MFS Tools 3.2

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I have never had it wait that long but depending on which computer I use, I get varying times. Mainly it is because it is waiting on some subsystems to come ready or trying to identify and install the correct drivers. I find that if I trim down what is connected and tap the enter key when it looks hung it speeds up the process.

 

good to know. I'm having buffer errors with one of my SATA to USB devices so I haven't been able to do a full copy of my recordings and it took 4 tries to just get a system copy over but it finally worked and I don't have any recordings I need to keep. So I just installed the copied drive to my Tivo and it booted up fine and I'm able to watch TV so the cablecard looks to be working properly. my season passes are all there and the upcoming recordings list look good.

What I don't know is if there is a way to "mass" delete all the recordings in the list that don't have existing files?

Also is there a way to view total space?

thanks to those involved with giving us the great program and the great bootable live drive!

 

You could do Clear & Delete Everything. It would delete everything and you might have to do it anyway if there are errors like 51, or If System Information does not show the Tivo Service Number (all zeros.)

Its in the System Information screen (Settings/System Information).

 

I would appreciate anyone who could point me to a more specific instructions (step-by-step) using this MFS tool to upgrade a 2TB premiere drive (upgraded using jmfs many years ago). I am not a computer professional and need some help to which MFS tool command to use first and what sequence of commands i should do? Thanks a lot in advance.

 

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What are you planning to upgrade to?

 

I am planning to upgrade to a 3TB drive. Thanks !

 

Login to the ISO as per the instructions in the post you downloaded it from.

Using the command 'fdisk -l' (small L) identify which drive is the source and target.

You can use the command 'mfstool info /dev/sdX' to verify your source drive you determined from the proceeding step. (sdX would be sda, sdb, sdc, etc depending on how many drives you have attached to your computer)

Use the command 'mfstool copy -ai /dev/sdX /dev/sdY' to copy and expand all in one step. (sdX is the source drive (2TB) and sdY is the target drive(3TB) )

Once that is done, put the 3TB drive in your TiVo and let it boot.

 

jmbach,

I am a brand new 1TB Bolt owner and I am curious about how stable the upgrade is for the external drive. I am considering keeping the factory drive intact. Particularly with the issues I have read on other threads about the 4TB internal drive upgrade.

Have you or anyone else on this thread been running an external drive like this for a Bolt, for any significant period of time?

I would appreciate any feedback offered. If there is thread about this already a gentle nudge in that direction would be helpful.

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

 

I don't have a Bolt and I generally do not run external drives other than for testing and the longest I have had one connected is a month. I have a Premiere and Roamio. It is as stable as running an external drive on any other TiVo unit. You do introduce more points of potential failure but if you can live with that, then you should be okay. However, I only have limited teating/usage of external drives.

 

Thanks for the quick response.

If anyone else following this string is using this method, please let me know.

 

rtoledo,

I am a very new 1TB Bolt owner and I am looking at adding the external drive as well.
I followed your discussion with jmbach starting on the MFS Reformatter (mfsr) thread to this thread.
I am curious if you ever completed the upgrade to your bolt and how both the internal and external drives are performing.
Thanks in advance for your response.

 

My 2TB Premiere has been acting strange (goes from ~99% to ~70% full randomly - has happened 3 times). I want to replace the hard drive before a catastrophic failure, so I figured I might as well upgrade the drive in the process (probably to 4TB).

Are these the only steps I need to do for the upgrade process, or am I missing anything?
- Burn ISO to CD, hook the drives to the computer, and boot the disc using root:tivo.
- Use 'fdisk -l' to identify source/target
- Use 'mfstool info /dev/sdX' to verify that.
- Use 'mfstool copy -ai /dev/sdX /dev/sdY' to copy/expand drive.
(replacing all Xs and Ys with appropriate letters)

Is that everything? Am I missing any steps?

The ISO references the tool "apmfix" for premieres. Is that something I should be doing? If so, when in the process do I do it, and what is the format of the command?

Thanks so much for all you do on here! You're awesome!

(p.s. Anybody have a ballpark figure on about how long it'll take to copy an ~80% full 2TB drive to a 4TB drive? Have to plan my TV watching appropriately, and hopefully be up and running by the Olympics)

 

Yes

 

What about apmfix? Do I need to run that? If so, when/how does that fit in the process? Thanks.

 

You need to run apmfix only when making a 6TB drive. You can run it on the 4TB and it convert the APM to 64bit. It won't hurt anything.

 

So I have read the whole thread. My goal is to copy my drive and keep everything. I want to upgrade to a 6 or 8 tb drive. I have a brand new 6 and will have an 8tb soon. It looks like however only a 4tb will work with this process of using mfstools 3.2. Is that correct or has it just not been tested? Yes I saw that I can do a 4tb internal and a 4tb external but I don't like to use external drives and I am willing to wait to get at least a 6tb working and just live with my 3tb until then. I have used mfstools to upgrade my series one back in the day and mfstools and winmfs to upgrade my series 3. I am comfortable with the process however I don't want to pull my drive if it won't work for sure.

I have the roamio that came with the 3tb drive so this is a stock image.

Thoughts?

 

You can do things before upgrading, such as copying your shows to a PC or Tivo that has the space available, except for copy-protected ones.

I know MSFR can go up to 8TB, but that is another thread, and it would be treating the upgrade as if its new, no shows. You can then copy the shows back. The time used to upgrade is under 30 minutes using MSFR method.

Copying shows with MSFTools is not always perfect, but the transferred shows is a backup if something goes wrong.

 

Currently there is no process that allows a Roamio or Bolt to copy and expand to a larger drive over 4TB.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for the reply I am aware of all of that. I figure the 3tb would be my backup...unless I <deleted word> the pooch and get my source and target backwards. If that happened I would just format the 8tb as a fresh drive using the methods and get my cable card re-activated and take it as fate that I needed to re-record all 20 seasons of law and order. The good news it only take about 3 days because of the law and word binge athons (lol).

 

Hi,
I'm doing nearly the same thing on my Premiere XL, but going from the original drive to a 3TB WD Red.
The above instructions look like what I need to do, but if I want to save my recordings, I think I have to use a different switch on the mfstool command, right?

Also, will I need to re-pair my cable card, or does it copy over all the correct settings?

Thanks!