Sky+ System Fault - HD failure needs reconditioned box?

[nicepaul]

I have the same problem as detailed on this thread:
http://www.satellites.co.uk/php-bin/...p/t-48872.html

I don't need to keep any recordings. BGonaSTICK seemed to know a solution? Anyone?

Sky tech support talked me through a system reset and since that didn't help they want to charge me £65 for a reconditioned box. Is this my only option?

thanks,
Paul
(in Brighton)

[BGonaSTICK]

Hi Paul.

Hey! A fellow Brightonian

I don't have a Sky + system, but I do know of a couple of fixes for Sky + box disk problems which you might try.

The first is a Planner Rebuild.

Do this by pressing 'Services - 4 - 0 - 1 - Select' quickly and with no pauses. Then instead of Housekeeping, try Planner Rebuild. This is a fix that Sky implemented in the firmware after a long running saga. Read the article below.

The other is a full system reset, which it sounds like you've already tried. That's SERVICES then 4 - 0 - 1 - SELECT and choose FULL SYSTEM RESET

This will reformat the hard disk. If this does not work then the hard disk may be dead.

Apparently you can then "Check feed 2 lock, if it is unlocked, that usually means that the hard disk has failed". Now, I don't know where you find that, I'm just quoting from someone else who has had this problem. Have a look in the engineer menu you just opened.

You could also maybe try opening the box (nothing to lose I guess) and check all the cables, particularly the HDD cable. Unplug them, then re-connect (err, disconnect from mains first of course...). Can you hear the disk spin-up when you DO apply the power?

Sky are known for their antics in this area. Below I've reproduced an article from the press on this.

Good luck, and let us know how you get on.

Sky charges for repairs to non-faulty digiboxes


British Sky Broadcasting has denied accusations that the company tried to profit from a known software fault in its digital video recorders, after customers were charged £65 for engineers to visit their homes.

A recurring fault in the Sky+ system software causes recordings to fail for no apparent reason. The bug eats up space on the digibox's hard disk and, even after the failed recording has been deleted, the disk space is lost.

Although the problem has dragged on for two years, coming and going through various software updates, recent complaints from Sky+ customers have revealed an interesting development:

Customers whose digiboxes are still under warranty are told by Sky that the fault is known about and will be fixed with an automatic software update, downloaded by satellite. But customers whose digiboxes are out of warranty are told that it is a hardware fault and will require an engineer visit. This incurs a £65 call-out charge.

But calling twice as a customer whose digibox is out of warranty, both times we were told that it is a hardware fault and we would have to pay £65 for an engineer to fix it.

Refunds and retraining

Sky has so far been unable to explain the discrepancy in advice being given to customers, but a spokeswoman stressed that the company was "absolutely not" trying to profit by charging for unnecessary call-outs.

"We have had complaints from a small percentage of customers and we have confirmed that it is a software fault," the spokeswoman explained.

"We will review engineer call-outs on a case-by-case basis and although we can't make any promises with regard to refunds, some customers would receive a refund if the engineer was unable to fix the problem."

The spokeswoman acknowledged that "retraining" of some call centre staff may be necessary to ensure that customers are offered appropriate advice in future, regardless of whether or not their digiboxes are still under warranty.

Never miss a thing

This recording fault has been a long-term thorn in the side of Sky and thousands of customers who subscribe to the £10 per month Sky+ service.

Why the fault cannot be fixed permanently is a mystery, and some Sky+ users have come to dread the automatic software updates, knowing that the problem may re-appear at any time.

When the bug first struck, customers were infuriated by Sky insisting that there was nothing wrong. An extemporary campaign organised on an internet discussion forum resulted in a flood of complaints to Sky, but the company continued to deny the fault and denied receiving any complaints.

Concerns were heightened when it was discovered that a hidden menu option had been added to the engineer's menu on the Sky+ interface. "Planner Rebuild" seemed to serve no purpose other than to correct for the lost disk space caused by the recording bug. Rather than crushing the bug once and for all, it appeared that Sky had decided to simply work around it.

Much to the dismay and some ironic amusement of Sky+ users, the "Planner Rebuild" feature was a failure and has not solved the problem it was meant to fix.

Sky+ adverts infamously boasted that subscribers would "never miss a thing", a claim which has lead to Sky paying compensation to customers affected by the recording bug. The "never miss a thing" line does not appear in the latest round of advertising.

[nicepaul]

Thanks very much for the info. It will definitely come in useful.

I tried a Sky Plus Planner Rebuild just out of curiosity after tech support had finished with me. It lost all picture on all channels, but doing another Full System Reset fixed this.

I think I'll give them a call back and read them the article you quoted (fo all the good I'm sure it'll do). In case this helps anybody in the future, i tracked the article down to The Register, January 2005.

[nicepaul]

Good news

I called Sky tech support and briefly explained the problem as a manufacturing fault. The tech support operator said yes, they knew of the problem. She then took my details including the fact that I'm out of warranty, at which time her story subtly switched to yes, she understood that I had a 'system fault' but that it *wasn't* a known problem with the manufacture of the digibox.

When I pointed out that she'd recognised the problem when I first mentioned it, and I quoted some of the article posted above in this thread, she said that even if it were a manufacturing problem it would then need referring to Pace or whoever, as it wasn't Sky who manufactured the boxes, but they could send an engineer out for £65. I insisted that even if Sky didn't manufacture the box they had an obligation to provide non-faulty boxes to their customers, so I wasn't willing to pay.

All this was getting me nowhere. I said that instead of paying £65 for an engineer could I cancel my Sky subscription for both my digiboxes, knowing that it makes more business sense for them to swallow up the cost of an engineer visit than to lose £55/month from a subscriber. I was put on hold for a few minutes, then, lo and behold, I was offered a free engineer visit in 2 days time to sort the problem out. I'll let you know how it goes!

Incidentally, although both digiboxes are connected to our phone line one of my boxes hasn't been making callbacks recently so I'm not getting my 'interactive discount' - do you know if this is down to the system fault too? If so, I should be owed a refund...

Thanks for you help. I'm sure I wouldn't have got this far without it.

Paul

[SatelliteHelp]

Ahh, superb!

It sounds like you played it perfectly on the phone

The final threat to cancel your subscription is a great way to lubricate the wheels of a monolithic customer service department like Sky's.

"Customer threatens to cancel subscription? Go to instruction 164 on the laminated support card - ...do whatever it takes to keep them!"

I'd love to see one of those cards :roflmao:

Please do let us know what the engineer finds. It does sound like it might be a hardware problem.

TBH I'm not really up on the latest Sky subscriptions and charges etc, so regarding your phone line question all I know is that they must both be connected to the phone line for the first 12 months, otherwise your Interactive Discount is invalid (and that they do check).
I think that they have various package options - mirror subs, multiroom etc. but I'm not sure about all the T&C's

Anyway, sounds like you had a result!

Regards,

SH

[nicepaul]

Well, I got the Sky plus box fixed free of charge. I've put the details on my blog in the hope that it will help others. Click this link:

Sky plus