Help: New Hopper coming tomorrow - time to backup/move recordings

[nwflyboy]

So I called Dish today to upgrade our setup, and negotiate over pricing. Got a pretty good deal, I think ($45/month off for 12 months, then back to full price for another 12 months, with new gear). It took a little haggling (I declined 3 lesser offers before they offered this one), and overall I'm happy.

I was surprised when he offered to have the installer come out today (like, right after the phone call). I told him I wasn't quite ready, and we scheduled the visit for tomorrow morning.

Now I need to back up and preserve the recordings I have on the VIP722 that will be going away.

That box has, I believe, a 500GB internal HD, which is about 80-90% full. I also have an 1 TB external HD (about 90% full) hooked up to the VIP722.

As I understand it, the new Hopper which will arrive tomorrow has a 2 TB internal HD, and one can plug in two external HDs.

I also have a brand new (still in the box), unused 2 TB external HD ready to hook up. In order to preserve all my recorded programs, here's what I'd like to do...

1. Disconnect the existing 1 TB external HD from the VIP722 and set it aside
2. Connect my fresh (new, empty) 2 TB external HD to the VIP722
3. Transfer all the recordings from the VIP722 internal HD to the 2 TB external HD. I figure this will take more than a few hours but should be done by the time the Dish guy shows up tomorrow morning
4. Once the new gear is installed and running, connect both the old 1 TB external HD and the newer 2 TB external HD, and access the recorded programs on either

Should the above all work?
Any gotchas I need to look out for or worry about?

Thanks!

 

[gdarwin]

It will work, but let the Hopper sit for a couple of days to finish downloading the software/features.

 

[nwflyboy]

It will work, but let the Hopper sit for a couple of days to finish downloading the software/features.

Great, thanks. No problem, I'll give the Hopper plenty of time to get settled in and acclimated to its new home.

Is it a good idea to power off the VIP722 when disconnecting/connecting external drives?
I'm not sure if I have ever shut that thing off in the 3-4 years we've had it (other than a few brief household power failures....).
I'm thinking, "yes, probably"/couldn't hurt...

Thanks!

 

[gdarwin]

You can connect/disconnect the EHD any time you want to. No need to power down.

 

[nwflyboy]

Cool - saves a minute or two. Thanks!!!

 

[srcronk]

You'll want to jump on that. I had a similar situation last year, and I ended up losing recordings because I ran out of time in making the transfers.

 

[dwarren2]

Write down all your timers so you can set them up oin the new Hopper

 

[KAB]

Write down all your timers so you can set them up oin the new Hopper

Better yet, take a picture of the timer screens. No need to write them all down.

 

[dwarren2]

But that onlt shows the time abd freq, ut does npt show the channel.

 

[KAB]

But that onlt shows the time abd freq, ut does npt show the channel.

Good Lord, he should open up every timer and write it all down? I think he can figure that out....without. Couldn't you?

 

[nsafreak]

Or he could go to Dish Anywhere (presuming his 722 is connected to the internet), go to My DVR and then My Timers and print that screen out. IIRC he wouldn't even need a sling adapter since he's not viewing the recordings just accessing a list of the timers. I know I've seen & set timers on an old 625 that I had so he should be able to do the same with his 722. Too bad Dish doesn't have a way of importing the timers that the can obviously see over the internet.

 

[dare2be]

I seem to get about 15-20GB/hour in transfers (maybe less). If your 722 is 80-90% full, you'll need a couple days to transfer that much content.

 

[nwflyboy]

Almost done with the transfers actually, just a handful of 30 minute recordings left, should be done in an hour (glad I started in the afternoon....). And almost 7 hours to spare before the earliest the technician might arrive in the morning!

Thanks for the practical advice on copying the timers - I'll see if I can manage the DishAnywhere trick, if that doesn't work, I'll just take some photos, that'll be good enough.

Many thanks as always for the excellent info shared here - it's one of the reasons I'm a happy Dish customer (will be more happy tomorrow...).

 

[n0qcu]

Dish anywhere only shows timers that are scheduled or skipped, it doesn't show any timers that are currently inactive do to no upcoming episodes.


Sent from my iPad using Safari.

 

[navychop]

Dish anywhere only shows timers that are scheduled or skipped, it doesn't show any timers that are currently inactive do to no upcoming episodes.


Sent from my iPad using Safari.

Thank you- I didn't know that.

 

[dwarren2]

I replaced multiple 722's. The write down was easier than the pictures. I could save what I had written down. That worked best for me.
Now with the Hopper remote storing timers and settings, that process is ancient history.

 

[navychop]

I remember taking pics and hand writing the missing info.

 

[dwarren2]

Aren't we glad those days are over. When I switched from the Hopper 2k to the HWS, all my times and ota scanned channels transferred over.

 

[tonare1]

So I called Dish today to upgrade our setup, and negotiate over pricing. Got a pretty good deal, I think ($45/month off for 12 months, then back to full price for another 12 months, with new gear). It took a little haggling (I declined 3 lesser offers before they offered this one), and overall I'm happy.

I was surprised when he offered to have the installer come out today (like, right after the phone call). I told him I wasn't quite ready, and we scheduled the visit for tomorrow morning.

Now I need to back up and preserve the recordings I have on the VIP722 that will be going away.

That box has, I believe, a 500GB internal HD, which is about 80-90% full. I also have an 1 TB external HD (about 90% full) hooked up to the VIP722.

As I understand it, the new Hopper which will arrive tomorrow has a 2 TB internal HD, and one can plug in two external HDs.

I also have a brand new (still in the box), unused 2 TB external HD ready to hook up. In order to preserve all my recorded programs, here's what I'd like to do...

1. Disconnect the existing 1 TB external HD from the VIP722 and set it aside
2. Connect my fresh (new, empty) 2 TB external HD to the VIP722
3. Transfer all the recordings from the VIP722 internal HD to the 2 TB external HD. I figure this will take more than a few hours but should be done by the time the Dish guy shows up tomorrow morning
4. Once the new gear is installed and running, connect both the old 1 TB external HD and the newer 2 TB external HD, and access the recorded programs on either


Should the above all work?
Any gotchas I need to look out for or worry about?

Thanks!

I have had dish for 9 years. Want to upgrade to Hopper / Super Joey. I would like to know how OP got this deal set up for him.
Thanks in Advance...
Tonare1

 

[ChadT41]

He called them..... Worst Case scenario, call and ask for Loyalty. Not every customer will get the same deal though... It will be based on account history, you may get a better one,you may get one not as good. It is a gamble. Not a very serious one though.