just getting back into the game--which series 2 dtivo??

[phango13]

i have a series 1 dtivo that i upgraded the storage on and added airnet and tivoweb years ago...so my hacking skills are somewhat rusty...

its time to upgrade and double up (just got a second tv)...i have cat5e wiring thru out the house...my linux skills are basic (can open and edit files)...have a serial cable...

i plan to purchase 2 new series 2 dtivos and WANT MRV DESPERATELY...folders would be nice...not concerned about music and photos...want tivoweb on at least one unit...don't need to migrate anything from old to new...

so the plan is:

1. buy 2 identical new dtivos with active usb ports and 2 wired usb/ethenet adapters

2. remove one HD and hide it in case of complete failure (mine, of course :rolleyes: )

3. install pre-hacked image on 2 fresh drives (one stock 40 or 80 that's been wiped, and one new biggie--don't need huge amounts of storage on both assuming MRV works)

questions:

1. which series 2 dtivo to buy?? which ones come with active usb ports??any reason to stay away from the RIDs??

2. which OS should i be shooting for--4.x or 6.x?? from what i've read so far the hacks i'd need work better on 4.x, and there's not much gained in 6.x...

3. are pre-hacked images available?? i don't mind starting from scratch (especially if it means improving my linux skills along the way) but quick and easy works for me too...

4. if starting from scratch, which guide(s) should i follow--seems to be mixed reviews about sleeper...

i apologize if this seems like an ultra-newbie post (trust me, i do plan to do A LOT more reading before i attempt anything) but i want to get my purchases in before the x-mas sales dry up...

thanx in advace, beth

[captain_video]

1. Any current model or older except the newest R10 which hasn't been hacked yet. DTivos do not come with active USB ports but if you want MRV you'll have to install a 4.x image on them from a SA model so the drivers will be included in the restored image. There's no reason to avoide the RID models anymore as the RID feature is only included as a DTV security feature.

2. You'll want 4.x; 6.x is still an unknown quantity at this point.

3. None that I know of but if you hack one you can do a backup and restore of the image to the second unit and just do a clear and delete plus make changes to the Tivo's IP address. You may want to hold off on doing the MRV setup on the first unit until you've got both units hacked. Each Tivo will need a unique IP address and name on your network so they will be recognizable from the other Tivo on the network. I haven't done any of these hacks myself yet but this is how I understand it to work.

4. You'll want to avoid using Sleeper's tivoscripts as it is pretty much obsolete. Start with installing 4.x on the drives first then run the killhdinitrd hack. You can get the pre-hacked killhdinitrd kernel for 4.x from ptvupgrade and simply dd the image to the proper partition. There are several threads in the newbie and series 2 section for doing this. If you need a guide then look in the newbies section and you'll find a sticky that links the vast majority of newbie guides in a single thread.

[phango13]

okay, so the revised plan of attack:

1. buy 2 non-R10 series 2 dtivos

2. install the pre-hacked killhdinitrd kernel for 4.x from ptvupgrade on both

3. install superpatch on both (maybe--need to do some more reading to figure out if this will be necessary--or just try it without first!!)

4. get them both on the LAN and fiddle with IPs

5. keep the old series 1 up and running thru-out, just in case!!

again, thanx for the help--i'll probably be back, but not without searching some more stickes first... :)

[phango13]

call directv and activate the new dtivos before or after hacking???

[RavenStL]

Activate first cause who knows if it has a problem, how would you know where to start? Was it my hacks? cables? Card?

And then when you find out its broke from the beginning.... well you get the picture.

And you shouldnt need to re-activate after hacking. You may need to make ONE call into for setting the date and time, but thats ALL I had to do.

[phango13]

i'll go ahead and activate before hacking...

appreciate the advice!!

plan to follow the 4.x+rid guide--will post my results!! beth