[dleclair]

I recently upgraded from a Premiere XL to a Roamio OTA (Lifetime/All-In) in our living room. I love the DVR, I reverted to the old UI. I also have an A93 TiVo Mini box in our bedroom. Everything is hard-wired, gigabit ethernet.

At first the Mini saw the Roamio with no issue, however I could only stream live TV. If I tried to select a recorded program from the host DVR it would not even present a "play" option. If I hit play on the remote I received an authorization error (error # V125).

In the diagnostics section of the Mini the TivoToGo shows the permissions as "a,a,i,a" which I think might be part of the issue.

I got my TiVo support case escalated to executive support who after several days came up with the solution of removing the "Video sharing" authorization for an hour and then re-adding it back on.

After doing so, I've now lost all functionality with the Mini. It can no longer see the Roamio. Tried a "Clear and Delete Everything" and I now receive a V70 error through the guided setup and cannot proceed any further. My only options are to power cycle the Mini and keep trying unsuccessfully.

I had already disabled all IGMP snooping on my two switches, the DVRs have static IPs assigned by the router and nothing on my network has changed since the TiVo rep turned off Video Sharing. So I suspect it is a technical issue on their end?

This issue has being going on for almost two weeks now, and I'm just considering throwing in the towel and purchasing a TiVo Mini Vox just to test it and rule out any internal network issues. Can the new Mini work on the old UI or does it force an upgrade? Also any other things I might be overlooking as far as troubleshooting the connection issue?

Thank you in advance for any advice!

 

[JoeKustra]

Everything is hard-wired, gigabit ethernet.
In the diagnostics section of the Mini the TivoToGo shows the permissions as "a,a,i,a" which I think might be part of the issue.
Thank you in advance for any advice!

Two things. The A93 is only 100Mbps Ethernet. Second: the usual Mini TTG should be i,a,i,a, and only "Preferences", "Video Sharing" is an active option for the host.

Yes, the A95 (Mini Vox) does work after connecting and allowing it to rollback to TE3. Your A93 remote probably not pair to it in RF mode but will work in IR mode.

BTW, your "waiting for an hour" is BS. Force a service connection to have it change. It may also change with a simple Internet Diagnostics under Networking. I'll speculate that the A93 Mini is mis-configured in your account. But you can't fix that.

Just in case, I would compare IP addresses between your host and Mini. Only the last octet should be different.

 

[dleclair]

I'll speculate that the A93 Mini is mis-configured in your account. But you can't fix that.
View attachment 44769

Thank you for the reply and info! I think you are exactly right. In desperation I again spun the TiVo customer service roulette wheel and luckily got a technically capable agent. She seemed to say the group settings for my TiVo Mini were misconfigured and that she'd have to escalate it to the backoffice technical team. Hopefully it isn't just another false hope and that they are able to resolve it. It just makes me think of all the hours I've wasted on the phone going through force connection and unplug rituals to have it be their issue.

 

[JoeKustra]

Thank you for the reply and info! I think you are exactly right. In desperation I again spun the TiVo customer service roulette wheel and luckily got a technically capable agent. She seemed to say the group settings for my TiVo Mini were misconfigured and that she'd have to escalate it to the backoffice technical team. Hopefully it isn't just another false hope and that they are able to resolve it. It just makes me think of all the hours I've wasted on the phone going through force connection and unplug rituals to have it be their issue.

I wish I could say I never heard of this before. But that's just a wish.

 

[dleclair]

So just out of curiosity and for the interim I picked up a TiVo Mini Vox this afternoon. Absolutely no issues setting it up, other than the mandatory update/guided set up. Connected to my Roamio straight away. So that narrows it down to either a defective TiVo Mini or bad settings on their end and not any of my network setup.

 

[dleclair]

Thank you to everyone for the input and advice. So after 48 more minutes this morning on the line with elevated support (they relayed info to engineering), as I suspected, it was indeed the Tivo To Go permissions preventing the box from being authorized. The old Mini was configured as "a,a,i,a", after they changed it to "i,i,a,a" the Mini immediately saw the host DVR, and live TV and prerecorded playback are both available. So if anyone is having V70 or playback errors, I would recommend checking the Tivo To Go permissions on the System Information diagnostics screen.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

How does one find and change these settings? I just got a brand new Edge and Mini Voxes and none of them can see the main DVR. In fact I can't get the TiVo app to do streaming either (iPhone or iPad). Nobody at TiVo has any clue how to solve this (it's not a networking issue) and they have resorted to sending me a brand new Edge DVR.

Everything I see says it's an account level problem, but nobody is able to fix it. Any idea who I can talk to over there to actually resolve it? Any idea what I can ask them to change on their end in relation to streaming to get it to work?

 

[dleclair]

How does one find and change these settings? I just got a brand new Edge and Mini Voxes and none of them can see the main DVR. In fact I can't get the TiVo app to do streaming either (iPhone or iPad). Nobody at TiVo has any clue how to solve this (it's not a networking issue) and they have resorted to sending me a brand new Edge DVR.

Everything I see says it's an account level problem, but nobody is able to fix it. Any idea who I can talk to over there to actually resolve it? Any idea what I can ask them to change on their end in relation to streaming to get it to work?

Just to eliminate the obvious -- have you already activated the Tivo Minis on Tivo's site? Were they used or new? Can you see them on your account page? And what is the particular error code or message you receive (and in what part of the process)?

Make sure the Video Transfer is enabled on for your Edge on the site as well.

As far as network equipment if you have any managed switches (and check your router as well) you will want to disable the IGMP snooping option if you have it.

Another thing you can do is go to your router and assign each device a static IP address. Go through each devices network settings setup and ensure they are configured for static IP, and that the address matches what you reserved.

If you go to the Help menu on your Edge box, and select Troubleshooting / Whole Network, you should be able to get a better idea of what your DVR can see and usually the error code for the Mini box on why it can't connect.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

Just to eliminate the obvious -- have you already activated the Tivo Minis on Tivo's site? Were they used or new? Can you see them on your account page? And what is the particular error code or message you receive (and in what part of the process)?

Make sure the Video Transfer is enabled on for your Edge on the site as well.

As far as network equipment if you have any managed switches (and check your router as well) you will want to disable the IGMP snooping option if you have it.

If you go to the Help menu on your Edge box, and select Troubleshooting / Whole Network, you should be able to get a better idea of what your DVR can see and usually the error code for the Mini box on why it can't connect.

Yeah, all the devices are brand new. Got them from Best Buy 2 weeks ago. And yes, all the mini devices are activated and they are visible in my account. Video transfer is enabled on the edge and on the site. Been around and around with TiVo support every day this past week doing all the usual troubleshooting.

My switch is a dumb switch (I will double check it to be sure) and while the router does block ICMP snooping, I turned that off for laughs but no impact. All my device on the internal network are able to ping each other.

Here is a link to a screen shot showing that the devices can see each other, but it's reporting an account level problem. The other two mini devices are all unplugged (but they did not work either).

iCloud

 

[Kendall Bennett]

Living Room
XXXX
TiVo EDGE Cable 2TB
12/13/2019 Service Only, Annual N/A Make any changes to your service plan within 30 days of activation or after your commitment is fulfilled.
Change this current plan
Cancel Service
Theater Room
XXXX
TiVo Mini VOX
Add extended warranty 12/13/2019 TiVo Mini Service Only, Product Lifetime N/A No other service plans are available for this device Cancel Service
Master Bedroom
XXXX
TiVo Mini VOX
Add extended warranty 12/13/2019 TiVo Mini Service Only, Product Lifetime N/A No other service plans are available for this device Cancel Service
Workout Room
XXXX
TiVo Mini VOX
Add extended warranty 12/13/2019 TiVo Mini Service Only, Product Lifetime N/A No other service plans are available for this device Cancel Service

 

[dleclair]

Here is a link to a screen shot showing that the devices can see each other, but it's reporting an account level problem.

I had exactly the same issue, if you go to your System Diagnostics screen (should be located at MENU > HELP > ACCOUNT & SYSTEM INFO), doublecheck your TivoToGo permissions. Mine were set incorrectly and the "Engineering Team" had to fix it. Ask to have your case escalated.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

Right thanks! Now I can see that it is set to a,i,a,a which according to others above is wrong. I will call them now. I have asked them up and down if something needs to be changed in my config and they have no clue. Thanks!!

 

[Kendall Bennett]

Any idea what the correct setting should be for Comcast/Xfinity?

 

[Kendall Bennett]

I swear I keep getting the same lady on the phone and she is clueless. She just tried to tell me that the TiVoToGo settings are not related to streaming on TiVo mini devices. No matter how many times I ask to have my case escalated I get punted back to first level support. They literally took my escalated case and emailed me back earlier in the week with the same mindless reboot steps (with two connections to TiVo service, like doing it twice is going to change anything).

She just wants to send me a new edge DVR, which will have the exact same issue if it shows up using the same account settings as this one (which she says is the default). Others in other threads says the a means allowed, so it would seem its the second i that’s causing the problem. Does anyone know what the four values means?

Anyway how do I convince them to get me to engineering so someone can actually fix it? I am about ready to get in the car on Monday and drive down to San Jose and chew them out in person at the head office.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

Well she finally escalated my case. After being on hold for 20 mins she finally says it should be a,a,a,a but apparently it takes 2-3 business days for someone to hit a few keys and fix this? Sheesh.

I hope this time when they escalate it, it will be fixed and not get punted back to me with the same mindless reboot and connect steps.

 

[dleclair]

She just wants to send me a new edge DVR, which will have the exact same issue if it shows up using the same account settings as this one (which she says is the default). Others in other threads says the a means allowed, so it would seem its the second i that's causing the problem. Does anyone know what the four values means?

They sent me a refurbished TiVo Mini that also didn't work for my issue, felt bad they wasted their time and shipping money, but I was willing to try anything they thought would rectify the issue.

To my knowledge the Tivo To Go permissions control the ability to utilize multiroom viewing and downloading programs (my assumption is a=active, i=inactive). There was a post where someone broke down what each letter signified, but I can't find it right now.

They said the configuration group was wrong for my unit, whatever that meant, and after a few forced connections those permissions updated and then everything worked.

 

[JoeKustra]

Does anyone know what the four values means?

The second pair are no longer used. On a Mini they should always show i,a. Note, they still may have an effect with FTP transfers, but I can't test that. They are left over from the days when you could block downloads from Amazon.

The first pair control whether you can transfer a program between TiVo boxes over your network. You can affect them in you account under Device Preferences. The same place where it has the (obsolete) option to download programs. A Mini should always be i,a. You can make the host i,a by unchecking the box for file sharing and performing a service connection OR a network diagnostic since both access your account. Notice that a Mini has that box as N/A since you can't stop a Mini from watching a program on its host. Not being able to use a host is an authorization issue only TiVo can fix once you find the right person.

And now that I have explained all that, forget you saw it. It all pertains to TE3. The problem (a,i for the first pair) can only be fixed by TiVo.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

This is getting a bit ridiculous. I got punted back to first level support and they wanted to me to do the 'reconnect two times' crap all over again. So I did. Oddly it failed the same way, like somehow they figured something would change when THEY HAVE NOT CHANGED ANYTHING? Isn't the definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result?

I actually had to point the 'tech supervisor' to this forum thread as they keep trying to tell me it's a networking issue. They want me to bypass my switch because. Conversation is something like this:

Me: It's hooked up to my switch
Them: Gasp. You have a switch!? Oohhhh. We don't recommend third party equipment so please try bypassing the switch and plugging directly into the router
Me: Wait, what? You realize the ports on the back of the router *are* a switch?
Them: Bypassing the switch is what we need to try
Me: I can't bypass the switch. My house has a 24 port switch which goes into the router in my upstairs room (server closet is downstairs).
Me: Besides, whoever told you that bypassing a switch is pulling wool over your eyes
Them: No, I disagree. We have lots of customers who solve their problems by bypassing the switch.
Me: Shakes head. I dunno what kind of 'switch' these customers bypassed

I just can't fathom this is part of their support strategy. They are so compartmentalized that literally the people I can get on the phone and even the people I can finally get to call me back, literally can't do anything. None of them have the ability to edit this field (honestly I don't think they even know what it is). I sent them screenshots of the errors and the support staff can't actually view the screenshots. Someone else can and tell them whats in it but they apparently can't view it? WTF.

So at this point I had to re-escalate my case again as they keep coming back and saying they are convinced it's a networking issue. Which is ridiculous as the two devices can see each other just fine, and they can all talk to the TiVo service just fine. I mean come on. If your hardware is so janky that somehow a regular old TP-Link 24-port gigabit switch is going to interfere with how their hardware devices can talk to each other, something is seriously wrong with their hardware. But that's all beside the point, as it's not a networking issue.

So at this point it's another 3-5 business days for my 'escalated' case to somehow get someone to look at it again. I just can't fathom why someone over there can't just 'hit the a key' and see if it fixes it?

Anyone got any suggestions on how to escalate this beyond first level support as there are literally no other phone numbers. I called the head office in San Jose and left a message, but of course nobody returned my call.

 

[DeltaOne]

Them: Gasp. You have a switch!? Oohhhh. We don't recommend third party equipment so please try bypassing the switch and plugging directly into the router.

I don't think it's reasonable to expect TiVo to help trouble-shoot third party equipment. The trick is...you just don't tell them about it. Say okay, put the phone down for 60 seconds, come back and tell them "Okay, I bypassed the switch."

BTW, switches do fail. Just yesterday I had a Netgear 8-port switch on my home network fail. I think it was about eight years old.

 

[Kendall Bennett]

I don't think it's reasonable to expect TiVo to help trouble-shoot third party equipment. The trick is...you just don't tell them about it. Say okay, put the phone down for 60 seconds, come back and tell them "Okay, I bypassed the switch."

BTW, switches do fail. Just yesterday I had a Netgear 8-port switch on my home network fail. I think it was about eight years old.

Sure, switches fail. That's the most likely scenario that they 'documented' where it fixed their issue, but if the switch is dead then nothing is going to work and the TiVo would not be able to phone home either.

My mistake was telling them I had a switch at all in the first place. Should have just said it was all hooked into the back of the router (all 24 of my house connections, connected to the 3 ports in the back of the router ).