Contents

Is it possible to use ExPVR to transfer my Sky+ HD recordings to a larger disk?

Is it possible to use ExPVR to copy my Sky+ / Sky+ HD recordings to a new box?

Can ExPVR copy from a standard definition Sky+ box or Thompson Sky HD box to a newer Sky+ HD device?

Can ExPVR copy Sky+ or Sky+HD recordings to my PC (to watch in media playing software)?

Which PVRs are supported?

Does this application support the extraction of encrypted recordings?

Which recordings are encrypted?

What software do I need to watch the extracted recordings?

How do I attach the hard disk from my Sky+ HD or other XTV-Based PVR to my computer?

Does this application change the hard drive in any way?

My target disk is not listed in ExPVR, how can I make it be detected?

Are my scheduled recordings copied to the new disk/device too?

What do the colours and letters beside each planner item mean?

• Is it possible to use ExPVR to transfer my Sky+ HD recordings to a larger disk?

  Yes, ExPVR will allow you to upgrade the hard disk in your Sky+ HD box to a larger size, while retaining all of your existing recordings.

• Is it possible to use ExPVR to copy my Sky+ / Sky+ HD recordings to a new box?

  Yes, ExPVR will allow you to copy recordings from any of the supported Sky boxes to a new one. Note that the new box must be one of the HD models (for a full list of supported devices, please see our Device Support section).

• Can ExPVR copy from a standard definition Sky+ box or Thompson Sky HD box to a newer Sky+ HD device?

  Yes! The older boxes (standard definition Sky+ and Thompson Sky+ HD) have a different planner format, but ExPVR is designed to handle this. ExPVR will automatically convert your planner as part of the transfer process.

• Can ExPVR copy Sky+ or Sky+HD recordings to my PC (to watch in media playing software)?

  Yes, ExPVR is able to extract all recordings which are not encrypted, these can then be viewed in your favourite video playing software or portable device.

• Which devices are supported?

  Please see our device support page.

• Does this application support the extraction of encrypted recordings?

  Unfortunately this feature cannot be added. I am not sure of the legality of such a feature and in any case, Sky would take a very dim view; for these reasons I will never add this to ExPVR.

  If you extract an encrypted recording, it will still copy but the recording wont be viewable on your computer (it will still be encrypted).

  Note that copying encrypted recordings to another Sky+ HD hard disk or a disk image will work fine. The encrypting only prevents watching the recordings on a PC.

• Which recordings are encrypted?

  Recordings from channels you have to have your card inserted to view, are encrypted. Recordings from other, free to air channels (BBC1, BBC HD, ITV, E4 etc.) will extract fine.

  Encrypted recordings are highlighted in a pale red in ExPVR.

• What software do I need to watch the extracted recordings?

  The recordings are extracted as standard *.TS files (MPEG Transport Stream). VLC Media Player is recommended for viewing these but they can also be viewed in any Direct Show player (e.g. Media Player/Media Center/DVBViewer) with the correct codecs.

• How do I attach the hard disk from my Sky+ HD or other XTV-Based PVR to my computer?

  All XTV-Based PVRs contain standard PC hard disks with either an IDE or SATA connection. All Sky+ HD boxes have SATA hard disks. It is recommended you connect your hard disk via an external SATA or IDE caddy, but it also possible to connect them internally as long as you read the warnings in the support section. For more information please read the tutorials here.

• Does this application change the source hard drive in any way?

  ExPVR only reads from your PVR hard disk, it will not make any changes. It is therefore safe to use without any worry of corruption.

• My target disk is not listed in ExPVR, how can I make it be detected?

  Your target disk must be blank before it will display as a target in ExPVR. This is to prevent the accidental overwriting of the wrong disk. There is a guide describing how to delete partitions from a disk on our forums.

• Are my scheduled recordings copied to the new disk/device too?

  Yes, your scheduled recordings will also appear in ExPVR and can be selected in the same way as ones that have been previously recorded.

• What do the colours and letters beside each planner item mean?

  ExPVR colour codes recordings based on the following parameters:

  Red Background	Encrypted recording
  Blue Text	On Demand recording
  Grey Text	Deleted recording (in 'Recycle Bin')
  Black Text	Standard user recording or scheduled recording

  There are also a number of letters to the left of each item which indicate:

  s__	Scheduled recording
  _u_	User recording
  _v_	On demand recording
  __e	Encrypted recording

Darwin and OpenTV

The Sky+, Sky+ HD boxes (and their varients from providers in other countries) all run a software called XTV. There are two major versions of this software; an older OpenTV-based system (used by standard definition Sky+ in the UK) and an new-linux based one (originally code-named 'Darwin') which is used by the Sky+ HD boxes.

ExPVR fully supports hard drives from Darwin systems and can both read them and write them. However, ExPVR is only able to read OpenTV disks (it cannot write them).

In summary you can perform the following types of copies:

• OpenTV -> Darwin
• Darwin -> Darwin

But you cannot do:

• OpenTV -> OpenTV
• Darwin -> OpenTV

Model Numbers

You will be able to find out which model of Sky+ device you have by looking at the sticker on the rear panel of your box.

Sky (UK)

PVR Model	Comments
Sky+ HD (Darwin): Pace TDS850NB Samsung HDSKY Amstrad DRX780 Sky DRX890 Sky DRX895	All models are fully supported and tested
Sky+ HD (OpenTV): Thompson DSI8215 Sky+ SD (OpenTV): Pace BSKYB3000 Pace BSKYB3100 Amstrad DRX-180 Thompson DSI6210 Pace TDS470N Pace TD570N Amstrad DRX-280 Thompson DSI8210	ExPVR has support for copying from these boxes (either to a Darwin Sky+ HD box or your computer). Copies to legacy OpenTV devices are not supported.

Sky Italia

PVR Model	Comments
My Sky HD (Darwin)	Our users have used ExPVR with various Sky Italia PVRs (both darwin and legacy) and have reported success.
My Sky (OpenTV)

Foxtel (Australia)

PVR Model	Comments
Foxtel iQHD (Darwin)	Our users have used ExPVR with some Foxtel iQ and iQHD PVRs and have reported success.
Foxtel iQ (OpenTV)

KabelBW (Germany)

PVR Model	Comments
Humax iHD-PVR C (OpenTV)	There is experimental support for copying recorings from this device, including extracting recordings for PC viewing.

Sky Deutschland (Germany)

PVR Model	Comments
Sky+ (Darwin*)	Sky Deutschland use a slightly different hard disk layout to other providers and disks from these devices are not yet fully supported. Please see the post on our forums for more details.

Other

This application should work with other XTV-Based PVRs with similar firmware. The best way to find out is to try the free version. There is no risk in trying this application as it makes no modifications to the source disk.

If you do try another box please send me an email telling whether or not it works! I can then either add it to this list or add support.

Version Comparison

	ExPVR Free	ExPVR+	ExPVR Commercial
Price	Free!	£19.99	Contact for details
Extract From Sky+ HD to PC (to watch on PC)	Limited to 200Mb per recording
Copy Between Sky+ HD Hard Drives	Limited to 15 recordings per copy
Copy recordings from a Sky+ box to Sky+ HD box	Limited to 15 recordings per copy
Format a new disk for use in a Sky+ HD box
Merge recordings from multiple Sky+ HD boxes
Display all the details of each recording in the planner
Use for commercial purposes
	Download

Copying Between Hard Drives

ExPVR allows the copying of recordings to a new Sky+ HD hard disk. This allows you to upgrade your Sky+ HD hard drive to a greater size without losing your recordings!

Current Features

• Able to extract all non-encrypted recordings from supported PVRs.
• Copy recordings between Sky+ HD hard disks.
• Repair issues with your Sky+ HD recordings.
• Copy recordings from older Sky+ devices to newer Sky+ HD boxes
• Format new hard disks for use in an XTV based PVR.
• Able to choose which recordings to copy to the new disk.
• Re-adds PMT, PAT, ECM and PCR to the recordings to increase compatibility with video players.
• Easy to use, intuitive interface.
• Supports batch copies, just select all the recordings you want to extract and ExPVR will do the rest!
• Full planner support; all the details of each recording are shown, including the channel name, recording title and synopsis.
• Complete help file guiding you through the extraction process.
• Able to extract directly from the disk, or from a disk image.
• Merging of recordings on multiple hard disks onto one.
• All future updates are included in the price!

Planned Features

• Planner editing.
• Adding new video files to the planner.
• If you have any more suggestions please post in our forums!

Contents

Does this application support the extraction of encrypted recordings?

Which recordings are encrypted?

What software do I need to watch the extracted recordings?

Is it possible to copy recordings to a new, larger, XTV formated hard disk which can be used in place of the old one?

Will Push VOD 'Sky Anytime Showcase' recordings work?

Which PVRs are supported?

How do I attach the hard disk from my Sky+ HD or other XTV-Based PVR to my computer?

Does this application change the hard drive in any way?

I have copied my recordings to a new hard drive, but there a some "failed" entries in my planner.

 

• Does this application support the extraction of encrypted recordings?

  Unfortunately this feature cannot be added. I am not sure of the legality of such a feature and in any case, Sky would take a very dim view; for these reasons I will never add this to ExPVR. There is however a plug-in API which you could use to add this feature if you wished.

  If you extract an encrypted recording, it will still copy but the recording wont be viewable on your computer (it will still be encrypted).

  Note that copying encrypted recordings to another Sky+ HD hard disk will work fine.

• Which recordings are encrypted?

  Recordings from channels you have to have your card inserted to view, are encrypted. Recordings from other, free to air channels (BBC1, BBC HD, ITV, E4 etc.) will extract fine.

  Encrypted recordings are highlighted in a pale red in ExPVR.

• What software do I need to watch the extracted recordings?

  The recordings are extracted as standard *.TS files (MPEG Transport Stream). VLC Media Player is recommended for viewing these but they can also be viewed in any Direct Show player (e.g. Media Player/Media Center/DVBViewer) with the correct codecs.

• Is it possible to copy recordings to a new, larger, XTV formatted hard disk which can be used in place of the old one?

  Yes, this is now possible with ExPVR version 2 and above, please see the Copy & Format Wizard page for more details.

• Will Push VOD 'Sky Anytime Showcase' recordings work?

  Non-encrypted Push VOD recordings can be extracted in the same way as standard ones and will work correctly. Pull VOD ('Sky Anytime+') recordings which have been saved may work but this has not been tested.

• Which PVRs are supported?

  Please see our device support page.

• How do I attach the hard disk from my Sky+ HD or other XTV-Based PVR to my computer?

  All XTV-Based PVRs contain standard PC hard disks with either an IDE or SATA connection. All Sky+ HD boxes have SATA hard disks. It is recommended you connect your hard disk via an external SATA or IDE caddy, but it also possible to connect them internally as long as you read the warnings in the support section. For more information please read the tutorials here.

• Does this application change the source hard drive in any way?

  ExPVR only reads from your PVR hard disk, it will not make any changes. It is therefore safe to use without any worry of corruption.

• I have copied my recordings to a new hard drive, but there a some "failed" entries in my planner.

  If the "failed" entries are recordings that you choose not to copy then this is normal and they can safely be deleted, this occurs if the "Rebuild Planner" option has been disabled; the recordings that where not copied still exist in the database and the Sky box is just reporting that they no longer exist.

  If any of the recording you selected to copy appear as "failed" then something when wrong during the copy operation, please contact us or post in the forums for more help.

Name	Date	Description
ExPVR V3.8.21	08/01/2014	V3.8.21 now has explicit support for the V2.61 planner database version. The "unknown database version" warning should no longer be displayed. New in version 3.8 New recording processing system Better support for more legacy planner systems Better support for recording meta-data New in version 3.7 Proper support for new Picasso firmware Support for picasso undelete feature Fixes issue copying from pre-darwin to picasso devices Rebuilt UI which is more responsive Redesigned database engine Note that this version needs V4.5 of the .NET framework which is not available for Windows XP, for more details about why, please see this post.	Download

Note that this software is for personal use only. If you want to use it commercialy (including as part of a 'value-added' service), please contact us for pricing options.

For full terms and conditions please click here.

The Format and Copy Wizard allows you to copy recordings between Sky+ HD hard drives, or to an image file on your computer. This allows you to upgrade the disk in your Sky+ HD box, move your recordings to a new device or back up your recordings.

The recordings you want to copy to the new disk can be selected from any number of source drives, allowing you to merge recordings from multiple devices onto one.

ExPVR V3.5 brings support for legacy Sky+ and Thompson Sky HD boxes, allowing you to copy recordings from these devices onto a newer Sky+ HD device.

V3.8.21

• Added - Support for planner version 2.62
• Added - Option to show volumes which do not appear as FAT32
• Fixed - ExPVR will now format >2TB disks without failing (note that only 2TB of capacity will be usable)
• Fixed - ExPVR will no longer fail without a descriptive error if there is a problem showing the user interface

V3.8.16

• Fixed - Grouping still not working correctly for copies from DRX890/5 devices.
• Fixed - On demand recordings showing up as empty groups for copies to DRX890/5 devices.

V3.8.15

• Fixed - Recordings not appearing in groups on copied planners.

V3.8.14

• Fixed - Issue introduced in V3.8.13 which was causing some copies from legacy devices to result in an empty planner message.

V3.8.13

• Added - Support for new database version (PCAT-2.51: introduced in R006.058.60.00P, includes fields for planner sharing)
• Added - Support for reading from German KabelBW disks
• Added - Support for PCAT database version 3.47 (Sky DE)
• Added - Highly experimental support for reading ext3-XTVFS layouts (as used by darwin Sky DE boxes)
• Fixed - More fixes for Sky ITA pre-darwin -> Darwin conversions (now working perfectly)

V3.8.8

• Added - "Deselect all deleted" option
• Changed - "Rebuild Planner" is now forced as it is no longer experimental and can fix a lot of planner issues
• Fixed - Various fixes for Italian pre-darwin to darwin conversions
• Fixed - Falure to copy recordings which do not have an SHREC_ITEMS record

V3.8.1

• Added - Brand new recording processor for extracting recordings
• Added - PCR regeneration for recordings with missing PCR
• Added - Regeneration of original ECMs in output .ts file
• Added - Newcamd support
• Added - Far better support for various meta-data versions
• Added - Support for different naming scheme used by Indian legacy Tata Sky devices
• Changed - Free version now limited to copying 15 recordings at a time
• Fixed - Incorrect start time for some converted planners
• Fixed - Slow downs when log window open

V3.7.23

• Added - Disk properties dialog (includes free space details etc.)
• Fixed - Some issues with sector aligned (DB3/DB4) legacy planners

V3.7.22

• Added - Support for a wider variety of legacy planner versions
• Added - Much better legacy DBF format support (means unknown versions are far more likely to work)
• Added - Ability to attach patches to disk for diagnostic purposes
• Added - Ability to force use of legacy planner when darwin databases present
• Fixed - Issues with legacy planner parsing for some planner versions
• Fixed - Issues with legacy recordings which have a start offset

V3.7.13

• Added - Grayed out menu items for 'impossible' actions (e.g. copying when no recordings selected)
• Added - 'Format Only' option for formatting disks without copying recordings
• Added - Ability to dismount and refresh disks in main UI
• Added - Support for Picasso 'deleted' items
• Added - Locking of hard disks on mount to prevent outside changes
• Added - Improved recording copy wizard and clearer target box selection
• Fixed - Issues with pre-darwin to picasso copies
• Fixed - Various issues with merging / planner rebuilds and Picasso
• Changed - Rewritten database engine which is far more compatible with changing Sky+ database versions
• Changed - Rewritten UI code

V3.6

• Fixed - Various DBF (legacy planner) parsing issues

V3.5

• Added - Support for pre-darwin (Sky+ and Thompson Sky+ HD) to darwin copies (all other HD boxes)
• Added - Improved support for pre-darwin devices
• Added - Support for merging recordings from one or more disks onto one
• Added - Better support for recovering recordings from corrupted disks
• Added - Display of Genre and Sub-Genre information for planner items
• Fixed - Bug which caused a blue screen to appear before certain pre-darwin recordings (including recordings made on Darwin systems before they where updated)
• Fixed - A problem causing the buttons on the registration dialog to be pushed off the end when windows was set to High DPI
• Fixed - Bug causing errors if only a small amount of video data was copied to an image (the image was not being made large enough to fit the databases)

V3.1.4478

• Added - Support for copy+ *.XTV files
• Fixed - Whole program crash on preview when video player does not exist
• Fixed - Problems with non-english code pages
• Fixed - Problem with cluster chain from extent code (for reading corrupt hard disks)
• Fixed - Various pre-darwin issues

V3.1.4422

• Added - Recording Previews

V3.0.4402

• Added - VOD recording highlighting & selection
• Fixed - Error when creating an image file which did not already exist

V3.0

• Added - New user interface built in WPF
• Added - Experimental legacy planner support
• Added - Support for falling back to using the extent file for drives with a corrupt video FAT
• Added - Support for new meta-data formats
• Added - New log viewer

V2.1

• Added - Format & Copy Wizard
• Added - Configuration Tool
• Added - Logging to file & far more verbose log items
• Added - Faster method of detecting encrypted recordings
• Added - Basic cacheing for direct disk access (should give better performance)
• Added - FAT map diagnostic tool
• Added - Diagnostic tool
• Added - Update notifier
• Changed - Rewritten Fat32 code (should perform better, and less likely to contain bugs)
• Fixed - File naming error for drives still containing legacy recordings
• Fixed - Errors with planners containing Anytime+ entries (to do with event name format)
• Fixed - Various miss-alignment issues
• Fixed - Errors with the little endian amstrad box

V1.1

• Fixed - Out of memory error for large STR extents.
• Fixed - Problems reading file systems without a volume label (newly formatted darwin file systems no longer have a volume label).
• Fixed - Progress bar error in file system viewer

v1.0

Initial Release

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What is ExPVR?

ExPVR is a software package which allows you to manage the recordings stored on Sky+, Sky+ HD and other XTV-based personal video recorders.

ExPVR will allow you to:

• Upgrade your existing Sky+ HD box hard disk space up to a huge 2TB, while retaining all of your existing recordings.
• Transfer your recordings between Sky+ HD boxes.
• Copy recordings from your old SD Sky+, or Thompson Sky+ HD box to your new device.
• Backup your Sky+ recordings to your PC, safe-guarding them from being lost.
• Merge recordings from multiple Sky+ devices or disks, onto one.
• Copy FTA Sky+ recordings to your computer, allowing them to be watched in your favourite media player!

There is no other software on the market that can do this!

Devices

ExPVR has been extensively tested with all of the UK Sky+ and Sky+ HD devices. Support is also included for other XTV boxes from around the world, including:

• My Sky HD (Sky Italia)
• Foxtel iQ (Foxtel Australia)
• Foxtel iQHD

Devices from other countries (e.g. Tata Sky+ HD, Sky Deutschland and DirecTV (US)) may work, but have not yet been tested. If you have one of these devices, we will happily work with you to add support.

For a full list of supported devices, please visit our Device Support page.

Purchase ExPVR

For copies between hard disks, the free version of ExPVR is limited to copying 15 recordings at a time. For extracting recordings to view on your PC, the free version is limited to copying the first 200MB of each recording. Please visit the features section for a full comparison.

You can purchase this application now for only £19.99:

Your personal registration key will be sent to you automatically once the payment is complete.

All Sky Digital set top boxes (including Sky+ and Sky+ HD) automaticaly update their firmware from certain satellite streams. This utility can download these firmware images using a DVB-S TV card. It also supports the extraction of the linux kernel and root file system from images for the following Sky+ HD boxes:

• Amstrad DRX595
• Amstrad DRX895 / DRX890 (both have same firmware)
• Amstrad DRX780
• Samsung HDSKY
• Pace TDS850NB

Usage

• First make sure you have a DVB-S TV card connected and correctly installed (it must also be connected to a dish pointed at 28.2°E).
• Open the application.
• If you want to change the download location you can do this by clicking "Browse".
• Click "Start" to start downloading files, the utility will then tune to the correct transponder and download the files available on the two update streams.
• When a firmware finishes downloading it will move to the "Completed Firmwares" list and if it is for one of the supported boxes the kernel and file system will be automaticaly extracted.
• Double clicking a completed firmware will open it's download location.
• The firmwares available on the streams will vary. The firmware file on the update stream will change every few hours while the firmwares on the forced update stream seem to be more constant (at the time of writing, the Pace PVR3 and all HD boxes except the Thompson).

Change Log

V1.0.4488

• Added - Support for Pace TDS850NB Sky+ HD Box
• Added - EPG Version detection
• Added - Automatic extraction of binary config file

Download

Binaries: Sky_Firmware_Tool_1.0.4488_bin.rar
Source Code: Google Code

As anyone who owns one of these routers knows, the default administration interface is very limited, many features that this router supports have been locked out by sky (DNS settings, Quality of Service, IP Filtering etc.). The default sky firmware actually has a secondary Sagem web interface with access to all these settings, but it is turned off by default (and it cannot be changed from the sky web interface).

This custom firmware updates the configuration area of the router to allow access to this advanced web interface.

Warnings: Read these carefully!

• If your router gets unplugged / there is a power cut during the upgrade process your router may become inoperable. However unlikely this may seem, it is a very real possibility and this procedure should only be attempted if you have a backup router.
• All your router settings will be lost during the upgrade process, INCLUDING the factory default settings (wireless SSID, wireless key and MAC address). If somthing has happened to the sticker on the base of your router detailing this information DO NOT flash this firmware. Without these details you will not be able to connect to the internet.
• It is highly recommended that you connect to your router directly via ethernet cable and NOT through wireless while updating.
• It is highly recommended that your disconnect your router from the phone line while updating.
• All though I have tested this firmware extensively, there is a chance that something may go wrong. I will not be held responsible for any harm that comes to your router due to use of this firmware.
• Sky automatic updates have not been disabled by default, if they release a firmware or configuration update in the future it may overwrite this firmware and disable the extra features.

Advantages

• The full sagem web interface is enabled by default, giving access to a large amount of previously unavailable settings.
• This firmware will work with Sky Router Tool.
• Contains a 'lite' version of Sky Router Tool which runs on the router.

How to install it

• Before continuing make sure you read, and understand all of the warnings above
• Download the new firmware from FAST2504N_6.14.2a4N_mrmt32_v1.w
• Log into the sky web interface and select "Maintenance" followed by "Router Upgrade"
• Browse for the firmware file then click "Upload". Make sure you do not unplug your router after starting the upgrade process, doing so could permanently break it.
• Wait about 2 minutes before trying the next step.
• After 2 minuites visit http://192.168.0.1 (if you previously had changed your router's ip address it will now have reverted to the default).
• If all went well you should be greeted by the following screen:

• Type in the details it asks for, making sure they exactly match those on the bottom of your router
• After clicking save you should get the following screen and your router will reboot:

Sagem Web Admin Access

The Sagem web admin can be accessed either from the link on the front page of the sky interface, or by visiting http://192.168.0.1/sky_unlocked/main.html.

Sky Router Tool Lite

Sky Router Tool Lite can be accessed either from the link on the front page of the sky interface, or by visiting http://192.168.0.1:8324/srt.

The following features are available:

• Connection Details
• Process List
• ADSL Statistics Graphs
• Ping
• Setting SNR Margin
• Running arbitary commands

Sky Auto Update

The sky automatic firmware update is still enabled with this firmware. If Sky release a firmware update, it may overwrite this modified firmware.