SageTV Beta RC2 Now Available

[dkardatzke]

Beta Version RC2 of all applications is now available at http://www.sage.tv/beta.html. Please install and confirm there are no more bugs or outstanding items for version 1.4.

Thanks,
Dan

[sub]

Was the software hanging on PVR350 with software decoding disabled fixed? Please say yes...

[Narflex]

No, not yet. I'm still waiting on some information from Hauppauge related to it. It's not going to be fixed for the 1.4 official release unfortunately.

[hubick]

Originally posted by Narflex
No, not yet. I'm still waiting on some information from Hauppauge related to it. It's not going to be fixed for the 1.4 official release unfortunately.

:( :( :(

This is a big one for me too. The computer I'm using for Sage is older, and I'm relying on hardware decoding to make it useable.

The machine seems ok coping with IO from the upgrade to the Promise Ultra 133 controller card and drive I put in, but the onboard builtin motherboard video makes Sage /far/ less responsive without software decoding disabled.

[robogeek]

Jeff,

I think I found a problem with the Auto-categorization in the TV Library. Not sure if it's just me or what :) I haven't been in the TV Library in a while, but I could have sworn it was working in the last official release. Maybe a bug...or a corrupt wiz.bin?

What's happening is when I go into the Guide and select auto-categorized shows to 'Move to Library' it will categorize the shows I have just moved properly in the TV Library, but all other shows in the same category in the TV Library are now listed individually and no longer categorized. For instance, I added 5 episodes of Seinfeld to the TV Library and they show up as a Seinfeld category with 5 recordings but all the other Seinfeld shows are now listed individually outside of the Seinfeld category and not in the Seinfeld category. I should also mention, they seem to be categorizing properly in the Sage Recordings and Guide, but get messed up somehow after being moved to the TV Library.

If needed, attached is a copy of my SageTV log (sorry it's kinda big...RC2 has been running smooth for a couple of days now). If you need more logs, let me know and I'll email them.

Thanks.

[cryptAWD]

I have been able to duplicate the following behavior with 1.38, 1.48RC1, and now RC2. All of my recordings are stored on a server separate from my SageTV machine via a shared point mapped as drive Z. Whenever I am forced to restart the file server (kernel updates, hardware upgrades, etc.) Sage immediately "loses" all of its recordings. Once the server comes back up, the recordings are all moved into the Video Library. To me, this is an unacceptable behavior. Why can't Sage say "Hey, the files that weren't there are back! Let's put them back where they belong?" Isn't anyone else using share points around here?

Brian

[cryptAWD]

Oops, here's the log file. The behavior begins Friday 8/22 21:50, just when the server was restarted. I had to edit is quite a bit to fit in the file size limit, but there should be plenty still there. This log is from 1.48RC1. I rolled back from RC2 to see if it was a new bug or not.

Brian

[mlbdude]

This is how Sage has worked all along. I don't use sharepoints for the Sage recordings, but I do use them for the Library. If Sage can't find the files it cleans up its listings. I don't think moving them back in forth will happen any time soon, but perhaps Sage can put a timeout on them? Say 5 minutes then they are moved?

[Ainvar]

This happened to me also when I installed a new 160gb drive in the workstation I use for this. I moved the folder contents a new partition that is solely for sagetv. I lost 3 weeks worth of recordings of my favorite shows and no matter what I tried I could not make sage see them again. So I took that oppurtunity to format the system and do so long needed fixing of everything for it. I have a server I would like to use as my library on sage that has 4 200 gig drives in it but I am afraid when I redo the server (new hardware and more drives) that I will lose everything like I did on my workstation.


Not sure if I overlooked something or did not use the right strings in the search.


-Ainvar

[cryptAWD]

I understand this is the way Sage has worked in the past, but that does not mean it is the way it has to be. Not long ago there wasn't even a client/server setup. We all know Frey has been more than willing to meet our needs and this should be a relatively easy fix IMO.

A simple timeout like you mention would suffice. Or how about an option for Sage NOT to clean up unless you tell it to. A "Clean Up Now" button for example? I'm sure others are using or would like to use share points, and to me this is a major limitation. No server has 100% uptime!

[Lester Jacobs]

It should be possible for SageTV to support sharepoints by changing its behaviour when it encounters file errors. Currently it looks like when Sage encounters a file error, it assumes that the file has been deleted and removes it from its database. When the file shows up later (eg. when the share reappears) SageTV has no entry in its database for the file (since it deleted it previously) and thus moves the file to the Video Library.

Perhaps SageTV could first check whether the entire Sage Recording directory is accessible before investigating the status of each file. If the entire directory is inaccessible, then perhaps it points to a bigger problem. Thus SageTV could, instead of deleting file entries from its database, prompt the user with a dialog informing him of the problem and giving him a choice of correcting the problem or continuing with the file delete.

If the Sage Recording directory is accessible and the individual files are not, then I think SageTV is justified in deleting the entries.

On a related topic, it would be nice if SageTV could make the task of moving files from one drive to another a bit easier. Specifically, I shoudl be able to change the name of the directory where the files are stored. This way if I move my files from my D; drive to my E; drive because E: has more space, I should be able to copy all the files from D: to E: and then tell SageTV that all of thre files that were previously on D; are now on E:.

Cheers
Lester

[edmc]

Where's the DELETE Command? Most menu commands are possible via the keyboard shortcuts and, hence, eligible to be taught an R/C code - at least most of the useful ones. Alas, not the fairly useful DELETE Command :-)

[fidget]

Originally posted by Lester Jacobs
It should be possible for SageTV to support sharepoints by changing its behaviour when it encounters file errors. Currently it looks like when Sage encounters a file error, it assumes that the file has been deleted and removes it from its database. When the file shows up later (eg. when the share reappears) SageTV has no entry in its database for the file (since it deleted it previously) and thus moves the file to the Video Library.

Perhaps SageTV could first check whether the entire Sage Recording directory is accessible before investigating the status of each file. If the entire directory is inaccessible, then perhaps it points to a bigger problem. Thus SageTV could, instead of deleting file entries from its database, prompt the user with a dialog informing him of the problem and giving him a choice of correcting the problem or continuing with the file delete.

If the Sage Recording directory is accessible and the individual files are not, then I think SageTV is justified in deleting the entries.
From reading the documentation on how to integrate SageRecorder and SageTV, I get the impression that SageTV does not really know which shows were recorded via SageRecorder. This is due to the requirement that both SageRecorder and SageTV must use the same drive letters. SageTV commands a tuner to record a show, that just happens to be over the network, and expects the results to be written on any one of a sequence of directories (at least that is how I would design it). Making the SageTV core know which tuners are local and which are remote (or which drives are shares) could cause maintainability problems because the software now "knows too much."

It would probably be easier to ask the user about the missing files and have them approve their deletion from the database.

[robogeek]

I just noticed today that the SageTV isn't updating the Guide with
the XMLTV plugin. It was working before and I haven't changed
my xmltv setup since I last had it working. I installed RC2 about
a week ago, so the amount of Guide data left in my Guide seems
to correspond with the time I installed RC2. Here is a snippet
from the SageTV log file with the error:

Sun 8/24 10:34:31.430 EPG needs an update in 0 minutes
Sun 8/24 10:34:31.430 EPG attempting to expand XMLTV Lineup
Sun 8/24 10:34:31.430 expand called on XMLTV Lineup at Sun 8/24 10:34:31.430 expandedUntil=Sat 8/23 0:26:24.507 confirmedUntil=Wed 12/31 18:00:00.000
Sun 8/24 10:34:31.446 EPG Expanding XMLTV Lineup at Sun 8/24 10:34:31.446
Sun 8/24 10:34:31.618 WarlockRipper logged in OK.
java.io.FileNotFoundException: epgdata.xml (The system cannot find the file specified)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at java.io.FileInputStream.open(Native Method)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at java.io.FileInputStream.<init>(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at java.io.FileInputStream.<init>(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at xmltv.XMLTVImportPlugin.updateGuide(XMLTVImportPlugin.java:70)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at sage.ak.C(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at sage.bg.B(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at sage.bd.hF(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at sage.ak.run(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 ERROR Updating EPG Source XMLTV Lineup
Sun 8/24 10:34:32.133 ErrorText:expand called on XMLTV Lineup at Sun 8/24 10:34:31.430 expandedUntil=Sat 8/23 0:26:24.507 confirmedUntil=Wed 12/31 18:00:00.000
EPG Expanding XMLTV Lineup at Sun 8/24 10:34:31.446

Here is a snippet of the SageTVClient log file from the same time
frame:

Sun 8/24 10:34:27.143 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:30.848 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2392]
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.373 Received command of:CARNY_SYNC_WPMAP 119 from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.503 Received command of:CARNY_SYNC_CAUSEMAP 124 from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.503 Received command of:CARNY_SYNC_MUSTSEE 48 from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.564 Received command of:SCHEDULE_CHANGED 0 from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.564 VF processing job null nPlayin=false
Sun 8/24 10:34:41.564 VF thread is now waiting for 0:00:00.000
Sun 8/24 10:34:42.144 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2390]
Sun 8/24 10:34:45.850 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=2392]



At the time it tried to update, there was an epgdata.xml file in the
SageTV directory and it wasn't open or in use by any other
programs at the time. I tried to get the guide to manually update
using the Channel Setup trick but that didn't work either and the
System Information said that the guide was last updated at Sun
8/24 10:34am as the log shows and the Next Update in 0 min,
but never updated. Closing a restarting SageTV was the only
way to get my guide data updated.

I also noticed the SageTVClient log was huge approx 150MB.
That's a rate of about 21MB per day :) Doesn't seem to cause any
problems, but of the 150MB (7 days) the log contains mostly
these in rapid succession:

Sat 8/23 22:00:22.047 VF processing job null nPlayin=true
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.047 VF thread is now waiting for 0:00:00.001
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.047 VF processing job null nPlayin=true
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.067 VF thread is now waiting for 0:00:00.001
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.067 VF processing job null nPlayin=true
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.067 VF thread is now waiting for 0:00:00.001
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.067 VF processing job null nPlayin=true
Sat 8/23 22:00:22.067 VF thread is now waiting for 0:00:00.001

and these:

Mon 8/25 9:55:42.871 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=1841]
Mon 8/25 9:55:43.171 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=1839]
Mon 8/25 9:55:57.873 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=1841]
Mon 8/25 9:55:58.173 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=1839]
Mon 8/25 9:56:12.874 Received command of:NOOP from Socket[addr=dvr-server/192.168.1.100,port=42024,localport=1841]

[fidget]

I've seen that when you have SageTV start itself on power-up (through the advanced settings). If you start via the shortcut on the desktop, or via the application iteslf, SageTV starts in the proper directory for using the XMLTV plugin. I've posted about this bug in the past. What I have done is put a shortcut to the SageTV appliction in my Startup folder so that it will start in the proper directory.

[robogeek]

Ahhh, that might explain it. :) I have the startup option enabled in the Advanced Setup, but I guess since I'm always making changes to the system and often restarting SageTV from the shortcut on the desktop I never noticed the shortage of Guide data until now.

[justme]

Just wanted to say Thanx to Narflex for the best round of betas yet. IMO:) The amount of features added and small "bugs" squashed is incredible. If you added this much for a point release...I'm going to have to revise my expectations for Sage Studio, Sage2, or whatever it gets called.:)

I know this is just shameless praise, but we users tend to ask a lot from Frey and from Jeff, in particular. So every now and then I think you should stop and say thanks. :coffee:

PS:From reading another thread's post (http://www.freytechnologies.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=9420#post9420) it looks like Jeff has finalized the 1.4 release.:)

[David Lawrance]

RC2 recorded from the wrong encoder card two nights ago (I have two PVR250s in my system.) Quit and restarted, and everything is fine since. David

[Narflex]

David, please post/email your sage_tv_x.txt log file from that occassion please. Also indicate which show you're referring to, and the time this occured at.