Recorded TV Manager Add-in for 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
Drasch Computer Software

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Copyright © 2008
Drasch Computer Software

Frequently Asked Questions

 

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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WHS Data Corruption Bug

Update: March 11, 2008

There is known bug in WHS that in some cases can corrupt data files on the WHS.  See here and here.  This situation applies to the Recorded TV Manager data files which are stored in the shared folder Software, specifically the data file "Series.xml" which contains the Series Info database and is regularly updated by both the add-in and the client application.

Until this bug is resolved, it is highly recommended that you regularly make backup copies of the Recorded TV Manager data files.  You can safely backup the files to a different shared folder on the WHS, because the backup copies are static, or you can back them up to a client machine.  In the shared folder named Software on the WHS, locate the sub-folder Recorded TV Manager and then backup the xml files in the folder named Data.

If a data file becomes corrupted, use the Recorded TV Manager Settings page to turn the AutoCopy service off, click Apply and then shut down the console.  Close any instances of the client application running on client machines.  Replace the corrupted file with the saved copy.  Any changes since the copy was made will be lost.  If you do not have a backup copy of the corrupted file, then delete the corrupted file and reconstruct using Recorded TV Manager.  Restart the AutoCopy service.

The Recorded TV Manager client application automatically backs up the Series.xml file each time it runs.  See Version 3.4.4 Release Notes.

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Known problems with Build 3.4.3

  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.

  1. Non-English Editions of Windows Home Server

This software expects to find a shared folder on the Windows Home Server named 'Software' where the add-in is installed and the program maintains data files.  On some language editions of Windows Home Server, this folder name is localized and not 'Software'.  Do not rename that folder or create a new folder named Software.  Install the add-in in the default Software share, regardless of it's localized name.

The first time the Recorded TV Manager WHS Client application runs on any client, it looks for a shared folder on the Windows Home Server named 'Software'.  If it doesn't find that folder it will ask you to "Please locate the Recorded TV Manager Windows Home Server Add-In.".  Click Retry and then use the Browse for Folder dialog to navigate to the shared folder on the Home Server where the add-in was installed.  Select the file named 'RecordedTVManagerWHSAddin.msi' and then click OK.  The folder path must be in UNC format and selected in the manner described in Add a Folder.

This procedure will need to be repeated on each client machine on which you install the Recorded TV Manager Client application.  The client application will store the path in the registry on the local machine so it will only be required the first time the application runs.  However, if the server name changes or the path is somehow invalid, the client application may not run.  From the Start menu, select Accessories then Run, type 'regedit' and then click OK.  This will start the registry editor.  Navigate to this registry key

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Drasch Computer Software\Recorded TV Manager WHS Client

and delete the variable named PATH.

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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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