# Extract Shows Off Hard drive



## mizuhri (Jun 20, 2006)

If I plug my DirecTV TiVo hard drive to my computer will I be able to extract the shows off of it?


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

No. DirecTV/Tivo's don't support any of the networking features of the standalone Tivos, such as Tivo Desktop and Tivo-to-Go.

But check out the "zipper" thread in the Tivo Underground Forum here ... you might be able to modify your DirecTivo's software to support those features, as long as it's not a DirecTV R10 DVR.


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## mizuhri (Jun 20, 2006)

How do I know what kind of DVR it is?


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## DTVPro (Jun 24, 2005)

see if your dvr has a brand name on it

like phillips, samsung, sony


or you can always look on the back, will have the make/model


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

Also, just putting the HD into a PC won't work either. It uses a proprietary file system that the PC wont recognize, not to mention that the files (shows) themselves are encrypted.


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## Dkerr24 (Oct 29, 2004)

If you're not sure what type of DTivo unit you have, I'm not sure if it's a good idea for you to remove the hard drive to run the Zipper script on it.


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## ForrestB (Apr 8, 2004)

DirecTivo have a Tivo emblem on the front of the case. Both series 1 and series 2 DirecTivo's can be hacked - but since the USB port is built into the series 2 they're preferred. The series 1 DirecTivo's need to have an ethernet card installed.


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## Dkerr24 (Oct 29, 2004)

The Series2 R10 isn't hackable, unless you have the soldering skills to change out a chip on the motherboard.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

There _IS_ a method for extracting shows directly off the hard drive while you have it mounted in a PC but it's not easy. You have to have some extensive knowledge of Linux to do it and it's not something I'd recommend to a newbie. The best methods of extracting video cannot be discussed here due to legal issues (copyrights and such). Do a google search for Tivo video extraction and then go to the links that indicate a deal on a data base. 

I always find it amazing that so many posters indicate the things you CAN'T do with a Tivo when in fact you usually CAN do them and so much more. It's a clear indication that some people don't realize there is more to hacking a Tivo than what this forum discusses. Where do you guys think all the hacks that Zipper installs came from? Only a few of them were ever developed by members here.


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## Dkerr24 (Oct 29, 2004)

mr. unnatural: this site is not really intended for the hard core stuff to hack on a Tivo unit. The 'deal on a database' site is more geared towards that.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

I'm well aware of that and indicated as such in my 2nd paragraph, hence the reference to DDB. FYI - hacking a DTivo for video extraction isn't any more hardcore than running the Zipper script. In fact, I believe the Zipper actually disables video encryption to enable extraction. That little tidbit of information is omitted from the discussions posted here for obvious reasons. All you have to do is upload the tserver file to the DTivo and make it executable. You'll have to do some searching to learn the rest of the process because I'll probably get struck by lightning if I divulge any more.


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## Jerry_K (Feb 7, 2002)

If you have a TiVo do not hook up the hard drive to a computer running windows xp, it will write to the root of the drive, making it unbootable in a TiVo.


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## mizuhri (Jun 20, 2006)

My DTiVo has USB ports in the back of it. Also it is a Samsung.


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

Then you can hack it with Zipper and set it up for extraction.


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## Rkkeller (May 13, 2004)

Whats the difference between extraction and just burning it to DVD and then using a computer program to do what you want, change the format, quality settings, email to someone, etc... ?


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

Extraction allows you to keep the recorded shows in digital format from beginning to end, retaining the original image quality with no degradation and also allow you to retain the digital audio. When you copy from the Tivo to another source using the audio and video outputs you have to convert the signal from digital to analog at the output and then back to digital again in your PC. The A/D converters used by DTV will be far better than anything you have in your PC so you can expect noticeable degradation when using this method. You will also lose the Dolby Digital soundtracks unless you use the digital audio output from the Tivo to a SPDIF input on your PC's sound card.


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## WillowTheDog (Oct 14, 2003)

mr.unnatural said:


> Extraction allows you to keep the recorded shows in digital format from beginning to end, retaining the original image quality with no degradation and also allow you to retain the digital audio. When you copy from the Tivo to another source using the audio and video outputs you have to convert the signal from digital to analog at the output and then back to digital again in your PC. The A/D converters used by DTV will be far better than anything you have in your PC so you can expect noticeable degradation when using this method. You will also lose the Dolby Digital soundtracks unless you use the digital audio output from the Tivo to a SPDIF input on your PC's sound card.


Not to mention the fact that using a DVD burner would be a lot slower. It will transfer at real time and will prohibit you from watching something else on the TV at the same time. Extraction is about 5X real-time and you can watch something else on the Tivo while its transferring.


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