TiVo Community Forums Archives - PPP over Serial w/WinXP works with Series 2 DTivos

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PPP over Serial w/WinXP works with Series 2 DTivos
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Posted by: Wapcaplet

I'm a recent DTivo convert who can't believe how great the service is, and how great the Tivo community (and tivocommunity.com) are. I've learned a lot in the few months I've been lurking.

A lot of my research went into the question of how to get my HDVR2 to dial out over the Internet without hacking it. Everything I've read here says it can't be done without playing with the kernal. (I have measured rate landline service instead of flat rate, because I use my cell phone almost exclusively.) I'm aware of the fact that the DTivo really doesn't need to make the call, but I wanted to solve the problem anyway. :) Also, I'm waiting for the warranty to expire before playing around inside my DTivo.

I'm here to report that my HDVR2 has successfully completed a Tivo call over my broadband Net connection using a PPP over Serial connection to my Windows XP box -- and it works without opening the box up.

Otto has written an excellent guide to setting up the connection:

http://www.b-lan.com/otto/tivo3xp/

As noted, you will need a null modem connection between your DTivo and your computer -- I use a Tivo serial cable (available at the Tivo Store, Weaknees and 9thtee) and a 15' null modem 9-pin to 9-pin cable I bought at Amazon. (The 9thtee cable already is wired for null modem applications). This method only works with 3.1, which is what my HDVR2 came with.

Follow the instructions, and it should work for you. No more phone calls to Tivo!

My setup, and my experience:

Windows XP Professional
Netgear MR314 wireless DSL router
SBC Yahoo DSL service

My Netgear router wouldn't assign an IP address using DHCP to my HDVR2, so under "Incoming TCP/IP Properties" in Step 3 of Otto's guide, I had to manually set a range of addresses. Once I did that, the connection went through. My network uses 192.168.0.x, so the range I set was 192.168.0.5 to 192.168.0.6.

I was able to connect at 112,500 over a combined cable length of about 22', but you might need to bump the speed down if your cable length is too long or your cable quality isn't very good. As noted, you set the dialing prefix's last two digits to the first two digits of the speed you want to use.

Remember to turn off flow control! Besides setting this in the Incoming Connections Properties box, you might have to do this in the Control Panel. Select System, then the Hardware tab, then the Device Manager button. Open Ports (COM & LPT), then open the serial port your cable is connected to, and select the Port Settings tab.

There are plenty of other posts in this forum about PPP over Serial that are directly applicable, so do a quick search for more in-depth information. I'm happy to help with Series 2 DTivo problems, though the answers should be similar to those given to Series 1 and SA Tivo questions already posted here.

Note that this method can be used only for the call to Tivo, not the call to DirecTV. That call is to a toll-free number, not a local dial-in POP. Then again, you don't have to worry about the DirecTV call unless you order PPV stuff or sports packages.

Many thanks to Otto for his guide!

(Edit: corrected URL for Otto's guide)

Posted by: ADent

Glad to see it (though the link is not working at this moment).

We miss you Otto (though I do see you pop up elsewhere on the web).

Posted by: dr_mal

Just a note that lan.com has been sold by its owner. The new address for the mirror of Otto's PPP over serial is: http://www.b-lan.com/otto/tivo3xp/

Posted by: QKriel

Hi,

I am having problems getting this to work.

I have followed all the instructions, but still no luck.

In the trouble shooting section of Otto's instructions he says you can tryHyperTerminal. I tried this, i get the 5/6 lines of garbage but i don't get the words 'User Request', i have changed the port setting as indicated i even tried several different speeds but still no luck.

Any ideas.

Thanks
Quinton