# Smarter Dynamic Tuner Allocation for Minis...



## Chuck_IV (Jan 1, 2002)

While I like the dynamic allocation, IMO it need to be better implemented. The way it currently works is it randomly grabs a tuner, *any tuner*, every time it needs one.

The problem with that is, say you are on the main Tivo with 4 tuners and someone takes a tuner for a mini, fine. However, lets say that mini user goes back to the main Tivo menu, thus releasing the tuner it was using and now goes back to Live TV. Guess what? The Tivo may allocate a DIFFERENT tuner to that mini. So if I had a background program I was tracking with the buffer on the main Tivo, I now may have lost that tuner to the mini.

This happens a LOT in our house and should be dealt with. What Tivo should do is allow you to allocate a tuner/pool of tuners to the mini/minis. These tuners ARE always available to the main Tivo, if a mini isn't using it. However, when a mini does need a tuner, it can *ONLY* pick a tuner from the allocated tuner pool. The rest are off limits to the minis.

This way as the main Tivo user, you will know what tuners will always be available to you vs potentially losing a tracked buffer to a connecting mins.


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

I'm ok with the suggestion, but it goes back to the failsafe advice to buffer surfers- hit record if you want to make sure you get your content.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

If you tune to a channel that any of the tuners on the TiVo are already on then the Mini will release the tuner it has and grab that tuner instead. This is a simple way to ensure you grab the tuner you want.


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## Peter G (Jan 3, 2012)

Dan,

I don't think it works as you state. Maybe it does, but in the case where "all tuners in use", you don't get a chance to pick any of the tuners. You are allowed to watch a recording or go to Netflix, for example. 

I would like the option of picking an existing tuner in this case. Actually the way TiVO allocates tuners to Mini's, I have run out of tuners with one TiVo and one Mini.


Peter G


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## Chuck_IV (Jan 1, 2002)

Dan203 said:


> If you tune to a channel that any of the tuners on the TiVo are already on then the Mini will release the tuner it has and grab that tuner instead. This is a simple way to ensure you grab the tuner you want.


Except the active tuner on the main Tivo.

This suggestion is to help the person on the main Tivo. It's so the person on the main Tivo knows what background tuners/buffers will be left alone and not be grabbed by a connecting mini.


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## Dan203 (Apr 17, 2000)

Peter G said:


> Dan,
> 
> I don't think it works as you state. Maybe it does, but in the case where "all tuners in use", you don't get a chance to pick any of the tuners. You are allowed to watch a recording or go to Netflix, for example.
> 
> I would like the option of picking an existing tuner in this case. Actually the way TiVO allocates tuners to Mini's, I have run out of tuners with one TiVo and one Mini.


Obviously you can only grab a tuner that's not being used. And as Chuck pointed out the tuner in the foreground of the main TiVo is always considered to be in use.

If I'm watching something in the buffer on the TiVo and I want to move to another room to continue watching I click the Live TV button on the TiVo to switch to a different tuner. I then go to the Mini and press Live TV to grab a tuner. If it's not the one I want I type in the channel number the one I want is on and it will grab that one instead, buffer and all.

What it can't do, and I know some other devices can, is share a tuner between multiple devices. So you can't have multiple Minis sharing a tuner or share the foreground tuner on the TiVo with a Mini. Each device grabs exclusive access to a tuner.


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