We are running the DVR on our ShieldTV. Ever since the last DVR server update there has been some buffering issues. The show will be playing just fine for a little while but then will stop with a spinning wheel for a bit and then start again. Sometimes it stops all together and I have to stop the show and start over. Sometimes I can’t even start the show playing. Nothing else in our setup has changed and it doesn’t matter which device we try to watch a recording on. We watch on ShieldTV, Chromecast with Google TV and iOS.
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Are you seeing any errors in the DVR server logs when this happens?
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I am seeing a whole lot of this.
2020/12/14 20:52:50.890159 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 50% full (clients=1, len=33555588)
2020/12/14 20:53:42.886039 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 50% full (clients=1, len=33555368)
2020/12/14 20:54:05.577492 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 75% full (clients=1, len=50331736)
2020/12/14 20:54:16.536258 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 95% full (clients=1, len=63755068)
2020/12/14 20:54:19.851566 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 99% full (clients=1, len=66438260)
2020/12/14 20:54:23.664063 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 50% full (clients=1, len=33555500)
2020/12/14 20:54:38.514800 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 75% full (clients=1, len=50331868)
2020/12/14 20:54:49.652724 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 95% full (clients=1, len=63753752)
2020/12/14 20:54:52.549907 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 99% full (clients=1, len=66438260)
2020/12/14 20:56:55.887994 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 50% full (clients=1, len=33555144)
2020/12/14 20:57:07.592129 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 75% full (clients=1, len=50332424)
2020/12/14 20:57:19.403614 [WRN] Buffer for 10733FC0 ch6.1 is more than 50% full (clients=1, len=33555164)
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This is a recording though. I don’t see any logs for watching already recorded shows which is were I see the problem. The shows we watched last night that were having issues were recorded weeks ago. Until the last update we never saw this issue. So I don’t think it’s a recording error causing the problem.
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This is bad news and means your recordings are being corrupted.
Usually this happens if the disk is not fast enough (maybe getting too full), or the shield is overloaded in terms of CPU or RAM
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The drive is only 30% full so it's not capacity. There have been no issues and the DVR setup has not changed since 10/28 when we started using the ShieldTV. Prior to that we were using the same HDD on a MiBox with the MiBox running the server and we did not see this issue then. I was checking the status of the DVR server and it also showed that the shield had available memory.
Guess I will have to look back and see how many shows were recording at the time, but I don't think it's anymore than usual on a Sunday/Monday night. Those are our heaviest load times during the week though so I will have to check back and see how many things were recording. I know it was happening even when only watching one show so it would have to be just too many things recording at once.
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Ok so I looked into it and it looks like we were recording only two shows at a time on Sunday afternoon from 12:45 till 5pm and only watched one at a time. For 2.5 hours from 1:30 till 4 we only watched the Seahawks game (NFL on 2.1) That game had multiple problems and the only other thing happening was recording another game on 28.1. We have previously recorded 8 or more things at once and watched recordings of 2-3 shows simultaneously. We have also been able to watch something with transcoding while that was going on.
So I also went back as far as the log goes (12/8) which was two days before the update and I see the same buffering error with only one show recording in the middle of the day and no one watching anything. Any ideas what could be wrong or may have changed?
Here is the HDD I am using:
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/wd-my-passport-4tb-external-usb-3-0-portable-hard-drive-with-hardware-encryption-latest-model-black/6356879.p?skuId=6356879
Also saw this error when going through the logs.
2020/12/13 11:03:05.352321 [ENC] Starting encoder for NFL Football Arizona Cardinals at New York Giants 2020-12-13-1000.mpg in /storage/DE29-C6A8/NVIDIA_SHIELD/DVR/Streaming/file1870-8bb8df92a376-581591380/encoder-0-394115494 at 0 (0.000000) (encoder=h264_mediacodecndk, resolution=384, deinterlacer=blend, bitrate=300 segment_size=0.01)
2020/12/13 11:03:05.720631 [HLS] ffmpeg: file1870-8bb8df92a376: Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
2020/12/13 11:03:05.720672 [HLS] ffmpeg: file1870-8bb8df92a376: Error while decoding stream #0:2: Invalid data found when processing input
2020/12/13 11:03:05.966903 [HLS] ffmpeg: file1870-8bb8df92a376: [hls @ 0x29768c4c00] Timestamps are unset in a packet for stream 0. This is deprecated and will stop working in the future. Fix your code to set the timestamps properly
2020/12/13 11:03:14.276450 [ENC] Request for 2719 is more than 10 from the last encoded segment of 4
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Question, I just returned a Qnap TS-230 because of constant buffering and freezing
I am using my old MacBook a 2008 that works better than the Qnap, it still buffers but not as bad, my question is, besides having an intel processor that’s recommended , what Size Ram would be best , ddrl3 or 4 and what type processor. I just need a nas that will run channels dvr without all the buffering. Something not that expensive,any honest recommendation would be appreciated
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Also why doesn’t anyone hold channels dvr accountable for the issues, we are all told it’s our device or our internet, if that was the case, why does buffering only occur on some channels but not others, also there are times we get the can’t connect message, lets hold them responsible to fix issues that I think are on their side, we pay a good Penney for this program, so let’s make sure that they understand that and look in the mirror and quit assuming the issue is always on our side.
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The short answer to that is that there are many thousands of users (like myself) that don’t have buffering issues at all. Like all software, Channels has bugs from time to time, but those of us that watch the forum frequently know that 90+% of the time somebody is having issues, it’s something specific to their setup.
Buffering/stuttering issues are rarely due to the server, especially if you are using Original quality in your client settings.
At the time of the issues, are there any errors logged in the DVR web UI log? That’s a good place to start.
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Do you have any recommendations? Any affordable nas, processor, memory size etc.. I just want the nas fit my server and nothing else, the Qnap 230 I sent back buffeted and froze with channels and plex. The old MacBook has had a lot less buffering, more so on my HDHomeRun Quattro, I am watching abc and it has not buffered, my fix buffers a lot as well as cbs
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My recommendation is to find the root cause of the issue, which might not have anything to do with your server at all. It could be related to your network. Are there errors shown in the web ui log at the time of the issue? Do your clients have tuner sharing enabled? Does this happen when watching live Tv, recordings, or both?
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It happens with live tv and I don’t have tuner sharing enabled
I was looking at the Qnap-
QNAP TS-251 Dual Bay NAS, Bare (No Drives) with AC Power Supply With 8 gb of ram
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If you are using OTA tuners, and tuner sharing is not enabled, then your problem is 99% likely to be network related. Why? Because the client is streaming directly from the tuner, completely bypassing the server. Without tuner sharing, by default the server is completely removed from the equation.
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I also use TVE and where is the tuner sharing located on the channels admin page
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Also if it’s network, how can that be? On wifi alone I get 450 down and 300 Up
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Well, you haven't been specific, nor given any real details that would allow someone to offer assistance.
It's not. Tuner sharing is a client device setting. You can find in the client app in Settings > Playback > Advanced > Tuner Sharing. This setting will route OTA tuner streams through the DVR before being sent to the client device. (By default, when you tune a live stream on an OTA tuner, the client contacts the tuner directly for the stream, completely bypassing the DVR server.)
Network issues involve more than just your throughput rating at any given moment. Things such as interference from nearby electronics, other devices sharing the channel and/or wireless network, network layout/topology, etc,
The point is that without any details, everything is a guess. If you would like assistance with your problems, your best course of action is to:
- Start a new thread for your particular issue. While your problem may sound like someone else's, it might not be the case. Hijacking someone else's thread is generally considered bad etiquette.
- Give details. Under which circumstances does your problem occur? What do the relevant logs show? How can this be reproduced?
- What have you tried? Troubleshooting and help is an interactive process. People on the internet are not in your home watching you figure things out; they only know as much as you tell them. So detail which avenues you have already pursued. Also, have you tried to remove possible causes, to create a minimal situation?
- Be courteous. This is mostly a user forum, and you are more likely to get help when you're nice. A surefire way to get people to ignore your threads is to post in a rude or entitled manner.
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