on the guide, but nothing on the DVR list!

I did a normal reboot, it rebooted, but nothing is showing up on the DVR list. Apparently my DVR is either not recording or not listing what it is recording.

ARGHHHHH! Suggestions????

 

[DWS44]

Only thing I can think to suggest would be to do this (apologies if you tried this already and I missed it in your posts)

Make sure nothing is recording or set to record in next couple hours (to be safe), then unplug the power from the H3 and all the Joeys. Leave the H3 unplugged for 5 minutes or so, then plug it back in, but leave the Joeys unplugged. Once the H3 comes back up, place it in standby and, in theory, you should see a "download in progress" screen appear with 5 minutes or so if the update is going to run. If it DOES start, I'd leave the Joeys unplugged until the H3 finishes and reboots itself afterwards.

 

[docdaddy]

Only thing I can think to suggest would be to do this (apologies if you tried this already and I missed it in your posts)

Make sure nothing is recording or set to record in next couple hours (to be safe), then unplug the power from the H3 and all the Joeys. Leave the H3 unplugged for 5 minutes or so, then plug it back in, but leave the Joeys unplugged. Once the H3 comes back up, place it in standby and, in theory, you should see a "download in progress" screen appear with 5 minutes or so if the update is going to run. If it DOES start, I'd leave the Joeys unplugged until the H3 finishes and reboots itself afterwards.

I will try that now. I did try an unplug reboot but my wife was watching on the Joey upstairs. Here was what was unusual about that reboot - there was none of the normal unplug reboot screens, no "Acquiring sattelites" or any of that. Just the Hopper with the kangaroo screen saying wait a minute, the refresh in progress box in the lower left corner, and a very quick back to TV process. As if it didn't truly reboot.

 

[docdaddy]

Another piece of data - I went upstairs to unplug the Joey in the den (the one in the sunroom stays unplugged for the winter) and unplug that Joey, TV in bedroom is viewing TV with no problem, and she said it hasn't been able to see the H3 since she's been up. Argh. So - about to try the process suggested above. But like I said - it appears to not truly be rebooting, no sattelite acquisition message, etc. If I somehow borked my H3 by trying to do the update and they send a tech out today and replace my H3, will they be able to move the recordings from my current H3 to the new one? I am able to view the recordings already on there.

 

[md_paul]

BUT - big problem. Nothing I am recording is showing up on the list of recorded programs. I record Good Morning America,so it didn't throw me that it wasn't showing, even though the red record circle was showing next to it, since it was scheduled to start before I stopped the cycle. But I hit record for another show (CBS morning show) that was running, red circle SHOWED it was recording, but it doesn't show up on my DVR list. Also - I recorded Hunted last night before I started the update again (and after I went through what I went through last night) and it doesn't show up in my DVR list. Time on the clock is correct. I set it to record a show starting at 7:30 - at 7:30 it showed it was recording on the guide, but nothing on the DVR list!

I did a normal reboot, it rebooted, but nothing is showing up on the DVR list. Apparently my DVR is either not recording or not listing what it is recording.

ARGHHHHH! Suggestions????

Check to make sure your DVR program listings sort oprtions didn't change. We usually have ours set to sort recent recordings to the top of the list. Sometimes after an update, it changes to sort recording A-Z. When it does that, and you're used to seeing current recordings at the top, it appears the recordings aren't happening because they are now listed in the DVR list aphabetcally. This may not be your problem, but thought I'd mention it because it has happened to us before..

 

[docdaddy]

Check to make sure your DVR program listings sort oprtions didn't change. We usually have ours set to sort recent recordings to the top of the list. Sometimes after an update, it changes to sort recording A-Z. When it does that, and you're used to seeing current recordings at the top, it appears the recordings aren't happening because they are now listed in the DVR list aphabetcally. This may not be your problem, but thought I'd mention it because it has happened to us before..

Thanks for the suggestion - checked that - did it both alpha and by recorded date. Recordings simply aren't either being recorded or are not showing up on the list if they are. I suspect, since I can watch the ones already on there, it is simply messed up and not recording them even though it shows them with the red circle on the schedule. The fact that the Joey upstairs can't see the Hopper any more is also a sign something is seriously messed up. I just unplugged the Joey and the H3 and in 5 minutes will plug the H3 back in but I'm not optimistic. I also unplugged the EHD just to be thorough.

Why did I have to hit the "update software" button???? LOL! Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and help.

 

[docdaddy]

OK unplugged the Joey, unplugged the H3 for about 8 minutes, unplugged the EHD just to be thorough. Plugged the H3 in. I knew it was a bad sign when the reboot process wasn't really a reboot process again - just the Hopper 3 with Sling Starting Up screen, then the Refresh in Progress 9999 box in the lower right, then live TV, all in less than a minute. So it's not truly rebooting I would guess. I plugged the Joey back in, and it came back up, and did its startup, briefly showed the screen showing which tuner was in use (How do I get to that? What button?) and then went to a Looking for a Hopper to connect to screen. Which I suspect will not go away,

Since unplugging didn't work I don't suppose there's a way to truly force a full reboot on the H3? I can watch any channel and any already recorded show it just won't record any new ones (even though it shows it is in the guide) and apparently won't link to the Joey.

Which, come to think of it, is weird. In Diagnostics - looking now - it shows the Link Status to the Joey as "strong" and quality as Good. Also while in diagnostics it shows Network Status as strong, switch status on all Sats and Tuners as checked green. About to hit reset Network just to try it (I'll probably never be able to connect to my router again, LOL!)

 

[DWS44]

After the reboot, did you place it in standby after Live TV appeared? If so, how long did you leave it in standby before you started plugging in Joeys?

Also...what you are seeing is pretty typical for a normal reboot. It doesnt always go through the full searching for satellite routine like older receivers used to.

 

[docdaddy]

After the reboot, did you place it in standby after Live TV appeared? If so, how long did you leave it in standby before you started plugging in Joeys?

No (by standby, do you mean turning off the H3?) - never occurred to me.

After the network reset via the Diagnostics screen, it again shows the link to the Joey as strong..

EDIT - OK, this is odd. Based on the question did you place the H3 in standby after Live TV appeared, I did that (power button on H3) and unplugged the Joey. Went back downstairs, H3 still in standby, and out of nowhere the Warning, Vital Information will now be downloaded into your receiver, do not disturb, etc, screen popped up. Well, I saw that screen a million times last night as it recycled over and over but it never got past about 1/3 of the progress bar filling, then I'd hear the sound of the TV a brief picture, then back into the restart loop and it would do the same cycle of things over and over.

This time the bar made it to perhaps 90% before the sound came on, the picture came on for a second, then it restarted. I was hoping it would completely fill the bar this time, but it only got to about 90-95%, Waiting for the restart to complete to see if it actually worked this time......

Crap - full cycle of H3 with Sling restarting, refresh in progress, then off, and now the vital information screen is back on, starting from scratch again. It's like it just can't download the full thing before it restarts. This time it only made it about 10% of the progress screen before restarting again.

It does have an option to press any key to stop the download. I may try that next loop just to see what happens.

 

[Hall]

If you unplugged it from the electrical outlet, there is no doubt that that is a 'full' reboot.

DWS44 has said it a couple of times - after you initiate the download, turn the Hopper "off". That is, press the power button for the Hopper on the remote. Don't turn the TV off (though it has no impact either way). When you turn it "off" like that, you'll get the Dish screensaver.

 

[DWS44]

No (by standby, do you mean turning off the H3?) - never occurred to me.

Correct...standby = turn off, sorry!

That was a pretty important step in the procedure I suggested above. The idea was to put it in standby (i.e. turn off) and let it go through the "vital info will be downloaded" BEFORE plugging the Joeys back in. Feel free to unplug everything and give that another shot if you want. Doesnt seem like you have much to loose since its in the reboot loop again.

 

[docdaddy]

If you unplugged it from the electrical outlet, there is no doubt that that is a 'full' reboot.

DWS44 has said it a couple of times - after you initiate the download, turn the Hopper "off". That is, press the power button for the Hopper on the remote. Don't turn the TV off (though it has no impact either way). When you turn it "off" like that, you'll get the Dish screensaver.

OK - so this time it started once I turned it "off." I haven't turned it back on, it's cycling on it's own (and that's what it did all night.) When the downloading vital information screen pops up, the H3 is already "off" - there is no green light lit on the box. That light comes back on when it exits the downloading information screen and starts the recycle.

So - just to make it clear - Hopper 3 Starting up Screen - Green light on - then Please Wait Refresh in Progress Screen - green light on then off while that is still on the screen. Then nothing but the Hopper 3 tips screen you get - then the Warning Information Download Screen - green light is off. I'm not touching anything. Progress bar typically goes only about 25% of the way then I hear the TV show sound, then a brief view of live TV - the green light on the H3 does NOT come on at this time - then nothing then the green light comes on and the cycle starts again.

The only way to get out of this cycle, which is what I did this morning after it did this all night, is to hit the select button once the light goes out. But I ONLY did that after it ran for about 8 hours last night into this morning.

 

[docdaddy]

Correct...standby = turn off, sorry!

That was a pretty important step in the procedure I suggested above. The idea was to put it in standby (i.e. turn off) and let it go through the "vital info will be downloaded" BEFORE plugging the Joeys back in. Feel free to unplug everything and give that another shot if you want. Doesnt seem like you have much to loose since its in the reboot loop again.

Thanks, yeah, see my post below. I "interrupted" the cycle this morning after it had been in this loop for about 8 hours last night, just to check things out. That's when I discovered the DVR was no longer actually responding to record commands and the Joey would not connect. Turning the H3 off again apparently initiated the attempt to update/download "loop" again and it appears it just doesn't download everything before starting the loop again.

I was REALLY hoping to avoid calling a tech at Dish who probably knows less than you guys do and going through the whole routine with him again (e.g "unplug the H3 (even though I've done that) etc.") But I've interrupted the loop again, since letting that run for 8 hours then another app hour this morning isn't doing anything but the same recycle.

 

[docdaddy]

An interesting piece of data - I waited until it was in the part of the loop where the H3 info screen was up and it says hit enter to watch TV - that broke the loop and put me back in live TV mode to check things out again.

But when I put the H3 back into standby mode after looking at more things in the diagnostics, it waited a short bit then the download screen popped back up like it did earlier this morning when I went from live TV to standby. I commented at that time that it made much more progress on the progress bar than it does while in its cycle, about 95% of the way (normally it only gets about 25% of the way.) Same thing this time, Didn't completely fill the bar before going back into the loop, but very close.

Not that it seems to matter, however. It didn't "fix" it. Just wondering why it goes so much further downloading before kicking back into restart mode when going from Live TV to standby than it does when in the endless loop?

Also - can they move all of my recordings from my current H3 to a new one if they send a tech out to replace it today? (Hopefully today, I have the day off!) Current H3 is about 50% full (and not getting any fuller since it won't record anything! )

 

[docdaddy]

On the phone with a nice lady in tech support, but this is clearly beyond her, She's doing things like having me change the activity timeout action etc, I asked her if they could move my recordings to a new H3 and she had no idea.

 

[JS_racer]

once i unpaired my 40 remote, the update took under 30 minutes. start to finish !!
before i unpaired the remote, constant reboots (10??). i had the joeys unplugged from power, and my ehd usb unplugged. still constant reboots downloading the update. it would always reboot at the same download progress spot also. i had the tv on watching progress, letting the box shut off and do what it wanted to do.
coincidence ?? i don't know. but its super easy to try. nothing to loose,