Ha! I've seen 250mi before. I should be able to get channels from 5 markets where i live. But hey at aleast its 4k, i wont buy any antenna that isnt. Lol
@Dinki If you want to run that low level packet loss test, here is what I put together a few years ago.
It's a windows cmd file, but could be adapted for a Mac
Low level test for HDHR tuner network packet loss.cmd
@echo off
echo Low level test for HDHR tuner network packet loss
echo.
echo You should see a series of dots, one per second.
echo "n" indicates network packet loss. "t" indicates a reception error. "s" is sequence error.
echo.
echo Example output:
echo ............n...............................n..........ts..........
echo -- Video statistics --
echo 46998 packets received, 0 overflow errors, 2 network errors, 1 transport errors, 1 sequence errors
echo.
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" 1323AADB set /tuner2/vchannel 750
echo Test starting at %DATE% %TIME% Ctrl-C stops test
"C:\Program Files\Silicondust\HDHomeRun\hdhomerun_config" 1323AADB save /tuner2 null
pause
exit
Output after running a couple minutes
Low level test for HDHR tuner network packet loss
You should see a series of dots, one per second.
"n" indicates network packet loss. "t" indicates a reception error. "s" is sequence error.
Example output:
............n...............................n..........ts..........
-- Video statistics --
46998 packets received, 0 overflow errors, 2 network errors, 1 transport errors, 1 sequence errors
Test starting at Wed 10/09/2024 16:35:27.83 Ctrl-C stops test
..........................................................................................................................
-- Video statistics --
43938 packets received, 0 overflow errors, 0 network errors, 0 transport errors, 0 sequence errors
Terminate batch job (Y/N)?
HDHR System log
20241009-23:35:27 Tuner: tuner2 tuning 750 DSCHDP (auto:309MHz-6)
20241009-23:35:27 Tuner: tuner2 streaming rtp to 192.168.1.8:50334
20241009-23:35:27 CableCARD: tuner2 750 DSCHDP (auto:309MHz-6) access = subscribed
20241009-23:37:29 Tuner: tuner2 rtp stream ended (stop request)
As I also said, I have had the antenna replacement most recently for my pblm,and the Connectors previously
and finally doing the Static IP.
This is the easiest and most straightforward approach, keep it simple to eliminate the simple first.
1 Like
Thanks for this. I'm running now. By the way, I'm Windows and Linux. No Mac here.
1 Like
I purchased this antenna only a few months ago. It is outside on a pole that is about 15' tall. This is a solid antenna and has improved my reception significantly. I will discontinue use of Channels before switching that out.
It may be an amazing product but the fact is things break and cause failures whether they have been installed 3 weeks or 3 years.
The fact is that you are having RF issues:
2024/10/05 11:00:46.929928 [SNR] Statistics for ch15.1 KADN HD: ss=100% snq=100% seq=99%,7%-100% bps=6609230,1682976-14472992 pps=566,155-1239
2024/10/05 12:28:43.317552 [SNR] Statistics for ch3.1 KATC-HD: ss=98%,92%-100% snq=99%,0%-100% seq=99%,0%-100% bps=6818851,2445504-11929728 pps=583,213-1021
2024/10/05 12:30:04.683638 [SNR] Statistics for ch22.3 BuzzrTV: ss=77%,69%-82% snq=91%,0%-100% seq=84%,0%-100% bps=4416475,1765696-5008320 pps=378,151-429 sigerr=21%
2024/10/05 15:02:43.263791 [SNR] Statistics for ch3.1 KATC-HD: ss=94%,92%-96% snq=99%,70%-100% seq=99%,0%-100% bps=6770138,2465056-12316256 pps=579,218-1054
2024/10/05 16:36:44.006095 [SNR] Statistics for ch10.1 KLFY-HD: ss=78%-79% snq=99%,96%-100% seq=99%,15%-100% bps=9749098,2597408-14582784 pps=834,228-1246
2024/10/06 13:57:15.167339 [SNR] Statistics for ch10.1 KLFY-HD: ss=78%-79% snq=99%,0%-100% seq=99%,0%-100% bps=9851835,0-14645952 pps=843,0-1254
you should never see seq at anything other than 100% (except for fringe channels)
seq=84%,0%-100%
I'm not saying rip and replace your antenna. I'm suggesting that you spend $30 on a decent antenna and set it up somewhere temporarily and see if you can replicate your issue. run a temp piece of coax from the test antenna to the HDHR to factor out everything RF related in your current setup. If the problem disappears then you know it is something in that chain. next step would be to take that same piece of temp coax and connect to your existing antenna. If the problem goes away then you know it is something downstream from that antenna. If it is still there then you know it is your antenna. If you don't want to spend $30 to troubleshoot then just buy a long piece of high quality coax and run it to your antenna and troubleshoot in reverse of what I suggested. Test with the temp piece of coax first and if the issue is still present then you know it is in fact your antenna.
I've got news for you, this isn't a Channels issue. This problem will continue to be an issue no matter what solution you use. Trust me, I was just as stubborn when the engineer at the local ABC affiliate told me my antenna was the reason I was having issues. I replaced my less than 1yr old antenna (just to prove him wrong) and then had to eat crow because he was right, it was the problem.
1 Like
Thanks for the advice.
1 Like
I would leave it running until you get a disconnect on live TV or recording and see if there's anything reported by it (n, t or s instead of dots). You can copy/paste the contents of that Windows Command Prompt into a text editor, see how many dots (seconds) you have until the error occurs. That will tell you how many seconds since it started the error occurred.
Are you running it on your Channels DVR Server?
What HDHR and tuner are you monitoring with it?
Yes, I installed the linux version of the hdconfig app and am running it on the same machine as Channels server. I'm using the quatro's fourth tuner for the test.
As an update, I saw one second of network error and a could transport errors (maybe three nonconsecutive) and no sequence errors. All of these errors were isolated from each other. I just used the Signal GH app and tweaked the antenna pointing a bit. I did see some improvement to both signal quality and strength. I'm running the test again and will leave it running.
I'm confused by the conflicting info.
You show a Windows batch file running in your post Cancelling stream after no data was received for 6s - #65 by Dinki
Are you running Channels DVR on Linux, or Windows. In your OP you mentioned you're running CDVR in a docker container
Any more no data was received for 6s errors in the Channels DVR log?
Yes. Originally I did it on Windows but switched to the Linux host after being that is where Channels server is running I modified the script you provided after building the app on Linux.
I have not seen the canceling error in three days. This is partially why I think it is more environmental.
Does anyone know where the logs are stored in Docker? I am seeing some logs in the data directory but these do not show the same contents as what I am seeing in the webui despite the timestamps showing today's date.
Ah ha! It happened while logging:
Scrolling through I do see other one second network issues, some sequence errors and very few transport errors. I am guessing that the real issue is the network issue right? If the network is unavailable for 6 seconds then Channels will fail.
Do you mean the Channels DVR Server log?
It's the file data/channels-dvr.log in the host directory that you mapped to the docker container directory /channels-dvr
--volume /mnt/disk/dvr/config:/channels-dvr
You also can view it in a browser https://getchannels.com/docs/getting-started/faqs/subscription/#how-can-i-view-more-of-the-channels-dvr-server-log
Yep. Network errors means it didn't see any network packets coming from the HDHR.
Could be the HDHR or its power supply.
Network cables/connectors from the HDHR to the switch.
The switch (or ports on the switch) or its power supply.
Network cables/connectors from the switch to your Ubiquiti Router.
Your Ubiquiti router.
Network cables/connectors from your Ubiquiti Router to the Channels Server.
The Channels Server PC.
1 Like
In other words, a lot of fun troubleshooting.
For me, network cables/connectors are the easiest/cheapest and I can use a network cable tester.
A replacement HDHR power supply is fairly cheap from SiliconDust Replacement parts – SiliconDust SHOP
Any more 6s timeouts in the CDVR log?
I've got a tester, but is this going to show me an intermittent problem like this?
The thing is I've seen the problem on both HDHRs I have so I'm doubtful that both of those have gone bad at the same time but maybe.
I think what I'll try next is to plug the network cable that goes into the switch in the closet directly into the HDHR Quatro and continue to monitor using the hdhr config . If I see network errors I should be able to eliminate the switch and the cables going to the switch from HDHRs right?
Yep, process of elimination.
When I test network cables with my tester, I jiggle the connectors and flex the cables looking for intermittent connection. Might just be easier to replace network cables.
I can change them out except for a long run that runs through the attic. I can reterminate that one if it ends up being the problem.