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Humax power problems and playing files over network

T

timdownieuk

New Member
Just installed the custom firmware and finding my way around al the options.

Two early problems I seem to be having is that I can't access my Humax (HDR fox T2) over my network if it's gone to sleep. Waking it up with the remote is the only way to restore access. I have checked the power saving settings and both are set to "off" so I'm not sure why this is happening.

Secondly, I can browse my media files over my network but not play any of them. An empty window opens with VLC player at the top and play/stop buttons at the bottom but nothing ever happens with any kind of recording. This is on an iPad Air.

Am I doing something wrong or expecting too much?
 
Q1. That's absolutely normal. There's is no 'wake on LAN' facility. Can you access your computer over the LAN when it's asleep?
Q2. ?????? Haven't a clue, but someone will have in a bit.
 
I've already found out about the lack of a "wake on LAN" function but I'm not sure why my Humax is going to sleep in the first place with both power saving functions set to "off". That's what's puzzling me.

Regarding playback, maybe an IOS issue?
 
Q1. Well, that's a different question to your previous No1 question that I answered.
When does it 'go to sleep in the first place'? Is it at a time of day or after a certain period?
Q2.?????
 
timdownieuk said:
Regarding playback, maybe an IOS issue?
Click to expand...
Yep. Install the VLC app and do it from there, or see below for an alternative solution.

On the HDR-FOX, you will need to enable content sharing via Menu >> Settings >> System >> Internet Setting >> Content Share = On.

With the app, click the VLC icon top left (to access the main menu) and select "Local Network", network file servers will show up first (including the HDR-FOX, if you have installed the samba package) but ignore those - I have not yet worked out how to connect that way. After a short time the Universal Plug'n'Play (UPnP) devices on your network should appear, including the HDR-FOX, and you can click through to browse and play your content. The recordings do not need to be decrypted in order to play them this way (other ways would).

Note that your Air may be a little underpowered (unless it's an Air2), especially for HiDef. You won't be able to access HiDef at all unless you have the autounprotect package installed.

Alternatively: install a file explorer / manager app. I recommend "FileExplorer" (there's a free version to try it out). With the samba package installed in the HDR-FOX CF the 'Fox shows up as a network drive, and exploring it then clicking a TS file (the actual recording) brings up a number of options for playing it - use "default movie player". Recordings must be decrypted to use this method, see Things Every... (click) section 5, but we regard routine decryption as the norm. (I also find FileExplorer very useful for moving photos and videos on and off the iPad to/from network storage, including my HDR-FOXes and PC. As recommended by HarveyB, see https://hummy.tv/forum/threads/misc...advice-recommendations.6298/page-5#post-90590.)

When I had an iPad3, I found the video rendering of HiDef very stuttery. I now have an iPad Pro Mini...
 
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timdownieuk said:
I've already found out about the lack of a "wake on LAN" function but I'm not sure why my Humax is going to sleep in the first place with both power saving functions set to "off". That's what's puzzling me.
Click to expand...
Are you certain about that? See Things Every... (click) section 7.

Other than that, the only things capable of sending the HDR-FOX to standby are scheduled timers (Menu >> Settings >> Preferences >> Time), and an IR command (including via the WebIF virtual remote). Of course, an HDR-FOX that wakes up from standby to make a recording also returns to standby when the recording is completed, and the WebIF is accessible while it is in this half-awake state - see Things Every... (click) section 18.
 
Black Hole said:
Are you certain about that? See section 7.

Other than that, the only things capable of sending the HDR-FOX to standby are scheduled timers (Menu >> Settings >> Preferences >> Time), and an IR command (including via the WebIF virtual remote).
Click to expand...

Thank you. That was indeed the problem. In the dim and distant past we must have set an "off" time as it was set to power off at 01:59.

Hopefully that problem is sorted now.
 
Only an off time and not an on time? Configurations like that have led to misoperation in the past.
 
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Black Hole said:
Yep. Install the VLC app and do it from there, or see below for an alternative solution.
Click to expand...

Okay, I can now play my SD recordings on my iPad and iPhone using VLC so making progress!

Maybe it's a quirk of VLC but it only shows me files in folders. Single recordings that aren't in folders on the Humax just don't appear on VLC.

Lastly, I've installed auto-unprotect (and rebooted the Humax for good measure) but HD recordings don't play. There's just a blank screen rather than any sign of streaming/buffering or any stuttering on playback. Maybe just a hardware limitation of my iPad but I would have though I would see some sign of attempted playback? (It's an iPad Air 2 that I have).

Many thanks for all the help.

Tim
 
You will need to allow time for auto-unprotect to work its magic. There are two protection processes that need to be dealt with: the first is the master index database which refuses to serve HiDef recordings to non-authorised DLNA clients (and you are seeing the recordings so that bit has been done); the second is a property of the recordings themselves (held as flags in the sidecar files) which prevent the recording being decrypted on-the-fly. Chances are that VLC is receiving encrypted data and therefore cannot render it.

You can check the status of any particular recording via the WebIF media browser: a recording that is available to serve by DLNA (ie is registered in the index database) shows a green circular DLNA icon (see http://wiki.hummy.tv/wiki/Icons). If a recording is protected it will have an "Enc" icon against it. This means "protected from decryption". If a recording has been decrypted it shows a "Dec" icon; a recording with neither icon is not protected but still encrypted. See Things Every... (click) section 5 and follow the link to decryption methods. Note that you should not need decrypted recordings in order to serve content by DLNA, but if all else fails - try it.

Patience.
 
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Have you waited long enough for them to be decrypted?
Beat me to it again BH, with a far more comprehensive answer as usual. ;=)
 
Okay, it seems to be adding green icons to the HD recordings (but no "Dec" symbols)

They still don't play though. I can't even see any of the episodes of a series within a folder (in VLC). Just puzzled as to why my HD recordings (with the green symbol) aren't showing at all in their folders. Selecting a folder in VLC just leads to a blank screen.
 
Ah ha! Decrypted HD files DO appear in VLC. More progress. ;-)

Any suggestions as to why I have to decrypt when other folk don't? Just curious.
 
The situation doesn't occur frequently, because I suspect the vast majority of users are decrypting by routine (including me). It should be possible to use DLNA without decrypting first, because that's how the CF decryption works, but the pragmatic approach is the use what works.
 
Black Hole said:
The situation doesn't occur frequently, because I suspect the vast majority of users are decrypting by routine (including me). It should be possible to use DLNA without decrypting first, because that's how the CF decryption works, but the pragmatic approach is the use what works.
Click to expand...

Ah, okay. Is there a way to set it up to decrypt automatically then? Also, is there any point in keeping the original files once decrypted?
 
Ah ha, found it. ;-) I had seen the bit about auto decrypt but missed that it could be applied to the parent folder.
 
By heck you're right! Until you have kindly pointed it out, I think I have been blind to that one and always spelt it "lead". Duly noted.

I now need to go though all my material looking for the same mistake :(
 
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