# DIY 4TB Premiere



## jmbach

Well after a lot of trial and error, I finally managed to come up with a way to expand a premiere drive up to 4TB. This was the result.










I was able to keep all my recorded shows. It took me about 2 days to accomplish this. I will do my best to outline the procedure as soon as I get it written up. It is not for the faint of heart and does require some technical know how. While doing this procedure, I moved the OS to approximately the center of the 4TB drive and 4k aligned the image. It probably was not necessary but I figured if I am maxing out my premiere I want to try to reduce seek times as much as possible. It also requires you to coalesce some partitions and have an extra 2TB drive. Once I feel the write up has the detail needed, I will post it here.


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## jmbach

Updated procedure 6/9/2015 by jkozee and MFSTools 3.2 which simplifies the process even more. Goto here. If you are unsuccessful with that procedure then try the procedure by cykotix.

Depreciated procedure by cykotix which simplified the initial process. Goto here.

The following information is now obsolete and is currently here for reference.


Spoiler



Read this post in its entirety first. I would not recommend you to do this if you have any reservations or questions about any step. You attempt this completely at your own risk. There are no warranties or guarantees of success.

That being said, here is the revised procedure to expand a premiere to 4TB. I am hopeful that comer will come out with a new version of JMFS that addresses some if its current limitations which would greatly simplify this procedure more.

But first credit and thanks go to ggieseke, comer, cniessen, and JamieP for without their groundwork I may not have been able to accomplish this. Also for ggieseke and cybernut for doing the upgrade which has helped define the steps better. Finally for marwatk who developed Linux scripts to make the copy and rearrange step easier.

First, in order to expand to 4TB you have to start with a 2TB image. If you have a 2TB XL4 image I suggest you wait until comer has the new version of JMFS. The 2TB XL4 images do not require the rearranging or coalescing of the partitions but it requires you to modify and correct the checksum of the MFS header. If you know how to do this, then you can try it. Instructions are near the end of the post.

Before proceeding, read cniessen's write up on S3 Consolidation while preserving recordings  to better understand MFS structure and limitations.

The minimum OS to be on to try this procedure is version 20.3.8

This is for people who have already expanded their current images to 2TB.

Tools you may need depending if you do this all with Linux or if you want to use some windows tools.
-Any variant of dd to copy partitions/drives. For windows you can use DvrBARS for copying drives, hex editing program like HxD or disk editing program like iBored for copying partitions/modifying the APM. I like iBored as it has templates that display the APM values.
- marwatk Linux scripts  for the copy and rearrange step of the procedure. Since this was developed, it has greatly simplified that step. 
-pdisk modified for TiVo (found in MFSLive) to edit the partition table. In windows, you can use a hex or disk editing program. However, you will need to know how to manually adjust the APM if you use hex or disk editing programs.
-hdparm on the JMFS disk to adjust the visible sectors on the temporary expansion drive.
-JMFS tools

I will provide details on how I did it but it can be done using any of the tools listed above. When working in windows, make sure all the programs are opened as administrator or ran out of an administrator command window.

You will first copy the 2TB drive over to the 4TB drive. While doing this you will have to rearrange the partitions a little. Our end goal is to shrink the number of partitions to 14. (An expanded Premiere has 15 partitions) so we can add our own 15th partition. Read cniessen's write up on how to do this. After some discussion with other TCF members, I have come to the conclusion that although my initial method works it is not as eloquent as it should be. So I am revising the method. The final partition layout on the target drive will be 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10. The reason for this is that it will leave partition 10 intact without modifications so that current tools can access the information easier.

Additional information:
TCF member marwatk developed a set of Linux scripts that make this step easy. See his post here for how to use the scripts. One side note, when using his scripts, the resultant image is smaller than the original and so the numbers below will be slightly different. If you use the numbers below, you might lose a few minutes of recording time. However, if you use these scripts, I would only use them to copy and rearrange the partitions on the destination drive and not use the coalesce scripts at this time. Once there is a patched version of JMFS publically available which would make using the external 2TB drive unnecessary, then you can use the coalesce script. You would then follow the directions in marwatk post to expand to 4TB and ignore everything else below. (the procedure in this case would be the same to expand to 3TB as to expand to 4TB.)



> My personal method: (using windows)
> I booted windows and used DvrBARS to do a modified backup of the 2TB image in case something unforetold happens. You will have to have enough room to store the backup using this method which can be the full 2TB depending on how many recordings you have.
> 
> Next start iBored. Usually iBored has AutoTemplate checked which automatically brings up the APM template when you come to a block that is in an APM format. If not you can manually pick the template. Blocks 1 through 15 should open up in the APM template. In iBored I open up both the source 2TB image and the 4TB drive. I make the 4TB drive writeable. Copy blocks 0 through 63 inclusive from the 2TB drive to the 4TB drive. Open up block 11 (which is the APM entry for partition 11) on the 4TB drive. Then I modify the value in the "first partition block" value in partition 11 to 64. Then for the next partition, the "first partition block" is the value of the preceding partition "first partition block" value plus the preceding partitions "partition block count". Keep on doing this for each partition entry in the partition order I enumerated above until the last partition in that list.
> 
> Once that is done, then copy each partition from the source drive to the target (4TB) drive. In iBored, when you copy the partitions over the start block is the "first partition block" from the source and the number of blocks to copy is the "partition block count" on the target drive. The destination block is the "first partition block" of the target drive. Do not copy partition 1 over as that will overwrite the APM on the 4TB you just modified.
> 
> Once the partitions are all copied, put it in your TiVo to make sure it works. Once you verify it is working, take it out and proceed to the next step.


Calculate the number of sectors that are free at the end of the current image on the 4TB drive to the physical end of the drive. Take the number of sectors of a 4TB drive (usually 7,814,037,168) minus the end of the 2TB image (usually 3,907,029,168) which gives you a value of 3,907,008,000. We do this so when we run the JMFS command, the zone maps will be updated with the correct number of sectors.

Hook your 4TB drive and a 2TB drive to a computer and boot JMFS. The 2TB drive needs to be connected either via SATA or eSata for hdparm to work correctly. Once JMFS is booted, drop to the command line. Using hdparm temporarily limit the number of sectors of the 2TB drive to the number you calculated above plus 64. So using the above numbers it would be 3907008064. (Why 64 you asked? Well we have to have space for the partition map on the 2TB drive). If the 2TB drive is /dev/sdc then the command would be "hdparm -N 3907008064 --yes-i-know-what-i-am-doing /dev/sdc". You can check to make sure it was done correctly running hdparm again with this command "hdparm -N /dev/sdc". This should show you the number of visible sectors and total actual sectors of the drive.

Once the 2TB drive has the appropriate number of sectors visible based on the preceding step, expand the 4TB image. If the 4TB drive is /dev/sdb and the 2TB is /dev/sdc, then the command will be "./mfsadd.sh /dev/sdb /dev/sdc". Once it is done you can check the results by typing "./mfslayout.sh /dev/sdb /dev/sdc". Once you verified everything is correct then on to the next step.

Next we will move the partition information from partition 2 of the 2TB extended drive to partition 15 on the 4TB drive. Then copy the first 2MB of partition 2 on the extended drive to the beginning area of partition 15 on the 4TB drive.



> My personal procedure:
> Having both the 4TB drive and the 2TB extended drive connected to the computer, start iBored and make the 4TB drive writeable.
> 
> Now coalesce partitions 12 and 13 on the 4TB drive into 12. You do this by adding the value in "partition block count" in both partitions and replacing that value in partition 12 entry. Also change the value "data block count" to the same number. Then slide the information in APM entry 15 to 13 by copying block 15 to block 13
> 
> Next open the 2TB extended drive in iBored. Copy block 2 from the 2TB drive to block 15 of the 4TB drive. Then with block 15 on the 4TB drive open, change the value "blocks in partition map" to 15. Change the value in "first partition block" to the value of "first partition block" in block 10 plus the value of "partition block count" of block 10 (usually 3907029168).
> 
> Finally copy blocks with the source drive being the 2Tb extended drive starting at block 64 for a total of 4096 blocks to the target 4TB drive starting at the value found in "first partition block" in block 15.


When that is done, then put the 4TB drive into the TiVo, let it boot and divorce the external drive and you should have a working 4TB drive.


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## Cybernut

This is fantastic jmbach!! Kudos!!

I know you said this is not for faint of heart and will require some technical know-how, which I know I lack. I am hoping though your instruction writeup can guide relative newbies like me to at least a good extent. I know I just installed the 3TB in my Premiere couple weeks ago but would love to try out this more challenging task of getting 4TB in it.


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## Cybernut

Maybe I'll hold off on upgrading to 4TB from my recently-upgraded 3TB. After reading this post by ggieseke (http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?p=9975847#post9975847) I realized that the tools I used to copy over my recordings from my 1TB drive won't work with 2+TB drives. And I've already added quite a number of recordings on my new 3TB drive from shows on channels that I can't dump to a computer using kmttg. So in other words I can move up from my 1TB drive to a 4TB drive (assuming it's easy enough for me to even try once you have the steps written up) but not from 3TB to 4TB drive. So will wait until ggieseke's tools that works with drives larger than 2TB are ready. Unless of course, jmbach, you have solved that problem as well.


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## realfun4u

Awesome Post! i want to MAX out my Roamio Pro now lol


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## Cybernut

realfun4u said:


> Awesome Post! i want to MAX out my Roamio Pro now lol


This is not for Roamio....this is for Premiere.


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## jmbach

Cybernut is correct, this is for premiere only. Ggeiseke is working on something that will work on Roamio (and probably premiere as well). 

Going from a 3TB to 4TB should be possible but will require rearranging the partitions as you copy from the 3TB to 4TB. More to come.... 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk


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## Cybernut

Thanks again to jmbach's immense help, I was able to upgrade my Premiere to 4TB just two weeks after moving to 3TB with his help.

He has perfected this process. And I agree with his initial post above...this definitely isn't for the faint of heart. It is a pretty complicated process and one must have some technical know how to attempt this...and preferably the right tools like an eSATA dock if trying to move from 3TB to 4TB (USB docks should be ok when moving from the original 1TB drive).


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## shamilian

Has anyone written up the procedure yet ?

I am looking to go from a previous 2TB P4 to a 4TB P4.. ( not XL model )


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## jmbach

Write up in 2nd post of this thread. 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk


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## shamilian

shamilian said:


> Has anyone written up the procedure yet ?
> 
> I am looking to go from a previous 2TB P4 to a 4TB P4.. ( not XL model )


I used iBored (windows ) and dd (linux) to get down to 14 partitions.
Instead of using a second disk drive, fixed an issue in JMFS (linux).

And it works 638 HD Hours.


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## wwu123

I probably don't have the guts to try this anytime soon, but just in case I had a question about Supersizing. I did the 2TB Premiere upgrade in the early days before Supersizing was an available option, so my recording capacity is slightly smaller than it could be. 

If I used that 2TB image to expand to 4TB with this procedure, would I lose even more capacity relative to the 638-640 HD hours people are getting? Would it be advisable to Supersize first?


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## jmbach

Since you are using JMFS for part of the procedure, you can supersize while everything is plugged in. I recommend that you supersize right after the image is copied to the 4TB drive and before anything else is done.


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## 44ml

I have the stock 250GB that I would like to upgrade. Can I move that to a 2TB drive then move the 2TB to a 4TB drive? I have the TCD746320 Premiere.

Also, is there somewhere I can download a DvrBARS backup of a factory TCD746320?


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## ggieseke

44ml said:


> Also, is there somewhere I can download a DvrBARS backup of a factory TCD746320?


PM sent. Jmbach will have to walk you through upgrading it to 2TB, consolidating it, and expanding to 4TB. The only one I've done started with a 2TB XL4 image.


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## 44ml

ggieseke said:


> PM sent. Jmbach will have to walk you through upgrading it to 2TB, consolidating it, and expanding to 4TB. The only one I've done started with a 2TB XL4 image.


PM received. Thank you!

With DvrBARS, am I right in assuming I can only restore to the same size drive as the backup? I planned on restoring to a 320GB drive, expanding to 2TB with comer's guide (showthread.php?t=455968 [can't post links yet]), then using this guide to expand to 4TB.

Once I get a 4TB drive working, can I use DvrBARS to make a backup that others can use to simplify the process?

Most importantly, where's your donate button?


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## jmbach

I would restore the image ggeiseke sent you to a 2TB drive using DvrBARS and then let JMFS expand and super-size it. Then when you get a 4TB we can go to the next step. DvrBARS donate button is in the system information menu or you can use the one at the end of the post the guide is in. (which I emailed to ggeiseke but he hasn't used yet in his OP in the DvrBARS thread) 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk


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## ggieseke

Once you go past 2TB DvrBARS can't back your drive up anymore. When I wrote it that was the limit on Premieres, so using the Microsoft VHD format was OK (that's the limiting factor).

You can restore the factory 320GB image to any drive that's at least that big. I would restore it to a 2TB drive and use jmfs to expand it. After that jmbach can walk you through the 4TB expansion if you're handy with hex editors and willing to take the plunge.


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## jmbach

44ml said:


> Once I get a 4TB drive working, can I use DvrBARS to make a backup that others can use to simplify the process?


That is not a bad idea. Might be able to create a 2TB base image people can use to expand to 4TB. Hmm. Have to see how DvrBARS deals with a highly modified image.


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## wwu123

To understand the step of copying over the 2TB image to the 4TB disk:
"I booted windows and used DvrBARS to do a modified backup of the 2TB image and a quick restore to the 4TB drive. You will have to have enough room to store the backup using this method which can be the full 2TB depending on how many recordings you have. (Your other option is using the copy function of JMFS (which uses a variant of dd).)"

For those of us wanting to do this on a nearly full Tivo, you'll have to have another 2-4 TB pretty empty disk in your comiputer to handle the 2 TB backup image using DvrBARS? But with JMFS you can do a straight copy from HDD to HDD - any downside risks to just doing the copy? I'd hate to have to buy yet another 2+ TB disk as I don't have that much space free on my computer.


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## jmbach

wwu123 said:


> To understand the step of copying over the 2TB image to the 4TB disk:
> "I booted windows and used DvrBARS to do a modified backup of the 2TB image and a quick restore to the 4TB drive. You will have to have enough room to store the backup using this method which can be the full 2TB depending on how many recordings you have. (Your other option is using the copy function of JMFS (which uses a variant of dd).)"
> 
> For those of us wanting to do this on a nearly full Tivo, you'll have to have another 2-4 TB pretty empty disk in your comiputer to handle the 2 TB backup image using DvrBARS? But with JMFS you can do a straight copy from HDD to HDD - any downside risks to just doing the copy? I'd hate to have to buy yet another 2+ TB disk as I don't have that much space free on my computer.


You can use JMFS to copy the 2TB image to the 4TB drive as was mentioned. Since my 2TB was only a third full and I wanted a backup in case something went wrong and I needed a 2TB drive for the expansion step, I used the DvrBARS approach.


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## nooneuknow

For those who don't want to have (or buy) smaller capacity drives, on their way to getting to larger sizes, there is the hdparm way (hard for some), then the Hitachi Feature Tool way (easy for some):

1. Hard way (for some) Use hdparm (linux utility) to set the drive's HPA (Host Protected Area), in order to make the device the drive is attached to believe it is a smaller size, then shrink (or eliminate) the size of the HPA, as needed. This makes the host device (computer or TiVo) think the drive is whatever size you have set the LBA number to represent. hdparm can be dangerous if not used correctly (a small typo can brick your drive).

2. Easy way (for some) Use Hitachi Feature Tool bootable (DOS-based) bootable floppy, CD, or thumb drive are all options, to just change the LBA number to reflect the drive size you need at each step you need a change (can only be done by changing LBA, not typing in the capacity you want, due to limitations in the program). The LBA number you select needs to be offset by 1 (due to Hitachi FT starting with the first LBA as zero, or one, I forget which way it is offset from the way nearly anything else reads/sets LBA number).

With both methods you want to specify "permanently" (or "persistent"), and each requires a reboot once you set the change (and requires a hard reboot if you change it to a value, apply the change, then realize you got it wrong and need to change it to another value). The change can be reversed/altered later, but you need the permanent/persistent part to make the drive retain the change with a soft and hard reboot.

Words of warning: If you have ever had the drive connected to a computer/host that set a HPA area on the drive, you will notice a discrepancy in the true max LBA and what the drive reports. Please make sure to check for this before moving along to changing things. If you see the drive already has it's visible LBA count reduced, the first step is to check your BIOS for an option like "save backup copy of BIOS to HDD", and disable it, and then make sure that you don't have any backup (or drive/partition management) software installed that makes hidden and protected backups within a HPA the software creates. Paragon, and (I think) Acronis, can be set to do this.

In many cases, you may have to change your BIOS settings to change drive(s) involved to "compatible/legacy mode", or Hitachi FT may not see it (in "AHCI/Windows mode").

I've also learned that disabling automount, within windows, via diskpart, via command prompt, is a good idea when you want to insure Windows doesn't try to alter the drive(s). This helps insure Windows will only acknowledge the drive as being connected (hardware-layer-wise), without prompting you to "initialize" the drive, or it trying to assign drive letters/mount-points/etc. While doing this is usually not necessary, it's still added safety.

You can also purge the cache of mount-points, drive letters, and related mappings for no-longer-attached drives while using diskpart at command prompt. Windows remembers every drive it ever mounted, even if you wipe all traces from the device manager with all hidden devices fully displayed.

As always, don't forget that anything done within windows (and linux) will (most of the time) need to be done with an administrative account and/or elevated privileges.


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## 44ml

@jmbach,
I did a full restore from DvrBARS to the 2TB drive using a factory image. I then used JMFS to expand and super-size it. You mentioned that the minimum OS is version 20.3.8. Do I need to install this drive in my TiVo to make sure it is up to date before continuing?

When I run "hdparm N 3907008064 --yes-i-know-what-i-am-doing /dev/sda", I get the following message (also from "hdparm N /dev/sda"):


Code:


Max sectors    = 18446744073321592384/3907029168(18446744073321613488?), HPA set
ting seems invalid

/dev/sda is my 2TB drive. Any idea what's going on here? My sector counts match the 7,814,037,168 & 3,907,029,168 you mentioned above.



> Next you want to copy blocks starting at block 12 for 1 block to 11, block 13 for 1 block to block 12, and block 15 for 1 block to block 13.


Is this copying from and to the 4TB drive? I understand this as copying block = 12, length = 1 block, to block = 11. Etc. Is that correct?



> Then you need to open the 2TB extended drive in iBored. Copy block 2 from the 2TB drive to block 15 of the 4TB drive.


Am I copying block = 2, length = 1 to block = 15, or block = (block 2 "first partition block"), length = (block 2 "partition block count") to (block 15 "first partition block")?


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## jmbach

44ml said:


> @jmbach,
> I did a full restore from DvrBARS to the 2TB drive using a factory image. I then used JMFS to expand and super-size it. You mentioned that the minimum OS is version 20.3.8. Do I need to install this drive in my TiVo to make sure it is up to date before continuing?


The TiVo should update automatically. But yes, if this is an old image, let it update and then check under system information for version number to make sure it is correct.



44ml said:


> When I run "hdparm -N 3907008064 --yes-i-know-what-i-am-doing /dev/sda", I get the following message (also from "hdparm -N /dev/sda"):
> 
> 
> Code:
> 
> 
> Max sectors    = 18446744073321592384/3907029168(18446744073321613488?), HPA set
> ting seems invalid
> 
> /dev/sda is my 2TB drive. Any idea what's going on here? My sector counts match the 7,814,037,168 & 3,907,029,168 you mentioned above.


Is the drive connected via a SATA or eSata cable. I usually see this when the drive is connected via USB.



44ml said:


> Is this copying from and to the 4TB drive? I understand this as copying block = 12, length = 1 block, to block = 11. Etc. Is that correct?


Yes



44ml said:


> Am I copying block = 2, length = 1 to block = 15, or block = (block 2 "first partition block"), length = (block 2 "partition block count") to (block 15 "first partition block")?


The former. Once the block is copied to block 15, you will then modify the values inside block 15 as indicated.


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## 44ml

jmbach said:


> Is the drive connected via a SATA or eSata cable. I usually see this when the drive is connected via USB.


It was connected via USB when I did the DvrBARS restore and the iBored copies between the 2 drives. I only have 2 SATA ports on board, and windows runs off an SATA drive. Both the 4TB and 2TB were connected via SATA when I ran hdparm.

I have now started over. I restored the factory image to the 2TB drive, expanded, and supersized it. I then installed the drive in my TiVo and let it do the update. I did this without my cable card in and didn't active it so that I might be able to get an image that is useful to others if this process does require the updated OS be done first.



> Originally Posted by *44ml*
> Once I get a 4TB drive working, can I use DvrBARS to make a backup that others can use to simplify the process?
> 
> 
> 
> Originally Posted by *jmbach*
> That is not a bad idea. Might be able to create a 2TB base image people can use to expand to 4TB. Hmm. Have to see how DvrBARS deals with a highly modified image.
Click to expand...

I'm willing to try anything/everything. Should I try doing the iBored modifications to the 2TB drive then try making a DvrBARS backup prior to the hdparm/mfsadd/mfslayout steps? How about just mounting the VHD in windows and modifying it in iBored?

@ggieseke, do you think this might work with the current version of DvrBARS?

I read somewhere that Farstone TotalRecovery Pro will work with TiVo hard drives. I also understand that the 14-day free trial isn't crippled in any way. It can make physical to VMware/Hyper-v (P2V) backup images that I'm guessing are in VMDK format. They support "4TB and bigger" drives. When I get the 4TB working, I'll try making a P2V image and see if it works and how big the final image is.

How does the format button on the front of my Premiere work? If I press it will it restore to a factory image with the updated OS? Does it work with 2TB and 4TB drives? Ideally, I'd like to create a factory 4TB VMDK image that others can use with the trial of TotalRecovery to simplify everything.

@ggieseke, DvrBARS has been working great for the most part, I just have some user friendly suggestions for future versions. 
1 - When I first ran it on my laptop, I got an error message about the screen resolution. It let me proceed and was only slightly out of the visible area. I don't have the screen resolution here, but it isn't really small. I don't see anything that requires that much screen height. 
2 - Prior to my second attempt at everything, I managed to take the drive "Offline" in Windows Disk Management. It allowed me to make a backup, but gave me a 0x00000013 (not sure of how many 0s there were) "WriteFile" error when I attempted to restore. Hopefully that helps you make the error message a little more helpful.

If there is anything that needs to be beta tested or just ideas you guys would like to try, I'm happy to give back. I have 320GB, 1TB, 2TB, & 4TB drives that I can play with (at least until I put the 4TB in my TiVo).


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## jmbach

44ml said:


> It was connected via USB when I did the DvrBARS restore and the iBored copies between the 2 drives. I only have 2 SATA ports on board, and windows runs off an SATA drive. Both the 4TB and 2TB were connected via SATA when I ran hdparm.


The 2TB drive needs to be connected to the SATA connector when running hdparm. However, if you are getting that invalid sector count, might need another computer to run it on.



44ml said:


> I'm willing to try anything/everything. Should I try doing the iBored modifications to the 2TB drive then try making a DvrBARS backup prior to the hdparm/mfsadd/mfslayout steps? How about just mounting the VHD in windows and modifying it in iBored?


You can mount the VHD in windows and then use iBored to modify it.



44ml said:


> How does the format button on the front of my Premiere work? If I press it will it restore to a factory image with the updated OS? Does it work with 2TB and 4TB drives? Ideally, I'd like to create a factory 4TB VMDK image that others can use with the trial of TotalRecovery to simplify everything.


The Format button changes between the video formats (480i, 480p,...)


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## 44ml

jmbach said:


> The 2TB drive needs to be connected to the SATA connector when running hdparm. However, if you are getting that invalid sector count, might need another computer to run it on.


If I put my PCI SATA controller in that computer, do you think that would work or is it more the computer that is causing the problem?



jmbach said:


> The Format button changes between the video formats (480i, 480p,...)


I feel dumb. For the last 3 years I've wondered why there's no power button, but there is a button to erase everything. I guess "format" doesn't mean the same thing to most people.


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## ggieseke

44ml said:


> I'm willing to try anything/everything. Should I try doing the iBored modifications to the 2TB drive then try making a DvrBARS backup prior to the hdparm/mfsadd/mfslayout steps? How about just mounting the VHD in windows and modifying it in iBored?
> 
> @ggieseke, do you think this might work with the current version of DvrBARS?.


You can only back it up while it's still a 2TB drive. Once it crosses that limit DvrBARS is useless. It was written before 3TB or 4TB drives would even boot in a Premiere. The VHD file format is the limiting factor.


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## jmbach

For those who are interested, I have revised the procedure. It keeps partition 10 intact to work better with the tools out there.


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## 44ml

ggieseke said:


> You can only back it up while it's still a 2TB drive. Once it crosses that limit DvrBARS is useless. It was written before 3TB or 4TB drives would even boot in a Premiere. The VHD file format is the limiting factor.


I just did a modified backup and quick restore of a 4TB image in DvrBARS and it worked fine. I'm completely erasing the drive now. I'll try another restore in the morning to double check it.

The drive itself is setup the way jmbach explains above. The OS is moved to the middle for faster seek times. All of the MFS partitions are in multiples of 1024 blocks since anything short of that isn't used. Partitions 2 & 5 have been resized to 8 blocks. I was told by jmbach that this will give it 4k alignment.

The only reservation I have about sharing this image is the possibility of information about my TiVo being on the drive. I started with a factory image, but I had to put it in my machine to perform the OS upgrade. Does TiVo write anything to the disk about my machine? If so, is there a way to remove it? Which partition(s) is the upgraded OS on? Are new premieres shipping with the latest OS? If so, does anyone have a DvrBARS backup of that?


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## Cybernut

44ml said:


> I just did a modified backup and quick restore of a 4TB image in DvrBARS and it worked fine. I'm completely erasing the drive now. I'll try another restore in the morning to double check it.
> ...


IF DvrBARS does indeed now successfully backs up drives larger than 2TB, then I suggest you run Clear and Delete Everything (from tivo menu Settings -> Help -> Clear and Delete Everything) which wipes out the customizations you made and resets the TiVo to factory settings. After Clear and Delete Everything finishes, it'll reboot and take you to the guided setp. At this point you need to power down the tivo and take the drive out (unfortunately since you can't get to the menus without going through guided setup and therefore cannot get to restart option under Help menu, this will be an ungraceful shutdown). Then if you use DvrBARS, the resulting image will be a clean copy but I believe it'll somehow still be married to your Tivo motherboard...and anyone else wishing to use the image will need to copy the image to their drive and then first run Clear and Delete everything to actually marry the image to their Tivo motherboard, before they can make recordings.

One thing that may be obvious but worth mentioning, is that the 4TB image isn't going to be universal...it is specific to that Tivo Premiere model. So unless someone has the same Premiere model, the image won't be of use to them (i.e. a 4TB image upgraded from a 320 gig will work only on a 320 gig Premiere...not on the 500 gig or 1TB XL models).


----------



## ggieseke

44ml said:


> I just did a modified backup and quick restore of a 4TB image in DvrBARS and it worked fine. I'm completely erasing the drive now. I'll try another restore in the morning to double check it.


A truncated or modified backup might work as long as there are no shows in the final media partition, but I can't guarantee anything. It SHOULD be fairly accurate for the first 2TB and after that it's anyone's guess.

Let us know how it goes after the erase and restore.


----------



## jmbach

44ml said:


> The only reservation I have about sharing this image is the possibility of information about my TiVo being on the drive. I started with a factory image, but I had to put it in my machine to perform the OS upgrade. Does TiVo write anything to the disk about my machine? If so, is there a way to remove it? Which partition(s) is the upgraded OS on? Are new premieres shipping with the latest OS? If so, does anyone have a DvrBARS backup of that?


I feel fairly sure that if you do a clear and delete everything first and once it gets to the guided setup pull the plug. Then take the drive and examine block 0. In block 0 you will see some code and ascii characters at the very beginning followed by a bunch of 0x00 then some more code (about the middle of the block) and then 0x00 again. (You may have a few bytes of code at the very end of the block as well but don't worry about them). Overwrite that code you see in the middle of the block with 0x00 and save the changes. That should effectively erase any connection of that image with your TiVo.


----------



## lessd

jmbach said:


> I feel fairly sure that if you do a clear and delete everything first and once it gets to the guided setup pull the plug. Then take the drive and examine block 0. In block 0 you will see some code and ascii characters at the very beginning followed by a bunch of 0x00 then some more code (about the middle of the block) and then 0x00 again. (You may have a few bytes of code at the very end of the block as well but don't worry about them). Overwrite that code you see in the middle of the block with 0x00 and save the changes. That should effectively erase any connection of that image with your TiVo.


A better option is to pull the plug a few seconds after C&D is selected, that way the image will start off doing a *C&D all *for the new TiVo and will not have to be re-run to syc up the TSN. I do this all the time between TiVos, saves the new TiVo setup a lot of time.


----------



## unitron

jmbach said:


> I feel fairly sure that if you do a clear and delete everything first and once it gets to the guided setup pull the plug. Then take the drive and examine block 0. In block 0 you will see some code and ascii characters at the very beginning followed by a bunch of 0x00 then some more code (about the middle of the block) and then 0x00 again. (You may have a few bytes of code at the very end of the block as well but don't worry about them). Overwrite that code you see in the middle of the block with 0x00 and save the changes. That should effectively erase any connection of that image with your TiVo.


Are you talking about writing zeros in the truncated backup file or directly to the TiVo hard drive itself before making the backup?

Wouldn't the first thing on the drive be the Apple Partition Map?

Would the TSN be hidden inside that? It's not like Apple planned for it to be there since the APM was around long before TiVos were invented.


----------



## jmbach

Writing zeros on the drive.

Block 0 comes first and then the APM. 

That area that I am suggesting to zero out is unique to each TiVo, I am not completely sure what it is as I cannot find my notes at this time but I seem to recall that it has something to do with the MAC address. Don't take my word on that. Some one else may have better information than I have at this moment. If I find my notes, then I'll edit this post and clear it up.

The TSN is not hidden in the APM. That I am highly confident of.


----------



## ggieseke

The first sector on the drive (sector 0 to us programmer geeks) that jmbach is talking about is known as Block0. The APM starts at sector 1.

I don't think wiping those bytes is enough to clear out the TSN but I could be wrong. On earlier models you had to run a script known as "51 killer" to completely divorce the drive from the motherboard.


----------



## nooneuknow

lessd said:


> A better option is to pull the plug a few seconds after C&D is selected, that way the image will start off doing a *C&D all *for the new TiVo and will not have to be re-run to syc up the TSN. I do this all the time between TiVos, saves the new TiVo setup a lot of time.


I also do this, but slightly differently. I let the C&DE complete, which leads to a reboot when it has finished the C&DE. I make sure to babysit, then pull the plug at that reboot point. Same results, but no waiting for the C&DE on every unit the image goes to afterwards. The next recipient of the drive image made this way will boot normally, without additional wait, and right into guided setup, with no issues. This is great when you intend to share the image with others, or plan to use it on multiple units of your own. It saves time.

As long as you pull the plug between the very first booting welcome screen, and before the second "almost there..." screen, the TiVo will not boot far enough to re-link the TSN to the drive.

I try my best to aim for pulling power before the amber light starts flickering (the point where the kickstart (KS__) codes can be entered. I think the reason the light flickers the way it does, is that it is acting like a HDD led on a computer, but can not prove that is the case.

This method has been used for every TiVo I have owned: HD, Premiere, & Roamio base model 846.


----------



## unitron

nooneuknow said:


> I also do this, but slightly differently. I let the C&DE complete, which leads to a reboot when it has finished the C&DE. I make sure to babysit, then pull the plug at that reboot point. Same results, but no waiting for the C&DE on every unit the image goes to afterwards. The next recipient of the drive image made this way will boot normally, without additional wait, and right into guided setup, with no issues. This is great when you intend to share the image with others, or plan to use it on multiple units of your own. It saves time.
> 
> As long as you pull the plug between the very first booting welcome screen, and before the second "almost there..." screen, the TiVo will not boot far enough to re-link the TSN to the drive.
> 
> I try my best to aim for pulling power before the amber light starts flickering (the point where the kickstart (KS__) codes can be entered. I think the reason the light flickers the way it does, is that it is acting like a HDD led on a computer, but can not prove that is the case.
> 
> This method has been used for every TiVo I have owned: HD, Premiere, & Roamio base model 846.


It's been my experience that it's around 60 seconds after first applying wall socket power to a TiVo that whatever a particular model TiVo does with its front panel lights at or around the correct time to do whatever you do on that model to enter a KickStart code happens.


----------



## nooneuknow

unitron said:


> It's been my experience that it's around 60 seconds after first applying wall socket power to a TiVo that whatever a particular model TiVo does with its front panel lights at or around the correct time to do whatever you do on that model to enter a KickStart code happens.


With each major platform, that time has been shortened. So far, the Roamio has made the biggest leap. I'm guestimating as fast as ~30 seconds from the time the first boot screen appears.

That is still plenty of time. But, I consider that point the "point of no return", and would rather repeat the process, which will be faster the second time around, than hope for the best and not do it again.

I usually am quick enough to cleanly pull power within ~5 seconds of the first screen (in that same window where intellipark can try to park the drive heads if not adjusted/disabled, when applicable).

I use a power strip with a switch to insure a quick and clean disconnect, when possible (rather than literally grabbing and pulling the power cord out). That's a bit OCD, but that's just the way I am.

You can zip your way through guided setup by using 00000 as your zip code with the "installer express" option, and selecting "Tiny TiVo" as your provider.


----------



## cykotix

I was attempting to expand a 320GB & 1TB native to 4TB. With the help of jmbach, I wanted to share the new iso I built with a patched JMFS and a collection of tools from different individuals. This should help streamline jmbach's process he outlined.



jmbach said:


> Alright, here is the patch to JMFS from TCF member shamilian:
> 
> AppleDisk.java
> 
> public void addPartition( PartitionEntry partition ) throws Exception {
> 
> // partition.setStartBlock ( (int)getNextFreeBlock() );
> partition.setStartBlock ( (long)getNextFreeBlock() );
> 
> The github repository I mentioned is:
> https://github.com/krbaker/jmfs?files=1


The current limitation of JMFS only allows a maximum partition size of 2.2TB due to 32bit tables. This patch allows you to expand beyond 1.5TB which otherwise isn't possible with rev104. The iso I built is based off the source in krbaker's github and the AppleDisk patch. krbaker's source will clean up Apple_Free partitions if they exist when doing a JMFS copy.

Lastly I included some TivoTools scripts written by TCF member marwatk from this post.

In the following posts, I'll explain my process and how I built the new iso.


----------



## cykotix

This process can be adapted for 3TB expansions but I was going to a 4TB. This process can also be adapted to go from native to 4TB, but I'm going to outline how to use an intermediate drive. The advantages of doing this put the OS and partition 10 closer to the center of the drive which helps performance. I learned all of this from jmbach in my journey.

You can download the ISO I build here: http://bit.ly/Tivo-JMFS & select jmfs-rev105-krbaker-tivotools.iso

https://www.dropbox.com/s/vkyd1hwd0gqltur/jmfs-rev105-krbaker-tivotools.iso - This URL will be dead soon, use the bit.ly URL above.

I'll outline how I built the ISO in the next post.

This process assumes a few things:

Starting with a native, unexpanded drive that is <2TB
Intermediary drive >=2TB
Destination drive =4TB

I was using a 3TB WD Red drive as my intermediate drive because it's what I had available. Ideally you would be using an actual 2TB drive. However, if you're using a 3TB or 4TB intermediate drive, you'll need to use `hdparm` to setup HPA (host protected area) to essential fake being a 2TB drive. jmbach mentions in his original post about using temporary HPA but I only had success doing permanent HPA and later removing it.

*If you're using =2TB, SKIP THIS. Otherwise, if you're using a 3TB or 4TB intermediate:*


Code:


// Make >2TB look like a 2TB drive
# hdparm -N p3907029168 --yes-i-know-what-i-am-doing /dev/IntermediateDrive

// Verify HPA is set
# hdparm -N /dev/IntermediateDrive

*Power cycle (NOT REBOOT) - Meaning Shutdown completely then boot*


Code:


// Verify HPA stuck & fdisk shows =2TB, not >2TB
# hdparm -N /dev/IntermediateDrive
# fdisk -l /dev/IntermediateDrive

*If hdparm/fdisk show the correct information OR you are staring with =2TB, you can continue.*


Code:


// JMFS Copy
// Select [C], Source is your original drive, Destination is the 
// IntermediateDrive.
# ./guide.sh

// When it is done copying to IntermediateDrive, JMFS will ask if 
// you want to Expand.  Choose Yes.  Once done, select [R] to choose
// another operation.  Select [Z] to supersize the IntermediateDrive.  
// Then select [X] to exit `guide.sh`.




Code:


// Verify copy was successful
# ./mfslayout.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive

*Switch to TivoTool scripts to rearrange and copy partitions from IntermediateDrive (2TB) to DestinationDrive (4TB)*


Code:


# cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
# ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive /dev/DestinationDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10




Code:


// Verify copy was successful
# cd ~/ && ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive

*Coalesce partitions 12 & 13 on DestinationDrive (4TB)*


Code:


# cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
# ./tivo_coalesce.sh /dev/DestinationDrive 12 13

*Remove DestinationDrive and place it back into the Premiere. Follow the instructions to divorce the missing partition. Once this completes, connect it back to the computer and boot JMFS.*


Code:


// Select [E] to expand DestinationDrive
# ./guide.sh




Code:


// Select [X] to exit.  Verify DestinationDrive.
# ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive

*If all went well, put the DestinationDrive back into the Premier. You should have 640hrs HD. Congratulations!

If you had to use hdparm, see below to remove the permanent HPA.*


Code:


// Get full sector count.  For my drive it was 5860533168
# hdparm -N /dev/IntermediateDrive

// Remove HPA from IntermediateDrive.  Be sure to replace 
// 5860533168 if yours is different.
# hdparm -N p5860533168 --yes-i-know-what-i-am-doing /dev/IntermediateDrive

// Verify HPA is disabled.  Power cycle (NOT REBOOT)
// This means SHUTDOWN, then BOOT.
# hdparm -N /dev/IntermediateDrive


----------



## cykotix

The original JMFS was built using Slax 6 and the modules use a different compression method. In this post, I'll explain how I built JMFS, compiled JMFS and TivoTools as a Slax module and then build the Slax iso.

*JMFS Source*
I was working from krbaker's github: https://github.com/krbaker/jmfs
You can also grab the original rev104 sources from here, but keep in mind rev104 will not work with the 4TB procedure I posted.
You'll need Apache ANT >=1.7.1 and JDK >=1.6 to compile.



Code:


# cd /path/to/jmfs/source

// you can set raw.revision to whatever you want
# ant -Draw.revision=105-krbaker package

// Change to correct bin zip and output dir, make sure it ends with 'root'
unzip -a jmfs-bin.zip -d /path/to/output/jmfs-rev/root

// chmod *.sh
# chmod 755 /path/to/output/jmfs-rev/root/*.sh

// Compile Slax module.  File extension is .sb
mksquashfs /path/to/output/jmfs-rev/ /path/to/module/jmfs-rev.sb -comp xz -b 512k -Xbcj x86 -noappend

*TivoTools*
You can grab the latest TivoTools here.


Code:


unzip -a master.zip
mkdir -p TivoTools/root
mv TivoTools-master/* TivoTools/root
// No need for JMFS twice
rm -rf TivoTools/root/jmfs

// Compile Slax module
mksquashfs /path/to/TivoTools/ /path/to/module/TivoTools.sb -comp xz -b 512k -Xbcj x86 -noappend

*Slax ISO*
Slax can be found here. More specifically, you'll need the 32bit for USB zip. My folder structure for modules was ~/slax7/slax/modules.



Code:


cp /path/to/module/jmfs-rev.sb ~/slax7/slax/modules
cp /path/to/module/TivoTools.sb ~/slax7/slax/modules

You'll also want to add any additional modules. TivoTools requires the xxd module. I also included nano for those not comfortable with vi and samba-client. Neither of those are necessary. You'll also want to clean up unnecessary modules in ~/slax7/slax. I removed everything except 01-core.sb.

Once you're happy with the layout:



Code:


// Name it whatever you want
~/slax7/slax/makeiso.sh ~/slax7/ /path/to/iso/jmfs-rev-krbaker-tivotools.iso

Boot it and make sure everything is where you expected it to be.


----------



## jlin

I tried to run this CD.. it never finished loading... what I am doing wrong?


----------



## telemark

jlin said:


> I tried to run this CD.. it never finished loading... what I am doing wrong?


What was the last thing on the screen? It's pretty common for CD's to get misburned. Have you verified the data on the disc?


----------



## byeams

How long did this process take?


----------



## cykotix

byeams said:


> How long did this process take?


Honestly, I didn't really keep track once we fleshed out all the details. Probably in the realm of 8-10hrs. I think my average speed disk to disk using eSATA was around 114 MB/s if memory serves me correctly.


----------



## unitron

jlin said:


> I tried to run this CD.. it never finished loading... what I am doing wrong?


Intel or AMD CPU?


----------



## [NG]Owner

cykotix said:


> This process can also be adapted to go from native to 4TB, but I'm going to outline how to use an intermediate drive.


I don't have an intermediate drive .... how do I go from native to 3TB, all on a single 3TB drive? What would need to be adapted? Can you map that out for me?

[NG]Owner


----------



## jmbach

It does make it tougher because you have to rearrange the partitions on the 3TB drive in order to coalesce one pair of partitions. If you can mount/create VHD images in your Linux box, then you can do this without a physical drive. First, in Windows create a dynamic VHD about half the size of your 3TB drive. Then mount that drive in Windows. Use DvrBARS to restore your image to that mounted VHD. Once that is done, unmount the VHD. Then in your Linux box mount the VHD you just created and use JMFS to expand and supersize it. Now connect your 3TB drive and use the tools to copy and rearrange from the mounted VHD to the 3TB drive. Once that is done, then coalesce one pair of partitions on the 3TB drive followed by using JMFS to expand the 3TB drive.


----------



## jmbach

FYI, your intermediate drive just has to be between 1TB to 2TB in size for this to work and does not have to be a TiVo recommended drive.


----------



## jmbach

You can use one drive only, however, it is somewhat daunting to do and will take you days to create the proper image to do the final expansion.

It would be much easier with a higher rate of success if you can borrow a drive from someone to use for a day. It just has to be between 1TB and 2TB in size for this to work for you.


----------



## [NG]Owner

jmbach said:


> You can use one drive only, however, it is somewhat daunting to do and will take you days to create the proper image to do the final expansion.
> 
> It would be much easier with a higher rate of success if you can borrow a drive from someone to use for a day. It just has to be between 1TB and 2TB in size for this to work for you.


This is all way over my head. Much more difficult than anticipated. Is there anything "easy" I can do with the image I am downloading from that other thread, and my 3TB drive? I don't mind giving up a TB if I have to (though not much more than that).

[NG]Owner


----------



## jmbach

There is another way where you start with a 1TB Premiere XL image (still OS version 20.3.8 or later) . Some people frown on using an image from a different model, however, the people I know of of who have done this have not had any issues yet and they have had the images functioning for over a year. If you started with the 1TB XL image, you go straight to 3TB with one step.


----------



## nooneuknow

Get your base image up to a software version that supports over 2TB, so you can more easily proceed, and sometimes eliminate needing a "middle-drive" due to old software (at least for future upgrades, or for when sharing images).

Helpful tips & explanations for all (edit of a post I've tried to standardize):

Use my trick of using 00000 zip code, Tiny TiVo as provider, run a C&DE on the updated image, pull the plug on the reboot once the C&DE operation has completed, which self-triggers a reboot (preferably before the KS [kickstart] window of opportunity, or before the "almost there" screen at the latest), make a backup of that, and upload it for distribution, or just use for yourself, if that's how you roll.

The 00000 zip code & Tiny TiVo provider trick only downloads one channel worth of empty guide data, keeping the new backup image small as can be, and saves time. A cablecard can be paired in this setup, but the channels can only be tested using "test channels using M-card" via DVR Diagnostics screens. This is just a FYI, for those who may use this trick for the many other uses I've found for it, like purging out corrupted data related to an existing zip and provider's guide data.

The reason for the C&DE with timed power-pull is to stop the drive from becoming married to the TSN of the board it is updated on, eliminating image recipients from having to repeat guided setup twice, with a C&DE between the two, to remove any existing host board TSN-to-drive marriage.

Once the software has reached a certain version number, the second screen of GS, where you select demo/home setup, has a "press enter for advanced options" option, which adds Installer Express mode to the choices, saving a big chunk of time, by only doing the absolute minimum GS needs to, leaving all the little personalized preferences to be set later through the menus.

If you want to see what software version is on a drive that boots into GS, without running it, press Info button on the very first GS screen (Select Country). It's at the bottom of the screen, when displayed.

*EDIT/ADD*: I had left out it is best that the only things connected, until done, are:

1. Power cord/supply.
2. Ethernet cable (or wireless, if you absolutely can't do RJ45 ethernet).

What absolutely should NOT be connected:
1. Coaxial cable for cable or antenna.

Why: If a video source is available, the TiVo will continuously process and buffer all tuners, making the resulting image larger for every zeroed-sector that is changed to in the process. A C&DE does not re-zero the sectors that get changed. Even though the buffer, per tuner, is 30 minutes, it still moves forward though more sectors for as long as the TiVo is on, and has a coax connection providing cable or antenna connectivity. For the cleanest and smallest backup image, this is a big deal.

I suppose (theoretically) somebody who insists on using MoCA, could just remove the cable/antenna input coax to the MoCA, and just use the coax for networking only.


----------



## xdroccax

jmbach said:


> There is another way where you start with a 1TB Premiere XL image (still OS version 20.3.8 or later) . Some people frown on using an image from a different model, however, the people I know of of who have done this have not had any issues yet and they have had the images functioning for over a year. If you started with the 1TB XL image, you go straight to 3TB with one step.


What steps from post #42 would need to be changed if we started with a 1tb XL image and a 4tb drive? This will be my first Premiere, and haven't been in the scene ever since upgrading our S3's to 1.5tb's years ago. thanks


----------



## jmbach

xdroccax said:


> What steps from post #42 would need to be changed if we started with a 1tb XL image and a 4tb drive? This will be my first Premiere, and haven't been in the scene ever since upgrading our S3's to 1.5tb's years ago. thanks


The basic concepts we have to remember is that the largest single partition that can be added is about 2TB in size and that the starting sector of every partition has to start within the first 2TB of the drive.

So to answer your question, you would have to take your 1TB image, expand it to 2TB, consolidate, then expand to 4TB.

If you do not have an intermediate drive then you would copy and rearrange the 1TB image to the 4TB drive in the order 1,11,12,13,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10. Then limit the size of the 4TB drive to about 2TB using hdparm. Expand the drive with JMFS to the 2TB size and supersize. Remove the hdparm limitation. Coalesce partitions 12 and 13 into 12. Place in the premiere and allow it to divorce the now non existent partition. Then finally expand out to 4TB with JMFS. Should have 640HD hours. If not then probably the hdparm step did not take for some reason.


----------



## xdroccax

I managed to get ahold of a 2TB to be used as an intermediate. My question now (not sure if it belongs in this thread or the dvrBARS one) is can you back up the 'finished' 4TB drive to a VHD file using dvrBARS and use it as a template/image for future 4TB drives? This is assuming there's no recordings that need to be saved and the original image is a clean XL 1Tb. Would the partition reassignments hold; i.e. the OS being moved to the middle of the drive, the 4k alignment, etc.


Basically, we have two 746's that is going to be upgraded to 4TB, and have about 4 other 746's belonging to family/friends that will probably go 4TB as well. Would be a whole lot faster if you could just dvrBARS to image out 4TB (or 3TB) drives.


----------



## jmbach

The answer is yes sort of. You can copy the first 2TB of the drive. As long as the drive is empty of recordings it works. This is because all the important information is in the first 2TB. The last 2TB of the drive is all blank. And yes, all the partition rearrangement and 4k realignment all are maintained.

With your 746 you can start with that image and expand it to 2TB, copy and rearrange to the 4TB drive, divorce the partition, then expand to 4TB.


----------



## ggieseke

xdroccax said:


> I managed to get ahold of a 2TB to be used as an intermediate. My question now (not sure if it belongs in this thread or the dvrBARS one) is can you back up the 'finished' 4TB drive to a VHD file using dvrBARS and use it as a template/image for future 4TB drives? This is assuming there's no recordings that need to be saved and the original image is a clean XL 1Tb. Would the partition reassignments hold; i.e. the OS being moved to the middle of the drive, the 4k alignment, etc.


That may take some DvrBARS tweaking on my part. I haven't tested it yet.

The file format can handle just under 2TiB, but there's a field in the VHD header that lists the total number of sectors on the drive. Cramming the sector count for a 4TB drive into that 32-bit field will probably limit it to 1,801,763,774,464 bytes. I need to add a few lines of code so that when backing up larger drives it will use the VHD max instead of the actual drive size.


----------



## Tomago

Does anyone have a 4tb image they can share?


----------



## xdroccax

ggieseke said:


> That may take some DvrBARS tweaking on my part. I haven't tested it yet.
> 
> The file format can handle just under 2TiB, but there's a field in the VHD header that lists the total number of sectors on the drive. Cramming the sector count for a 4TB drive into that 32-bit field will probably limit it to 1,801,763,774,464 bytes. I need to add a few lines of code so that when backing up larger drives it will use the VHD max instead of the actual drive size.


Hhmm.. If dvrBARS can handle 2Tb now, then (theoretically) can we drop the (clean) 1Tb XL image onto a 2Tb, reassign partitions, expand/coalesce, fix divorce partition, SAVE as VHD image at this point. Then drop the 2Tb image on a 4tb, and do an expand/supersize. Would this expand to the remaining free space of the 4Tb?


----------



## jmbach

Yes. If we do it that way, I would recommend dropping the 1TB image (assuming native and not expanded yet) on the 2TB and expanding and supersizing it. dd copy the image to the 4TB. Then copy and rearrange back to the 2TB. Coalesce the appropriate pair of partitions. Let the TiVo divorce (and update OS if need be) and then DvrBARS back up the image. Then that image can be restored to a 4TB drive and the expanded with the patched JMFS to 4TB.


----------



## xdroccax

Just to make it clear, the following steps is what you're suggesting.

Steps:

1. Use dvrBARS with native 1Tb XL image to restore to a 2Tb drive
2. Use JMFS v1.05 to Expand & Supersize via *guide.sh*
3. Then use "*dd if=/dev/sda2TDrive of=/dev/sdb4TDrive bs=4096*"
4. Then "*tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/sdb4TDrive /dev/sda2TDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10*"
5. Then "*tivo_coalesce.sh /dev/sda2TDrive 12 13*"
6. Put 2Tb drive back into Tivo and let it divorce/update/etc.
7. Use dvrBARS with updated 2Tb drive to backup new updated image.
8. Use new updated image on 4Tb drive(s), then JMFS v1.05 to expand.


----------



## jmbach

Yes exactly.


----------



## nooneuknow

jmbach said:


> Yes exactly.


When putting the drive in to let it update the software (required for >2TB), you should use the "zip00000/Tiny TiVo" trick I outlined in this post: http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?p=10150292#post10150292 (post #55).

This will make the cleanest and smallest image possible, which will compress/zip down further.

I need to find all the posts I made about this trick and add that no cablecard should be installed (in addition to not having the coax-in connected), for best results, smallest image size, and for other reasons I've just found and verified twice.


----------



## Lou_d

I need little help.



xdroccax said:


> Just to make it clear, the following steps is what you're suggesting.
> 
> Steps:
> 
> 1. Use dvrBARS with native 1Tb XL image to restore to a 2Tb drive
> 2. Use JMFS v1.05 to Expand & Supersize via *guide.sh*
> 3. Then use "*dd if=/dev/sda2TDrive of=/dev/sdb4TDrive bs=4096*"
> 4. Then "*tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/sdb4TDrive /dev/sda2TDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10*"
> 5. Then "*tivo_coalesce.sh /dev/sda2TDrive 12 13*"
> 6. Put 2Tb drive back into Tivo and let it divorce/update/etc.
> 7. Use dvrBARS with updated 2Tb drive to backup new updated image.
> 8. Use new updated image on 4Tb drive(s), then JMFS v1.05 to expand.


On step 4 you have the 4tb first in the command line then the 2tb drive. Is that correct? The reason I ask, is in post 42. It looks like the IntermediateDrive (2TB)drive is first then the DestinationDrive (4TB) drive is 2nd.



cykotix said:


> *Switch to TivoTool scripts to rearrange and copy partitions from IntermediateDrive (2TB) to DestinationDrive (4TB)*
> 
> 
> Code:
> 
> 
> # cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
> # ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive /dev/DestinationDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10


I might just be confusing the two posts\processes, but thank you for helping me to understand.


----------



## jmbach

It looks like ggieseke gave you a 2TB image already. So you will have to restore that image to a 2TB drive, let the TiVo update itself to the latest OS and then copy the drive over to the 4TB drive. Then need to get a modified version of JMFS to expand that image larger.


----------



## Lou_d

jmbach said:


> It looks like ggieseke gave you a 2TB image already. So you will have to restore that image to a 2TB drive, let the TiVo update itself to the latest OS and then copy the drive over to the 4TB drive. Then need to get a modified version of JMFS to expand that image larger.


What would be the best way to copy the 2tb to the 4tb? There are no recordings to worry about.

thank you again
Lou


----------



## jmbach

Just use JMFS (but the modified version) to do the copy and expand. The modified version is the iso made by cykotix.


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## Groovyguy

I'm sorry, but is there someone that can really dumb down the steps here? I'm very lost.


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## jmbach

What is your starting image and has it ever been modified before.


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## grit

I'm using the original 2TB drive in my XL4. I'd like to replace it with a 4TB drive without losing my current recorded shows.


----------



## jmbach

You need to use the modified version of JMFS in cykotix iso. Just run the guided procedure like the previous version of JMFS. Copy the 2TB to the 4TB followed by expansion (and supersize if you wish) Comer's version of JMFS will not expand any image larger than 1TB.


----------



## grit

Color me stupid, and Google has failed me. I have NO idea where to download that version. Can someone point me in the right direction?

Wait, belay that... Is it this file --> mfs-rev105-krbaker-tivotools.iso 

I went back and found that link. Wew. I figured if I couldn't even find the link, I was hosed for sure! 



Are the new WD purple drives the same/as good as the old WD AV-GP drives ?


----------



## jmbach

Yes that is the iso.

As far as the Purple drives, they have not developed a track record as the AV-GP drives have. If you are conservative, then I would go with the AV-GP drives.


----------



## Groovyguy

jmbach said:


> What is your starting image and has it ever been modified before.


I have an expanded 2tb. Can I just hook up the two drives and run the modified iso?


----------



## jmbach

The answer is yes but you still have to do prep work. Since the drive is an already expanded drive to 2TB, that is in a sense your 2TB intermediate drive in the instructions cykotix outlined. So follow his instructions from the 2TB intermediate to the 4TB drive.


----------



## Groovyguy

Thank you JMBach, I was finally able to do it. Thanks a lot.

There is one issue though, it keeps restarting. It would do it about every 20 minutes or so. I tried to do a manual update, it connected, downloaded and disconnected successfully, but it restarted as soon as it tried loading. I unplugged the ethernet cable and it hasn't restarted since. Is there a fix for this?


----------



## telemark

Groovyguy said:


> There is one issue though, it keeps restarting.


There was Tivo server side issue tonight, which your symptoms match.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/519306662587297792

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/519320286282256385


----------



## Groovyguy

telemark said:


> There was Tivo server side issue tonight, which your symptoms match.


What a coincidence. Thanks.


----------



## grit

jmbach said:


> Yes that is the iso.
> 
> As far as the Purple drives, they have not developed a track record as the AV-GP drives have. If you are conservative, then I would go with the AV-GP drives.


My thanks to *jmbach* for pointing me in the right direction and confirming what actions I should take. You saved me headache and heartache.

My thanks to *cykotix * for the updated JMFS program that allows me to eek a 4TB drive into my Tivo Premiere XL4.

My thanks to whomever wrote the original JMFS program to begin with!

By way of an update:

I copied my full 2TB stock Western Digital AV-GP drive (Tivo Premier XL4) to my new Western Digital Purple 4TB drive. Process took about 5-5.5 hrs (averaged about 100 Mb/sec xfer). Expanding and Supersizing were almost instantaneous. VERY simple and easy process to follow.

Tivo seemed to take a tad longer than I'm used to booting up the first time (I haven't booted it a second time yet). It runs just fine, showing 638 hours of total recording time at 49% full.

My only stumble has nothing to do with Tivo or the wonderful cykotix iso. I ordered the WD 4TB AV-GP drive from Memory and More via Amazon.com. It even has a picture of the AV-GP drive. I RECEIVED a WD Purple drive. The invoice lists it as a "Western Digital AV drive", contrary to the listing on Amazon. While I could return it and order one from another vendor, I suspect the reason is that WD has replaced the older AV-GP line with the new purple line. Or probably just re-labeled the AV-GP to fit with their new(er) color scheme (red, blue, black, etc). It has the exact same sonic signature (almost none) as the AV-GP (to my ears at least).

Anyway, should I run into any snags with the purple drive, I'll post back and let you all know, though I'm expecting none.


----------



## nooneuknow

grit said:


> My only stumble has nothing to do with Tivo or the wonderful cykotix iso. I ordered the WD 4TB AV-GP drive from Memory and More via Amazon.com. It even has a picture of the AV-GP drive. I RECEIVED a WD Purple drive. The invoice lists it as a "Western Digital AV drive", contrary to the listing on Amazon. While I could return it and order one from another vendor, I suspect the reason is that WD has replaced the older AV-GP line with the new purple line. Or probably just re-labeled the AV-GP to fit with their new(er) color scheme (red, blue, black, etc). It has the exact same sonic signature (almost none) as the AV-GP (to my ears at least).
> 
> Anyway, should I run into any snags with the purple drive, I'll post back and let you all know, though I'm expecting none.


There are some concerns, as the Purple (and Red) drives from WD come with TLER (a RAID function, also known as ERC, or Error Recovery Control) enabled. In non-RAID systems, TLER results in sectors that have read issues (like CRC mismatch) being timed-out after 7 seconds of attempts to read. Non-RAID drives, including the AV-GP, will instead enter Deep Error Recovery, and attempt to recover by using special algorithms to read the data. TiVos don't have a RAID controller, nor any software substitute to handle the other half of what should happen in a TLER timeout. This results in sectors that don't read correctly never getting flagged as pending reallocation. This means you can have either false bad sectors, or true bad sectors, never being identified as such, and never being dealt with.

If you were to contact WD, and say you required their help, due to this condition, their response would be you are using the wrong drive for the application.

Google searching for phrases like "Disable TLER", will yield years of forum discussion, complete with quotes from WD.

TLER-enabled drives are only meant for use with (RAID) controllers that can ensure the TLER timeouts are dealt with. Otherwise, you are essentially running without a complete error correction/handling system, and false bad sectors will never be reclaimed for use, nor will true bad sectors be reallocated. On top of this, the SMART attributes that would normally show degrading values, and indicate an issue, or drop below threshold values, resulting in a SMART fail error, will not change/update.

The TiVo will be "running blind", as will you, if you check the SMART using KS54, and expect that SMART will show you the truth.

When installed in a PC, under virtually any PC OS, you can set a script to send a command to disable TLER on the drive, allowing it to operate properly, the error correction to operate properly, and the SMART attributes to display correct values. You can't do this with a TiVo.

While it is your decision to make, I advise you contact WD about this, let them know you are using the drive in a TiVo, which does not support RAID, get their official response, then forward that to Amazon.

I've been working on this issue, in the shadows, for months, collaborating with some of the best of TCF, and trying to keep the forum trolls and the "who cares" people out of it, as until now, only NewEgg had *incorrectly* began flagging the Purple as "the newer model" of AV-GP drives.

AV-GP drives are not a discontinued product, nor has WD officially slated them for discontinuation.

My experiences with TLER timeouts using a 3TB WD Red NAS drive were a diagnostic nightmare, and I wasted months due to the errors being hidden from the TiVo, leaving the TiVo OS unable to detect, flag, and deal with sectors being TLER timed-out.

If the sectors are simply weakly written, and they are in an area of the drive frequently overwritten, they can resolve themselves. If they are in an are in an area that's mostly read-only, or are truly bad sectors, they will cause issues.

If it were as simple as the TLER simply limiting the recovery attempt to 7 seconds, but all the rest of the mechanism was active, and worked, simply possibly flagging some good sectors, as bad, and avoiding them later, it would be what some would want, or be OK with. But, that's not the case here. Half the error recovery and control mechanism is disabled by TLER, and the other half is supposed to be handled by the host, typically by a RAID controller. TiVos can't even recognise the mechanism, thus they can't even try to emulate the missing half, and they do nothing with the communications from the drive that a TLER event has happened.

I didn't want to even raise the alarm any more than the few threads I have brought it up in. If what I am saying is all "blah blah blah" to you, then please call WD and ask them if you have the right drive, especially since you ordered an AV-GP, like TiVo uses, and got a Purple, instead. If their answer doesn't make it clear, ask them how to disable TLER on the drive, as your TiVo doesn't have RAID. That should get the answer, that should make you want the drive you ordered.


----------



## nooneuknow

Added notes, if you order an AV-GP drive and get sent a Purple: The Purple drives are often cheaper than AV-GP drives, on sites such as Newegg, especially when comparing regular price to regular price, or sale price to sale price.

If I were in a position where I couldn't get an AV-GP drive, but could get a Purple, or Red drive, I would pick the Red.

Workload ratings:
AV-GP: Unpublished
Purple: 60TB/yr
Red: 120-150TB/yr

Warranty: 3yr, all models

Support:
AV-GP: Supported for use in TiVo and other non-RAID DVR/PVR use.
Purple/Red: Unsupported for hosts not having TLER-capable controllers, limited support for hosts that can toggle the TLER off via SCT startup script.

Notes about SCT changes to TLER setting (when applicable): Not preserved between power cycles, but are preserved through power-on resets. No way to use this to keep your TiVo drive TLER-disabled (operating in normal Deep Error Recovery mode, which will retry operations, until the host hardware or software times-out. In TiVos, the software handles this, and will handle flagging the sector accordingly, to prevent future issues at that LBA).


----------



## telemark

grit said:


> I ordered the WD 4TB AV-GP drive from Memory and More via Amazon.com. It even has a picture of the AV-GP drive. I RECEIVED a WD Purple drive.


It's strongly against Amazon rules to send an item that doesn't match the listing and picture.

I prefer to return the item whenever that happens so the vendor gets their metrics dinged, and Amazon will eventually notice and take action.


----------



## nooneuknow

telemark said:


> It's strongly against Amazon rules to send an item that doesn't match the listing and picture.
> 
> I prefer to return the item whenever that happens so the vendor gets their metrics dinged, and Amazon will eventually notice and take action.


For the simple, straightforward, way to handle this, I agree 100%. :up:


----------



## lessd

nooneuknow said:


> If the sectors are simply weakly written, and they are in an area of the drive frequently overwritten, they can resolve themselves. If they are in an are in an area that's mostly read-only, or are truly bad sectors, they will cause issues.


You have done a lot of work on this but the Roamio have the software in flash, so any problems on the hard drive may interrupt a recorded program but not the TiVo software, and when re-written all may correct itself. Am I missing something, as I have one Red drive and one AV and one other WD drive installed in my upgraded Roamios, I have, up to now, never had any differences that could notice. I record the news on two units each night, sometimes the picture would break up or stop for a second, I look at the time stamp and check this out on the other Roamio, same problem at the same time in the program, must be the cable xmission.


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## nooneuknow

lessd said:


> You have done a lot of work on this but the Roamio have the software in flash, so any problems on the hard drive may interrupt a recorded program but not the TiVo software, and when re-written all may correct itself. Am I missing something, as I have one Red drive and one AV and one other WD drive installed in my upgraded Roamios, I have, up to now, never had any differences that could notice. I record the news on two units each night, sometimes the picture would break up or stop for a second, I look at the time stamp and check this out on the other Roamio, same problem at the same time in the program, must be the cable xmission.


Let's start small, since I've been discussing this in several threads now, and have been working on this since before even the Summer update, mostly trying to get the facts, verify them, and not go full gospel on the matter...

To begin with, just because the Roamio has flash for the "OS", does not mean all of the OS resides there. Anything being written to, except for when the software is actually updated, during the update, still gets placed on the platter drive. TiVo can't allow the NAND being worn-out.

A problematic sector can be written to, even many times, and have no issue being written to. Unless a system does auto-verification that each sector written, can be read-back, a successful write doesn't mean the sector is "in the clear". Where the most frequent issues happen, is on sectors with no issue during writing, but will fail CRC upon being read. This where the sector technically can be read, but the CRC says what is being read, is corrupted. This will set-off the 7 second TLER, as the drive tries to read the sector, getting the CRC and data to match.

As your drive ages, the likeliness of this happening increases. But, since the mechanism of TLER, and the TiVo don't understand each other, sectors that accept writes, without error, but don't read without error, will keep happening.

In a normal, non-TLER system, the sectors I just described would get flagged as pending, then later be reallocated with spare sectors, if need be.

In the extra research I've done lately, to make sure I don't post mere other forum talk as gospel, it's clear this mechanism becomes broken, when sectors continue to read data back, not matching CRC (equals corrupted data), and they don't get flagged as pending, raw read errors, or reallocated, which creates a false table of SMART attribute values, since the problems I just spoke of should show up there.

It would require taking the drive out of the TiVo, and using a PC, with the right software, to do a full read test, with SCT toggling the TLER off (a volatile setting, which is lost at next power cycle), doing a full read, then following that by a full write, to get a true view of the the drive, since TLER hides so many things. Now, suddenly, the SMART values will be correct, as nothing gets hidden by only having half the TLER mechanism working, for the time the drive was in the TiVo.

That's starting small. I'm working towards a full write-up, rather than bits and pieces, and a fully-documented, real-life example that proves, just how big of an issue this can be, early on, which should make some uneasy about it as drives age, and sectors become actually unrecoverably bad along the way, but never get flagged as anything, because the TLER conversation, is being sent to a host that doesn't "speak TLER".

Bad sectors in database locations, and other system-critical areas, will tend to cause problems right away. If they are in places only media data is written, they may just cause glitches, but not make the whole TiVo experience crippled and unbearable.

A suite of tools to (attempt to) deal with TLER concerns is being collaborated on, with some of the best minds here. Due to the only currently known way to disable TLER, persistent across power cycles, being unsupported by WD, risking bricking drives permanently, or creating other problems, it will not be rushed-out.

It is being worked on in a manner that keeps the trolls at bay, and keeps the signal to noise ratio down, as an analogy. I've already spent too much time talking about it, rather than using that time working with the others, and finishing up what will be my complete write-ups on it. The documentation is my role, along with the write-ups.

There isn't 100% agreement by all parties involved in the project. But, it's mostly on how much one should worry, or if there might be any advantages to 7 second TLER, even with half that mechanism missing, versus deep error recovery (normal default mode without TLER, which disables that mode of operation). That's all I can give. I'm only giving this much, since I started posting about things before the group was formed. If we all start talking, or I take things beyond clarifying what I already put out there, it doesn't help the group effort. Some of us are taking risks we'd never ask anybody to take.

Data points the rest can help with are:

What brand and model drives are seen in the newest TiVos shipping, especially the 3TB Roamio Pro.

Those willing to test WD Purple drives from WeaKnees, to see if WK has found a way to disable TLER, that can hopefully be replicated. A simple, safe, way to do this is in the works. Once this part has been taken care of, a new thread will be created on the subject, and all remaining efforts will hopefully be centralized.

ETA: The things "in the works" are not 100% known to be possible, with 100% of TLER-enabled drives, or 100% safe. Obviously, the goal is to "do no harm", and not create new problems, trying to work out the concerns on the table. When the group is ready to bring in volunteers for testing and verification, and minimal risk, the new thread will be created for such purposes, and will, hopefully, become a clearinghouse, plus a FAQ area, and the subject exposure in other threads can be minimalised to awareness, and links can take place of posts like this when bringing the matter up, outside the thread to be the new home.

TLER only becomes an issue, when it starts being used to deal with problem sectors. If you have no sectors triggering TLER, you won't be affected. If you have them in media-only areas of the disk, the impact will be minimal.

Think of it this way: If you bought a hard drive, and found it had bad sectors, but the drive wasn't even recording they exist, or flagging them as what they are, essentially hiding them from you, would you trust that disk, once you knew? TLER creates this condition, when the host doesn't support the share of the error handling, that TLER puts on it. Last I checked, people tend to RMA platter drives that develop bad sectors, within warranty, even if just a few are reallocated with spares. Being blind to sectors that would be marked pending and/or reallocated does not change the fact they are there. This goes beyond my earlier posts about "weak writes", and how they can be recovered, without any reallocation.


----------



## jefeuno

I'm a newbie, just have a quick question. Is there any advantage to using jmfs 1.50, to upgrade a Premiere with 360gb hdd, to a 2 tb hd, or am I better off using jmfs 1.40. Thanks!


----------



## jmbach

It would not matter. Either one would do the job.


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## jefeuno

Thanks!


----------



## wolverine9827

Hi all,

Been lurking here forever and I used this forum to upgrade my S3 to 1TB - it finally died and I scored a Premiere which is due Monday.

My apologies for being a Premiere Newbie, but from what I can gather, it appears that if I go ahead with the Guided Setup, allow it to update its software (to support >2T drives), I might be able to use the modified jmfs iso to copy/expand the native 500m drive to a 3TB drive I have waiting to be used?? Or will I still have to do the partition consolidation bit... I do have my 1TB that's in my now dead S3 I could use as an intermediary....

It sure would be easier to just be able to pound the 500 right onto the 3TB drive though....

My Premiere is the older dual tuner 746500


----------



## jmbach

If you're original drive (not previously expanded) is a 500GB, then the max you can expand without using an intermediary drive is 2.5TB. To access the whole 3TB, you will have to copy the 500GB (just use JMFS for the whole process here) to a 1TB and expand. Put it in the TiVo to check booting and operation. Then use the copy and rearrange script with the order 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10 to go from your 1TB to your 3TB. Use the coalesce script to coalesce 12 and 13. Put in the TiVo again to check for booting,operation,and allow it to divorce. Then expand with JMFS and put it back in your TiVo and enjoy. BTW I would check the 1TB for bad spots with the manufacturer diagnostic and even do a write zero test on it to ensure you are not corrupting any data by copying onto a bad spot. Also what 3TB drive are you using.


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## wolverine9827

jmbach said:


> If you're original drive (not previously expanded) is a 500GB, then the max you can expand without using an intermediary drive is 2.5TB. To access the whole 3TB, you will have to copy the 500GB (just use JMFS for the whole process here) to a 1TB and expand. Put it in the TiVo to check booting and operation. Then use the copy and rearrange script with the order 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10 to go from your 1TB to your 3TB. Use the coalesce script to coalesce 12 and 13. Put in the TiVo again to check for booting,operation,and allow it to divorce. Then expand with JMFS and put it back in your TiVo and enjoy. BTW I would check the 1TB for bad spots with the manufacturer diagnostic and even do a write zero test on it to ensure you are not corrupting any data by copying onto a bad spot. Also what 3TB drive are you using.


Thank you for the information!!
So I'm guessing that if desired, I could go with the 3TB drive but only utilize 2.5T unless I follow the procedure using the 1TB intermediary... Hmm....

The 3TB is a seagate - I don't have the model number handy - I'll get it this afternoon and post it

UPDATE: Seagate Barracuda model ST33000651AS

Thank you SO much!!


----------



## wolverine9827

wolverine9827 said:


> Thank you for the information!!
> So I'm guessing that if desired, I could go with the 3TB drive but only utilize 2.5T unless I follow the procedure using the 1TB intermediary... Hmm....
> 
> The 3TB is a seagate - I don't have the model number handy - I'll get it this afternoon and post it
> 
> UPDATE: Seagate Barracuda model ST33000651AS
> 
> Thank you SO much!!


I received my 'new' Premiere Monday and walked it through guided setup, cable card pairing, tuning adapter, and cleared out all of the previous owner's recordings, wishlists, the season passes, etc... Then went to work!
Interestingly enough, the 500M drive that was in it was a Seagate Pipeline! I've only ever seen (or heard) of WD drives being used in the Tivos....
Following the steps listed here I now have 3TB in my Premiere 

The only glitch was the first power on with the new 3TB... it hung and I ended up pulling the plug and trying again. The 2nd time it booted right up w/o error and it's been working great ever since!

Many thanks to everyone!!


----------



## JustJohn7

Looking for some help:

I have a Tivo Premiere XL (TCD748000) with the original 1tb drive. All updates, etc applied (was replaced by a Roamio in December). No shows saved on it anymore.

I have a new WD40EURX on the way as a 4tb upgrade.
I have available a 2tb drive, and a spare 1tb as well.

I have a little experience with drives, operating system utilities (Windows, Linux, Solaris, etc). OK, I actually have a LOT of experience (30+ years), very comfortable at either a command prompt or a shell prompt. I also work in IT as a Linux/Unix admin (among other things).

I have a system I can load with whatever operating system I need, and the ability to connect multiple drives via SATA. What would be the steps involved to go from my current 1tb to the new 4tb?

I see lots of "run this script" and "run this program" here. What do the scripts do, and what do the programs do? I just hate running things blind, and I haven't downloaded anything yet so haven't looked at the scripts.

Currently my Premiere is waiting for me to hook up an antenna so I can start recording the broadcast stations.

I have a 4 tuner Roamio (upgraded to 4tb), cable card, mini, and slingbox M1. I'm quite pleased with this setup.

BTW, I have no problem with creating an image of the drive and helping others out. So I appreciate the clear and delete steps I see here. Would either the original drive image or an image of the "new" 4tb help others? I have time and patience, so can create some for people.


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## jmbach

To expand the 1TB XL image to 4TB you will need a 2TB intermediate drive. The iso that cykotix created has a modified version of JMFS and TiVotools scripts. 
Boot the iso. Use the JMFS to copy the 1TB to the 2TB and then expand the 2TB. (super-size the image as well if you want) Boot the 2TB in the TiVo to make sure it works. 
Next use the TiVotools on that iso to copy the 2TB to the 4TB drive using the copy and rearrange script withe the order of 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5 6,7,8,9,14,10. Then use the coalesce script to coalesce partitions 12 and 13. Boot it in the TiVo and let it divorce the "external drive" . Then use JMFS on the iso to expand the image to 4TB.


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## jmbach

So the copy and rearrange script does just that. It rearranges the physical partition layout on the drive as well as trims the MFS partitions for the coalesce script to work properly. While doing this it 4k aligns the drive. The coalesce script combines two adjacent partitions in one and then renumbers the partitions from the coalesced partition onward so that there are no "gaps" leaving partition 14 alone. (ie when you coalesce 12 and 13 into 12, partition 15 now becomes partition 13)


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## Technogod

What are the options for backing up my TiVo Premiere 4TB? Can I use the modified version of JMFS to copy my 4TB Premiere to a spare 4TB hard drive?


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## jmbach

The only way at this time to back up your 4TB Premiere is as you have indicated back it up to another 4TB drive. You can use any variant of dd in Linux based distros. Another option is a drive duplicator.


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## Cybernut

jmbach and/or cykotix:

I am attempting to upgrade from 320 gig (TCD746320) drive to a 3TB drive. I copied everything to my 2TB drive (actually a 4TB drive spoofed as a 2TB drive) and now am copying from 2TB to 3TB drive. Can you confirm that the scripts will work without making any changes - I see that Cykotix upgraded to 4TB but in my case my destination drive is only 3TB...and he mentionedhis scripts can be adapted to upgrade to a 3TB as well. Not sure what he meant by adapted. Any changes needed to the scripts/process or can I follow all the same steps and scripts and it'll still work for 3TB.

Here's a screenshot of the queued ddrescue tasks...I am already running the process (this is the part where I am copying from my 2TB to 3TB). It may or may not be immediately clear but perhaps by looking at the sector numbers or other things in the queued tasks right at the top of the screenshot perhaps one of you guys can tell me it'll work or not.

Thanks again for jmbach's big contribution and to cykotix for writing these scripts that I previously had done by hand. If this works without any manual changes for a 3TB, then that'll be awesome.


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## jmbach

The process is essentially the same for 3TB or 4TB expansion. For 3TB expansion you need to have a minimum starting image size of 1TB with 14 partitions. For 4TB expansion you have to start with a 2TB image with 14 partitions. In both cases the end of that last physical partition has to allow the beginning final expansion partition to start within the 2.2TB sector space. 
In your case, everything looks fine. Just have to coalesce partition 12 and 13 and put the drive in the TiVo. Let the TiVo divorce the partition. Pull the drive out of the TiVo and use the modified JMFS to do the final expansion.


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## Cybernut

jmbach - Thank you very much for confirming that. Indeed, the tivo upgrade to 3TB completed successfully. cykotix's excellent tools did an amazing job!

Thank you both for your valuable contributions to this effort.


----------



## poopsie

I ordered a 3TB drive before reading this thread, thinking it would be as easy as when I went to 1.5tb the first time. After a few failed attempts, I found these instructions and actually contemplated just saying the hell with it. Once you read, and read again, and then read one more time-It can be done. Looking back now, it really was easy. Just deciphering all the info can be daunting. I now have 477 hours HD and couldn't be happier. Thanks for the links and information!

P.S. jmbach and cykotix, is it possible that I am seeing better performance? The menus feel like they run a TAD bit smoother. Or is it just placebo effect from just having a new drive?


----------



## jmbach

Some people report a slight improvement in speed after doing this procedure. It is thought due in part to 4k aligning the drive as this process is done. Who knows for sure.


----------



## Cybernut

poopsie said:


> Once you read, and read again, and then read one more time-It can be done. Looking back now, it really was easy.


Indeed. I ran cykotix's scripts without any issues and found them very easy to follow. I completed the entire process on my own. Mighty pleased.


----------



## fobia79

So I got a new 4tb to replace my default 500gb premiere 4 drive. I used the old jmfs and when done I notice that the drive had only 429 HD hours instead of 600. 
Can I erase the new drive and start over again using the latest jmfs iso or do I have to have the intermediate drive also?


----------



## jmbach

To rephrase one of my previous posts for your situation. If your original drive (not previously expanded) is a 500GB, then the max you can expand without using an intermediary drive is about 2.5TB. (actually a little larger closer to 2.7TB) To access the whole 4TB, you will have to copy the 500GB (just use JMFS for the whole process here) to a 2TB and expand. Put it in the TiVo to check booting and operation. Then use the copy and rearrange script with the order 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10 to go from your 2TB to your 4TB. Use the coalesce script to coalesce 12 and 13. Put in the TiVo again to check for booting,operation,and allow it to divorce. Then expand with JMFS and put it back in your TiVo and enjoy.


----------



## fobia79

jmbach said:


> To rephrase one of my previous posts for your situation. If your original drive (not previously expanded) is a 500GB, then the max you can expand without using an intermediary drive is about 2.5TB. (actually a little larger closer to 2.7TB) To access the whole 4TB, you will have to copy the 500GB (just use JMFS for the whole process here) to a 2TB and expand. Put it in the TiVo to check booting and operation. Then use the copy and rearrange script with the order 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,10 to go from your 2TB to your 4TB. Use the coalesce script to coalesce 12 and 13. Put in the TiVo again to check for booting,operation,and allow it to divorce. Then expand with JMFS and put it back in your TiVo and enjoy.


So I got a 2TB drive from Best Buy yesterday (returning today) and started my ordeal. After reading and then reading again and again I got everything to work with no issues. My TiVo now has 638 HD hours. My final question is: should I have supersize the destination drive (4tb) after the final expansion?

Thanks!


----------



## jmbach

You can super-size at any time. It will give you a a few hours more if recording space.


----------



## oagermann

This is my first attempt at upgrading a drive but figured I'd go all the way if I'm going to try anything. I was able to follow Cykotix instructions to move up from my stock 1T to the creation of the 2T intermediate drive which worked fine in my unit when booted up. My problem is that I have zero linux command knowledge. My assumption was that any command with a // is for knowledge, while # is your actual commands. My understanding is that I now need to copy over the 2T intermediate to the 4T final using the partition copy / rearrange script, then coalesce but every time I I try to enter the # cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts...... to change directory's to get to the tools I'm assuming, or # ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh.... commands I'm met with a "no such file or directory error". I thought that these scripts were built into the 105 iso cd that I burned so am I missing something within the linux command structure with how I'm typing things in to get to them, or is there something else program wise that I'm missing to be able to get to these scripts? I try typing everything thing in the # lines verbatim but doesn't seem to work. Any help would be greatly appreciated. As said, I'm happy to have the 317 hd now which is way more that the stock drive, but would love 600+ even more if I'm going to go through with this.


----------



## fobia79

oagermann said:


> This is my first attempt at upgrading a drive but figured I'd go all the way if I'm going to try anything. I was able to follow Cykotix instructions to move up from my stock 1T to the creation of the 2T intermediate drive which worked fine in my unit when booted up. My problem is that I have zero linux command knowledge. My assumption was that any command with a // is for knowledge, while # is your actual commands. My understanding is that I now need to copy over the 2T intermediate to the 4T final using the partition copy / rearrange script, then coalesce but every time I I try to enter the # cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts...... to change directory's to get to the tools I'm assuming, or # ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh.... commands I'm met with a "no such file or directory error". I thought that these scripts were built into the 105 iso cd that I burned so am I missing something within the linux command structure with how I'm typing things in to get to them, or is there something else program wise that I'm missing to be able to get to these scripts? I try typing everything thing in the # lines verbatim but doesn't seem to work. Any help would be greatly appreciated. As said, I'm happy to have the 317 hd now which is way more that the stock drive, but would love 600+ even more if I'm going to go through with this.


I had the same issue. Just type it this way to get to the coalesce directory:

# cd coalesce_scripts


----------



## oagermann

Thank you for the quick reply fobia. I'll give that a try.


----------



## telemark

In Unix circles...
# <- is the prompt symbol
so you type the stuff after it, but not the symbol itself.

// <- is one type of start of comments but warning
# <- some people use this for comments

. <- means your current directory
# ./stuff <- means run the program called "stuff" in your current directory.
if you get "command not found", you're in the wrong directory.
# ls <- will let you see what's there
Wrong place?
# cd whereever
# ls
then try again
# ./stuff


----------



## oagermann

Fobia's help was spot on. Thank you also to everyone involved in the actual coding to accomplish this. Nice to have a 640 unit now!!


----------



## oagermann

TY Telemark for the unix help as well. I enjoyed the challenge of learning how to do this upgrade thanks to the knowledge in these forums.


----------



## b-ball-fanatic

I want to upgrade a basic Premiere to a 3Tb HDD. The Premiere is healthy and running the latest OS, and I don't need to preserve programs (I've backed them up and cleared the drive already).

I read the "Dvr Backup And Restore Software for Windows (DvrBARS)" thread last night til my eyes bled. It seemed most of the discussion applied to (1) dead TiVos where the owners needed to obtain a new OS image and pair it to their system board, and/or (2) a desire to retain or backup programming content.

Neither of these situations apply for me. I have a perfectly functional Premiere and its original drive and just want to upgrade to a 3Tb WD AV. I also realize _this _thread is about 4Tb upgrades and I'm doing 3Tb, so I might still be in the wrong place.

So I'm just looking to be pointed in the right direction. If there's a specific post that's up-to-date, that'd be ideal.  (I truly appreciate the work of folks like ggieseke who make and support these great utilities for other users, but those kinds of threads become hard to use as the information, methods, and advice evolve over years and thousands of posts. It gets hard to know where the most up-to-date links and instructions are....)

Any help really appreciated!


----------



## jmbach

The procedure to go to 3TB is essentially the same as going to 4TB. What model Premiere are you starting with and has the Premiere been upgraded once before?


----------



## b-ball-fanatic

jmbach said:


> The procedure to go to 3TB is essentially the same as going to 4TB. What model Premiere are you starting with and has the Premiere been upgraded once before?


It's a base Premiere....since it went into service 05/2011, I assume it must be the original TCD746320 model.* It's never been upgraded before.

When you say the procedure is the same, are you referring to the procedure described in Post #2 of this thread?

* If it matters, I also have a functional (but not empty) Premiere XL.


----------



## jmbach

Start here. The difference between going to 3TB instead of 4TB is that to go to 3TB you need to have at least a 1TB image with 14 partitions and for 4TB you need a 2TB image with 14 partitions.


----------



## kherr

My mission is to replace my 2TB drive with a 4. I downloaded JMFS and burned to disk (several on 2 different boxes ...) and anything I do, it wont fully load. 

I've tried disconnecting from network and disconnecting the hard drives.
Unselecting the 2 default options at boot.

It stops at the 
Remounting root device with read-write enabled.
Triggering udev events: /sbin/ubevam trigger.
And others within a few lines of those events.

Any ideas???

Kevin


----------



## telemark

kherr said:


> My mission is to replace my 2TB drive with a 4. I downloaded JMFS and burned to disk (several on 2 different boxes ...) and anything I do, it wont fully load.


I'm not sure what you're saying here. Are you burning and booting the custom prebuilt ISO?
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vkyd1hwd0gqltur/jmfs-rev105-krbaker-tivotools.iso


----------



## kherr

Yea, that's what I'm doing. The iso won't load all the way. The disk is readable because it goes pretty far into initializing and then it just hangs up. I've burnt several disks using 2 different boxes and different drives to write it. So there's something wrong going on.


----------



## jmbach

Have you tried loading it on a different computer. Perhaps it is getting hung up on a device either not recognizing or loading the wrong driver.


----------



## kherr

Bingo!! The only thing is that the other computer doesn't have extra SATA cables available and is at my easy chair in the living room and not really meant to do work at as apposed to surfing while watching TV ......


----------



## jmbach

If you can figure out which device it is hanging up on, you can disable it in the bios.


----------



## kherr

Finally received my 4TB (green) drive from Amazon and upgraded from 2TB. I just used JMFS105 without any command line foolery. It took a little more than 5.5 hours using the internal SATA controller/cables. 638 total hours recording time with only 42% used for now. Now to get another 4TB drive and do the same upgrade to my other Premiere.

So when will we be able to use a 6TB drive ?????


----------



## chalooch101

Is there a download link for jmfs105


----------



## jmbach

Look back about 6 posts from yours.


----------



## kherr

So I received my other 4TB drive the other day, and am having trouble expanding it. The other one I just did I used JMFS105 to copy, expand, and supersize. I plopped it in my Premiere 4 and it ran as is giving me my 600+ hours. I did the same with my Premiere 2. It came up with the screen to divorce the external store and then only showed 318 hours. So I started again and copied and then expanded. Put it in the P2 and divorced, then supersized it. When I restarted it back up I still had only 318 hours. I started with a 2TB drive that had been used for over a year with current firmware, as with the other one.. What do I need to do??? It worked fine before, why not now???


----------



## jmbach

My guess, based on what you described, is that you are missing a step. Sounds like your Premiere has been expanded once already since it is a 2TB size (unless it is a Premiere 4XL which is natively 2TB, then the steps you describe should have worked). Assuming it was expanded once already, you would need to use TiVoTools scripts found on that ISO to copy and rearrange from your 2TB to your 4TB followed by coalescing a pair of partitions. Once that is done, put it in your TiVo and allow it to divorce and boot up. Then take it out and expand it with JMFS. Put it back in your TiVo and you should have 640 HD hours of recording space.


----------



## kherr

Thanks. I didn't know there was a difference between the P2 and the P4XL. At least the XL upgrade was an 'easy' one.


----------



## kherr

So I've some to time to upgrade my 2TB P2 drive. How do I know how to reference my Source and Destination drives. By reading posts drive designations are "sda", "sdb" ...... How do I know which is which. I'm reluctant trail and error as I don't want to trash my source and Windows drives ???? When I do tivo_copy_rearranged.sh will it prompt me??


----------



## telemark

# dmesg | less

Scroll through the messages with the arrow keys or space bar.

You're looking for the lines that say "sda" or "sdb" or "sdc" or "sdd"

Right when that section starts, it'll show you the drive model number and sector count and size for each one.

It's safer to disconnect your windows drive when you're hooking up the new drives.


----------



## kherr

Thanks !!


----------



## kherr

So that hurdle is overcome.

So I entered the command to copy, now it says that the drive "doesn't appear to be a Tivo drive" :down::down:. So I plopped it back in the box and works just fine. I'm watching it now. Actually both drives are viable drives, the 4TB one is only seen as 2TB from a failed expand procedure and was using it for awhile.

Any thoughts as what to do????


----------



## telemark

Maybe, give us the APM for the drives as they are now.

Is pdisk/tdisk on that image?
pdisk -l /dev/sdX
or
tdisk -l /dev/sdX

If those are missing, download this one:
http://tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=517407

Alternatively, you can extract it, then upload:
dd if=/dev/sdX of=sdX64.bin count=64 bs=512
dd if=/dev/sdY of=sdY64.bin count=64 bs=512


----------



## kherr

Here's what I hope you need .....

Source sdb 2TB

Type name lenth base size

Apple partition map	apple 63 @1 
Image bootstrap1	1 @3428384
Image kernel 1	16384 @3428385 8M
Ext2 root 1 524288 @343844769 256M
Image bootstrap 2	1 @344369057 
Image kernel 2	16384 @344369057 8M
Ext2 root 2 524288 @344385442 256M
Swap linux swap	262144 @344909730 128M
Ext2 /var 1048576	@345171874 512M
Mfs mfs app Region	1638400	@352511906 800N
Mfs mfs media reg2	2693537421	@355788706 124.4G
Mfs mfs app reg2	1638400	@354150306 800M
Mfs mfs media reg2	343828320	@64 164G
Ext2 sqlite 629145600	@346220450 3G
Mfs mfs media reg3	3284886720	@625142448 1.5T

Destination sda 4TB

Apple partition map	apple 63 @1
Image bootstrap 1	1 @343828384
Image kernel 1	16384 @343828385 8M
Ext2 root 1 524288 @343844769 256M
Image bootstrap 2	1 @344369057 
Image kernel 2	16384 @344369058 8M
Ext2 root 2 524288 @344385442 256M
Swap linux swap	262144 @344909730 128M
Ext2 /var 1048576	@34517187 512M
Mfs mfs app reg 1	1638400	@354150306 800M
Mfs mfs media reg 1	269353742	@355788706 128.4G
Mfs mfs app reg2	1638400	@354150306 800M
Mfs mfs media reg2	343828320	@64 164G
Ext2 sqlite 6291456	@346220450 3G
Mfs mfs media reg3	3281886720	@6251448 1.5T
Mfs mfs media reg4	3906342465	@3907029168 1.8T

all the formatting was lost during copy/paste .......


----------



## telemark

The CODE tag in advanced mode is useful for that.

Do you need to preserve existing recordings?


----------



## kherr

yes


----------



## jmbach

I would use the copy and rearrange script on the ISO to copy and rearrange in the order of 1,11,12,13,15,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,14,1 0 then coalesce script to coalesce 12 and 13. Put in the TiVo and allow to boot and divorce.


----------



## kherr

The copy script doesn't recognize the drive as a Tivo and aborts. For the heck of it I loaded JMFS105 and was recognized as Tivo. I put it back in the Premeire 2 and it works fine. 
Any other thoughts???


----------



## telemark

I realize it's a few extra steps to Copy+Paste the exact output. But without it, we're less likely to diagnose it correctly.

I say that because the APM tables look hand typed. I can't tell if the errors are from typos or there's a real problem with the tables.

What's the exact output from the tables and the copy/rearrange script?


----------



## jmbach

The other option is to use iBored and save the first 20 blocks to a file and upload it.


----------



## kherr

My bad ...... I Had the wrong syntax for the copy command line. I had an extra space or two in it. It's copying fine now. I'm not all that familure with the Linux syntax .......


----------



## telemark

Yah, a single character can mean something totally different. This is why it's always safest to just disconnect the Windows drive.

Does that mean you got it working now?


----------



## kherr

Both Premieres are enjoying 640 hours of recording time. Thanks for all the help.


----------



## jhill1977

So, I've used the older version of JMFS to upgrade a bunch of TiVo HD's to 2tb as well as a couple Premiere DVRS. That process was REALLY straightforward, and aside from the copy times, TOTALLY painless. 

That said, I can't seem to figure out the JMFS 1.05. I have a 2TB Premiere XL4 that I wish to upgrade to 4TB but I wish to copy over my existing recordings, cable card pairing, etc. 

I burned the JMFS 1.05 ISO to a CD-R, but when I boot from the disc, all I get is a SLAX prompt asking me to log in. I'm using the default "root" and "toor" values, but cant' seem to make sense of what to do next. HELP..!!!

JH


----------



## telemark

My last few posts are a good step #2.

# dmesg | less
to check the device names.

# pdisk -l /dev/sdX
to confirm there's nothing funny about your drive map.
(not likely if it's a 2TB XL4, but included for other readers.)

I never run drive modifications without running those two commands first.


----------



## jhill1977

Alright, so I was able to determine that my original 2TB XL4 drive is sdb, and my new 4TB drive is sda.

Thankfully, I figured out how to launch JMFS by typing ./guide.sh To a NON-LINUX guy, this wasn't immediately evident.

To make the rest of the process a bit easier for me to follow, I broke Cykotix guide into several steps.

According to the steps listed below, once the copy finishes, I will need to expand and supersize the drive...just as I've done with my 2TB TiVo Premiere drives using the last version of JMFS...no changes there.

Once the supersize completes, will I still need to continue to the remaining steps, 2-5? Is it safe to assume that since I'm starting with a factory XL4 2TB image that I won't need to bother with STEPS 2-5 and that I can jump directly to *STEP 6...enjoying 640hours of HD goodness???*

Thanks in advance...

*STEP 1: JMFS Copy, Expand, Supersize, Verify*

// JMFS Copy
// Select [C], Source is your original drive, Destination is the 
// IntermediateDrive.
# ./guide.sh

// When it is done copying to IntermediateDrive, JMFS will ask if 
// you want to Expand. Choose Yes. Once done, select [R] to choose
// another operation. Select [Z] to supersize the IntermediateDrive. 
// Then select [X] to exit `guide.sh`.

// Verify copy was successful
# ./mfslayout.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive

*STEP 2: Copy Partitions/Verify partition copy *

Switch to TivoTool scripts to rearrange and copy partitions from IntermediateDrive (2TB) to DestinationDrive (4TB)
Code:

# cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
# ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive /dev/DestinationDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10

// Verify copy was successful
# cd ~/ && ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive

*STEP 3: Coalesce Partitions*

Coalesce partitions 12 & 13 on DestinationDrive (4TB)

# cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
# ./tivo_coalesce.sh /dev/DestinationDrive 12 13

*STEP 4: Install Destination Drive back into TiVo Premiere*

- Remove DestinationDrive and place it back into the Premiere. 
- Follow the instructions to divorce the missing partition. Once this completes, connect it back to the computer and boot JMFS.
Code:

*Step 5: Re-Run JMFS a 2nd time and verify destination drive*

// Select [E] to expand DestinationDrive
# ./guide.sh

// Select [X] to exit. Verify DestinationDrive.
# ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive

*STEP 6: Enjoy 640 HOURS of HD goodness...*

If all went well, put the DestinationDrive back into the Premier. You should have 640hrs HD. Congratulations!


----------



## jhill1977

kherr said:


> Both Premieres are enjoying 640 hours of recording time. Thanks for all the help.


Hey kherr, any chance you can help me in my quest? It seems you also upgraded a stock XL4 2TB to a 4TB drive.

Thanks,

JH


----------



## telemark

If you're starting from a *native / original* 2TB then you just need 2TB more which you get by running JMFS expand exactly once.

That's after a copy (and optionally rearrange).
I don't think any coalescing is required.

Roughly that is Step #2 and Step #5 in your break down, ignoring/skipping the other steps. 
I say roughly because you probably don't have a partition 15 on your source drive, but the Step #2 example you're quoting, assumes there is one.

Edit: Alternately, Step #1 by itself also copies and adds 2TB, but because there was no rearranging during the copy the SW OS partitions are no longer in the center of the drive. Some people care about this and some people don't. If you're looking for something simplified though, this is the minimum steps.


----------



## jmbach

jhill1977 said:


> Alright, so I was able to determine that my original 2TB XL4 drive is sdb, and my new 4TB drive is sda.
> 
> Thankfully, I figured out how to launch JMFS by typing ./guide.sh To a NON-LINUX guy, this wasn't immediately evident.
> 
> To make the rest of the process a bit easier for me to follow, I broke Cykotix guide into several steps.
> 
> According to the steps listed below, once the copy finishes, I will need to expand and supersize the drive...just as I've done with my 2TB TiVo Premiere drives using the last version of JMFS...no changes there.
> 
> Once the supersize completes, will I still need to continue to the remaining steps, 2-5? Is it safe to assume that since I'm starting with a factory XL4 2TB image that I won't need to bother with STEPS 2-5 and that I can jump directly to *STEP 6...enjoying 640hours of HD goodness???*
> 
> Thanks in advance...
> 
> *STEP 1: JMFS Copy, Expand, Supersize, Verify*
> 
> // JMFS Copy
> // Select [C], Source is your original drive, Destination is the
> // IntermediateDrive.
> # ./guide.sh
> 
> // When it is done copying to IntermediateDrive, JMFS will ask if
> // you want to Expand. Choose Yes. Once done, select [R] to choose
> // another operation. Select [Z] to supersize the IntermediateDrive.
> // Then select [X] to exit `guide.sh`.
> 
> // Verify copy was successful
> # ./mfslayout.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive
> 
> *STEP 2: Copy Partitions/Verify partition copy *
> 
> Switch to TivoTool scripts to rearrange and copy partitions from IntermediateDrive (2TB) to DestinationDrive (4TB)
> Code:
> 
> # cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
> # ./tivo_copy_rearranged.sh /dev/IntermediateDrive /dev/DestinationDrive 1 11 12 13 15 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 14 10
> 
> // Verify copy was successful
> # cd ~/ && ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive
> 
> *STEP 3: Coalesce Partitions*
> 
> Coalesce partitions 12 & 13 on DestinationDrive (4TB)
> 
> # cd ~/TivoTools/coalesce_scripts
> # ./tivo_coalesce.sh /dev/DestinationDrive 12 13
> 
> *STEP 4: Install Destination Drive back into TiVo Premiere*
> 
> - Remove DestinationDrive and place it back into the Premiere.
> - Follow the instructions to divorce the missing partition. Once this completes, connect it back to the computer and boot JMFS.
> Code:
> 
> *Step 5: Re-Run JMFS a 2nd time and verify destination drive*
> 
> // Select [E] to expand DestinationDrive
> # ./guide.sh
> 
> // Select [X] to exit. Verify DestinationDrive.
> # ./mfslayout.sh /dev/DestinationDrive
> 
> *STEP 6: Enjoy 640 HOURS of HD goodness...*
> 
> If all went well, put the DestinationDrive back into the Premier. You should have 640hrs HD. Congratulations!


For your particular project, what telemark stated is correct. With your XL4 image which is natively a 2TB image with 14 original partitions, you can do everything through JMFS 1.05. (Essentially your Step 1 but no intermediary drive is needed) Just follow the guide to copy, expand, and super-size. No need to do any other steps.

For images that are 2TB in size after being expanded once, then you would start at your Step 2 and proceed. For images that are smaller than 2TB in size, you need a 2TB intermediary drive and start at your Step 1. Step 2 and beyond. will move the 2TB image on your intermediary drive to the 4TB and expand it.


----------



## kherr

Going from XL4 2TB --> 4TB is easy.
At the prompt : ---> ./guide.sh

then Copy, Expand, Supersize. No other command line stuff is needed. It took 6 hours for mine to copy. All the prompts are self explanatory. Expand and Supersize don't even take a minute each.


----------



## jhill1977

kherr said:


> Going from XL4 2TB --> 4TB is easy.
> At the prompt : ---> ./guide.sh
> 
> then Copy, Expand, Supersize. No other command line stuff is needed. It took 6 hours for mine to copy. All the prompts are self explanatory. Expand and Supersize don't even take a minute each.


Just as was stated by kherr, jmback and telemark, all I needed to do was run the patched JMFS and use the copy, expand and supersize commands. Once I figured out how to actually LAUNCH JMFS 1.05 from the CD I burned, it was a piece of cake. I'm now seeing 638 available HD hours on my XL4. Thanks to everyone who lent their knowledge in my efforts. The talent and guidance available through this forum is truly second to none. 

JH


----------



## c-collins

is 4TB the limit here of could you use 5TB or 6TB with JMFS 1.05?
I have a premier elite to start from.


----------



## jmbach

It is theoretically possible to expand a Premiere to 6TB however it is not straight forward as just using JMFS 1.05. It would require an extra step and a manual edit to the APM.


----------



## c-collins

What would the extra step be?
would it require an intermediary drive or something? (I can not afford two drives at the moment  ) 
Going from 2TB to 4TB with a premier elite looks easy with JMFS 1.05


----------



## jmbach

In a nutshell, 2TB Elite image, copy and rearrange to 6TB. Use hdparm to limit 6TB to 4TB. Expand with JMFS. Coalesce back to 14 partitions. You will then either need a 2TB drive or if you are proficient in booting JMFS in a virtual box you can use a 2TB VHD with the 6TB drive attached and use a an undocumented feature of JMFS to "add" the external drive to the image. Remove the 4TB limit on the 6TB drive with hdparm. Copy about 2048 blocks from the "extender drive" to the appropriate place on the 6TB drive. Add a 64bit entry to the APM. Boot drive in TiVo and allow it to divorce.


----------



## jmbach

With MFSTools 3.2 might be able to do it a completely different way. I am checking on what needs to be done. Will see what develops next day or two.


----------



## c-collins

very cool!
Heading over to that threat to check it out


----------



## mattack

Which thread is that? That's only Windows, right? (not mac or linux boot CD?)


----------



## telemark

MFSTools 3.2 thread is here.
http://tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/showthread.php?t=529148
Which is a Linux Boot CD.
The download is offline while some bugs are being squashed.

Until then, for Premiere, JMFS might be the best option.


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## videobruce

> *nooneuknow;*
> Once the software has reached a certain version number, the second screen of GS, where you select demo/home setup, has a "press enter for advanced options" option, which adds Installer Express mode to the choices, saving a big chunk of time, by only doing the absolute minimum GS needs to, leaving all the little personalized preferences to be set later through the menus.


There was no "*demo/home setup*" choice on any of the initial GS screens to get to this "*Installer Expres*s" option. What "certain version number" are you referring to?
The S/W version is 20.4.7A-01-2-746 on a base model 746 w/ the stock 320GB drive. The repeated setup was done after a C&DE.

This is just to image the original drive for a future upgrade for the smallest file size.


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## Hexdump

I have a 746320 with a 500GB expanded drive (put in a few months ago after the original 320GB drive died).

I have a 1TB that I can use as an intermediary drive.

I saw the posts about going from a 500GB original drive to a 4TB drive.

My question is, will this procedure work for me going from my 500GB expanded drive to a 4TB drive?

Do I need to do anything differently?

Do I still need to use the 1TB intermediary?

Thanks in advance for any advice.


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## jmbach

Well if you use MFSTools 3.2 it should copy and expand in one command without an intermediary drive. However at this time you will have to compile and run from source. If you are going to do it the older way, you will need a 2TB intermediate drive to go to 4TB.


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## Hexdump

I don't have a compiler handy, but if anyone has a copy of the slightly buggy bootable iso of MFS Tools 3.2, I'd risk the few bugs it has to try it.


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## Hexdump

I used JMFS to copy the already expanded 500GB to a 2TB drive.
I expanded and supersized the 2TB, then stuck it back in the tivo to divorce it.
When it came up it still said it was 84% full, (same as the 500GB).
Did I do something wrong or is it okay to continue on with the rearrange and copy partitions from 2TB to 4TB and then coalesce partitions 4TB?


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## jmbach

Since the 500GB is expanded once you will have to do a copy and rearrange to the 2TB followed by a coalescing. Then divorce followed by an expansion with JMFS. Rinse and repeat from the 2TB drive to the 4TB drive.


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## Hexdump

jmbach,

Thank you for all of your help!!!

I will have another go at this tomorrow and get back to you with the results. I truly appreciate your quick and thorough replies.

-Hexdump

UPDATE: Success!!! I now have 640HD hours and I'm only 10% full.

Thanks again, couldn't have done it without you!!!


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## calvinko

Have an already expanded 2TB using Ross Walked method in a TIVO Premier. Just purchased a 4TB WD40EZRX drive. Tried to use the same method, copied fine. However, cannot expand. Got message "expand did not finish successfully"

What do I need to do? 


Any help is appreciated.


Thank you


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## jmbach

calvinko said:


> Have an already expanded 2TB using Ross Walked method in a TIVO Premier. Just purchased a 4TB WD40EZRX drive. Tried to use the same method, copied fine. However, cannot expand. Got message "expand did not finish successfully"
> 
> What do I need to do?
> 
> Any help is appreciated.
> 
> Thank you


Start here.  The main thing is that you will have to use a modified version of JMFS to expand your drive any further.


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## ckk

Hi All,

Quick question for the experts: I am attempting to install a 4TB drive into my XL4 (natively 2TB).

As it turns out, my ICH9R drivers (Intel raid controller in my chipset) on my old windows box are unable to see the 4TB drive at all (doesn't show up in disk management).

So I used HDPARM as mentioned earlier in this thread to make it look like a 2G drive. Sure enough, now it shows up in windows, and I'm in the process of using DVrBARs to load a clean image.

Question is: If I go back into the SLAX bootable CD, can I change the HPA count back to 4T, and then do an "expand" without damaging the 2T image that was loaded from DvrBARs?

I'm basically not sure what the HDPARM setting does to disks that have valid partitions/images on them.

Thanks a lot!
--CKK


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## jmbach

ckk said:


> Hi All,
> 
> Quick question for the experts: I am attempting to install a 4TB drive into my XL4 (natively 2TB).
> 
> As it turns out, my ICH9R drivers (Intel raid controller in my chipset) on my old windows box are unable to see the 4TB drive at all (doesn't show up in disk management).
> 
> So I used HDPARM as mentioned earlier in this thread to make it look like a 2G drive. Sure enough, now it shows up in windows, and I'm in the process of using DVrBARs to load a clean image.
> 
> Question is: If I go back into the SLAX bootable CD, can I change the HPA count back to 4T, and then do an "expand" without damaging the 2T image that was loaded from DvrBARs?
> 
> I'm basically not sure what the HDPARM setting does to disks that have valid partitions/images on them.
> 
> Thanks a lot!
> --CKK


So hdparm in this case essentially restricts the visible drive to the size you set it to.

I am not sure what image you are starting with but it needs to be updated to the latest OS for the Tivo to see the whole 4TB otherwise you may experience a reboot loop.

My recommendation would be to place the image on a temporary drive and boot it in your TiVo and let it update. Then use MFSTools 3.2 to copy that image to your 4TB drive.

If you are still planning to do it the way you started, then there are a few things that may or may not work. If the OS you placed on the drive is not the minimum required to recognize a 4TB drive, I am not sure even if you leave the HPA set with hdparm if the drive will boot correctly and update the OS. If it does, then no problem. Once it updates, remove the HPA with hdparm and use JMFS 1.05 to expand.

JMFS only expands up to a 2TB recording partition. So if the image you started with is not a native 2TB XL4 image, you will not be able to get the whole 4TB of recording space on the drive. You will get 2TB plus the original image. Using MFSTools 3.2 to copy and expand the image does not have this limitation.


----------



## ckk

jmbach said:


> So hdparm in this case essentially restricts the visible drive to the size you set it to.
> 
> I am not sure what image you are starting with but it needs to be updated to the latest OS for the Tivo to see the whole 4TB otherwise you may experience a reboot loop.
> 
> My recommendation would be to place the image on a temporary drive and boot it in your TiVo and let it update. Then use MFSTools 3.2 to copy that image to your 4TB drive.
> 
> If you are still planning to do it the way you started, then there are a few things that may or may not work. If the OS you placed on the drive is not the minimum required to recognize a 4TB drive, I am not sure even if you leave the HPA set with hdparm if the drive will boot correctly and update the OS. If it does, then no problem. Once it updates, remove the HPA with hdparm and use JMFS 1.05 to expand.
> 
> JMFS only expands up to a 2TB recording partition. So if the image you started with is not a native 2TB XL4 image, you will not be able to get the whole 4TB of recording space on the drive. You will get 2TB plus the original image. Using MFSTools 3.2 to copy and expand the image does not have this limitation.


Thanks for the quick reply jmbach. I used the TCD758250.vhd as my source image in dvrbars (graciously sent to me by ggieseke yesterday). I could be wrong, but I think I read that this is a 2T base image.

I'm using the 105 revision of jmfs mentioned earlier in this thread, that's where I would run the "expand" and possibly "supersize". I believe a few folks have mentioned that a native XL4 2T image will work correctly with 105 just using the normal guide.sh?

I think your suggestion is to take the drive as-is after the DvrBars copy, run the HDPARM command to make it appear to be a 4T drive again, but stick it in my Tivo without expanding. That way I can be sure the base image is working, the drive works with the Tivo, and the FW is up to date before I do the expand and supersize.

Thanks again!
--CKK


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## jmbach

Yes and no. If the image from ggieseke is a virgin image (never booted) then it will need to be upgraded first otherwise it will boot loop if it sees a 4TB drive. So I would leave the HPA you set with hdparm to make it look like a 2TB drive and run it in the TiVo to update the OS and then remove the HPA. I don't know if that will work or not.


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## ckk

jmbach said:


> Yes and no. If the image from ggieseke is a virgin image (never booted) then it will need to be upgraded first otherwise it will boot loop if it sees a 4TB drive. So I would leave the HPA you set with hdparm to make it look like a 2TB drive and run it in the TiVo to update the OS and then remove the HPA. I don't know if that will work or not.


Thanks, I'll give it a shot after the warriors game (I'm in CA). It's horrible having to watch sports live today (the current disk is so bad that every time I rewind, there's a good change the Tivo pixelates/freezes.)


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## ggieseke

It's the virgin 758 image. Once it updates from 14.5 to the latest OS it should be safe to remove the HPA limitation and expand it.

If you run into boot loop problems I have a 758 image running 20.4.1, but you would probably have to run Clear & Delete Everything to "marry" it to the motherboard. That can take quite a while on a 4TB drive.


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## ckk

ggieseke said:


> It's the virgin 758 image. Once it updates from 14.5 to the latest OS it should be safe to remove the HPA limitation and expand it.
> 
> If you run into boot loop problems I have a 758 image running 20.4.1, but you would probably have to run Clear & Delete Everything to "marry" it to the motherboard. That can take quite a while on a 4TB drive.


Thanks GG. Just for kicks, I tried to do it all at once, and it failed as expected since the image wasn't updated to the latest FW.

So I re-installed, booted to get new FW, and then I was able to pull the HPA limitation and expand, and everything works.

Just to summarize for anyone else who runs into this weird issue -- I needed to replace my stock XL4 2T drive with a 4T drive, and I decided to start with a blank image, since my Tivo disk is badly degraded. Unfortunately, my computer is kind of old, and the (probably outdated) windows Intel ICH9R chipset drivers can only recognize a 2T disk or smaller. Unix seems to have no trouble. So I had to jump through some hoops.

These were the steps, and again, they are probably only required if your windows version doesn't recognize your 4T disk. If I had been able to copy my old disk, I should have been able to just run guide.sh straight through.

First, gather what you need:
----------------------
1. GG sent me a download link for a 758 vhd file, 
2. I downloaded the DvrBARs program from the DvrBARS thread. 
3. I also burned a DVD with the JM105 slax-based distro from earlier in this thread.

Steps:
----------------------
1. connect the new 4T disk to your computer
2. boot to the jm105 DVD

3. Run the HDparm command to make the drive look like a 2T disk (on page 2 of this thread)
- note, for thos unfamiliar with unix, the drives will be in /dev/sd* -- first drive is sda, second is sdb, etc. partitions show up as sda1 ...
- you can figure out which drive is which using fdisk -l /dev/sda, and matching the sizes/partitions to your expectations. Probably your new disk will be 4T with no partitions.

4. shut down, boot into windows
5. run DvrBARs - I had an error about no disk being ready, just hit continue
6. Select the 758.vhd as source, and your "appears to be 2T" drive as the destination. I ran the "full" copy, dunno if that's required.
7. Shutdown and stick the drive back into the tivo. Wait for it to upgrade to the latest software.
8. Pull the disk again, put it back into your computer
9. boot to the jm105 DVD, and remove the HPA limitation (using hdparm) to make your disk look like 4T again (see page 2 of this thread)
10. shutdown and restart, again using the jm105 dvd (full power cycle)
11. type ./guide.sh, and choose expand. Make sure you choose the correct drive
12. I needed to reboot again before being able to supersize, but regardless, you want to then run the supersize option in guide.sh

Stick it back into the XL4 and enjoy 640 hours of programming.

Thanks again to JM and GG for the help, and for everyone who has created all of the tools to make this possible!
-CKK


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## ggieseke

ckk said:


> Thanks GG. Just for kicks, I tried to do it all at once, and it failed as expected since the image wasn't updated to the latest FW.
> 
> So I re-installed, booted to get new FW, and then I was able to pull the HPA limitation and expand, and everything works.
> 
> Just to summarize for anyone else who runs into this weird issue -- I needed to replace my stock XL4 2T drive with a 4T drive, and I decided to start with a blank image, since my Tivo disk is badly degraded. Unfortunately, my computer is kind of old, and the (probably outdated) windows Intel ICH9R chipset drivers can only recognize a 2T disk or smaller. Unix seems to have no trouble. So I had to jump through some hoops.
> 
> These were the steps, and again, they are probably only required if your windows version doesn't recognize your 4T disk. If I had been able to copy my old disk, I should have been able to just run guide.sh straight through.
> 
> First, gather what you need:
> ----------------------
> 1. GG sent me a download link for a 758 vhd file,
> 2. I downloaded the DvrBARs program from the DvrBARS thread.
> 3. I also burned a DVD with the JM105 slax-based distro from earlier in this thread.
> 
> Steps:
> ----------------------
> 1. connect the new 4T disk to your computer
> 2. boot to the jm105 DVD
> 
> 3. Run the HDparm command to make the drive look like a 2T disk (on page 2 of this thread)
> - note, for thos unfamiliar with unix, the drives will be in /dev/sd* -- first drive is sda, second is sdb, etc. partitions show up as sda1 ...
> - you can figure out which drive is which using fdisk -l /dev/sda, and matching the sizes/partitions to your expectations. Probably your new disk will be 4T with no partitions.
> 
> 4. shut down, boot into windows
> 5. run DvrBARs - I had an error about no disk being ready, just hit continue
> 6. Select the 758.vhd as source, and your "appears to be 2T" drive as the destination. I ran the "full" copy, dunno if that's required.
> 7. Shutdown and stick the drive back into the tivo. Wait for it to upgrade to the latest software.
> 8. Pull the disk again, put it back into your computer
> 9. boot to the jm105 DVD, and remove the HPA limitation (using hdparm) to make your disk look like 4T again (see page 2 of this thread)
> 10. shutdown and restart, again using the jm105 dvd (full power cycle)
> 11. type ./guide.sh, and choose expand. Make sure you choose the correct drive
> 12. I needed to reboot again before being able to supersize, but regardless, you want to then run the supersize option in guide.sh
> 
> Stick it back into the XL4 and enjoy 640 hours of programming.
> 
> Thanks again to JM and GG for the help, and for everyone who has created all of the tools to make this possible!
> -CKK


Awesome job! Things have changed so much since many of these tools were developed that it can be a challenge to find your way though umpteen pages in several different threads. Chipset, OS & driver versions are especially tricky these days when dealing with drives over 2TB.

P.S. Running DvrBARS in the Quick Restore mode in step 6 would save a few hours. Great writeup.


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## rainbow

this might have been answered in questions above, but I bought a 4TB Red WD. using a dual dock w/usb and JMFS 1.05. it recognized the TiVo 2T, but said the 4TB only has 1.8TB space. will that make a difference? the 2TB I used is a new one and does not have any programs on it, just all updated software. (had gotten a new premiere XL that came w/1TB HD. upgraded that to the 2TB - which would be the intermediate HD for upgrade to 4TB purposes.

I see the info in previous posts about hdparm - guess I have to do that. I had my orig 2tb copying over to the 4tb, but it stopped at 1.8TB. since the 2T was pretty much empty anyway except for the programming, will I have to start over since I did not do the hdparm thing?


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## jmbach

If the OS only recognizes about 1.8TB of the 4TB drive, it will not work. You will need either another computer or dock. 

I would recommend using MFSTools 3.2 to copy and expand your drive. Since there are not a lot of recordings, it should not take too long. It gives you a better partition layout on the drive than JMFS does.


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## rainbow

I tried to sign into the mstools3.2 and am running into a problem. 
Linux login is Linux. Correct?
Then I am supposed to enter a password, which I think is. TiVo.
The probliem. Is that when I try to type in. TiVo , nothing happens. Their curser does not move. Any suggestion?

Re login I have tried. Linux, Linux, TiVo, TiVo, and su. I think I understand that when you type in the password you won.t see the letters (I am hoping that is correct) . I have entered tivo, Linux, and Linux. Each time. I get the response Login incorrect


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## jmbach

rainbow said:


> I tried to sign into the mstools3.2 and am running into a problem.
> Linus login is Linux. Correct?
> Then I am supposed to enter a password, which I think is. TiVo.
> The probliem. Is that when I try to type in. TiVo , nothing happens. Their curser does not move. Any suggestion?


Login is root
Password is tivo 
All lower case


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## rainbow

jmbach said:


> Login is root
> Password is tivo
> All lower case


YES! That worked....:up:


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## rainbow

I did the entry fdisk -l to determine what was what. It is showing sdc as 1.7tib, and sdb as 1.8tib. So it is not recognizing one of those as 4tb. I think the 1.7 is actually the 4tb. Guess I will try it and see what happens.


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## jmbach

It will fail. What kind of computer and dock are you using?


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## rainbow

I have 2 laptops a Sony vaio and a dell, both windows 10. Dual dock hdd dock by cavalry. 
When I did the entry for info on the devices I got the response estimated hours on a standalone TiVo 2374. This mfs volume may be expanded. 3 more times. 

I had tried the copy entry, but got the list..backup restore etc. I entered. Copy but it was not recognized correction. I typed it wrong but it still did not work (I had left out the word copy)
Entry Mfstool copy -ai /dev/sdb /dev/sdc
Response. Copy source: unable to determine transaction type for inode updates.


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## jmbach

Hmm. Would consider putting the source drive in the TiVo and run a KS 57 on boot up to check the inodes and try again


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## rainbow

Ok will try that tomorrow night. It is a new 2t with just the updated software. No recordings or anything. But will try the kickstart 57 on it and see what happens. Getting pretty tired now. Will follow up later on once I have done it. Thanks again for you guidance.:up:

Quick follow up. I did ks57 to original 2t drive . Then I tried it on the new. 4tb drive that had timed out at 1.8tb using wmfs1.05. That one came up as a TiVo drive as well so the transfer must have worked . Also did the ks57, connected it to update programming which it is doing now . Also checked the system info which shows 318 hrs . So maybe I can still use one of those programs to expand it to the 634hrs.


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## jmbach

Once the 4TB drive is recognized by the OS as 4TB, then you will have a successful copy and expansion. 
I would use MFSTools 3.2 to do the copy and expansion. It will give you the best results.


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## rainbow

I tested the 4TB WD Red with the WD diagnostics and it also only showed it had 1.8T capacity. I bought it thru Newegg a few weeks ago, so it is under warranty. I am returning it to them and getting a replacement. hopefully I will be able to get it done with the replacement.
thanks again for your patience and help with all of this:up:


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## jmbach

Again, this could be a dock issue. Would look up the specifications on your dock to make sure it supports drives larger than 2TB.


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## rainbow

will check that out tonight when I get home. in the meantime the HD is on its way back to newegg for replacement.


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## ggieseke

rainbow said:


> will check that out tonight when I get home. in the meantime the HD is on its way back to newegg for replacement.


It's the dock, not the drive.


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## rainbow

It was the dock. I got the new 4t hd and had gone ahead and got a new dual dock ( wavlink). The system recognized the new had as 4t. I was able to clone the hd with that new dock as a standalone . Now have to figure out how to expand it correctly. 
I will try the expand with the 1.05 program and see if that works. Not sure if I would need to do the rearranging partition thing listed on prev page instructions.


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## jmbach

What program did you use to copy the image to the drive.


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## rainbow

I coul not figure out what was what(which HD was which) trying to do it thru mfstools 3.2. I had gotten the wavlink dual deck we I will clone a HD to a larger drive as a standalone so I did that. From 2t already expanded to the new 4t. My internet was out yesterday hence my late reply. I probably won,t do anything more with these HD,s until the wkend when I have the time and not too tired.


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## jmbach

If one drive is blank and the other with a good image, you can use MFSInfo to see which drive is which.


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## rainbow

I will have to try it again.


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## rainbow

I waited till vacation time to deal with this upgrade. I have used dvdbars to add a truncated back up to a 2T. I have the 2T in my old dock ( sdc), and the 4T in my new dock ( sdb). 

I used this command - mfstool copy -ai /dev/sdc /dev/sdb

I am getting this response Unable to determine transaction type for inode updates. I think I will reboot and start over . In the meantime, can anyone shed light on what that means or what I may be doing wrong?


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## jmbach

Might do a drive diagnostic of the original drive to see if it has developed any bad spots. 
Also consider a KS57 on the original drive to make sure the file system is ok.


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## jmbach

One other thought. Are both the drives seen correctly by the computer. If fdisk reports the correct size it should be OK.


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## rainbow

Interestingly I decided to switch the sd entries and it is now copying. I have had the 4t in the TiVo this past month updating the prgm but not recording anything. This morning I tried to back it up with dvdbars but it was not being recognized.

So maybe I will try to reverse the copy back to the 4t once it has completed and see if that will work and will show it as 4t in the TiVo. It had been only showing as 2t capacity.
Volume being copied is 5647 min.

**************************************
I think I know exactly what happened. Each of my docks have 2 bays. The new dock (wavlink) seems to have one bay designated as source, and the other as target. I turned off the wavlink, moved the HD from one bay (source)to the other (target) and it is working! I am now copying the 2t back over to the 4t. Once it is done I will hook it up to the premiere xl to see if it will show up as 4t, which I would now expect it to do.

*****************SUCCESS!*********************
640hrs showing now .... Yeah!:up:

Thanks for your patience in walking me thru all this! Now I am thinking I might get another 4t or maybe a 6t for my other premiere, now that I have the hang of this


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## rainbow

Newegg has an open box 4t for $120' or a 6t for $189. Both red has. I am thinking of getting that 6t for my other premiere,which has a 2t right now. Opinion before I commit? I am assuming that Mfstoolmfstool 3.2 will work for the 6tb as well? 
Found my answer on the mfstools3.2 thread-
Supports 8 TB on Premiere (perhaps more, tested with dual 4 TB drives).
Ti hi I will go for the 6t which should give me plenty of space for a very long time


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## jmbach

You can go up to a 6TB internal for a premiere if you follow the directions in the 6TB Premiere thread. Essentially you copy your 2TB over to the 6TB limiting the initial copy and expansion to 4TB MFSCopy. Then run MFSAdd followed by apmfix. 




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## rainbow

Thanks:up: Would have missed that


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## andrewc2

Yesterday I used JMFS 104 to do a copy and expand from my 500gb stock drive to a new 4TB RED and am at the 2.5tb limit as expected, do I need to start all over again and use the intermediate drive/MFStools? Or can I just use the modified JMFS and start after the intermediate drive stage?


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## jmbach

andrewc2 said:


> Yesterday I used JMFS 104 to do a copy and expand from my 500gb stock drive to a new 4TB RED and am at the 2.5tb limit as expected, do I need to start all over again and use the intermediate drive/MFStools? Or can I just use the modified JMFS and start after the intermediate drive stage?


I would skip JMFS completely and just use MFSTools 3.2 to copy the stock drive to the 4TB.


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## andrewc2

jmbach said:


> I would skip JMFS completely and just use MFSTools 3.2 to copy the stock drive to the 4TB.


Okay thanks! I'll do that. I wish I did a bit more research last night, I saw the bit about the 2.5TB limit with JMFS after I was already well into the copy.


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## bobatkins

I finally figured out the solution (months ago). This thread and everywhere else I looked always reference JMFS v104 which seems to be the version that is talked about everywhere. So I would like to pass forward the fruits of my labor to all.

*JMFS v104 WILL NOT WORK to supersize an existing clean install on a larger (>1TB ) drive.*

*You MUST get JMFS v105*. It will do the job correctly! v104 does not work to enlarge an already configure TiVo drive that is >1TB!.

With JMFS v105, just plug the large TiVo drive into your PC and boot it up with JMFS v105. Follow the instructions and presto - JMFS will work its magic on your larger drive and make it entirely available for recording!

As for where to get JMFS v105 - that was a real chore since it seems nobody posts any links to it. So here are the 2 essential tools that anyone who wants to upgrade a larger TiVo drive using a PC will need to get the task done.

JMFS v105 Boot CD ISO

MFS Tools 3.2 OpenSUSE Boot CD ISO

---
Bob


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