NextPVR Stops mid recording and machine is unresponsive

[mvallevand]

You are using the HDHR in http mode I don't think it is even an NextPVR issue with the tuner. It could be related to power management drivers. Did you look at the event log?

Also instead of RDP to a browser why not just use the browser directly?

Also being two version out is not a good idea

Version 5.0.6.200614

Martin

[gEd]

What was the date/time of the last failure?

As Martin suggested, also look in windows event viewer (applications and system) for the time of the last failure and check if any fatal errors were reported.

The hunch that it's likely to be driver related is that an application itself can't hang/crash a windows PC due to how the various layers of the windows system work. An application is unable to do anything that would result in a failure of the OS itself as it runs within a protected shell.
(that's my best attempt to describe it anyway....)

[Ronstang]

Looking in the event log the only errors before the system locked up while I was using it had the source of DistributedCOM and the error reported was the following:

The server {1B1F472E-3221-4826-97DB-2C2324D389AE} did not register with DCOM within the required timeout.

There was no error showing in the event log at the time the system locked up on me and I know the exact time I reset the machine manually so I don't know where to look for the source of this error.

[Ronstang]

You are using the HDHR in http mode I don't think it is even an NextPVR issue with the tuner.  It could be related to power management drivers.  Did you look at the event log?

Also instead of RDP to a browser why not just use the browser directly?

Also being two version out is not a good idea

Version 5.0.6.200614

Martin

I use RPD because the machine also does all my encoding and server management so I need access to it like a desktop but don't want to sit in the den looking at a 65" TV.

I have no idea what version of NextPVR is available online since it does not appear easy to check.  There is a single link in a thread more than a year old that simply leads to a setup file so how do I check what is the latest available version and how do I know when it's available?

[mvallevand]

With the browser you just point to your server with http://ip:8866 instead of RDP The Settings page will tell you about version.

You can also subscribe to https://forums.nextpvr.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=18 (on the top right) and you get an email when there is a version update.

Martin

[Ronstang]

I have done some experimenting and while I still don't know the source of the error it seems to be something to do with the Windows 8.1 lockscreen....if that is even possible. If I disconnect my RDP session before I go to bed it still locks up in the middle of the night or early morning before I get back to the machine. If I disconnect the RDP session and then go to the den and log back into Windows 8.1 before I go to bed it is fine and never locks up. I have the Windows 8.1 machine set to never sleep.

[Ronstang]

OK, I'm confident I found the problem and it had nothing to do with NextPVR, it was just the failures only happened once I started using the program and always when the machine was unattended in the middle of the night and only when I was recording.

I feel stupid but it was a HEAT issue.  The CPU was simply running too hot.  I never thought to check it since this machine has run rock solid stable for 6 and a half years running 24/7 without a hiccup.  The last year along with it's recording chores in WMC I have been running MCEBuddy 24/7 also to compress my library.  The reason it didn't occur to me because this wasn't an issue in the heat of summer doing the same tasks and it was only after I stopped using WMC and started using NextPVR instead.  Maybe NextPVR is a little more resource intensive, I don't know and don't care because I prefer it to WMC even though it sometimes just stops recording in the middle of a movie for no reason.

Needless to say, once I felt I identified the issue I pulled off the CPU cooler and applied new thermal paste and added an extra case fan blowing directly on the CPU and voila.....temps dropped 20-30 degrees C and the issue is gone. 

User error!

[gEd]

Good to hear that you got it sorted.
A few folks have had problems with overheating machines in the past, sometimes because of using small cases with older re-purposed (and less efficient) cpus while avoiding fans to keep noise levels down. 20-30C is a massive drop in temps.
I've always found that nextpvr uses very little cpu for either recording or playback.

"I prefer it to WMC even though it sometimes just stops recording in the middle of a movie for no reason."
If this happens again, upload the logs and folks can help troubleshoot the issue. check if it happens at precisely the same time when recording (e.g. always after 90 mins) as that might be a file system issue such as low space or hitting the 4GB file size limit when writing to a FAT32 file system.

[Ronstang]

If this happens again, upload the logs and folks can help troubleshoot the issue. check if it happens at precisely the same time when recording (e.g. always after 90 mins) as that might be a file system issue such as low space or hitting the 4GB file size limit when writing to a FAT32 file system.

I don't have any FAT 32 files system except maybe on USB sticks but I don't use those and the recordings stop randomly.  Like yesterday I had several movies just stop recording after 20-30 minutes and the app did not report them as failed recordings.

The logs are in the link below and the last movie to just stop recording was "Blood Crime" on Thursday

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AimsHEMnaN8LgnlGs8wp...i?e=JyWD5M

[Graham]

The logs are in the link below and the last movie to just stop recording was "Blood Crime" on Thursday

Sadly, the earliest record in these logs is at ... 2020-10-10 06:29:42.545

A new log file is started each time that NextPVR Server is started and only the current and three previous logs are kept.