# WD Caviar Blue Discussion Thread



## tivoupgrade

Folks,

While I have not personally had a lot of experience with the "Caviar Blue" line of drives from Western Digital, we've been able to verify that some (if not all) of these drives can be problematic in some (if not all) Series1 and Series2 TiVo DVR units.

Is anyone out there having success or failure with these drives and can you please provide specific details of what you've seen?

Lou


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## rbtravis

Caviar Blue 320Gb drives must be configured as master to run with Instantcake. 
when configured as cable select instant cake reports no drive present and quits.
I am using Instantcake 6.2a.
The Drive is extremely quiet.


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## tivoupgrade

rbtravis said:


> Caviar Blue 320Gb drives must be configured as master to run with Instantcake.
> when configured as cable select instant cake reports no drive present and quits.
> I am using Instantcake 6.2a.
> The Drive is extremely quiet.


Are you using a Caviar Blue drive and if so, what is the model number?

As for cable-select, vs master, there is no situation where you should be using cable-select with any particular drive - set it for master.

As for the 'no drive present' error, that is likely a function of the specific PC you are using, not a function of the particular hard drive you are using.

But what I really want to know is what type of Caviar Blue drive you are using...

Lou


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## rbtravis

The model is WD3200JBRTL
It is not my PC because I have used instantcake before with other drives and that PC and it worked with cable select. Your software fails with cable select, If you don't believe me you can buy a Caviar Blue 320GB drive from Fry's for $49.99 until April 3. By the way your software is only on one machine for an average time of 5 minutes. I just use it on my RCA Directv TiVo to download to 6.4a. I have an RCA box which succeeds in downloading 6.4a the first time and every time.


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## tivoupgrade

rbtravis said:


> The model is WD3200JBRTL


Good to know, thanks.



> It is not my PC because I have used instantcake before with other drives and that PC and it worked with cable select. Your software fails with cable select, If you don't believe me you can buy a Caviar Blue 320GB drive from Fry's for $49.99 until April 3. By the way your software is only on one machine for an average time of 5 minutes. I just use it on my RCA Directv TiVo to download to 6.4a. I have an RCA box which succeeds in downloading 6.4a the first time and every time.


I do believe you, but I have no explanation for you. We don't recommend using cable-select when using InstantCake.

Again, all that matters to me in this thread is more knowledge about the Caviar Blue drives as some folks have reported problems in their units.


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## tivoupgrade

rbtravis said:


> The model is WD3200JBRTL


I don't think this is a Caviar Blue drive. Caviar Blue model numbers and descriptions are available here.

The one you have appears to be an older Caviar drive, but it is not part of the family I'm asking about; more info on your drive (and it's family) here.

Lou


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## rbtravis

WD3200JBRTL=WD3200AAJB in a retail box so it is better for shipping. The box is labeled WD Caviar Blue. The box is both in english and french.


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## rbtravis

320GB
WD3200AAJB
MDL : 3200AAJB - 00J3A0
WD Caviar Blue (on bottom of label)

hope this helps 
http://store.westerndigital.com/sto...tegory.13227900/parid.13092500/catid.13094900

Note the 320GB drive in the Western Digital store.


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## tivoupgrade

ok, good to know. thx. Lou


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## FairTax

Most of the shows are now HD and My DVR 500gig expander seems small now. The expander only holds 95 hours of HD. Is there a way to add a second one to my HD Tivo or put a larger drive inside the expander case???


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## Shawn95GT

I did one of these Fry's WD 320 gig drives earlier this week. It put up a fight but once in Master (pull the jumper) the image restored just fine and it's up and running in what was a 40hr 540.

FairTax, that TivoHD is a whole different monster when it come to upgrades, especially if you want to retain the expander. I'd start a new thread if needed after reading this:

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=370784

:up:


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## ruchuck

Hey

I just installed a Caviar Blue 320Gb. Very very quiet compared to the regulat caviar 250mb I had in there.

I hope it lasts longer. The previous drive lasted only 15 months.


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## tivoupgrade

Shawn95GT said:


> I did one of these Fry's WD 320 gig drives earlier this week. It put up a fight but once in Master (pull the jumper) the image restored just fine and it's up and running in what was a 40hr 540.


Can you please confirm that it was this model:

WD3200AAJB

We tested one of these in a TCD540040 today and it did not work. We were able to verify that it worked in the TCD140/240 and all Series2 DirecTV TiVo units (HDVR2, DSR704, HR10-250, etc), as well.



ruchuck said:


> I just installed a Caviar Blue 320Gb. Very very quiet compared to the regulat caviar 250mb I had in there.


In what type of unit did you install it?

Lou


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## Shawn95GT

tivoupgrade said:


> Can you please confirm that it was this model:
> 
> WD3200AAJB
> 
> We tested one of these in a TCD540040 today and it did not work. We were able to verify that it worked in the TCD140/240 and all Series2 DirecTV TiVo units (HDVR2, DSR704, HR10-250, etc), as well.


It was a WD3200JBRTL (probably the part number from the retail kit box). It was in the blue / black box with 'Caviar blue' all over it. I search that part number online and I see the green/black box 

I did this for a friend and he picked it up a couple hours ago. I bet it's that same physical drive though. He's probably got it back in his entertainment system by now or I'd ask him to pop the cover.

FWIW I didn't use IC, I did it manually for a backup I made when I upgraded my 40hr units:

_mfsrestore -s 127 -r 4 -zxpi /mnt/backup.bak /dev/hda_


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## tivoupgrade

Shawn95GT said:


> It was a WD3200JBRTL (probably the part number from the retail kit box). It was in the blue / black box with 'Caviar blue' all over it. I search that part number online and I see the green/black box
> 
> I did this for a friend and he picked it up a couple hours ago. I bet it's that same physical drive though. He's probably got it back in his entertainment system by now or I'd ask him to pop the cover.
> 
> FWIW I didn't use IC, I did it manually for a backup I made when I upgraded my 40hr units:
> 
> _mfsrestore -s 127 -r 4 -zxpi /mnt/backup.bak /dev/hda_


That is the same drive (model number). That is interesting that it worked in your TCD540. We will have to check it again on ours. I am starting to wonder about potential differences in drive firmware.


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## ggieseke

Lou,

Any updates? I am about to replace a failing drive in one of my SVR-2000s, and can't decide between a WD3200AAJB or a ST3500841ACE. I would really like to use a WD5000AAKB but the reports of problems on the UK Thompsons due to its 16MB cache have me worried. I can get the WDs dirt cheap locally compared to the Seagate and money's tight right now.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Greg


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## tivoupgrade

ggieseke said:


> Lou,
> 
> Any updates? I am about to replace a failing drive in one of my SVR-2000s, and can't decide between a WD3200AAJB or a ST3500841ACE. I would really like to use a WD5000AAKB but the reports of problems on the UK Thompsons due to its 16MB cache have me worried. I can get the WDs dirt cheap locally compared to the Seagate and money's tight right now.
> 
> Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
> 
> Greg


The WD3200AAJB is not going to work in your Series1 unit. It will work in the TCD540, though; the ST3500841ACE should work fine.


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## kschauwe

A WD5000AAKB works just fine on my DTivo.
Quiet and cool.


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## rbtravis

Kschauwe: did you set AAM to quiet, default is high seek speed.


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## tivoupgrade

kschauwe said:


> A WD5000AAKB works just fine on my DTivo.
> Quiet and cool.


What kind of unit do you have, a Series1 or a Series2?


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## kschauwe

AAM set to Quiet.
Series2 DTivo


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## ggieseke

Update...

I bought a "broken" TCD649080 S2DT for $20 and popped in a WD5000AAKB that I got from Directron for $75. It was cheaper than the 320GB Seagate for my old S1 and it works great. Straight out of the box it was so quiet that I had to get within a few feet to hear it with the cover off, so I didn't bother to tweak the AAM.

I used WinMFS and a Vantec USB adapter to copy the factory 80GB drive from one of my other S2DTs. Easiest upgrade I've ever done and I didn't even have to reboot my PC - kudos to the developers.


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## imlarry

I just installed the InstantCake with TivoWebPlus for HDR3120x as a single drive image on a Western Digital WD1600AAJB 160GB HD for use in my series I Philips PTV300.

During the install the drive was set to cable select and the install PC recognized it fine and the install seemed to run clean. After reading this thread I pulled off the jumper (set to master) but even so, like others I am getting the TIVO starting up boot banner but it doesn't move on from that. 

Any thoughts? Do I need to find another drive or is there something I can do to use this one?


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## talphius

tivoupgrade said:


> Folks,
> 
> While I have not personally had a lot of experience with the "Caviar Blue" line of drives from Western Digital, we've been able to verify that some (if not all) of these drives can be problematic in some (if not all) Series1 and Series2 TiVo DVR units.
> 
> Is anyone out there having success or failure with these drives and can you please provide specific details of what you've seen?
> 
> Lou


FYI - I successfully installed WD Caviar Blue drives (Model\FW WD3200AAJB-00J3A0) in my Series 2 Tivo's 240080 & 540040 today. I did a single drive upgrade in each, copying over the factory drive data\shows\etc to the new WD Caviar via mfsbackup. After install both Tivo's came back up with no problem. Not sure if it makes any difference, but may help in troubleshooting -- The 240080 was running Tivo System Version 9.3.2b-01-2-140 and the 540040 was running 9.3.2a-01-2-540

Picked them up for $60/each at NewEgg. Other than my lifetime subscription, this is the best money spent yet! 

-T-


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## rbtravis

imlarry said:


> I just installed the InstantCake with TivoWebPlus for HDR3120x as a single drive image on a Western Digital WD1600AAJB 160GB HD for use in my series I Philips PTV300.
> 
> During the install the drive was set to cable select and the install PC recognized it fine and the install seemed to run clean. After reading this thread I pulled off the jumper (set to master) but even so, like others I am getting the TIVO starting up boot banner but it doesn't move on from that.
> 
> Any thoughts? Do I need to find another drive or is there something I can do to use this one?


Set the drive as Master per Instantcake instructions and rebake it. Everything should work fine.


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## imlarry

Done- drive rebaked without any jumpers- clean install. Plugged into the Tivo (at either the end of the IDE cable or the middle...)

Your Recorder is starting up.
Please wait a moment...

1 hr later- no joy. Going to try it again with an 80GB maxtor ... any other ideas welcome- the fam is harassing me about missing the Tivo (lifetime subscription from the dawn of time)


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## mensaiq

I have the same issues with WD5000JBRTL and a Series1 HDR3120x. IC builds the image just fine, but powering up the Tivo just hangs on the first screen. I've tried all the jumper settings, PTVlba48, 1 and 2 drive systems and nothing gets past the first screen. I verified that IC and the Tivo are still working by building an image on an old Fireball 29gb drive, and all works fine. I guess I have to go find something other than Caviar Blue.


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## tivoupgrade

mensaiq said:


> I have the same issues with WD5000JBRTL and a Series1 HDR3120x. IC builds the image just fine, but powering up the Tivo just hangs on the first screen. I've tried all the jumper settings, PTVlba48, 1 and 2 drive systems and nothing gets past the first screen. I verified that IC and the Tivo are still working by building an image on an old Fireball 29gb drive, and all works fine. I guess I have to go find something other than Caviar Blue.


That drive is DEFINITELY a problem on all Series1 units (standalone and DIRECTV boxes).

Lou


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## imlarry

I was able to rebuild no problem on an old 80GB drive and it booted just fine so it's the blue caviar drive for sure. I originally picked the 160GB because I had read that series I tivos could not address more than about 130GB of space.

Does TivoWebPlus support for large drives ("has been used on drives as large as 750GB") extend to series I machines as old as my ancient philips PTV300 or should I still be looking at one or two drives no larger that ~150GB? I'd like to tighten the screws and not open this thing up again until my kid graduates from college... are there any other brands of drive I should avoid?


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## tivoupgrade

imlarry said:


> I was able to rebuild no problem on an old 80GB drive and it booted just fine so it's the blue caviar drive for sure. I originally picked the 160GB because I had read that series I tivos could not address more than about 130GB of space.


By default, the TiVo OS software for the Series1 cannot address more than 137GB on a single hard drive. This is easily remedied by replacing the kernel (which can be done with our LBA48 CD - thread stickied in this forum) or by rebuilding with InstantCake, which includes that kernel.



> Does TivoWebPlus support for large drives ("has been used on drives as large as 750GB") extend to series I machines as old as my ancient philips PTV300 or should I still be looking at one or two drives no larger that ~150GB? I'd like to tighten the screws and not open this thing up again until my kid graduates from college... are there any other brands of drive I should avoid?


TiVoWebPlus has nothing to do with the size drive you use; it looks like you are quoting something from the release notes for InstantCake, which does support drives as large as 750GB on the Series1.

Lou


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## wichmo

I'm having the same problem (stays on 'Welcome powering up' page) with my 2 brand new Western Digital (WD1600AAJB) Caviar Blue hard drives.

My Tivo is a series 1 Sony SAT-T60.

Any suggestions?


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## rbtravis

The drives must be configured as master, not cable select, including when creating the tivo image


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## tivoupgrade

wichmo said:


> I'm having the same problem (stays on 'Welcome powering up' page) with my 2 brand new Western Digital (WD1600AAJB) Caviar Blue hard drives.
> 
> My Tivo is a series 1 Sony SAT-T60.
> 
> Any suggestions?


Use a different type of drive. As I've stated previously, Caviar Blue drives and Series1 units don't seem to go together very well...


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## radiovan

I just tried to get a new 160GB WD Caviar Blue (WD1600AAJB) to boot in my Philips Series 1 (HDR-112). It just won't boot. I tried both mfstools and mfslive with vfat and ext2 formats. I have tried master and cable select jumpering. 
I noticed in the hdparms that the original (still good) Quantum drive is set to udma4 and the WD is set to udma6. The dma is supposed to be off with the byteswap so this shouldn't matter. I'm going to run WD's test diagnostics to make sure the drive isn't defective. The Blue Caviar seems like a decent drive so it's very disappointing if it can't be made to work with the Series 1 TiVo.


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## Tuckee

tivoupgrade said:


> Use a different type of drive. As I've stated previously, Caviar Blue drives and Series1 units don't seem to go together very well...


I agree. I have the 500 GB WD Carviar Blue WD5000AAKB. Cake baked fine, tried to install on a Series 1, stuck on the first screen. I first tried jumpers as master, then all possible combinations.

I left the drive in high speed access so I can hear the drive activity, there is none as if it is not recognized.

:down:


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## tivoupgrade

We are now starting to see problems with other Western Digital drives, as well. Specifically, the WD3200AVJB. Up until recently, these worked fine in all Series1 units, however the latest batch we received will not work in Series1 units. Something may have changed with Western Digital's firmware, but we've not gotten anyone to confirm this.

For now, we are removing 320GB drives from our web site for all Series1 units; 160GB is the largest we are currently offering.


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## dirtball

I bought two WD Caviar Blue (WD320JBRTL)and they baked right up and have worked just fine for months now. I installed them into Hughes hdvr-2s. The hardest part was getting the wiring and jumpers settings right. It made no sense(the directions) but follow the directions ,found here at the site, and these drives work fine.


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## tivoupgrade

dirtball said:


> I bought two WD Caviar Blue (WD320JBRTL)and they baked right up and have worked just fine for months now. I installed them into Hughes hdvr-2s. The hardest part was getting the wiring and jumpers settings right. It made no sense(the directions) but follow the directions ,found here at the site, and these drives work fine.


That is consistent with what we are seeing (the HDVR2 is a Series2 system).

Lou


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## tivoupgrade

Bumping this due to a similar situation referenced here...


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## Erroneous

Unfortunately I found this thread after I purchased a Caviar Blue and another WD I forgot the model of..

My set up is

Philips Series 1 PTV300 (HDR31202) trying to work with a WD Caviar Blue Model: WD1600AAJB (PATA 8 MB). I tried a 500 GB WD model and the same thing happened. Freezing at startup screen (Please Wait). Maybe its time to buy a new Tivo after 7.5 years with my Series 1 and finally get some HD antenna action going. Ugh.


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## tivoupgrade

Erroneous said:


> Unfortunately I found this thread after I purchased a Caviar Blue and another WD I forgot the model of..
> 
> My set up is
> 
> Philips Series 1 PTV300 (HDR31202) trying to work with a WD Caviar Blue Model: WD1600AAJB (PATA 8 MB). I tried a 500 GB WD model and the same thing happened. Freezing at startup screen (Please Wait).


If you have a Caviar Blue, that is most definitely the problem.



> Maybe its time to buy a new Tivo after 7.5 years with my Series 1 and finally get some HD antenna action going. Ugh.


Well, unless you WANT to buy a newer HDTV model, you certainly don't have to. There are drives that can still be used in the Series1 and if you have a lifetime subscription on it, why not stick with it?


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## hvance

The Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 40 GB hard drive in my TiVo TDC540040 recently crashed. It was dated 30MAY2004, so I got some good use out of it.

I just bought the WD 160 GB Caviar Blue from Directron for $45. Model number is WD1600AAJB. I used InstantCake to re-image the new hard drive. The only issue I had during the imaging was that SATA had to be disabled in the BIOS for the install program to work properly.

After installing the new Caviar Blue drive, the TiVo booted up and made it to the main menu, which probably means everything is fine. (I forgot to bring the remote to work so I can't test it right now.) So far so good. 

The only real nuisance to this process was having to deal with the screws with the Torx heads in the TiVo unit.


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## sdaniel105

I used a 160 gig WD Blue drive to upgrade my SD-40DVR. It is 95% ok. Increased capacity (137 hrs), all shows transferred, all season passes transferred, etc. 

Only issue I am having is a random restarting. Do you think the issue is the drive? What drive would you recommend?

Thanks,
Sean


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## tivoupgrade

sdaniel105 said:


> I used a 160 gig WD Blue drive to upgrade my SD-40DVR. It is 95% ok. Increased capacity (137 hrs), all shows transferred, all season passes transferred, etc.
> 
> Only issue I am having is a random restarting. Do you think the issue is the drive? What drive would you recommend?
> 
> Thanks,
> Sean


The Caviar Blue issue only seems to impact upgrades on Series1 systems, not Series2.

If you are having random restart issues, its not because you are using a Caviar Blue drive, but you could have a drive problem - did you run diagnostics on it? See link below...


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## sdaniel105

Thanks I will try them.

Sean


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## jlindema

Hi everyone-

I respect everyone's time- so I'll get right to the point:

I have a friends Tivo-branded, Series 2, model: TCD540140 Tivo with its
original Maxtor DiamondMax 16 120G ATA/133 hard drive that has been running almost 24x7 since early
2004. The Tivo is starting to 'freeze' and pixelate during playback.

So, I offered to buy a new drive and make a clone of the existing one- to give the unit a new
lease on life. I took the cheap route- and instead of buying a HD of similar make/model, I have a
160G Western Digital DMA/100 (not 133), 7200 RPM drive.
(reading previous posts- it seems this drive should work. Mine is a WD Caviar Blue
WD1600AAJB -as read from the drive's label, not the box or Fry's sticker)

I know the electrical characteristics of a 7200 RPM drive are slightly more demading than a 5400 RPM drive..
by about 60ma on the 5v line, but I figured this model TiVo has a beefy enough power supply to handle it
(unlike my old Philips Series 1. Anyway- the new drive seems to spin-up and I hear head-seeking... so that
doesn't seem to be a problem.

After several attempts at cloning the drive using both dd and dd_rescue, the unit will get into a reboot-loop
after the initial "Powering up" (which I know is the motherboard display), and "Almost There- just a few
more minutes (with Tivo logo)". I believe it's at this stage that the kernel is loading.

Both dd and dd_rescue seem to have made a clone successfully (dd_rescue did come across 16 errors).
I'm not interested in expansion of the drive for more recording hours...or installing hacking tools-
all I need is an identical bit-for-bit clone of all partitions and data on one drive- to the new one.
I've re-inserted the original drive just to see if it works...and it works fine, although it's on its last
few months.

Obviously I'm missing something- either it's the (new drive) DMA/100 vs. (original) 133 difference...
7200 RPM vs 5400 RPM, or Maxtor vs. WD.

I appreciate your advice on how to get this newer WD drive working...or should I not waste any more time
and just get a Maxtor drive?

Thanks,
John


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## ggieseke

jlindema said:


> Hi everyone-
> 
> I respect everyone's time- so I'll get right to the point:
> 
> I have a friends Tivo-branded, Series 2, model: TCD540140 Tivo with its
> original Maxtor DiamondMax 16 120G ATA/133 hard drive that has been running almost 24x7 since early
> 2004. The Tivo is starting to 'freeze' and pixelate during playback.
> 
> So, I offered to buy a new drive and make a clone of the existing one- to give the unit a new
> lease on life. I took the cheap route- and instead of buying a HD of similar make/model, I have a
> 160G Western Digital DMA/100 (not 133), 7200 RPM drive.
> (reading previous posts- it seems this drive should work. Mine is a WD Caviar Blue
> WD1600AAJB -as read from the drive's label, not the box or Fry's sticker)
> 
> I know the electrical characteristics of a 7200 RPM drive are slightly more demading than a 5400 RPM drive..
> by about 60ma on the 5v line, but I figured this model TiVo has a beefy enough power supply to handle it
> (unlike my old Philips Series 1. Anyway- the new drive seems to spin-up and I hear head-seeking... so that
> doesn't seem to be a problem.
> 
> After several attempts at cloning the drive using both dd and dd_rescue, the unit will get into a reboot-loop
> after the initial "Powering up" (which I know is the motherboard display), and "Almost There- just a few
> more minutes (with Tivo logo)". I believe it's at this stage that the kernel is loading.
> 
> Both dd and dd_rescue seem to have made a clone successfully (dd_rescue did come across 16 errors).
> I'm not interested in expansion of the drive for more recording hours...or installing hacking tools-
> all I need is an identical bit-for-bit clone of all partitions and data on one drive- to the new one.
> I've re-inserted the original drive just to see if it works...and it works fine, although it's on its last
> few months.
> 
> Obviously I'm missing something- either it's the (new drive) DMA/100 vs. (original) 133 difference...
> 7200 RPM vs 5400 RPM, or Maxtor vs. WD.
> 
> I appreciate your advice on how to get this newer WD drive working...or should I not waste any more time
> and just get a Maxtor drive?
> 
> Thanks,
> John


Check the drive jumpers. Your computer could care less but TiVos are fussier.


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## rx3

I just had an issue with a 500gb WD Caviar on a HR10-250. After imaging it with MFS Tools, my DVR was stuck on "powering up". I changed the jumper and made sure it was properly connected and it still wouldn't work. I found this thread trying to figure out what the problem was. I'll be returning it to Frys and trying a different brand.

Update: I used Instantcake and the Caviar imaged fine. I popped it into my HR10-250 and it went through the whole setup fine. My HR10-250 keeps asking me to activate my service even though it's already activated. It also asks me to insert my access card even though it's in. All menus and settings work fine. So, I think I have a different issue with my HR10-250. I called DTV and they told me to discard it and they will be sending me a new DVR free of charge and shipping. I bought my HR10-250 from Goodguys when it first came out for close to $1000 and now it's goodbye HR10-250


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## jlindema

Thanks for the sanity check ggieseke, but unfortunately that didn't do the trick. I just tried using dd_rescue again- and this time there were 14 read errors instead of 16 found during the previous try.

I've checked the drives jumper- tried all combinations (cable select, removed [which according to the label means single/master], even slave...) and about 2min 30secinds after displaying the "Almost there - just a few minutes more", it re-boots... over and over.

I'm at a loss. 
My dd_rescue command-line is pretty simple too:
dd_rescue /dev/hda /dev/hdb (with the known-good source 120G Maxtor drive being /dev/hda and the 160G WD drive being /dev/hdb).
Should I add some parameters to dd_rescue? It's my understanding that the tool is pretty straight-forward and "just works".

Thanks everyone


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## pauldy

I guess I can add my name to the list of people having problem with this drive on a series 1. Problem is this is the only drive sold locally, I checked Fry's, and microcenter both carry this drive. CompUSA, and best buy don't even carry PATA drives. So I guess I will return the drive sometime this week and go for a mail order drive. My Model number is WD3200AAJB, the box shows WD3200JBRTL for those that might be looking later.


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## timfear

I have a series 2 TCD 240080 and got stuck on powering up screen. Bought a WD3200JBRTL hard drive and put it in. Used Instant Cake. Put it all back together, same problem. Opened it back up, realized it was in cable select, changed it to Master, put it back together, same problem. Took it apart, re-baked while drive was in master, put it together, same problem.

Fan's spinning so it doesn't look like a power problem. Drive's been warm each time I've pulled it out. Just no luck getting it to work.

Seems from what I'm reading here that Blue Caviar should not be a problem with Series 2, is that correct? Any other ideas?

Thanks,


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## ggieseke

I don't know if this will help since I used WinMFS and a USB adapter instead of InstantCake, but here's how I upgraded to a WD5000AAKB in my S2DT. Everything on the PC was done with the jumper set to Master, then I set it back to CS before putting the drive into the DVR.


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## jlindema

the saga continues...

I couldn't figure out why my friends TiVo got into a continuous reboot loop when using the WD drive (and
therefore my dd and dd_rescue copy of the original drive's data), but when I re-installed the original dying
drive it always seemed to boot fine and remain stable.

During my first few dd and dd_rescue attempts, I only got about 16 read errors but recently I have been getting
over 200+ read errors. So, I'm even more convinced the original drive is getting worse.

Reading tivoupgrade's pleas that people run the manufacturer's drive diagnostics, I did exactly that and the
extended drive test showed that my WD Caviar Blue 160G drive was flawless.
Strike bad drive from the list of possible causes.

Thinking perhaps this drive's firmware was causing my problem (despite ggieseke's success), I purchased a Seagate
SATA drive and a cheap SATA-to-PATA adapter. I know, I know- I've added still another factor into the test...but I felt
I had little choice.

Same thing- tried both dd and dd_rescue from the original drive to my new 500G Seagate, 200+ read errors later the
partition tables look good, blah blah blah. Hooked it up to the TiVo -reboot loops again.

I then broke-down and spent $19.95 for InstantCake. Baked the WD drive -stuck it in the TiVo...and it worked like a charm.

So- the logical thing to think is that my drive is good and my dd/dd_rescue process is flawed. Ok..I can buy that
even though it couldn't be more simple.

I still had the log partition from the SATA Seagate drive -the one that exhibited the exact same problem as the WD drive,
so I mounted it and looked at the kernel log.

There's mention of:
Jan 4 03:11:21 (none) kernel: Filesystem assert: pHeaderM->GetSize() == nRead && nRead == sEof at file.C line 721 in TvStatus /
DbFile::Get(long unsigned int) 
Jan 4 03:11:22 (none) kernel: Filesystem flagged as inconsistent! 

...and a backtrace if anyone's interested.

So the filesystem is inconsistent. Ok, I can buy that. But then, considering this TiVo isn't hacked and there's no
real shutdown menu option, merely unplugging the unit will corrupt the filesystem to some degree.

What I still don't understand is how can the inconsistent filesystem be automagically FSCK'ed and fixed into a working filesystem when
booting from the original TiVo drive, but with either of my two new drives -the filesystem is unable to be repaired and the system
gets into a continuous reboot loop?

Thanks,
John


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## tivoupgrade

jlindema said:


> I then broke-down and spent $19.95 for InstantCake. Baked the WD drive -stuck it in the TiVo...and it worked like a charm.


Sounds like this is NOT a Series1 TiVo (ie a Series2 TiVo), so the Caviar Blue should work fine in it.

Lou


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## jlindema

tivoupgrade said:


> Sounds like this is NOT a Series1 TiVo (ie a Series2 TiVo), so the Caviar Blue should work fine in it.
> 
> Lou


True Lou- it's a TCD540. The system and drive details are in post #46 of this thread.

Still don't understand why the original (failing) drive works & boots, while my dd_rescue copy onto the WD (and Seagate) drives caused continuous reboot-loops.


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## tivoupgrade

jlindema said:


> True Lou- it's a TCD540. The system and drive details are in post #46 of this thread.
> 
> Still don't understand why the original (failing) drive works & boots, while my dd_rescue copy onto the WD (and Seagate) drives caused continuous reboot-loops.


Nor do I, but it sounds like it has nothing to do with the fact that you are using a WD Caviar Blue (otherwise you wouldn't be having the same problem with your Seagate drive); ie. You may want to post in a separate/new thread with the details of your experience, it should get a wider audience.

Lou


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## dtb1975

I seem to be having the same problem 

I have a Tivo seris 2 TCD649080

Tried instant Cake with a WD5000AAKB and have the same problem Tivo hangs on startup


Has this issue been resolved or do I have to use a different drive?

Thanks


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## ggieseke

dtb1975 said:


> I seem to be having the same problem
> 
> I have a Tivo seris 2 TCD649080
> 
> Tried instant Cake with a WD5000AAKB and have the same problem Tivo hangs on startup
> 
> Has this issue been resolved or do I have to use a different drive?
> 
> Thanks


That's the exact drive that I put in my TCD649080 and it work perfectly. I just used WinMFS to copy the factory drive but that shouldn't make any difference. Have you done a Clear & Delete All?


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## tivoupgrade

dtb1975 said:


> I seem to be having the same problem
> 
> I have a Tivo seris 2 TCD649080
> 
> Tried instant Cake with a WD5000AAKB and have the same problem Tivo hangs on startup
> 
> Has this issue been resolved or do I have to use a different drive?
> 
> Thanks


As far as I know, the WD Caviar Blue drives are only known to be a problem with Series1 units, not Series2 units such as yours. Have you verified that there isn't something else wrong with your unit?


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## unclemoosh

I have a WD5000AAKB. I can bake it with Instantcake and it works fine in an HDVR2.

However, if I restore a known good backup (somewhat customized) I have problems.

The unit boots, I get the splash screen and then it reboots. I get the splash screen again and then the GSOD. Second verse, same as the first.

Any ideas???

Thanks.


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## unclemoosh

unclemoosh said:


> I have a WD5000AAKB. I can bake it with Instantcake and it works fine in an HDVR2.
> 
> However, if I restore a known good backup (somewhat customized) I have problems.
> 
> The unit boots, I get the splash screen and then it reboots. I get the splash screen again and then the GSOD. Second verse, same as the first.
> QUOTE]
> 
> I got this fixed. I looked into the "recipe" for baking an Instantcake. I used the same "recipe" with my backup image and we have joy. I guess my ignorance and lack of expertise with mfstools is obvious. The command line used is:
> 
> mfsrestore -x -p -s 127 -r4 -zi /myimage.bak /dev/hdx
> 
> I have never seen it in this exact sequence, but it apparently makes a difference over the usual -xzpi option.


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## de_2000

I own both drives and was surprised WD had the same model # in 2 different series (Blue and SE). My SE has worked for years. The Blue does not (wasting enormous amounts of my time). WDs response: They don't test their drives for Tivo compatiability.


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