# Factory TivoHD+WD expander. How to backup please?



## jeffw_00 (Sep 19, 2000)

I have a factory TivoHD + WD Expander. I've never opened the box. Warranty is over now.

I want to turn off the unit, pull the main drive, hook it to my WinXP PC, backup the drive (not the programs though), and put the drive back, so that when (it's always "when" with hard drives) the drive dies, I can simply buy a new drive, restore the backup to it, put the new drive into the box, and be back in business.

People say "use winmfs" but winmfs seems designed primarily for upgrades, and supposedly "doesn't work" (no explanations given) if you have the expander. 

Though i haven't ventured into this space since I backed up my S-1 years ago, I have to believe that there is a tool out there that will do a simple backup, Expander-or-not. 

Can anyone help me? (and please don't just send me to a website - please take me as far as which program to run, and what command to look up and use, if you know).

and please don't post if you don't really know. A number of replies makes it look like i got an answer (sorry, I'm grumpy today - got a cold) 8-}

Thanks very much!
/j


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## Resist (Dec 21, 2003)

Why not just buy a new drive that is already formatted for your Tivo now? I got my new upgrade drive for my Series 3 on ebay from a one of our forum members. Yes I could have done the process myself but considering how inexpensive the same drive from him was and the fact that it saved me the bother, I couldn't pass it up.


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## jeffw_00 (Sep 19, 2000)

Ummm.. -let's see
1) I want to backup MY TiVo, with MY settings, etc., to make a restore a snap
2) I want to deal with it myself, and buy whatever drive I want
3) I don't want to maximize my cash outlay. 8-}

No offense, but i did politely ask that you not post if you can't answer my question. I really just want to backup my disk NOW, so I can restore it easily later. I'm well aware that if I don't do this, there ARE other options if my disk dies. However, that wasn't my question.

Thanks in advance for your kind help.
/j


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## Resist (Dec 21, 2003)

Well you aren't going to be able to backup your settings. And only certain drives will work with your Tivo. It would have only saved me like $20, doing the whole process myself.


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## HomeUser (Jan 12, 2003)

You should be able to use WinMFS or MFSLive with the -f 9999 option and make the backup without saving recordings (keeps Settings and Season passes) to a file.

I have used MFSLive 1.3b to make a 300M truncated backup from a Series 3 that has an external drive. I then tested the backup by restoring it to a new single drive. The TiVo booted without problem the settings were there and the cable cards still worked. You will have to delete the now empty recordings that are listed in "Now Playing" on the new drive to clean things up.

I have not used WinMFS I would think the current release would work also.


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## richsadams (Jan 4, 2003)

jeffw_00 said:


> Ummm.. -let's see
> 1) I want to backup MY TiVo, with MY settings, etc., to make a restore a snap
> 2) I want to deal with it myself, and buy whatever drive I want
> 3) I don't want to maximize my cash outlay. 8-}
> ...


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## jeffw_00 (Sep 19, 2000)

HomeUser said:


> I have used MFSLive 1.3b to make a 300M truncated backup from a Series 3 that has an external drive. I then tested the backup by restoring it to a new single drive. The TiVo booted without problem the settings were there and the cable cards still worked. You will have to delete the now empty recordings that are listed in "Now Playing" on the new drive to clean things up.
> .


was the external drive a plug-and-play WD expander? apparently it makes a difference
thanks!
/j


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## ajt (Oct 25, 2010)

I see this is an old thread but was there ever a definitive answer? 

I just learned my lesson of having a backup when a 5 year old Series 2 (Humax DRT800) drive died. I can't read a thing from it and now need an image. I wish I had made one long ago. I will probably have to buy an InstantCake CD unless I can find an image elsewhere. (anyone know where an image can be found?) 

My other Tivo is an HD unit with a WD expander on it. I want to make a backup (winmfs or the bootable Linux CD) of only the system stuff (no recordings). Will the MFS tools work? 

Thanks

Al


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## ajt (Oct 25, 2010)

Let me try a different variation on this question. In a Series 3 with external expander, are the system files, settings, and format structure/tables all on the internal drive and only the recordings are spread across the two drives? 

IOW, if I get a backup image of the internal drive and replace the internal drive with another bigger one, will the image I made work? I am not concerned about the recordings. I think I read somewhere that if i do this (and it works), I will no longer be able to have an expander on this unit?


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## yuki-nagato (Nov 2, 2010)

ajt said:


> Let me try a different variation on this question. In a Series 3 with external expander, are the system files, settings, and format structure/tables all on the internal drive and only the recordings are spread across the two drives?
> 
> IOW, if I get a backup image of the internal drive and replace the internal drive with another bigger one, will the image I made work? I am not concerned about the recordings. I think I read somewhere that if i do this (and it works), I will no longer be able to have an expander on this unit?


Anything written before the external drive was added is still on the original drive. Only recordings done after the drive is added are spread between both drives. Since the settings are specifically kept in the directory tree located on the first mounted drive, they're still on the first drive and always will be. reimaging the main drive with all the settings saved should work but also invalidates any warranty with tivo if that even matters.


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## richsadams (Jan 4, 2003)

ajt said:


> Let me try a different variation on this question. In a Series 3 with external expander, are the system files, settings, and format structure/tables all on the internal drive and only the recordings are spread across the two drives?
> 
> IOW, if I get a backup image of the internal drive and replace the internal drive with another bigger one, will the image I made work? I am not concerned about the recordings. I think I read somewhere that if i do this (and it works), I will no longer be able to have an expander on this unit?


What Yuki said, and yes, after upgrading the internal drive you can no longer connect an external drive via plug and pray. However it can be done by blessing or "marrying" an external drive during the upgrade process. That requires both drives to be connected to the computer at the same time. Click on the link to the Drive Expansion and Drive Upgrade FAQ for everything you need to know.

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?p=5616160#post5616160


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