Problem solved per @sjp for any one else checking out the thread.
If anyone would prefer us to make some changes to your Tablo directly (the same oneās we made for @sjpās box) we can arrange a remote session for this.Ā
If not, these changes will be included in our next firmware release - which is fast approaching.
@tablosupport Hate to burst the bubbleā¦came home tonight to āNo Hard Driveā
@sjpĀ Weāve narrowed this problem down to a specific model and firmware version of the Elements drive. The testing weāve done over the last few days has pointed us to a firmware update available for the drive.
You can download and install the firmware update to the WD Elements drive here.Ā
So far, we havenāt seen a single disconnect since updating the firmware. And fortunately, updating the firmware wonāt touch any of the contents on the disk.
I have a WD WDBUZ0010bbk. There are no firmware or software updates on the WD support site. And as WD support reported back after I inquired if this drive had a way to disable any sleep/idle timer.
āIn regards to your support case, the WD Elements Portable model WDBUZG0010BBK does not have sleep time feature nor any applications to disable such on the device. This drive will go into sleep mode only by the device where it is connected to, since the does not have this feature.ā
@Zippy Feel free to PM your Tabloās MAC. I can check the Elements drive attached to it to see if itās the āproblemā drive that weāve identified.
There is no need to go to all that trouble. Iāll just supply the product info. Itās brand new. The info off of the box:
P/N wdbuzg0010bbk-03
model wdbuzg0010bbk-nesn
I donāt think the serial number is relevant.
Here is some additional information which may or may not be of any help. It appears this drives works with no dropout for many users.
The WD drive was ordered along with the tablo from amazon 30 days ago. I noticed that the 2 digit part number suffix was 03. I have no idea what the suffix means but usually plant, date and production line info is embedded in the serial number.
Today, I had to stop by my local frys to pickup some other junk so I checked out their equivalent drives. They had around 20 on the shelves and assuming they properly rotate their stock they only had 04ās at the front and 05ās at the back - no 03ās.
There is a problem with some WD Elements drives (drive fails to wake up after sleeping) that is corrected by updating the firmware on the drive. Ā The drive I have has -03Ā as the suffix on the part number (also reported by @zippy).
How to tell if your drive has this problem?
Does the Tablo report that your drive is: WD Elements 10A8 1042 (XXX GB)
If so, you should upgrade the drive firmware.
How to update your WD Elements drive:
On a Windows PC, download the firmware updater tool fromĀ http://www.wdc.com/wdproducts/wdsmartwareupdate/firmware.asp?id=wdfGeneric&os=win and follow the instructions. Ā It takes about 5 minutes and does NOT modify the data on the drive. Ā The tool will report that the drive firmware was updated from 1.042 to 1.049.
After the update, reconnect the disk to your Tablo, it will report that the drive is:Ā WD Elements 10A8 1049 (XXX GB)
To Mark of Ottawa:
As reported by WD support, as opposed to other WD portable drives, the Element does not have a sleep timer. The WD download page for this specific drive does not have any updates/downloads. And none were mentioned by WD support. If you go to the WEB page you listed and read the read notes, the drive I have is not listed.Ā But there are WD Element SE drives listed - which I donāt have. And those SEĀ update tools can be found on that drives download page.
Super frustrating. I only have one computer, a Macbook Pro. When I plug the drive in, it wonāt recognize it so the firmware update tool doesnāt work. Which means either I lose all my recordings, or I deal with the issue. Plus the WD website says there are no firmware updates available anyways, so I donāt exactly know what Iād be updating anyways. Getting close to giving up on Tablo.
Just an updateā¦still absolutely no help from Tablo support. If you have a Mac, you canāt update firmware on an ext3 formatted drive. Even if you install FuseOSX and can read the contents, that doesnāt help the firmware issue. So I guess my option is to ditch Tablo or buy a new hard drive, I guess I should ask you guys which ones work since Tablo says the WD Elements is supported.
I would recommend a different hard drive. Ā There is a whole stickied thread about what hard drives work, though I would look at the most recent posts since some of the earliest ones may not work anymore.
@sjp We've narrowed this problem down to a specific model and firmware version of the Elements drive. The testing we've done over the last few days has pointed us to a firmware update available for the drive.You can download and install the firmware update to the WD Elements drive here.So far, we haven't seen a single disconnect since updating the firmware. And fortunately, updating the firmware won't touch any of the contents on the disk.
Been away for a few weeks, so hadnāt had much time to play with this.
Having done the WD Firmware update, I havenāt seen the problem - it has only been a few days, but I was seeing the issue pretty much every other day. You need to use the WD update tool - Windows - Mac - as there is no listed update for the drive itself - but the update tool finds one and installs itā¦thanks WD sigh
Might be worth adding a note to the FAQ/Knowledge base about Firmware updates for specific hard drives where we know particular versions have issues.
Still canāt get my Plex channel working quite right, but I think thatās more a Plex thing than a Tablo thing at this stage.
@sjp - Weāre planning to do a lot of work on the Knowledge Base over the coming months. This will be a good addition!Ā
I have a WD Elements 1TB Portable HDĀ WDBUZG0010BBK-NESN that evidently went to sleep which rendered the Tablo useless and when Iām not at home to āwakeā it up by reconnecting the USB that sucks. I read some of the posts and found above it mentions an update with a link for an update but that link goes nowhere useful. I also went to the WD support site and they donāt have any updates for my model. Ā @Tablosupport Ā Is there a fix Iām not finding or are you close to having one?
Addition: Ā I see on my failed scheduled shows the first one failed at 12:30 today (Friday) and the last recording ended last night (Thursday) at 11:35. Ā Plus, all the shows that show recorded on Thursday were not the actual showsā¦rather something else or in other cases they overlapped and had half a show under the right recording and half on the next show recorded. Ā This was not the night of the Obama thing so thatās not the problem and not even sure these two problems are related. Ā Maybe a guide thing? Just more headaches.
I had the wrong show recorded on ABC on Wednesday night, which was the night of the SOTU. I guess the guide didnāt take that into account.
@mullermj - Did you try the firmware update on the drive (links are posted 2 posts above yours)? I am curious because I am going to pick one of these WD drives up tomorrow because my I think my Seagate 1tb drive is no longer 100% compatible since the .18 update was rolled out (even though it is on the list of working drives) but thisĀ thread has me nervous now.
The newest firmware is .20 - are you still running .18?
I have a WD Elements 1TB Portable HD WDBUZG0010BBK-NESN that evidently went to sleep which rendered the Tablo useless and when I'm not at home to "wake" it up by reconnecting the USB that sucks. I read some of the posts and found above it mentions an update with a link for an update but that link goes nowhere useful. I also went to the WD support site and they don't have any updates for my model. @Tablosupport Is there a fix I'm not finding or are you close to having one?Addition: I see on my failed scheduled shows the first one failed at 12:30 today (Friday) and the last recording ended last night (Thursday) at 11:35. Plus, all the shows that show recorded on Thursday were not the actual shows...rather something else or in other cases they overlapped and had half a show under the right recording and half on the next show recorded. This was not the night of the Obama thing so that's not the problem and not even sure these two problems are related. Maybe a guide thing? Just more headaches.
The only firmware update I could find came from the Universal Update tool. The link I posted says āElementsā but it seems to work for all their drives. The download is about halfway down that page - WD Universal Firmware Updater
I should stress - No update was on the WD websiteā¦but the downloaded Updater installed an update on the driveā¦so itās worth installing and trying at least once.
The link in TabloTVās post seemed to be broken, thatās why I added the links to mine.
So far, no issues - I actually see the light flash as I walk by occasionallyā¦even though nothing is using the Tablo right now.