ESATA on TW 8300HDC working again

[DublinDoodah]

As mentioned earlier, TW pushed out a new DVR release a couple of weeks ago (ODN 3.2). I've had the 8300HDC for quite a while and have gone through several SW releases over the years. It seems that TW has fixed then broken the ability to connect external esata drives every other release. It worked with my original box, then quit with a release some months later. The next two releases fixed, then broke esata. Ironically, the older 8300HD boxes never lost the ability to attach external drives.

After a long stretch with a release that does not support the external drive (ODN 3.1), it is finally working again. I turned my drive back on yesterday and it appears that the drive is recognized and being used for expanded storage space. I've now recorded several programs, viewed them, rebooted, and reconfirmed that the recordings still work. It also survived the night (which was a problem three releases ago -- called the "sleep mode" problem).

For those interested in expanding their storage space, I recommend the following AVS forum thread:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=516559

Also, the following database documents others user's experiences with various combinations of drives and enclosures with the TW Navigator software:

http://www.baseportal.com/baseportal/xnappo/navigator

[mikegodwin]

My old 8300 passed away last week. The drive was making all kinds of noise till it finally bit the dust.

[mey]

Been using the 1tb. external hard drive (from Wal-mart) for close to a year with no issues. I have the 8300.

[DublinDoodah]

I'm guessing you have the 8300HD. Software-wise, it's a different animal than the 8300HDC.