# tivo no dhcp error message



## mac7_1968 (Nov 11, 2007)

This happens every few months for the last year or so and I cant figure out why. It is generally when we loose power but other times also. I have to fiddle with it and eventually get the connection back, but this time nothing is working. I set up a static ip address the last time and thought it fixed it but our internet went out the other day and now it wont connect. Our laptops and phones along with our TV and I pads are connected wirelessly and our Desktop is wired directly to the router and all are working fine just not the tivo. 

I am connected via Netgear 1200 and I have tried unplugging the modem, router, tivo and I have unplugged the netgear adapter but no connection still


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## fcfc2 (Feb 19, 2015)

mac7_1968 said:


> I am connected via Netgear 1200


Not sure what "Netgear 1200" is as there is no Netgear device by that model number? What is the make and model of your primary router? If you log into the primary router can you see your Tivo, whatever model in the device list. When you say you say you setup a static IP for your Tivo, did you do this via the Tivo, or did you reserve the IP via your primary router?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

fcfc2 said:


> Not sure what "Netgear 1200" is as there is no Netgear device by that model number? What is the make and model of your primary router? If you log into the primary router can you see your Tivo, whatever model in the device list. When you say you say you setup a static IP for your Tivo, did you do this via the Tivo, or did you reserve the IP via your primary router?


Sadly, there are three items with 1200 as part of their names. TiVo, as a general rule, doesn't take to changing IP addresses. Netgear, on their older stuff, likes to change IP addresses. I'm using Netgear R8000 and EX7000. Both are rock solid. No fixed IP addresses, but reservations for most devices.

Why don't people use a UPS?


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## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

mac7_1968 said:


> This happens every few months for the last year or so and I cant figure out why. It is generally when we loose power but other times also. I have to fiddle with it and eventually get the connection back, but this time nothing is working. I set up a static ip address the last time and thought it fixed it but our internet went out the other day and now it wont connect. Our laptops and phones along with our TV and I pads are connected wirelessly and our Desktop is wired directly to the router and all are working fine just not the tivo.
> 
> I am connected via Netgear 1200 and I have tried unplugging the modem, router, tivo and I have unplugged the netgear adapter but no connection still


I am fairly sure people around here can help you out. The more info you post the better the suggestions will be. I would start with what model modem, Router, & TiVo you have, what does "connected via Netgear 1200" mean? Is your TiVo connected via Ethernet, MoCA, internal wireless, or external wireless adapter? Plus if you actually set a static IP you should not be getting a no DHCP message so some more info on what you did to setup the static IP could also be useful.


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## mac7_1968 (Nov 11, 2007)

Should have said Powerline 1200 or pl 1200


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## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Ok so your TiVo is connected via Ethernet through a Netgear Power line 1200 system to your router. That means you have lots of point of failure. Such as:
Something with your TiVo
Ethernet cable from TiVo to Netgear PL 1200
Either of the Netgear PL 1200 adapters
Ethernet cable from Netgear PL Adapter to your router.
Port or your router the cable goes to from your Netgear PL 1200.
I would re-seat the Ethernet cables at all locations and see if the lights are showing connectivity to start. What does the Netgear PL 1200 say about power outages, is there a reset process?


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## mac7_1968 (Nov 11, 2007)

I have a modem from Comcast and use a linksys ac1600 router. My internet feed is in my office so I use a Netgear PL 1200 ethernet adapter to run ethernet to my roamio tivo in my living room. Has worked great except a few times when our house has lost power. When the power is restored the tivo is not connected to the Internet. I unplug the modem, the router, unplug the tivo inidividually and collectively and it takes something different each time. The last time this happened a month ago I read about a static ip address so I went into my router and created a static ip and change my network settings on the tivo thinking it fixed. 

We had an internet issue this week and Comcast had to come out and they changed the feed from my attic as there seemed to be no signal and when they removed the faceplate the coax was taped together. We have internet to the desktop which is connected directly to the router with ethernet cable, wirelessly to laptop, iphones and ipads and smart tv they all work just not the Tivo. I repeated the steps above multiple times and nothing is working


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## mac7_1968 (Nov 11, 2007)

The Ethernet adapters are not currently showing they are connected so I unplug them and both say they are connected to internet but the Tivo says no DHCP server, there is also no DNS addresses 

I am going to try and rest both of the adapters and see if that works


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

mac7_1968 said:


> We had an internet issue this week and Comcast had to come out and they changed the feed from my attic as there seemed to be no signal and when they removed the faceplate the coax was taped together. We have internet to the desktop which is connected directly to the router with ethernet cable, wirelessly to laptop, iphones and ipads and smart tv they all work just not the Tivo. I repeated the steps above multiple times and nothing is working


Have you tried to use the internal Roamio wireless? It's not good enough to support a Mini, but it will allow updates.


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## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

Just want to be sure we both mean the same thing when saying added a static IP address. To me this means you went into your TiVo's network settings and selected "Let me specific a static IP address" and then added an IP Address, Subnet Mask, Gateway Address, & DNS Address. If that is what you did have you check to make sure those numbers are still there and what you entered? They should be but I have seen devices that loose them in a power outage. 

I don't know much about your router, but I would also check and make sure any setting you changed are also still set correctly.


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## tampa8 (Jan 26, 2016)

If you are using a static IP that has to be done in the Router for the best results. And using a static IP does often fix problems when devices sometimes won't reconnect. I have found when using powerline ethernet you really do have to set the IP for that device in the Router. I would not in addition use that setting on the TIVO itself.


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## ej42137 (Feb 16, 2014)

tampa8 said:


> If you are using a static IP that has to be done in the Router for the best results. And using a static IP does often fix problems when devices sometimes won't reconnect. I have found when using powerline ethernet you really do have to set the IP for that device in the Router. I would not in addition use that setting on the TIVO itself.


It's not a static IP if you set it in the router; that's a static assignment. Static IP is when you set a fixed IP address in the device so that it doesn't make a DHCP request, which is what you seem to be advising against.

Do you have some reason to think DHCP fixed assignment has some advantage over static IP addresses for TiVos other than making your network easier to manage? That would be quite surprising and worth sharing.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ej42137 said:


> Do you have some reason to think DHCP fixed assignment has some advantage over static IP addresses for TiVos other than making your network easier to manage? That would be quite surprising and worth sharing.


I don't use static IP addresses. However there are 500 threads that mention "static IP address". That doesn't make it right. just popular.

I used to have DHCP type issues on my old router. With a Netgear R8000 I never have them anymore.


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## tampa8 (Jan 26, 2016)

ej42137 said:


> It's not a static IP if you set it in the router; that's a static assignment. Static IP is when you set a fixed IP address in the device so that it doesn't make a DHCP request, which is what you seem to be advising against.
> 
> Do you have some reason to think DHCP fixed assignment has some advantage over static IP addresses for TiVos other than making your network easier to manage? That would be quite surprising and worth sharing.


You can be snide all day long, a typical know it all.
I am telling someone looking for help what has worked for me specifically using Powerline Ethernet. And that's setting the IP in the Router to a static one, or assign it one, whatever.


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## fcfc2 (Feb 19, 2015)

Hi guys and ladies,
My understanding of "fixed, static, and reserved" IP's. The first thing I would say is that I have noted different manufacturers use different terminology to describe the same phenomenon. In my readings, "static" and to a less common degree "fixed" IP's are most frequently used to describe setting the device IP address on the device, in theory thereby forcing the router to give it the requested IP address. In contrast, the term "reserved" IP always refers to setting the same device IP on the router, i.e., the router "reserves" this address for the specific device usually via it's MAC ID. I am not familiar with the term "static assignment", and prefer "reserved" as in my mind it makes it clearer you are "reserving" the address on the router. You can't really "reserve" an address on the device, only "request" it.
I have been lead to believe that using "reserved" IP's is a "better" choice as it can be centrally managed and is less likely to result in IP assignment errors when both devices and routers reboot. The issue being the router reboots slightly quicker and has already handed out the IP which a slower booting device has set to pick up, i.e., a duplicated IP assignment. 
Another issue is if you happen to get a new router which uses a different subnet than the older one. "What happened to my x, y, z, devices?"
The real trouble comes in because the terminology is basically not specific enough, and although I use my preferences based on my understanding of what is going on.....the terms "fixed and static" are not always used consistently to refer to the device/router configuration. For me this results in having to ask, where did you set the "fixed/static IP" on the device or the router.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

tampa8 said:


> If you are using a static IP that has to be done in the Router for the best results. And using a static IP does often fix problems when devices sometimes won't reconnect. I have found when using powerline ethernet you really do have to set the IP for that device in the Router. I would not in addition use that setting on the TIVO itself.





ej42137 said:


> It's not a static IP if you set it in the router; that's a static assignment. Static IP is when you set a fixed IP address in the device so that it doesn't make a DHCP request, which is what you seem to be advising against.
> 
> Do you have some reason to think DHCP fixed assignment has some advantage over static IP addresses for TiVos other than making your network easier to manage? That would be quite surprising and worth sharing.





tampa8 said:


> You can be snide all day long, a typical know it all.
> I am telling someone looking for help what has worked for me specifically using Powerline Ethernet. And that's setting the IP in the Router to a static one, or assign it one, whatever.


He's not being snide, he's correct, calling things by their correct name helps everyone, as does clearing misconceptions.

For some reason I have never fathomed TCF is a bastion of pro-static addresses and reservation recommendations, I just roll with it even though I have never supported this groupthink.

Additionally as one of the biggest powerline cheerleaders here they do not gain anything from a static IP or a reservation, what I've found in the years I've been using them is that in certain situations one will drop it's connection and simply unplugging it and plugging it back in resolves it, obviously YMMV.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

fcfc2 said:


> For me this results in having to ask, where did you set the "fixed/static IP" on the device or the router.


Your explanation is very good. I can't speak for all routers, but I think a device has a place (entry) for an IP address, and a router has a place to reserve an IP address when a specified MAC address asks for an IP address. It gets complicated when you need to know the mask and DHCP server, items that are needed when you manually assign IP addresses.

I have devices that don't run continuously, like a Blu-ray or TV, so I have the router make a reservation. Something like a TiVo isn't so important unless a Mini is used. Then the Mini and its host get a reservation.

And everything is on a UPS anyhow.


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## tomhorsley (Jul 22, 2010)

I certainly had lots of problems using DHCP assigned IP addrs a long time ago. Eventually through looking at logs, I found that the TiVo DHCP client was never asking to renew the IP address, so the router was expiring it at the end of the lease time. I reserved the IP in the router and told the TiVo to use that IP as a static address, and have had no problems since (I have no idea if TiVo has fixed the DHCP client in the many software updates since then, because the static IP has worked fine).


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

tomhorsley said:


> I certainly had lots of problems using DHCP assigned IP addrs a long time ago. Eventually through looking at logs, I found that the TiVo DHCP client was never asking to renew the IP address, so the router was expiring it at the end of the lease time. I reserved the IP in the router and told the TiVo to use that IP as a static address, and have had no problems since (I have no idea if TiVo has fixed the DHCP client in the many software updates since then, because the static IP has worked fine).


I asked Netgear a while back to allow user-defined leases. They told me no IP address gets changed. I told them they should check their logs. They never responded. I've never figured out the reason for a 24 hour lease.


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## aaronwt (Jan 31, 2002)

tomhorsley said:


> I certainly had lots of problems using DHCP assigned IP addrs a long time ago. Eventually through looking at logs, I found that the TiVo DHCP client was never asking to renew the IP address, so the router was expiring it at the end of the lease time. I reserved the IP in the router and told the TiVo to use that IP as a static address, and have had no problems since (I have no idea if TiVo has fixed the DHCP client in the many software updates since then, because the static IP has worked fine).


Something must have been messed up somewhere. I've been using TiVos for many years with DHCP reservations and without. And the TiVos have always renewed their leases like clockwork. Bolts, Roamios, Premieres, etc.
Just like other devices have.

All the routers I've used from Dlink and now Asus allow me to set the lease time. I've used short term leases and very long term leases. Although currently I'm using a lease time of 5.555 hours(20k seconds)


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## tampa8 (Jan 26, 2016)

JoeKustra said:


> Your explanation is very good. I can't speak for all routers, but I think a device has a place (entry) for an IP address, and a router has a place to reserve an IP address when a specified MAC address asks for an IP address. It gets complicated when you need to know the mask and DHCP server, items that are needed when you manually assign IP addresses.
> 
> I have devices that don't run continuously, like a Blu-ray or TV, so I have the router make a reservation. Something like a TiVo isn't so important unless a Mini is used. Then the Mini and its host get a reservation.
> 
> And everything is on a UPS anyhow.


And that is what works for me. Thanks for the post.


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## ratcat (Jun 4, 2017)

Reviving an old thread, but I just got my Roamio and it absolutely will not get an IP from the router DHCP on wifi. All of the troubleshooting attempts were unsuccessful. Assigning a static IP and then marking it as reserved in the router has been the only thing that worked. I'm satisfied with this set up but still curious as to why it won't work. Any number of tablets, phones, computers and a printer all DCHP with no issues.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ratcat said:


> Reviving an old thread, but I just got my Roamio and it absolutely will not get an IP from the router DHCP on wifi. All of the troubleshooting attempts were unsuccessful. Assigning a static IP and then marking it as reserved in the router has been the only thing that worked. I'm satisfied with this set up but still curious as to why it won't work. Any number of tablets, phones, computers and a printer all DCHP with no issues.


What router? I have a reservation for my Roamio that is wired, but if I kill the wireless bridge it picks up an IP address on wireless automatically. I can't leave it on its internal wireless since I feed a Mini.


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## ratcat (Jun 4, 2017)

Netgear WNDR3700


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ratcat said:


> Netgear WNDR3700


It's been a few years since I used that model, but I don't remember any problems. But since everything is happy now, I would not lose sleep over the problem. I use an R8000 with a lot of reservations and QoS disabled.


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