Random recordings

Channels DVR Server Troubleshooting
#1

So, not to sound paranoid, but yesterday I found a recording in my list that I never made. It was a completely random show, on a channel that, while I have in my collection of channels I can see, I don't ever frequent (i.e. it's not in my Favorites). Looking on that screen right now, I see it listed as one of my Scheduled Recordings for yesterday but I know that neither I nor anyone in my family made it.

This is actually the second time I have noticed something like this happen in the past 2 or 3 months; the first time I just ignored it as a glitch, but, now, I am just perplexed as to how this or the other instance ever happened.

Any ideas? There isn't a way that someone can access my Channels remotely? If so, I never turned that feature on, so I don't know how it might have happened...

#2

Maybe search the DVR log for that show to see when it was scheduled. Could be someone did it accidentally from the guide?

#3

Do you have any advanced passes that do not have a specific SeriesID? I've had this happen, where a random show recorded because it met certain parameters, but wasn't one we were expecting to record.

#4

I have a show that I set up a pass for via the on-screen prompts; but that show is on another channel and at a different time of the day.

Also, @tmm1 How exactly do I access the DVR log from the web UI? And how does one get rid of clients on devices one no longer owns? There are two devices I recently bought and returned (after factory resetting each), but they still show up in my clients list. I don't know if this might be an explanation, though, especially since, like I said, I factory reset both devices, but also because the first time this had happened months ago was well before I ever got either of the returned devices.

#5

Support > Logs

#6

Well.. duh on me :slight_smile:

Anyway, the logs only go back to May 5, but it looks like the only time the show that magically appeared in my recordings was only mentioned there when it started recording, and not before.

#7

You can view more lines of the log
https://getchannels.com/docs/getting-started/faqs/channels-plus/#how-can-i-view-more-of-the-channels-dvr-server-log

#8

Thanks all for the helpful suggestions. If you all don't mind, I am going to add a bit more detail to my issue...

So I decided to adjust the number of lines all the way back to 50000, just to see any indication of any mention of the channel or the show that recorded. Going back that far ended up bringing the history back to February.

Anyway, regarding the random recording, the channel was Animal Planet ("ch6103") and the show that recorded for some reason was something called "Pit Bulls and Parolees"... The only mentions of "ch6103" prior to any logs relating to the recording was that I apparently tried to access that channel a month prior, but that there was an error during connection and its stream was subsequently closed.

The next mention of the channel was also the very first mention of the show, and this took place the day before the recording was to happen; the message reads:

"2021/05/11 19:18:44.426000 [DVR] Waiting 14h40m15.574007891s until next job 1620838740-ch6103 Pit Bulls and Parolees"

I tried looking for other instances of the Job number prior to that and came up with nothing. So, to me, it sounds like this job just spontaneously appeared for some odd reason.

Anyway, the later instances of the job # and the show were when it was sending time updates similar to the one I showed above, the actual start, end, and processing of the recording, and the instance when it was deleted by me after I discovered it.

Any ideas now that you all have a fuller picture of my situation? Anything else I can possibly supply to you all to help me troubleshoot this? Please let me know.

#9

Jobs that end with -chxxxx are scheduled directly via the guide.

If you look in /volume1/@appstore/ChannelsDVR/channels-dvr/data/ you'll find a set of channels-dvr-http.log files. If you find the one for 5/11, you can find the IP address that created that recording job around 7:18pm.