Myth or real...

davemich

SatelliteGuys Family
Feb 8, 2006
83
0
SW Lower Michigan
...I've heard so many people say that it is critical to turn off your receivers at night if you want to get the latest software downloads and that leaving a tuner on at night prevents the software from being downloaded. By turning off I mean powering off the tuner so that the lights are off on the receiver. Is this true?
 
I don't believe that is true. A couple of times I've been watching at the update time and a message screen comes on asking to update or cancel. If you make no selection in a certain amount of time, it starts the update. Regardless, this should be no issue if you have Inactivity Standby enabled.
 
I don't believe that is true. A couple of times I've been watching at the update time and a message screen comes on asking to update or cancel. If you make no selection in a certain amount of time, it starts the update. Regardless, this should be no issue if you have Inactivity Standby enabled.


what kab mentioned is true. the update process will take over automatically every night at the time you have set for which is usually at 3am be default
 
Also, it will not interrupt any recordings you might have scheduled.
 
In order for the the receiver to get its updates it needs to be in stand-by mode. You'll know it's in stand-by if you have the Dish Network hints and tips screen up. When you hit the power button on the remote it will go into stand-by. The only way to totally power down the unit is to unplug it.

You can go into the settings and check to see what time it is set to get updates. Off the top of my head I can't recall the default time but it's something like 1am or 3am.
As long as you're not watching programming at that time you're fine. You can also change the time for updates if the default setting conflicts with your regular viewing times.
 
In order for the the receiver to get its updates it needs to be in stand-by mode. You'll know it's in stand-by if you have the Dish Network hints and tips screen up. When you hit the power button on the remote it will go into stand-by. The only way to totally power down the unit is to unplug it.

You can go into the settings and check to see what time it is set to get updates. Off the top of my head I can't recall the default time but it's something like 1am or 3am.
As long as you're not watching programming at that time you're fine. You can also change the time for updates if the default setting conflicts with your regular viewing times.

i respectfully disagree :) i've been up at 3am watching tv when the update is scheduled and just like kab mentioned, the screen comes up asking to update or cancel. if you do nothing it automatically starts the update process. this was on my 622
 
Dish software has removed the option to refuse daily updates.

Receivers now will do the update at specified time whether or not you want it.

Only by manual intervention can you stop the process, but the next time you are not looking it will update.
 
My VIP211 also acts as described by KAB. The receiver will do an auto software update when in standby mode (that is when the receiver is plugged in and the screen saver is showing). If in active mode (that is when you are watching a show) the unit will interrupt the show with an on screen warning stating that the unit is about to be updated and giving you the option to abort. If you do nothing the update will be performed. If I'm not mistaken this is also when your guide updates.

And as JIM5506 stated, Dish removed the option to turn off the updates. The best you can do is move it to a time that is more convenient
 
...I've heard so many people say that it is critical to turn off your receivers at night if you want to get the latest software downloads and that leaving a tuner on at night prevents the software from being downloaded. By turning off I mean powering off the tuner so that the lights are off on the receiver. Is this true?

Let me try to make sense of this.

IF you have a single tuner receiver (DVR or not) especially an older receiver like a 501, 301, etc, the receiver must be in the standby mode to receive any updates.
Why? Because the receiver must "tune in" to the channel spooling the update to get it. If the receiver is on another channel, it cannot change channels to get the update.

IF you have a dual tuner receiver you do not need to have it in the standby mode. Why? Because there is usually a tuner available to switch to the correct channel for the download.

IF you have a dual tuner DVR, it will reboot at the selected time or after a recording is scheduled even if you leave it on. The nightly reboot is NOT the software check. It is just a reboot to prevent your receiver from acting flaky. When it restarts it will check for software also, but it checks for software whether or not you let it reboot.

If a dual tuner receiver has two recordings going on during the time that it would normally check for an update, it will wait until the recordings are over before it checks. If both tuners are occupied long enough after the scheduled time, it may just delay the check for 24 hours.

See ya
Tony
 
Also, for the ViP's, if you don't turn-off the DVR, it will NOT download the 1080P VOD Movie. These movies download in the wee hours of the night. I usually turn mine off and I always get the 1080P movie, but mom always has hers on through the night, and she NEVER has the 1080P downloaded. Both are 722's.
 
Even if you leave the reciever on accidentally, it will shut off on its own, at least on the tv2.

Well, it will for daily updates. If you're talking about the inactivity timeout, you can disable that (at least for the VIP DVR's).

I've watched TV in the mid-afternoon (My nightly reboots take place at 4 AM, etc.) and saw messages asking me if I want to update. Updates aren't always in the middle of the night.
 
Also, it will not interrupt any recordings you might have scheduled.
I disagree. I have had numerous recordings stopped by the the updates, I check my update time and then the schedule (menu-7? or DVR 3 times.) If the update is in the morning it is convenient to use "next day" to check for conflicts although you do have to get the info on each recording to see the span of its time.

You can change the update time (menu-8-4) and miss it for one or more days. If you do it is likely that the recorder will become less stable.

I have dodged many an update but WHY should we have to? It should NEVER interrupt a recording, ever! (I can only speak for the 622/722 series. The older 921 really became unstable without reboots.)

-Ken
 
My VIP211 also acts as described by KAB. The receiver will do an auto software update when in standby mode (that is when the receiver is plugged in and the screen saver is showing). If in active mode (that is when you are watching a show) the unit will interrupt the show with an on screen warning stating that the unit is about to be updated and giving you the option to abort. If you do nothing the update will be performed. If I'm not mistaken this is also when your guide updates.

And as JIM5506 stated, Dish removed the option to turn off the updates. The best you can do is move it to a time that is more convenient


Or keep in on L523 by never shutting it off or letting it go inactive. :)

One day it will update and I will have to make a fix to mythtv to force a update when it's idle.
 
Or keep in on L523 by never shutting it off or letting it go inactive. :)

One day it will update and I will have to make a fix to mythtv to force a update when it's idle.


what do you mean? are you referring to the firmware version when you say L523?
in order to never let it go inactive you might have to spend 24hrs a day watching tv :D let the box do its updates ;)
 
what do you mean? are you referring to the firmware version when you say L523?
in order to never let it go inactive you might have to spend 24hrs a day watching tv :D let the box do its updates ;)

Yeh, I was going WTF are you talking about.;)
 

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