Black Hole
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This info post has been prompted by several recent queries regarding copying non-media files out of the HDR-FOX (running custom firmware). For completeness, the post attempts to cover every possible situation (whether enquired about or not).
Standard Humax Firmware - HD-FOX
The only user-accessible storage on an HD-FOX is that which the user has connected externally using the single USB interface. As such, it is straight-forward to disconnect the storage and mount it on a PC for data transfer, but note that:
It is also possible to connect more than one drive to the HD-FOX USB port by using a USB hub (preferably self-powered, otherwise the 0.5A capability of the HD-FOX USB output will have to be shared around all the drives connected to the hub). With more than one drive, the SUI (Standard User Interface) can be used to copy media files between drives, and the destination drive can be formatted FAT32 (ie compatible with Windows, but with the usual file size restrictions of FAT32). For more information see Things Every... (click) section 12.
Note that the SUI copy/move/delete operations are only able to access files and file sets that the Humax firmware recognises as media files, and the media type must be selected appropriately from Video, Music, or Photo via Media >> Media (yellow).
Limited access is provided to three files within the Humax operational file system: channel.db, rsv.db, and setup.db. These can be exported and imported to/from USB using the "Copy DB to USB" and "Copy USB to DB" operations on the hidden service menu (presumably this is provided as a means to backup and restore the system configuration, but it also provides a route for "fiddling") - see Things Every... (click) section 9.
Standard Humax Firmware - HDR-FOX
The HDR-FOX uses an internal HDD for recording and media storage, and has additional capabilities over the HD-FOX.
The obvious means to transfer data to and from an HDR-FOX is via the USB interface to external storage. The HDR-FOX provides two USB ports (one on the front panel, the other on the rear below the Ethernet port), so has far less need (than an HD-FOX, with only one USB port) of a USB hub to expand the number. For information regarding the pros and cons of different formats of USB storage, see Things Every HD/HDR-FOX Owner Should Know (click) section 12.
Recordings made with the HDR-FOX are encrypted, but may be decrypted in the process of copying to USB storage. For information see Things Every... (click) section 5.
Note that the Standard User Interface (SUI) copy/move/delete operations are only able to access files and file sets that the Humax firmware recognises as media files, the media type must be selected appropriately from Video, Music, or Photo via Media >> Media (yellow), and are within the relevant media section of the file system (My Video, My Music, or My Photo).
Limited access is provided to three files within the Humax operational file system: channel.db, rsv.db, and setup.db. These can be exported and imported to/from USB using the "Copy DB to USB" and "Copy USB to DB" operations on the hidden service menu (presumably this is provided as a means to backup and restore the system configuration, but it also provides a route for "fiddling") - see Things Every... (click) section 9.
The standard firmware for HDR-FOX also provides a limited FTP (File Transfer Protocol) capability (this is not available on HD-FOX). This is a means to transfer data to and from the HDR-FOX from/to another computer using the networking connection, presuming the HDR-FOX is connected to your home network (which it is, if you are able to access the TV Portal for BBC iPlayer, YouTube, etc). This facility has to be turned on in the Humax menus: Menu >> Settings >> System >> Internet Setting >> FTP Server = On, and accessed using an FTP client on your computer. Instructions for how to do this are available in Black Hole's Trail Guide (click), stage 1.1.
When connected (using a suitable FTP client), you are provided with file management facilities very similar to using File Manager in Windows, and can move media files around by point-and-click. Indeed, some alternative file managers have FTP capability built in (eg DOpus) and can treat FTP-connected storage as an extension of the PC's storage (once supplied with the connection credentials). Note however, that regardless of the FTP client being used, the standard Humax FTP server only provides access to the media areas of the HDD, and any encrypted files transferred by FTP remain encrypted.
Custom Firmware: Adding/Extending FTP Capability
FTP capability can be added to HD-FOX, and improved on HDR-FOX, by installing custom firmware and then installing the betaftpd package. When the betaftpd package is installed, the standard Humax FTP server must be turned off: Menu >> Settings >> System >> Internet Setting >> FTP Server = Off.
Instructions for how to access an FTP server are available in Black Hole's Trail Guide (click), stage 1.1.
When connected (using a suitable FTP client), you are provided with file management facilities very similar to using File Manager in Windows, and can move media files around by point-and-click. Indeed, some alternative file managers have FTP capability built in (eg DOpus) and can treat FTP-connected storage as an extension of the PC's storage (once supplied with the connection credentials). Note however, that regardless of the FTP client being used, the standard Humax FTP server only provides access to the media areas of the HDD, and any encrypted files transferred by FTP remain encrypted.
betaftpd provides two modes of access: by logging in as user = humaxftp and password = system PIN (0000 by default), the server is limited to the media folders as per the standard server on HDR-FOX. By logging in as user = root and password = root, the server provides unrestrained access to the entire file system, and it then becomes possible to "fiddle" with all of it. Note, however, that critical system areas are write-protected.
The primary use for unlimited access is to read and/or modify files within the custom firmware configuration. These will be found in the directory branch /mod. Caution is required when editing or creating files on a Windows system that are going to be copied and used in a Linux system (as per the Humax OS), because Windows and Linux use different conventions for line endings in plain text files, and it is necessary to use a text editor which is able to output files in Linux format.
Custom Firmware: Telnet Command Line
Installing custom firmware also provides Telnet access. The Telnet command console is a means of interacting with the Humax operating system by means of a Command Line Interface (CLI) - which (for readers of the pre-Windows era) is rather like running a PC using MS-DOS. As such, text files can be listed to console using the "cat" (catalogue) command, and the screen output can be captured on the PC, but this is not the best (or a convenient) way to be transferring files.
For information about connecting by Telnet see http://wiki.hummy.tv/wiki/Telnet (click).
Custom Firmware: Network File Sharing
This technique provides access to the HD/HDR-FOX file system as if it were network-attached storage on your computer (which, in effect, it will be). The result is that the file system can be viewed and manipulated from within Windows (or other operating systems) using the native file manager. No FTP client is required. The same comments regarding Linux line endings apply as per FTP above.
For access from a Windows computer, on the HD/HDR-FOX install the samba package. This provides SMB networking. A modification to one of the configuration files is also required, without which access is limited to the media folders. This can be done using the file editor in the WebIF Diagnostics page (without having to worry about line ends):
For Unix-type operating systems (such as Apple Mac), instead of samba use the nfs-utils package. IIRC no special configuration is required in order to access the root file system when using NFS.
Standard Humax Firmware - HD-FOX
The only user-accessible storage on an HD-FOX is that which the user has connected externally using the single USB interface. As such, it is straight-forward to disconnect the storage and mount it on a PC for data transfer, but note that:
- If the external drive has been configured for recording, it will have been formatted Ext3 (which is not a native format for a Windows computer);
- Any recordings made to the drive using the HD-FOX will be encrypted and unusable.
It is also possible to connect more than one drive to the HD-FOX USB port by using a USB hub (preferably self-powered, otherwise the 0.5A capability of the HD-FOX USB output will have to be shared around all the drives connected to the hub). With more than one drive, the SUI (Standard User Interface) can be used to copy media files between drives, and the destination drive can be formatted FAT32 (ie compatible with Windows, but with the usual file size restrictions of FAT32). For more information see Things Every... (click) section 12.
Note that the SUI copy/move/delete operations are only able to access files and file sets that the Humax firmware recognises as media files, and the media type must be selected appropriately from Video, Music, or Photo via Media >> Media (yellow).
Limited access is provided to three files within the Humax operational file system: channel.db, rsv.db, and setup.db. These can be exported and imported to/from USB using the "Copy DB to USB" and "Copy USB to DB" operations on the hidden service menu (presumably this is provided as a means to backup and restore the system configuration, but it also provides a route for "fiddling") - see Things Every... (click) section 9.
Standard Humax Firmware - HDR-FOX
The HDR-FOX uses an internal HDD for recording and media storage, and has additional capabilities over the HD-FOX.
The obvious means to transfer data to and from an HDR-FOX is via the USB interface to external storage. The HDR-FOX provides two USB ports (one on the front panel, the other on the rear below the Ethernet port), so has far less need (than an HD-FOX, with only one USB port) of a USB hub to expand the number. For information regarding the pros and cons of different formats of USB storage, see Things Every HD/HDR-FOX Owner Should Know (click) section 12.
Recordings made with the HDR-FOX are encrypted, but may be decrypted in the process of copying to USB storage. For information see Things Every... (click) section 5.
Note that the Standard User Interface (SUI) copy/move/delete operations are only able to access files and file sets that the Humax firmware recognises as media files, the media type must be selected appropriately from Video, Music, or Photo via Media >> Media (yellow), and are within the relevant media section of the file system (My Video, My Music, or My Photo).
Limited access is provided to three files within the Humax operational file system: channel.db, rsv.db, and setup.db. These can be exported and imported to/from USB using the "Copy DB to USB" and "Copy USB to DB" operations on the hidden service menu (presumably this is provided as a means to backup and restore the system configuration, but it also provides a route for "fiddling") - see Things Every... (click) section 9.
The standard firmware for HDR-FOX also provides a limited FTP (File Transfer Protocol) capability (this is not available on HD-FOX). This is a means to transfer data to and from the HDR-FOX from/to another computer using the networking connection, presuming the HDR-FOX is connected to your home network (which it is, if you are able to access the TV Portal for BBC iPlayer, YouTube, etc). This facility has to be turned on in the Humax menus: Menu >> Settings >> System >> Internet Setting >> FTP Server = On, and accessed using an FTP client on your computer. Instructions for how to do this are available in Black Hole's Trail Guide (click), stage 1.1.
When connected (using a suitable FTP client), you are provided with file management facilities very similar to using File Manager in Windows, and can move media files around by point-and-click. Indeed, some alternative file managers have FTP capability built in (eg DOpus) and can treat FTP-connected storage as an extension of the PC's storage (once supplied with the connection credentials). Note however, that regardless of the FTP client being used, the standard Humax FTP server only provides access to the media areas of the HDD, and any encrypted files transferred by FTP remain encrypted.
Custom Firmware: Adding/Extending FTP Capability
FTP capability can be added to HD-FOX, and improved on HDR-FOX, by installing custom firmware and then installing the betaftpd package. When the betaftpd package is installed, the standard Humax FTP server must be turned off: Menu >> Settings >> System >> Internet Setting >> FTP Server = Off.
Instructions for how to access an FTP server are available in Black Hole's Trail Guide (click), stage 1.1.
When connected (using a suitable FTP client), you are provided with file management facilities very similar to using File Manager in Windows, and can move media files around by point-and-click. Indeed, some alternative file managers have FTP capability built in (eg DOpus) and can treat FTP-connected storage as an extension of the PC's storage (once supplied with the connection credentials). Note however, that regardless of the FTP client being used, the standard Humax FTP server only provides access to the media areas of the HDD, and any encrypted files transferred by FTP remain encrypted.
betaftpd provides two modes of access: by logging in as user = humaxftp and password = system PIN (0000 by default), the server is limited to the media folders as per the standard server on HDR-FOX. By logging in as user = root and password = root, the server provides unrestrained access to the entire file system, and it then becomes possible to "fiddle" with all of it. Note, however, that critical system areas are write-protected.
The primary use for unlimited access is to read and/or modify files within the custom firmware configuration. These will be found in the directory branch /mod. Caution is required when editing or creating files on a Windows system that are going to be copied and used in a Linux system (as per the Humax OS), because Windows and Linux use different conventions for line endings in plain text files, and it is necessary to use a text editor which is able to output files in Linux format.
Custom Firmware: Telnet Command Line
Installing custom firmware also provides Telnet access. The Telnet command console is a means of interacting with the Humax operating system by means of a Command Line Interface (CLI) - which (for readers of the pre-Windows era) is rather like running a PC using MS-DOS. As such, text files can be listed to console using the "cat" (catalogue) command, and the screen output can be captured on the PC, but this is not the best (or a convenient) way to be transferring files.
For information about connecting by Telnet see http://wiki.hummy.tv/wiki/Telnet (click).
Custom Firmware: Network File Sharing
This technique provides access to the HD/HDR-FOX file system as if it were network-attached storage on your computer (which, in effect, it will be). The result is that the file system can be viewed and manipulated from within Windows (or other operating systems) using the native file manager. No FTP client is required. The same comments regarding Linux line endings apply as per FTP above.
For access from a Windows computer, on the HD/HDR-FOX install the samba package. This provides SMB networking. A modification to one of the configuration files is also required, without which access is limited to the media folders. This can be done using the file editor in the WebIF Diagnostics page (without having to worry about line ends):
For Unix-type operating systems (such as Apple Mac), instead of samba use the nfs-utils package. IIRC no special configuration is required in order to access the root file system when using NFS.
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