W7 Ultimate - x64 - Extenders = Video Files missing

[cKuR6]

One last ? If playready were the issue, wouldn't I be blocked from watching on the PC? The PC works fine.

[Crash2009]

There's a lot of stuff that doesn't make sense on this one. It appears that Ceton was right when they said your O/S was chewed up. Yours seems to have large chunks missing. Might have happened with the codec packs. I've read a lot of Shark's advice, he says some codec packs are un-installable, they do permanent damage. Might be caused by living next door to the Ubuntu's. Most of the HTPC's around here are dedicated to just one purpose. Dual-booting HTPC's are pretty rare.

Try this, get your wife a cable box for a month. Get a new SSD around 120 GB, and throw on a fresh Win 7. Activating Win 7 is very important, some features remain locked until you do. Get all your Win 7 Updates before you even try WMC . Get your O/S in there rock-solid before you muck with it. I usually let them update for a few days. You don't need any fancy firewalls. For Anti-Virus get Microsoft Security Essentials.

Create an Image of your new build, with no errors in device manager and all your best drivers.

Then start setting up the tuners and WMC, If you make a mistake, you can always go back to your new build image. After you get WMC setup and working, (extenders too), make another image. Get in the habit of making an image PRIOR to making a large configuration change.

I'm sure others will agree if this is good policy, or correct me if I am wrong.

[cKuR6]

My ssd is actually 120gb. My original ocz was junk and they replaced it with a new one. I had it dual booting because it was our main PC. Now that it is going to be mainly htpc, ill stick with windows. So I'm planning on following the majority of what you have advised. Definitely good policy. However, I fear my current images and backups will just result in the same issue. Thus, I am starting fresh. I have 1ssd, three hdd's, and a USB.

Plan was to put the tv on the USB on my router. That is an issue from what I've read. Is that correct or can I do it?

I have my users and documents/media all on one of the hdd's. will that be an issue?

120 GB ssd = w7 ultimate x64 fresh install
1 hdd 1TB = dedicated user, media, docs, and other programs. (Potentially partitioned for ubuntu)
1 USB 2TB = backups and tv.

[Crash2009]

The most common way to setup the drives is to be physically connected to the motherboard. SSD for the O/S, and a spinner-7200 rpm for the recording drive. Both plugged into Sata on the motherboard. On mine my recording drive (D:) is 2 TB and contains 4 directories:

• Movies

• Music

• Pictures

• Recorded TV

2 TB wasn't enough for my needs so I added another (E:) a 3 TB which also contains 4 directories:

• Movies

• Music

• Pictures

• Recorded TV

The idea is if my D: ever blows up I can just tell WMC to use E:, Both drives are indexed by WMC, so they appear as one in the library even though there may only be 1 movie in D: and 150 in E:

I wouldn't be comfortable, and I'm not sure its even possible, to have my recording drive plugged into the USB of a router. Too far away, and too many possibilities for errors.

Start a new thread in the HTPC components section, and run with the best advice.

[cKuR6]

Copy, thanks. Ill start with the hdd & ssd alone. The USB will stay Backups and portable media. My other two drives are old and prob not healthy enough to be trusted for this setup. Just trying to get this going. Maybe ill build something else over winter.

[Crash2009]

When you are installing Win 7, and you get to the Network part, choose Work Network not Home. Home gets you into all that Homegroup crap, which can complicate and divide your network in my opinion. I run all my 7's as a Work type network.

[cKuR6]

good plan, I hate homegroup. My sis in law and wife packed my desk when we moved because I was working, still in school, and coaching. Can't seem to locate where my install discs have been placed. I ran sfc, it found and reported successful corruption repair. I then uninstalled playready, and updated it through wmc. The update playready option, as you showed previously, disappears from the wmc setting menu, after successful update. So, I don't believe I had a play ready issue.

Just keeping this updated with things I find.

[Crash2009]

Strange, my PlayReady, and I'm sure everyone else's, (except yours) does not disappear from WMC after it's been updated.

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/wind ... b8cf8012ff

and you will need your product key http://pcsupport.about.com/od/osproduct ... al-key.htm

[joecrow]

Strange, my PlayReady, and I'm sure everyone else's, (except yours) does not disappear from WMC after it's been updated.

I do not have an Update PlayReady option on that menu in my setup either. Playready is installed and as far as I know up to date.

[3rob3]

Neither do I.

[Crash2009]

Hmmm. I have no explanation for that one, other than: Maybe mine is the oddball.

[3rob3]

Hmmm. I have no explanation for that one, other than: Maybe mine is the oddball.

What happens when you select Update Playready? Does it actually update? I'm on Win8.1, maybe that is the difference.

[Crash2009]

Hmmm. I have no explanation for that one, other than: Maybe mine is the oddball.

What happens when you select Update Playready? Does it actually update? I'm on Win8.1, maybe that is the difference.

I am reluctant to test that out for you. If it ain't broke.......

Maybe I have never run it through WMC before. I might have installed it manually, or it might have come through as an update. I really don't remember, however, after checking Installed programs, it was installed Dec 2012, the last time the O/S was redone. The O/S was likely installed without complete teardown, as opposed to adding components one at a time.

Maybe I am the only one with that option.

The discovery of Gortex was accidental too. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore-Tex

[cKuR6]

Good to see my pc at least passed that one. I'm reinstalling now. I've tried many off the suggested fixes again, still none work. Tried changing the sound to a couple different settings on the PC and echo. Tried hooking the echo to toslink out, nothing.

[cKuR6]

Just so no one spends any time pitching in here. Everything is finally working. I got the extenders connected last night but I still get random , " this device is not plugged into a hdcp display" errors, but click out and back in, brings it back. I spent 5 hrs on the phone with tech support for twc today. Ill post back in the coming days with what finally worked. Thanks

[Crash2009]

this device is not plugged into a hdcp display"

Try searching "DVI-D causes HDCP errors in WMC" Some people, have had success with a different DVI cable. Others have shifted the blame to inadequacies of WMC- apparently CableLabs has re-written the specifications, but Microsoft has not updated WMC. A while back, I seem to remember someone had some success shorting (or eliminating) pins on the DVI cable. You could try Media Center Setup/Display.

I upgraded to all HDMI, HDCP errors are easier to avoid.

[cKuR6]

New vid card, setting wmc to 2channel stereo, using the on board sound setting rather than the vid cards hd option, and the fresh install seem to have worked. I've only recvd the error once on the echos since. Rebooted the echo an it played fine. One roku has thrown an hdcp error on media browser. The original problem however is gone. I've tested for a good bit now. Will start putting things back how they were, and follow up if anything causes the same issue.
Need to, plug back in my second monitor. Reinstall compel, malwarebytes, adaware, and I think that is all.
Thanks again for all the input.

Crash, good idea. Problem is my htpc is really just a Dvr. It will never be used to actually watch the tv, other than how it serves my extenders. Thus, I would be wasting money upgrading my dvi monitors.

[Crash2009]

Reinstall compel, malwarebytes, adaware, and I think that is all.

make an image before all that A/V stuff

[cKuR6]

For sure.... I have a fresh install image, a two day ago image, backup every drive every day, made a copy of the install disc and system repair disc. I'm covered there at least. On that note, I'm a bit upset that seagate dashboard doesn't offer an option to keep one backup. 2tb drive just about filled itself up keeping daily backups, in two days.

[cKuR6]

Closure... After all this time, it seems the vid card must have been the culprit. I have the PC back to the original state, minus the comodo firewall. Dual monitors works, Internet, programs, and everything work just as they did before ceton had me install a bunch of irrelevant hot fixes.
I've added a 3tb dedicated hdd as a Dvr drive. Now if the echos didn't suck (consistent freezes and auto reboots) & the eth 6 could actually use all six tuners (signal levels are great and the TA checks out fine), then I'd be happy. It really feels like I paid for two excess tuners & twice what my extenders are actually worth at the moment.....