I have had success by connecting the drive to a Windows PC and using Disk Management to delete any volumes from the drive (do not add a new volume and do not format) then reconnecting to Tablo and using http://my.tablotv.com/ via Chrome to format the drive by typing “FORMAT” when prompted.
*** Be very careful when deleting volumes from drives using Disk Management - make sure you are operating on the correct drive ***
How long have you been using this drive? I installed a NEW Seagate Barracuda 2TB, and I get reboots, chopped up recordings, etc. I was told it was a HDD problem put an SSD in and it seems to work. They need to provide EXACT models of HDD that have been tested! Many people having the same problems… Is it really a hard drive problem? good question…
https://www.tablotv.com/setup-networking/#harddrive
Includes specific brands - link to recommend lines, and then links to specific models
as well as more tablotv.com related links -
and that further has even more (updated link here) to follow
For all there is to complain about, I’m not sure this is it.
But I agree with this one. One suggestion, adjust your recording quality - no, maybe you shouldn’t have to… but it’s a trouble shooting tactic.
I purchased the HDD the Tablo link points to! And was told I had a HDD problem! A link to only 2 specific models of HDD’s a bit weak.
Yup, it was a month old. I found the very old email with support…
> tablo
We have had a look at the log your Tablo sends to our database; it seems that the Tablo has been experiencing frequent reboots due to the hard drive disconnecting while it is being recorded to. As well, the Tablo log shows the hard drive as being 0% used. It seems as though the drive may be beginning to fail.
In the end I replied
I did try a different drive with the same results. Both tested with no errors. I wanted to save my recordings so I copied them via rsync and there was absolutely no errors (obviously this involves just disk reads, no writing) while both were connect to a pc. Before starting over I used ffmpeg to save the shows via the tablotv device. Again, no errors from either.
I cleared the first drive and factory reset the tabloTV. I haven’t encountered any issue yet after about a week.
I copied everything from the drive - with out any errors. Copied everything to a different drive - no write errors, but same “bad hard drive” problems. I did run diagnosis test via PC… no errors found. I have my recording quality to 720 - 5Mps live TV set to 720 3Mps
I’m not saying there is no hard drive issues. But yes, it seem like it can be a generic message as “many” are getting them while their drives don’t have any real problems.
Drives fail, I haven’t found it to be very common, many of my drive are “used” from eBay and several years later still spinning (not that all of them actually spin). So I’m not going to tell users to not to believe this, but to investigate a bit deeper.
So when you go to the link below and click on your specific model does the description have suggested storage options?
and
Most other brands/models are compatible, but avoid drives whose reviews suggest frequent disconnect problems.
and refers you to a community.tablotv.com post dating back 6 years, drives compatible with devices no longer in production.
That’s strange. When I go to the Western digital WEB site. It implies I can buy an Elements drive. I can even add it to my cart.:
- 1TB for $50.
Seagate Expansion still seems to on the seagate site
When I go to the link and click on Quad I get:
Owners of Tablo QUAD OTA DVRs have two options for recording storage:
-
USB-connected portable hard drives
(USB 2.0 or 3.0, 1 TB to 8 TB in size) -
Internal 2.5" SATA drives - spinning or SSD
(Standard 7mm or 9.5mm heights, 1TB to 8TB in size)*
For USB-connected drives, we recommend Western Digital Elements drives and Seagate Expansion drives.
For SATA-connected drives, we recommend Western Digital Blue or Seagate BarraCuda internal drives.
and when virtually any one else goes to that link and click on Quad (or others) they’ll see all that, and even more… for people reading the entire section I already referenced… " Most other brands/models are compatible"
You can be bored and looking for self entertainment, but it’s there - for any/everyone to click on after then see those two options — that are “most other” for “other people”
I’m only quoting what tablo recommends.
The link to the forum not only contains HHD’s not being made any more but also some models could have production runs of suspect quality.
I’ve had 4 different production runs of the Element and only one needed a firmware upgrade before it functioned properly with tablo.