Sage TV Server ?

[richjthorpe]

Hi all,

I was directed here from someone suggesting SageTV from another forum (AVForums.com) as I am trying to find a solution to the network I want to build.

I'm pretty sure that what I want to do can be done with SageTV but I want to make sure !

OK, I want to put together a Server that will provide for 2 clients. In the Server will be multiple Digital TV tuners and heap of Hard Drives.

1. I want to be able to use the Clients to watch Live TV by using the tuners in the Server.

2. I want to be able to browse the EPG using the Clients and set a program to record on the Clients and the recordings be saved on the Server for any of the Clients to view.

3. If what I have read is correct, then I need Sage Recorder on the Server and Sage TV on each of the Clients. Do I need multiple iterations of the Recorder software, one for each tuner, running on the server ? Do I need multiple licenses of SageTV in order to install it on 2 clients on the same network or do I only need one license ?

4. Can any Tuner cards be used or are there specific ones that Sage uses ?

5. Searching through the forum, some people were complaining about Sage saving to the Hard Drive then reading from the Hard Drive causing a 2 second delay. Has this been resolved with the latest version ?

6. In the UK, there are interactive services on Digital TV. Can Sage access these Interactive services ?

Thanks,

Richie.

[amg]

1. I want to be able to use the Clients to watch Live TV by using the tuners in the Server.

Yes.

2. I want to be able to browse the EPG using the Clients and set a program to record on the Clients and the recordings be saved on the Server for any of the Clients to view.

Yes.

3. If what I have read is correct, then I need Sage Recorder on the Server and Sage TV on each of the Clients. Do I need multiple iterations of the Recorder software, one for each tuner, running on the server ? Do I need multiple licenses of SageTV in order to install it on 2 clients on the same network or do I only need one license ?

No. I think you want SageTV on the server, and SageTVClient on the Clients. You would need one license for SageTV and a client license for each client machine.

5. Searching through the forum, some people were complaining about Sage saving to the Hard Drive then reading from the Hard Drive causing a 2 second delay. Has this been resolved with the latest version ?

Sage records all programming to the hard drive and plays from there. It does encur a delay. The only reason I can see the delay as a problem is with video games.

[mdmint]

Originally Posted by richjthorpe

Hi all,

I was directed here from someone suggesting SageTV from another forum (AVForums.com) as I am trying to find a solution to the network I want to build.

I'm pretty sure that what I want to do can be done with SageTV but I want to make sure !

OK, I want to put together a Server that will provide for 2 clients. In the Server will be multiple Digital TV tuners and heap of Hard Drives.

1. I want to be able to use the Clients to watch Live TV by using the tuners in the Server.

Yes is correct. I currently have 5 tuners in my Sage Server feeding 3 Clients.

2. I want to be able to browse the EPG using the Clients and set a program to record on the Clients and the recordings be saved on the Server for any of the Clients to view.

Absolutely.

3. If what I have read is correct, then I need Sage Recorder on the Server and Sage TV on each of the Clients. Do I need multiple iterations of the Recorder software, one for each tuner, running on the server ? Do I need multiple licenses of SageTV in order to install it on 2 clients on the same network or do I only need one license ?

SageTV on Server, SageTV Client on each Client. Sage Recorder is an old digital VCR, not PVR, which is only needed if using a tuner in a Client in Network Mode for use by the Server.

4. Can any Tuner cards be used or are there specific ones that Sage uses ?

Any SUPPORTED tuner card will work. Check system requirements. http://www.sagetv.com/requirements.html?sageSub=tv

5. Searching through the forum, some people were complaining about Sage saving to the Hard Drive then reading from the Hard Drive causing a 2 second delay. Has this been resolved with the latest version ?

SageTV is at it's core a PVR, Personal Video Recorder. As such it always records before playback. How else to pause, jump back etc during "live" TV? It is not a problem in the software, it is the nature of all PVRs.

6. In the UK, there are interactive services on Digital TV. Can Sage access these Interactive services ?

Don't know.

[waynedunham]

Originally Posted by mdmint

SageTV on Server, SageTV Client on each Client. Sage Recorder is an old digital VCR, not PVR, which is only needed if using a tuner in a Client in Network Mode for use by the Server.

I believe you can use network sources on a client without using Sage Recorder. Recorder hasn't been updated in a LONG while, is it even compatible with Sage 3.x?

[JUC]

you can't use sage client as a networked encoder---You used to be able to (and some still do and can) use sageclient and sagerecorder on the client machine and use it as a networked encoder/client but now you can just use a second instance of sagetv as a client/networked encoder.

[mdmint]

Originally Posted by waynedunham

I believe you can use network sources on a client without using Sage Recorder. Recorder hasn't been updated in a LONG while, is it even compatible with Sage 3.x?

I don't know about Recorder compatibility or need with 3.x beta Client versions, Recorder was needed for a Network Mode encoder up to and including current released version SageTV Client. (Unless running a second copy of SageTV itself on the Client in it's undocumented and unsupported use for Network Mode encoding.) Network encoder functionality may have been added to v3.x but since my system is rock solid with v2.28 and Cayars v18c on Clients and in use both recording and playback daily I've not played with the v3 betas. If it works don't fix it especially with new seasons recording going on! I do know Recorder works fine as a Network Mode encoder with the latest released version of SageTV, 2.28. Of course tuners supported by Sage Recorder is very limited but it works fine with PVR250 originally installed in my main HPTC for overflow tuner and to use it's remote. Since replacing some of the PVR250s in my Server with PVR500s I haven't needed the 6th tuner provided in main HTPC but still use the remote so haven't bothered pulling that PVR250...

[richjthorpe]

Thanks a lot guys, that's cleared a lot of things.

Richie.

[pjwerdna]

Originally Posted by richjthorpe

6. In the UK, there are interactive services on Digital TV. Can Sage access these Interactive services ?

No Becuase Sage does not work with digital TV cards.

The best you can do is a digital tuner connected to the s-video inpuits of an analogue card.

You need something to change channels on the tuner box so you can record any digital channel, but that's as far as the posibilities go I think.

Hopefully they'll do something about this in the next few years or sagetv will become useless in the UK.