VU+ Duo2 with BH3.0.2 .F got slow

[steffo]

Hello,
I have my beloved VU+ with a old BH image that has served me well for years.
Now since a few days it has become very slow and the blue "busy-dot" in the top left corner of the screen is showing very often and the system is obviously doing something.
Any tips to what might have happened?

I m a bit reluctant to update the SW since it normally creates problems..
Any help kindly appreciated!

 

[AlexWilMac]

Normally, upgrading (not updating, that's when you update online staying in the same major release) doesn't create any problems, if you know the process.

The box, very likely, got slow because you kept installing plugins. So, you should at least removing the last plugins you installed.
Otherwise, the only chance you have is to reflash your box.
And if it's a old model, follow the advice not to put 309 in flash because it might be too heavy.
If you want BH, better flashing by a lighter image like OBH and then install BH in multiboot.

 

[steffo]

Hello and thanks for input.
I bought the box mid 2015 so I guess it's quite old.
I have not installed any plugins or anything else thelast 3 years, thats what confuses me.
Can it be that the HDD is full? I only have recordings on that and I dont expect the VU+ to swap stuff to disc so I guess not.

I don't necessarily need BH, anything that let me use my channels with easy mgcam will be OK...
But.. I was hopong I could do something to get it back as it was..
The issues started after a power outage in the area..

 

[AlexWilMac]

First of all, I hadn't noticed you mentioned you've got the Duo2 in the title.
Duo2 is surely able to bear also the last BH but the advice in my previous post might obviously still be followed, although is not compulsory as for other older models.

If the HDD is full it's easy to see... You have every info you need in the Info submenus or, even, already when you enter the Rec List.
But if you never got any messages about the lack of space, this is not the poor windows, that need giga and giga of freespace! Your system does not work from the HDD (whom you might not even have, in theory).
Enigma2 images, like ours, run from flash: maybe you filled your flash with picons or else?
Check again your Infos to know how much flash space it's available,

Or, maybe the problem is that the HDD has too many defective sectors. If you have the Timeshift plugin and it's enabled, try and disable it and test your system without recording or playing any files, just zapping.
Then, step by step, you can test playing already recorded files, then recording again, then re-enabling Timeshift.

A test must be done isolating every possible causes, one by one.
Obviously, if you got a surely working spare HDD, you can try and connect it, formatting by the image and mapping it (because in Linux systems it's not enough to format a device in order to be able to use it: it must be mapped. In your case as
/media/hdd/).

And finally, although you registered your account in this forum 7 years ago, it seems you haven't been reading our posts so much and, above all, you haven't read the rules, yet, specifically paragraph 4...

https://www.vuplus-community.net/rules.html

 

[steffo]

Hello and thank you very much for the support!
7 years - long time with flawless operation and almost all with BH, great product!
I am sorry if I bore rules, I read them now and will obey!

It seems like I have 83% left of the file system the BH uses so it should be OK I suppose.
Is this same as flashspace or how do I inspect this attribute?

There are 50Gb on the HDD so no problems there either.
I have pressed stopped recording but it did not make any difference.
dont have the time shift plugin Wish I had so could turn it off..

I notice that the lagging som most noticed when I jump around in the "info menu"
Perhaps I need to upgrade.. but I assume the upgrade will whipe everything I got cofigured, right?
Again thanks for great support!

 

[AlexWilMac]

If by "file system" you mean the HDD space, the % is not useful. And if you say you've got 50Gb, they are not so much: a film of 100 minutes recorded in HD, in the .ts format needs an average of 8-12 Gb, depending on the resolution (1280x720 or 1920x1080).
I can't check the BH GUI menu at the moment (and not sure to remember where BH has this info) but you can try the command

free -m

to check "free" RAM (not flash).
Only, don't jump to conclusion because linux OSs have a cache the kernel can easily release in case it's needed.

And yes, flashing means starting from scratch: you can easily save your channels/bouquet by a software or by the OWIF (web interface) itself.

Flash memory is not the RAM, though.

Everything else need to be reinstalled.

 

[steffo]

Hello again and thanks.
I will try the OWIF as you recommend and prepare for a upgrade.
Lat question before I go down the rabbit hole.. is there a way where I can save the current flash I have to fully recover the version I have today?
I am as you see very uncomfortable with these types of exercices..
Again thanks!!

user@vusolo2:~# free -m
total used free shared buff/cache available
Mem: 559 73 318 0 167 460
Swap: 0 0 0
user@vusolo2:~#

 

[AlexWilMac]

Yes, and you need to learn it because, in my view, is the most important feature above all in enigma2 images: it's the Full Backup. In BH this saves a folder named vuplus (with subfolders) in the path you chose by its configuration.
This structure (folder vuplus and its subfolders and files) can be copied to a flashdrive to flash the box by your current installed image. This will restore, in case, your box to exactly what you have at the time of the FullBackup.
Don't mix it with the Personal Backup that's only (in theory, because it actually does not work, usually, among different releases) to save settings (channels, plugins, customizations...).

In OBH, in case you'll tryit in the future, the FullBackup produces a .zip file containing the same structure. Only, the difference is that you don't need to flash your box unzipping this zipped file to a USB stick: you can, if you like, restore it by OBH FullBackup menu itself.
Obviously, tis is possible only if already have a OBH installed. Otherwise you need to unzip it and flash.