I almost never log in to the HDHR UI because there is really no need to. But I happened to check it out today and noticed there is a new firmware update available - Release 20220125. This made me wonder - Is it possible for Channels to alert us if an HDHR update is available? I'm not sure if that is exposed in their API or not, but just throwing the idea out there!
I think it is a cool idea if its possible. However I expect this to be more of a Silicon Dust thing as they provide firmware information and what not in their forums.
Thanks for the info. Looks like they just released a new firmware version 20220128 - probably to correct a bug or two that they inserted in the 0125 version.
It does, but we haven’t included that latest firmware into the latest builds.
Oh... So Channels WILL provide some kind of notification that there is an HDHR update? Nice! How/where would we see it?
If you go to Settings > Manage Sources. Your HDHRs will show that a firmware update is available. We include the firmwares in the app.
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Very cool! What are your thoughts on popping up some kind of notification within Channels? So that it isn't something that the user would have to seek out.
That’s not something we’d probably do. Firmware updates are rarely that important and usually fix a specific problem. If you have that problem, you’d probably be aware of the update.
Additionally, we would never pop notifications like that over and over while your firmware was out of date. And if we only showed it once, what are the chances the person responsible for maintaining hardware in the house was the one that saw it the one time we showed it.
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Stop making such good points. Just stop it!
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For anyone interested in the specifics:
Release 20220128:
- HDVR/HDFX models: Use https for image URLs.
Release 20220125:
- 4K models: Fix problem where first PMT may not contain all audio tracks which can result in the client choosing the wrong audio track.
- 4K models: Fix problem where audio language was not reported when present in the manifest but not present in the DASH MP4 data which can result in the client choosing the wrong audio track.
- 4K models: Support gzip encoding and more content types for file bundles referenced in the FDT.
- 4K models: Support MP4 init data where the sidx timescale is different to the mdhd timescale.
- 4K models: Improvements to MMTP handling.
- TECH models: Add optional support for HDHomeRun apps with TV guide.
- Upgrade TLS root certificates.
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I've had firmware updates before that altered the tuning algorithms and broke my reception of some VHF channels. Since then, as long as everything is working (and for me it is), I don't update HDHR firmware. The HDHRs only job is to quickly tune all OTA channels near me and pass the data to Channels. And I am at a point where it does that perfectly.
Mine are all ATSC 1.0 tuners though. If I bought a new 4K tuner, I would probably update it to current firmware before I started trying to tune all the stations. And, once I got it right, I probably would stop touching it.
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I am just the opposite I always keep all my firmware up to date.
Just don't install Silicon Dust beta firmware if nothing is wrong with your setup. There is chance of it breaking something and there is no easy way to rollback; ie: you will be stuck with the changes.
There are so many ways to catch and watch TV that once in a blue moon a bad firmware update is no big deal to me .. it is only tv .. I always try and help developers improve their product so I do not worry about the risks.
Well, all of the notes in the changelog are updates for 4k models. So, unless you have a 4k model, you are only regression testing to make sure that everything that was working before still works.
For me, I have antennas hooked up to HDHRs. Rewiring this to go direct to my TVs would be a multi-day project (and only be temporary). I will not do it. The HDHRs are my only option for the primary stations I watch. Yeah, I could go without it for awhile, but I'm not going to beta test SDs stuff just to make sure they didn't break existing functionality. Its not like Channels where you can just switch back to an earlier beta. You cannot switch back to an earlier SD beta. Maybe if they added a new feature or fixed a bug that I specifically had an issue with, then I would try the beta if it was recommended to me.
But, otherwise, it is not only unnecessary, but risky if you don't have so many ways to catch and watch the local broadcasts.
I find this little taskbar utility incredibly useful for knowing what's happening across the HD devices: