# Help! My /var/hack's gone



## Pian (Aug 18, 2002)

As per te title - my /var/hack (together with tivoweb, tivowebplus, ...) has gone!

Still got telnet, ftp. Help! what's gone wrong??

SMART was ok a couple of days ago (according to tivoweb+). 

Help!


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## Chris T (Oct 30, 2002)

Dont worry! The problem with using the /var/ directory is that if Linux finds a problem with it or it becomes too full it will delete and rebuild the contents sans of course the hack directory.

Not much you can do at this stage but start again, there have been several discussions in the past about alternative places to keep your hacks and ways of backing up the hack directory.


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Chris T _
> *Dont worry! The problem with using the /var/ directory is that if Linux finds a problem with it or it becomes too full it will delete and rebuild the contents sans of course the hack directory.*


Only the former; being too full is a TiVo urban myth.


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## Pian (Aug 18, 2002)

Bugger!

So the conclusion is that /var/hack (and /var/hackbak, which I cunningly made) are both gone, and it's time to d/l tivoweb, +, tivosh, and all those little things I've come to rely on ....

<sigh>

Memo to self - copy to a pc directory this time.


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

Or create a tarball of /var so you can easily recover it.


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## Pian (Aug 18, 2002)

Don't suppose you want to PM me yours????


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

Wouldn't work.


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## Deadslow (Aug 22, 2002)

This is too much to be just coincidence. At the moment I fixed my rc.sysinit.author file the same thing has happened to me! All I did was download the latest listings. Oh well, time to give TW+ a go.


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## mike0151 (Dec 13, 2001)

TW+ is fine, don't worry.

tarball can be created by moving to the /var/hack directory and entering:

tar -cvf tarballname.ext . <enter>

Note the . (full stop) and of course <enter> is pressing the enter key.


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## smokie (Dec 27, 2002)

I've just got tar and made this backup, thanks for the tip. Can I safely delete any .tar files in /var/hack from where I installed packages (e.g. tbin.tar, tivoweb-xx-xxx.tar, joe.tar)? I have them on my PC directiry anyway if ever I needed them.


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## iankb (Oct 9, 2000)

And if you don't have the tar executable, you should be able to get it from here.


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Deadslow _
> *This is too much to be just coincidence. At the moment I fixed my rc.sysinit.author file the same thing has happened to me! All I did was download the latest listings. Oh well, time to give TW+ a go. *


The /var partition gets deleted if it fails two consectutive runs of the Linux equivalent of chkdsk.

If it happens a lot it may be indicative of a disk problem.

Also, it only happens on a reboot, so your Tivo must have crashed.


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## Deadslow (Aug 22, 2002)

Yes, it was on the (last) reboot, but the Tivo did not crash (I'm using it while rebuilding).

On a separate subject, with TW+ do you still have to change ui.itcl? Is there anything else different to TW (save fewer modules to run)? Ta.


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## pmk (Jan 1, 2002)

1. Does creating a tar bar include all file permissions etc?
2. If the var area is removed do you loose access to Telnet / FTP or is this insalled in a different area?

TIA


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## Pian (Aug 18, 2002)

Phew! Found a backup copy of my /var/hack on my root. Now backed up to pc!


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

> _Originally posted by pmk _
> *1. Does creating a tar bar include all file permissions etc?
> 2. If the var area is removed do you loose access to Telnet / FTP or is this insalled in a different area?
> 
> TIA *


Yes, a tar file preserves permissions, provided you use the right options.

The default of the Turbonet installer is to pyt telnet and FTP in the root partition.


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## Cainam (May 25, 2004)

I don't suppose anyone knows somewhere else to get the tar files from? The link above (on safepages.net) does not appear to work anymore...


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## threadkiller (Dec 12, 2002)

here tiz


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## scottym (Jul 6, 2003)

sanderton said:


> The /var partition gets deleted if it fails two consectutive runs of the Linux equivalent of chkdsk.
> 
> If it happens a lot it may be indicative of a disk problem.
> 
> Also, it only happens on a reboot, so your Tivo must have crashed.


I've lost my /var/hacks directory twice already. Running 6.2 with the serial port redirect at the end of rc.sysinit. The rc.sysinit change is persisent but I lose my /var/hack directory.

Is pulling the power on the TiVo equivalent to causing a crash? Is yanking the power on a running TiVo  a bad idea?


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## CarlWalters (Oct 17, 2001)

If losing the /var/hack starts to happen regularly then it's probably worth considering a cron thingy to automatically create a /var/hack archive a ftp it back to your PC. Just for peace of mind. Although when I lost my /var/hack once I found it quite therapeutic to put all the hacks back on by hand


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

scottym said:


> Is pulling the power on the TiVo equivalent to causing a crash? Is yanking the power on a running TiVo  a bad idea?


As I understand it, the OS has been designed to withstand this sort of thing, so the answer to both is 'no' 

However, rightly or wrongly, I have taken to using the "Restart The Recorder" option before (literally ) pulling the plug. Don't think it makes much difference, though!


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## WebAgents (Jan 3, 2003)

scottym said:


> I've lost my /var/hacks directory twice already. Running 6.2 with the serial port redirect at the end of rc.sysinit. The rc.sysinit change is persisent but I lose my /var/hack directory.
> 
> Is pulling the power on the TiVo equivalent to causing a crash? Is yanking the power on a running TiVo  a bad idea?


Well I've lost my var/hack tree twice now and both times it was due to interrupted power. 

First time was due to quick power cycling at the fuse box.

Second time was daily plug removals at 7am and leaving disconnected until 6pm for four days on the trot (unsure which day it actually wiped tbh). Each power down the TiVo was only recording the live buffer so I would say power cycling is relevant to losing the tree.


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## cwaring (Feb 12, 2002)

In that case, I sit corrected wrt the /var/hack dir. I was referring to an un-modded unit


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

Power cycling is relevant, as the code which chacks /var and removes it if faulty runs at reboot time.

However, the fact it's happening often may not be a good sign for your hard disk, as HD errors are one of the things which could cause the problems which make TiVo remove /var


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## iankb (Oct 9, 2000)

cwaring said:


> However, rightly or wrongly, I have taken to using the "Restart The Recorder" option before (literally ) pulling the plug. Don't think it makes much difference, though!


While it is better to reboot via the menu, only a power cycle will reset all of the hardware components. If any of the components have stopped listening to the CPU, you need to perform a power cycle to clear them.

What I think can cause problems is when the power is cut during the TiVo boot sequence, when it is in the process of recovering from a previous power-cut. In my experience, two powercuts in quick succession can be bad news.


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## WebAgents (Jan 3, 2003)

In my case the first was definitely due to reboots in quick succession (before it had had time to boot fully) due to tripping mcb.

The second occasion surprised me, I don't reboot often but for a few days I had to as I had to move the TV, TiVo and sky box daily as a new floor was being laid.

I will keep my eye on it. If I lose it again following a 'normal' restart I'll suspect the disks.

The good thing to come out of this is that I now have installed almost all the hacks I think I will want and have created a folder on my PC with them all in including rough & ready instructions for installing them.

I now have TW, Endpad, Higuide (which doesn't get enough mentions - it's great!), SP Backup, SP Re-order, Logos, Wishlists, Themes, GD Checker (yet to use, looks quite complicated), Conflicts and Autospace (Used once, 50-ish% used).

Still to implement: Menu Bar Flicker, Mode 0 and tarball backup of /var/hack (  Possibly quite a high priority  )

I did try New Episodes but found it of little use.

Regards
Bryan


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## iankb (Oct 9, 2000)

Maybe not coincidentally, my PSU failed during a double powercut. Like light bulbs, a powercut is the most likely time to trigger a PSU failure.


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## sanderton (Jan 4, 2002)

HiGuide?


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## dialanothernumb (Dec 6, 2002)

sanderton said:


> HiGuide?


Higuide


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## WebAgents (Jan 3, 2003)

sanderton said:


> HiGuide?


A grid based planner.

I use it daily.

I scan along the time bar at the top looking for slots where nothing will recorded and then scan down looking for programmes to record in that slot.

http://dynamo.daftdriving.com/index.php?page=tivo&content=higuide


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## Fozzie (Sep 3, 2001)

WebAgents said:


> I use it daily.
> 
> I scan along the time bar at the top looking for slots where nothing will recorded and then scan down looking for programmes to record in that slot.[/url]


Because TiVo doesn't record enough stuff as it is.  I'd have to watch TV 24/7 for weeks just to catch up on what I currently record, let alone looking for gaps to record even more stuff. Flippin' hell


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## mesaka (Sep 27, 2002)

I have tried to make my first ever tarball backup of /var/hack but I keep getting an empty tar file. It does seem to be producing the tar as it scolls through listing all the files, etc. At the end I get a message "hackbackup.tar is the archive; not dumped"

I'm obviously doing something wrong but what is it?

thanks in advance!


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## Fozzie (Sep 3, 2001)

That's normal. Have you looked to see if the file's actually there?


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## mesaka (Sep 27, 2002)

Doh - Now that was really stupid...see what comes of reading error messages!


Thanks for your help!


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## Fozzie (Sep 3, 2001)




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## KiNeL (Feb 6, 2006)

WebAgents said:


> Higuide (which doesn't get enough mentions - it's great


HiGuide seems interesting but all links I can find to it appear dead.

Any chance of reposting somewhere and maybe also a screenshot to see what it's about.


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## wadge (Apr 11, 2005)

My hacks directory has just disappeared too but I can't find the guide on installing the hacks and apps (eg Joe etc) via Telnet. Can somebody point me in the right direction please.


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## simon (Oct 7, 2002)

wadge said:


> My hacks directory has just disappeared too but I can't find the guide on installing the hacks and apps (eg Joe etc) via Telnet. Can somebody point me in the right direction please.


Cant really point you, sorry, searching here should do get you what you need, the 2 postst I needed were here and here

We had a power cut on Sunday, and because my UPS has a dead battery it seemed to cycle the TiVo, presumably it go annoyed and deleted the hack dir. So due to pink TV (using mode 0 over component) I quickly downloaded iicsetw from one of the above threads, and set it quickly to slightly less pink, before leaving the babysitters to watch slightly discolored tv.

Really annoying having shell access, but no 'ls'

All working again now, I found my backup, and restored it.

Thanks to all on this community for their continued help :up:


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## ColinYounger (Aug 9, 2006)

One place used as a reference for hacks at the beginning was iankb's Upgrade Diary

Many hat tipping to you, Ian.


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## Pete77 (Aug 1, 2006)

wadge said:


> My hacks directory has just disappeared too but I can't find the guide on installing the hacks and apps (eg Joe etc) via Telnet. Can somebody point me in the right direction please.


This should get you back on the road to recovery:-

www.steveconrad.co.uk/tivo

http://tivo.lightn.org/

www.ljay.org.uk/tivoweb/

www.garysargent.co.uk/tivo/hacking.htm

www.beaconhill.plus.com/TiVo/tivohacks.htm

http://www.arielbusiness.pwp.blueyo.../TiVo/HowTo.htm

http://alt.org/wiki/index.php/TiVoWeb Modules

http://thomson.tivo.googlepages.com

http://tivo.stevejenkins.com/network_cd.html

http://thomson.tivo.googlepages.com/tivowebplus

http://widgets.yahoo.com/gallery/?search=oztivo&x=0&y=0

www.tivohackman.com

http://www.planetbuilders.org/tivo/...rade_diary.html


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## wadge (Apr 11, 2005)

thanks for the advice. You are right...having shell access but not being able to do anything is like dangling the carrot but not getting a bite from it!


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## iankb (Oct 9, 2000)

ColinYounger said:


> One place used as a reference for hacks at the beginning was iankb's Upgrade Diary
> 
> Many hat tipping to you, Ian.


Thanks for the mention, but it isn't my site. 

It belongs to some chap called Ian Pleasance. I don't know what alias he uses on this forum, if any.


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## ColinYounger (Aug 9, 2006)

Ah, OK. My bad. I had it in my bookmarks as coming from you. 

Have a hat tip anyway.


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