Recover from power outage while away from home

Channels DVR Server
#1

I have Channels DVR server running on a dedicated Windows 10 PC at my primary residence. I use HD Home Run with cable card as the source. The router has been set to port forward 8089.

When at our vacation home, we use an Apple TV running the Channels app to access the recorded programs and HD Homerun live streams.

While recently at our vacation home for a week away, we had no issues accessing the server via the Apple TV app. On the 5th day of the vacation week, there was a brief (2 hour) power outage at our primary home. Obviously, the Windows PC restarted on power restoration, however I am unable to connect remotely from the vacation home.

I cannot remote into the home PC. I'm guessing the PC is waiting on the user ID and login before completing the reboot process.

I'm asking for advice how to remotely access the Channels DVR server after a power outage. Thank you.

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#2

u can't. simple as that. u have to remote access the pc it stored on, to login for it to finish loading the os....if that is how you have it setup. The sever does not even load until you log in?

If you do not have remote acces setup on the pc, using TeamViewer or something else (i recommend DWSERVICE) your out of luck.

Maybe u could setup a Raspi as the server, with the Channels image, that boots right up to it and is dedicated to only the channels dvr image. however, it is limited to only 1 transcode stream, and since u use it remotely mainly...that could be an issue.

#3

It is possible to set up a Windows PC so that it does not ask for a password when it boots up. For some, this presents a security violation.

Otherwise, as mentioned above, you need a remote access app that will let you log into the Windows PC. This may be tricky because you need the access app to work before your desktop loads.

Another alternative is a large battery backup for your computer and router.

#4

I use a UPS for my server and internet modem/router

3 Likes
#5

You can run Channels DVR as a Service and then you would not have to login and it automatically starts. I run mine as a service with credentials. I prefer not to use autologin for several reasons.

4 Likes
#6

Just found out the hard way. RasPi image booted right up after power loss.

#7

Thank you for your responses.

I purchased and installed an UPS for my Channels DVR server.

2 Likes
#8

I’m concerned about the same thing.

If I run this:

Run netplwiz.exe to enable auto login and ensure the service is always running after a reboot.

Will this restart Channels DVR if the computer reboots, even if I’m not able to log in?

#9

If you run as a service, you do not need auto logon.

1 Like
#10

There was a 60 minute power outage at my primary home a few days ago and the Channels DVR server on the Windows PC (that is now hooked up to the UPS) was able to continue running.

I never realized there even was a power outage when we were at our vacation home until we returned to our primary home and noticed the digital clock on the oven was flashing.

#11

What type of UPS do you have? Most that I’ve looked at only keep power for 10-15 minutes.

#12

I have done this with my dedicated windows 10 machine for channels. It automatically runs channels DVR on startup in the background. I needed configure the PC to turn on automatically in the BIOS though.

#14

Is there instructions somewhere of how to do this?

#15

@Edwin_Perez, How do you run Channels DVR as a service ? What are the steps ?

#16
  1. Run the Channels DVR setup program.
  2. You should see a button to stop the running instance of the server. Click it.
  3. You should now see a button to run it as a service. Click it.

That should be all it takes.

3 Likes
Best way to ensure that Channels DVR is up and running at all times
Set up Channels to run as a service and it can no longer access network sources
#17

One thing I will note. When you enable the DVR to run as a service this way, it will be configured to run under the Local System account which has full administrator authority. This may not be wise for relatively untrusted software. You may want to run it as a lower-privileged account instead.

  1. Create a service account for Channels DVR. I called it ChannelsDvrSvc. Alternatively, you can use the built-in Network Service account.
  2. Run services.msc and open properties for the "Channels DVR Engine". Go to the Log On tab and enter credentials for the service account. Click Apply.
  3. Go to the General tab. Click Stop. After it stops, click Start.

If it starts and runs, you're done. If it won't start you probably have a permissions problem.

  1. Run notepad as an administrator. (This is a trick to get a file explorer window running with administrator authority.)
  2. Choose File -> Open in notepad.
  3. Browse to your recordings folder. Right click on the recordings folder and choose properties. Go to the Security tab and add an access control entry granting full control to the service account. (Full control may be overkill, but I'm trying to keep this simple.)
  4. Repeat step 3 for for the ProgramData\ChannelsDVR folder.
  5. You may need to repeat step 3 for any import folders you have.
  6. Try to start the DVR service again.
2 Likes
Set up Channels to run as a service and it can no longer access network sources
#18

I like this for making sure I can stream shows in the library remotely, but will this permit it to record programs linked through Docker?