Can I format the internal hard drive on a Motorola non-x1 dvr?

Thanks for the reply. Any ideas how I can improve the performance of playback and especially fast forward?

Most HD stations are sent as MPEG4, and the Moto DCX's can barely handle it. Comcast also SEVERELY compress it, with key frames many seconds apart, making it even harder for it to keep track of things.

The drive is not like a Windows computer drive. It's a Linux-style format. There is a way to wipe the drive, but be aware that it will also wipe out all series recordings settings:

https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/How_to_use_a_Motorola_DVR/Resets

To the best of my knowlege the hard drive units Xfinity/Motorola uses are built with cost-effectiveness in mind, not with the intention of running large format things such as computers or software.

If you want, you could get an aftermarket DVR from Amazon or Walmart that might be of higher speed/quality, or you could just get a new box from Xfinity.

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@DVR11 wrote:

 

If you want, you could get an aftermarket DVR from Amazon or Walmart that might be of higher speed/quality, 

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https://forums.xfinity.com/t5/TV/ANSWERED-Can-I-buy-my-own-DVR-or-cable-box/ta-p/2940518

Thank you for the suggestions and Wiki information. I will try to format the hard drive and report back. I am not interested in X1 for various reasons.

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@EG wrote:

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@DVR11 wrote:

 

If you want, you could get an aftermarket DVR from Amazon or Walmart that might be of higher speed/quality, 

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https://forums.xfinity.com/t5/TV/ANSWERED-Can-I-buy-my-own-DVR-or-cable-box/ta-p/2940518

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Exactly what I was alluding to, @EG !

#Teamwork

The steps for the HDD reset on Wikibooks is not 100% correct. Power off. Press SELECT once and a menu page will appear with d01 highlighted. Do not press SELECT a second time. Then press the proper keys in the sequence of 1 - 3 - 1. Clr will apprear on the LED. Press SELECT and the box will reset.

I found a second link which also describes the steps. Thanks for the warning but since this is published information from multiple sources, and I have not disassembled the box, I would not consider this tampering.

I recorded one program to see if the fast forward is better. It went from one extreme (very slow) to the other extreme (very fast).

Before HDD reset:

Pressing fast forward one time would move no faster than play. Pressing a second time would go faster and then pause, go faster and then pause. The pattern would repeat. I suspected fragmentation which is the reason I wanted to format the drive to start clean. I have two DVR boxes and the pattern is the same on both. It is very annoying.

After HDD reset:

I recorded one program after a reset on one box. Pressing fast forward one time will skip ahead by about three minutes so now it is easy to jump farther than I want. I have not decided which is worse. I will record more and continue testing.

Thank you for the suggestions. A last resort is to look for my own DVR which may perform better but that will take some time to research the various models. Again, no X1.

The legacy boxes/iGuide do support a 30-second skip code. Unless you have the old Comcast silver or gray remote, you will need a 3rd party remote to use it. The various XR series remotes are not programmable.

And even then, with MPEG4 HD channels, the skip and review are not reliable. They will sometimes jump several minutes forward or back.