# HUGHES SD-DVR40 Directv DVR upgrading hd?



## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

hi everyone new to tivo upgrading so please bear with me .  now i maybe sound like a newbie to all this but i catch up fast learner 

now here i have a *HUGHES SD-DVR40 Directv DVR* and i plan to upgrade the *hard drive* now would it be as easy as buying a bigger hd boot from cd on pc and formate new hd and pop back in on tivo? 

i'v been reading and i heard i need this boot cd mfs? or something? because i found this : *Tigers Mfs Tools 2.0 as an all-in-one upgrade solution*

and i also heard that when you upgrade the tivo hds you dont have more space then 137 gb? is that true? 

and what would be easier ? to make a new image and start fresh on new hd or to make an image of my current drive to the new hd?

**so the tivo info is HUGHES SD-DVR40 Directv DVR with 1 single hd **
AND I THINK I REALLY DID DO MY HOMEWORK ON THIS... unless anyone else thingsi need more info? i really think i did all a noob could do  
any ideal is greatly apriciated and thanks again this fourm on this website rocks


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

Your best bet is to follow the step-by-step instructions in Weaknee's thread at the top of this forum. Just look up the specific instructions for the SD-DVR40. By using your current hard drive you can pick whether you want to keep your current recordings, or not. If you don't care about your current recordings, your easiest solution would be to buy a pre-imaged drive or use PTV Upgrade's InstantCake software.


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## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

what you mean *pre-imaged drive * ? and well i'd perer to keep the current recordings... or ill forget about them whatever is esaier...

my pc uses a ntfs system i heard i needed fat32? . and whats *PTV Upgrade's InstantCake software*

isnt there something easy???? OR is this easier then it first sounds like?

you see i was thinking of buying the hd and formating the new hd but it sounds more complicated then i thought so.

and for what i understand the hard drive sometimes gets unlocked by the cd?

also i dont know much about commonds or linux or c dos...

i was wondering if you can explain or if anyone can explain a step by step .... what to do exactly????


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## Barryrod (Mar 17, 2006)

gus738 said:


> what you mean *pre-imaged drive * ? and well i'd perer to keep the current recordings... or ill forget about them whatever is esaier...
> 
> my pc uses a ntfs system i heard i needed fat32? . and whats *PTV Upgrade's InstantCake software*
> 
> ...


Pre-imaged drives from weaknees= You order it...Install it...Watch tv.

Instantcake= Buy drive locally, burn Instantcake ISO to cd, boot from CD with new drive attached to PC, run the program, install into tivo, do clear and delete, watch tv.

Pre-imaged drives are more expensive than instantcake, but a little easier...But if you are computer literate, you can usually get a 300 gig drive on sale for ~$99 (with rebates) if you look around and then use instantcake to get it up and running.


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## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

so let me get this stright .... your saying pre image drive and ptv upgrade's InstantCake software are hard drive + software? 

i just want to know if all i need to do is 1) buy a hd burn mfs 2.0 iso... 2) put it on pc with new hd boot from cd formate . 3) put that new hd on tivo box and voila?


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

gus738 said:


> so let me get this stright .... your saying pre image drive and ptv upgrade's InstantCake software are hard drive + software?
> 
> i just want to know if all i need to do is 1) buy a hd burn mfs 2.0 iso... 2) put it on pc with new hd boot from cd formate . 3) put that new hd on tivo box and voila?


No, it's not quite that easy. Again, see the step-by-step instructions in Weaknees do-it-yourself thread at the top of this forum .... http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=141538

But I'm guessing from the nature of your questions that it will be much easier for you buy a pre-imaged drive from Weaknees, PTVUpgrade, etc., and simply install it in your Tivo.

PTVUpgrade's InstantCake utility is pretty simple, too .... 
http://www.ptvupgrade.com/products/instantcake/


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## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

ohh i get it now . so this mfs 2.0 is a regular linux like distro that can make the image and stuff but as where the PTV Upgrade's InstantCake software you run that on the pc pop a new hd fellow the simple instructions and voila new hd ?


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

gus738 said:


> ohh i get it now . so this mfs 2.0 is a regular linux like distro that can make the image and stuff but as where the PTV Upgrade's InstantCake software you run that on the pc pop a new hd fellow the simple instructions and voila new hd ?


Right. InstantCake automates the whole process.


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## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

so i have to pay and theirs no way around this? and once i pay what i get? an iso? and what are the steps? fianly would i have to change my ntfs hd to fat32?


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## Barryrod (Mar 17, 2006)

gus738 said:


> so i have to pay and theirs no way around this? and once i pay what i get? an iso? and what are the steps? fianly would i have to change my ntfs hd to fat32?


You only need a Fat32 drive if you are using the MFS tools to do a backup of your image. Using Instantcake, I would remove your PC's HD completly and replace it with the new HD for the Tivo, then boot with the Instantcake CD.


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

gus738 said:


> so i have to pay and theirs no way around this? and once i pay what i get? an iso? and what are the steps? fianly would i have to change my ntfs hd to fat32?


Step-by-step instructions are at PTVUpgrade's web site here http://www.ptvupgrade.com/support/instantcake/

You can buy the physical CD if you don't want to mess with burning CD's from downloaded ISO files.


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## gus738 (Apr 29, 2006)

oh man this is easier   so for what i know i have a Series2 DirecTiVo Units Hughes /SDDVR, so i just get this cd take my pc hd off slave on cd drive master on hd power on pc ( by then boot order changed) fellow simple questons preps hds and put it on tivo do a clear and delete and voila.... sweet.

so whats clear and delete? 

and fianly i heard something about the series 2 tivos about a white cable or something like that... ???


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## Dkerr24 (Oct 29, 2004)

A 'clear and delete everything' erases everything off the drive, including any shows, preferences, etc.

The 'white cable' is a white ribbon cable you'll see at the front of the motherboard which goes inside the front faceplate. Be sure and don't unseat this cable from the motherboard while you're doing the hard drive swap.


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## classicsat (Feb 18, 2004)

Pre-imaged drive. You get a drive that has TiVo software installed already. You don't need to do anything on your PC.

Instant cake, is an MFStools Linux CD that comes with an image, and it automatically installs the image on any drive you obtain yourself.

MFS tolls is the Linux CD that has just the software to back up, restore, and copy drives. You need a FAT32 drive to back up to. You need to type in a couple comands to use it. This CD is free to download and use.


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