My External HD cannot be accessed after they upgraded the software..

[guiri]

Guys, I have the 722 DVR (the HD receiver that allows External HD storage).

I bought it specifically to be able to store stuff on external HD's.

Well, I filled up several 500gb drives and the other day, I went to plug one of them into the 722 and guess what? It tells me I have to reformat the drive which means I lose all my roughly 500 hours of stored stuff (I dont' record in HD).

I call their support and the f*cker tells me that it's probably because they did a software update and that the drive will no longer be compatible.

I know their techs are idiots so I don't trust this guy but if what he says is true, this makes no damn sense at all.

What the hell is the purpose then of storing something on an external drive if you will lose it every 6-12 months?

Can anyone comment on this because DISH sure as hell can't help, they don't want to help or do anything at all as usual.

Their service is on a par of INFERIOR with Time Warner which is about as bad as you can get...

By the way, the guy I was talking was so damn stupid he couldn't even understand what i was talking about. I asked for a supervisor and she's equally stupid and doesn't get it. She of course also insists on blaming this on my hard drive and NOT their DVR that can't read my drive or rather, the info that's on it after I have been able to write, read and watch FROM that same drive on that SAME DVR.

Anyone?

George

 

[KAB]

Do any of the other HD's work?

 

[guiri]

Yep, two other drives work.

They take no responsibility and blame it on MY drive

ALso, they told me I had to have the HD channels and such for this system which it turns out I don't so now I've been paying for HD channels I don't even watch and NO compensation for it.

F****** piece of shi* companies these days. They are ALL crooked! HP, Dell, Dish, Time Warner, Office Max...I don't need to continue do I?

 

[Gentleman]

While my exd still works, I have noticed that my household key has changed, I wrote it down to verify it was the same on both receivers several weeks ago, when I checked it a few days back the number was different

Bob

 

[guiri]

Well, I don't know if this is due to the upgrade they did some time ago that allowed Archos units to record from it but now it doesn't work. I have only stored stuff so I dont' remember when I stored it but bottom line is, it doesn't work and it seems it's their DVR that doesn't like it...not my external HD.

 

[8bitbytes]

I doubt that any software update has made your EHD incompatible. What brand is your drive / external enclosure?

 

[philhu]

If you have 2 other drives that *DO* work, and one that doesn't, I would bet that the one that doesn't work *IS* broken and not readable.

 

[guiri]

Seagate Free something. 500gb

Well, if it IS broken, it wouldnt be recognizable would it?

As it is now, the DVR SEES it but wants me to format it...?

 

[8bitbytes]

Seagate Free something. 500gb

Well, if it IS broken, it wouldnt be recognizable would it?

As it is now, the DVR SEES it but wants me to format it...?

Seagate FreeAgents have a problem on Dish equipment because they have a sleep mode. You need to load the Seagate tools on a PC, hook the drive to your PC but don't format it, go in and turn off the sleep mode and try it again on the dvr.

There is an old thread that has a link to the tools download - I'll look for it. and post it.

 

[8bitbytes]

http://www.satelliteguys.us/dish-ne...1388.html?highlight=seagate+tools#post1001374

 

[primetimeguy]

I had this same problem with 1 of my 4 Seagates a while back, a month or so ago. I called about it and Dish tried to rehit or re-initialize the box or something but it didn't help. I let it go for a couple weeks and called again, still no solution. So then I said, who cares, it's just TV and I let the 622 re-format it. It has worked fine since as I've been watching for re-runs of the programs to re-fill the space.

I posted my issue in one of the threads around here so you can try searching for it. I seem to recall something I thought was unique to my situation, such that I had just transferred programs prior to the "house key" update or something. Another user around here had the same problem but a re-hit got his working again.

 

[guiri]

Well, all the sleep mode does is force you to unplug and plug back in for it to see it, right?

This happens when I PLUG it in/connect it, NOT after it's been sitting there for some time as I'm aware of the sleep mode. I figured that one out quickly because they go to sleep pretty quickly which is one reason I like them.

As for the 622, does it have external HD mode and what's the difference between the 622 and 722?

What's the difference pricewise? F*ckers didn't tell me about the 622 when I asked for a DVR with external HD capabilities..and NO, I never DID need or want HD.

Thanks

George

 

[tempVAdish]

the 622 is the same as 722, but w/ less capacity built in, so it's still HD

On another note, I've never been a fan of Segate drives. I've had a couple for my PC and for some reason or the other, they developed trouble. I usually try to stick w/ WD or Maxtor...

 

[guiri]

The reason I buy seagate is for the 5 year warranty and with my luck with stuff, I NEED warranty

So you think the sleep thing might fix it?

 

[primetimeguy]

The reason I buy seagate is for the 5 year warranty and with my luck with stuff, I NEED warranty

So you think the sleep thing might fix it?

Sleep mode won't fix it, I have it disabled on all 4 of mine and still had the problem.

 

[tempVAdish]

The reason I buy seagate is for the 5 year warranty and with my luck with stuff, I NEED warranty

So you think the sleep thing might fix it?

Not guaranteeing anything.... my guess is that if 2 out of 3 still work, the one that isn't has a problem... you could always try putting the drive into another USB enclosure to see if it comes back to life, it could be an interface issue in the box it's currently in????

 

[Jim5506]

Have you had Dish re-send a hit to your 722 to re-enable the EHD with your household code. I've read 3-4 posts that doing that fixed their problem.

 

[bthom70]

If you're feeling really geeky, Spinrite recovers bad sectors and various platter hardware issues. GRC|Hard drive data recovery software

You have to plug the HD into another computer, boot Spinrite by CD or floppy and then choose the appropriate drive.
I've recovered many drives with Spinrite, both at home and at work.
YMMV.

 

[Jim5506]

It's probbly not a problem with the EHD. Just in the communication between the EHD and the receiver - take a hit to refresh the link.

 

[MLM122]

While my exd still works, I have noticed that my household key has changed, I wrote it down to verify it was the same on both receivers several weeks ago, when I checked it a few days back the number was different

Bob

How do you find your household key? I understood that EHD'S for the same acct were supposed to work on both receivers interchangeably, but mine prompts me to reformat everytime I take it from the recvr in the back room, to the recvr in the front room. Thanks much for the help!