Recorded TV Manager Add-in for Windows® Home Server

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MS Windows Home Server


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Home Server Add-in

Recorded TV Manager Tab

Collections

Select a series

1. Select a series to collect.


Choose a collection location

2. Choose a location to collect the series.


Choose a Media Center to watch the collection

3. Choose a Media Center computer to watch the series on.

AutoMove

AutoMove

AutoDelete

Settings
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Frequently Asked Questions

 

Are WTV files supported (Windows 7 and TV Pack)?

Yes, the program supports both dvr-ms files and WTV files.  See WTV file support.

Setting Permission Levels for Shared Folders on WHS

Shared folders on the WHS must permit Full user access to all client accounts which access them using Recorded TV Manager.  To set user access levels for shared folders on WHS:

  1. Open the Home Server Console.
  2. Select the Shared Folders tab.
  3. Right-click the folder and select Properties.
  4. Select the User Access tab.
  5. Insure that each user account running Recorded TV Manager has Full access permission.

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Setting Permission Levels for Recorded TV folders on client machines

The folders which you are trying to access must be shared and Windows Home Server must have sufficient permissions to access those folders on the client machine.  To set folder permissions:

  1. On the client machine, right-click the folder you want to share and select Properties.
  2. Select the Sharing tab.
  3. If the folder is not already shared, click Share to start sharing.
  4. Click Advanced Sharing... and in User Account Control click Continue.
  5. Make sure Share this folder is checked.
  6. Click Permissions.
  7. Select Allow Full Control for Everyone.
  8. Click OK.
  9. Click OK.
  10. Click Close.

Sometimes it is necessary to reboot the client machine before the change will take place.

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Why can't I access all my folders in the Add a Folder wizard?

The folders which you are trying to access must be shared and Windows Home Server must have sufficient permissions to access those folders on the client machine.  It may be necessary, especially if the client is a Windows XP machine, to follow one or more of the following procedures to solve this problem:

Workgroup - The default Workgroup name in the WHS install is "Workgroup".  If the computers on your network belong to a Workgroup with a different name, that may result in problems accessing folders.  To join the WHS to your workgroup:

  1. On the WHS machine, log in using the Administrator account.
  2. From the Start menu select Control Panel >> System
  3. Select the Computer Name tab and click Change...
  4. Under Member Of >> Workgroup enter the name of your workgroup
  5. Click OK and the WHS should be joined to your Workgroup.
  6. Reboot the WHS machine and client machines.

User Accounts - If the login account on the client machine does not have a matching User Account in Windows Home Server Console, you may have problems in accessing folders on the client machine.  To add a user account to the WHS:

  1. Log in to the Home Server Console on the client computer.
  2. Select the User Accounts tab.
  3. Click Add and add the client computer(s) user account/password to the list.
  4. For each user account, select Properties and enable the account.
  5. Select the Shared Folder Access tab and enable Full Access to shared folders for each account.

To check folder access from the WHS machine:

  1. On the WHS machine, log in using the Administrator account.
  2. From the Start menu select Windows Explorer.
  3. Expand My Network Places and insure that you can access the desired folders. If you can access the folders from My Network Places on the WHS, then you can add them to the Recorded TV Manager tab in Home Server Console.

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Can I turn off the popup and Network Health messages?

Yes. On the Recorded TV Manager Settings page,  check the Turn OFF AutoCopy notifications checkbox to stop notifications, then click Apply or OK.

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Known problems

  1. Ampersand character (&) in folder names.

Do not add folders to the folder list which include an ampersand character (&).  This can cause problems with the Collections wizard and AutoCopy Rules,  including possibly crashing the add-in.  If you have such a folder in the list which is causing problems, first Remove it from the folder list and then remove any AutoCopy rules which reference that folder.  To remove AutoCopy rules click Advanced on the Settings page.

  1. Changing folder names.

If you add a folder to the folder list and then, outside the console, change the actual name of the folder, this can cause problems because the folder list points to a non-existent location.  To change the actual name of a folder that is already in the folder list, first Remove it from the folder list and then remove any AutoCopy rules which reference that folder.  To remove AutoCopy rules click Advanced on the Settings page.  Rename the folder using Windows Explorer and then Add the newly named folder back to the folder list.

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Diagnosing <Not available>

The software 'pings' the computers in the folder list to determine if they are "available."  Some firewall and anti-virus programs may block the pings and the folders will be <Not available> even though you can navigate to them directly.

Windows Live OneCare - This procedure may be required (it is from public newsgroup postings):

> Open OneCare.
> Click Change Settings.
> On the Firewall tab, click Configure Firewall
> Make sure that the Network is shown as "Home or Work" and not "Public"
> If it is "Public" click Change Location
> Click Advanced settings
> On the Ports and protocols tab -
> place a check mark next to ICMPv4 Inbound
> note the state of the two entries for File and Printer Sharing:
> - for local network(subnet) should be checked
> - for subnet and Internet can optionally be checked.
> On the Network connections tab -
> make sure that there is only one active connection listed as connected.
> More than one active connection may cause the firewall to default to
> Public state, no matter that you've identified the network(s) as "Home or Work."
>
> Pings are not responded to by default unless you configure the ICMPv4 setting.

Windows Firewall - Sometimes folders are indicated as <Not Available> in the client application erroneously.  Turning off the Windows Firewall solves the problem and the folders are now available in the client application.  Work-around: Turn off the Windows Firewall where necessary.

Developer's Note: There is some setting in the Advanced Firewall Settings which is blocking ping in some way, and causing this problem.  If anyone knows what setting that is or how to fix this, please send e-mail to support@fjdrasch.com and I'll post it here.

Norton Internet Security

(Thanks to Vince Potts)

> My machines all run Vista, have one form or another of Norton
> firewall and static IP addresses. I had to enable "NetBIOS over TCP/IP"
> I had to open Norton Firewall Protection Settings/Firewall General Rules
> and ALLOW these Default Block rules:-
> 1. Default Block Inbound and Outbound ICMPV6
> 2. Default Block Inbound and Outbound ICMP

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Setting AutoCopy Service Recovery Options

The Recorded TV AutoCopy Service runs as a windows service application on the Windows Home Server.  Occasionally an unexpected error may cause the AutoCopy Service to stop.  You can restart the service from the Settings page of the Recorded TV Manager tab on the Home Server console.

However, it might take some time before you realize that the service has stopped.  You can configure recovery options for the AutoCopy service and it will automatically restart after a failure.

  1. Log on to the Home Server directly.
  2. From the Start menu select Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services to open the Services Manager.
  3. Scroll down to Recorded TV AutoCopy Service, right-click and select Properties.
  4. Select the Recovery tab.
  5. For First, Second and Subsequent Failures use the drop-down menu to select Restart the Service.
  6. Click OK, close the Services Manager and log off WHS.

Note: If the Recorded TV Manager Add-in is uninstalled and then reinstalled, this process will need to be repeated.

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