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INITIALISATION PROCEDURE - TROUBLESHOOTING

OPENSKY + MANHATTAN USB DATA RECEIVER

This support bulletin outlines what happens when a PC with OPENSKY installed in conjunction with a Manhattan DVB-IP1000 USB data receiver boots up.

Introduction

The OPENSKY services are carried within a data stream received from the dish by the receiver and passed to the OPENSKY Remote Control Panel (on the PC) via OSControl and OSListener. If this data stream is not reaching OPENSKY, it will generate a number of error messages even when OPENSKY itself is installed correctly.

These error messages are triggered by the lack of data reaching OPENSKY or, if you are using OSControl (the default method with the Manhattan DVB-IP1000) a lack of communication between OSControl and the data receiver.

This can lead to the impression that OPENSKY is failing rather than the actual root cause. Since OPENSKY cannot work unless it is receiving this data stream, the root cause must be diagnosed and corrected first.

OPENSKY assumes that the installation of the data receiver is perfect, that it is receiving adequate signal, that the PC boot sequence is perfect and that the PC is properly configured with no network.

An understanding of what happens when OPENSKY tries to start up is helpful to troubleshooting any start up issues.

This document specifically relates to OPENSKY when used with the Manhattan DVB-IP1000 USB data receiver. It may help when troubleshooting similar devices such as the TechnoTrend S1300 and the Hauppauge Win-TV Nova-S USB.

OPENSKY Startup Procedure.

1. The data receiver detects it is connected to a PC with power and shows a green light.

• If you do not have a green light on the receiver, please rectify this before proceeding

2. The PC boots up, you logon and the PC prepares your desktop
3. OPENSKY waits a while for the rest of the PC to be ready before launching OSListener. This is usually the last or one of the last applications to be launched.
4. OSListener (Sun icon) starts
5. OSListener starts a hidden instance of OSControl
6. OSControl communicates with the USB Receiver and starts a link between OSControl and the receiver. This link passes the tuning and control information to the receiver.
7. The receiver acknowledges successful communication by lighting the amber light.

• This process may take some seconds.

If OSControl cannot start this link, OSListener will give an error message telling you:

• You need to setup your satellite adapter to use the Push service

then another:

• OS Listener failed to Initialise

This is a symptom of not being able to link up with the data receiver. There is no point to attempting to use OPENSKY itself until this link is established and OSControl and the receiver are communicating with each other.

Please do not start OPENSKY until you have both green AND amber lights on the receiver. You will just get more error messages relating to OPENSKY not being able to detect the receiver or get data from it.

If you do not get a green light at all, please review the section below about the lights on the receiver.

If the green light does appear but the amber light does not, you will need to Exit OSListener (which also stops the hidden OSControl instance) and re-start it:

Start > Program Files > OPENSKY > Tools > OSListener

This should bring back the Sun icon in the system tray and, if it can detect the receiver, start the receiver's amber light.

If you want to check OSControl directly, you should Exit OSListener and:

Start > Program Files > OPENSKY > Tools > OSControl (Satellite icon)

If the amber light appears and OSControl appears, then the link is working and the receiver is correctly installed. Shut down OSControl and restart OSListener. Wait for the amber light.

Once OSListener has started correctly and the amber light on the receiver appears, you can start OPENSKY.

Note: Do NOT try to start OSControl (Satellite icon) while OSListener (Sun icon) is running. The new instance of OSControl will conflict with the hidden instance being used by OSListener which will cause the software to stall and may even stall the receiver.

If this happens, you need to:

1. stop the USB connection from Windows,
2. disconnect the receiver
3. unplug the receiver power
4. shut down the PC
5. reconnect the receiver to the PC and to power
6. restart the PC.

If you have tried the above and still cannot get an amber light on the receiver, you may need to uninstall/re-install the receiver and maybe OPENSKY itself. Please see the relevant section below.

If you do get an amber light in addition to the green light, the next section explains what you should be seeing if all is well with the signal and data receiver communication with OSControl.

The Lights on the Data Receiver and "LOCK" in OSControl.

The GREEN light on the receiver indicates that it is receiving power from its own power supply AND that it is connected via its USB lead to a PC which is itself  powered up.

If you do not get a GREEN light, please check all power supply and data connections.

WARNING: Power is being applied to the receiver by its power supply even when the PC is turned off.

WARNING: Power is supplied by the receiver to the LNB via the satellite signal cable. Do NOT touch this connection unless the receiver is disconnected from the mains and PC.

The AMBER light on the receiver indicates that a link has been established between the receiver and the OSListener/OSControl applications on the PC. This light MUST be ON for OPENSKY to work.

If the GREEN and AMBER lights are on, check the data LOCK in OSListener/OSControl.

1. Right Click on OSListener (Sun icon in system tray).
2. A menu pops up
3. Left Click on the OSControl Dialog option
4. OSControl starts

In OSControl

You should see:

Adapter Information

Name:               Manhattan DVB-IP1000

(or TechnoTrend if you have the earlier drivers)

MAC:                your receiver's MAC address

Tuner Status

Lock must be GREEN - this indicates the receiver has locked onto and can receive the data signal.

Tuner Signal Strength (xx%)

Signal strength should be 60% minimum - preferably over 70%. Performance of the system will be degraded with poor signal strength.

Signal strength and lock problems can be caused by

• dish pointing at wrong satellite
• misalignment of dish
• wrong skew on LNB
• problems with the F-connectors
• bad cable
• bad cable run
• local interference

If you have any of these problems, they MUST be resolved for correct operation of OPENSKY.

Pids

Other Pids may appear if you are using fast internet or other services are available.

Tuner Settings

You must get GREEN, AMBER and OSControl LOCK for correct operation of OPENSKY

The above settings and indications are seen if you have a good signal delivered to the receiver which is in good communication with OSControl and sending it the right data stream in good quality. This is essential for OPENSKY to function. Even if the OPENSKY software is installed OK, unless it is getting a data stream from the satellite, it can't do anything.

When it can't "see" the data stream, it will give you a number of error messages. Before investigating these, you must check and resolve the above issues first so that you can be confident OSControl is receiving the data stream correctly.

Next Steps

If you need to uninstall / reinstall OPENSKYT or the data receiver, please review the following sections first.

Generally OPENSKYT works most easily in systems which have not been heavily customised - particularly with network settings. If you have such a system, you will need to have a good understanding of networks to resolve any communications problems with your data receiver, it's installation with your PC and the integration with OPENSKYT.

OPENSKY is not intended for use in a network. Such use is not supported.

1. Uninstall the OPENSKY application.

Follow the instructions in the ReadMe.txt file. They are repeated here for convenience. They may vary from version to version so it is worth checking.

The ReadMe.txt file is usually found in the default installation folder c:\Program Files\OpenSky folder (for Win2K - or the equivalent for other Windows versions.).

------------------------------------------Instructions in the ReadMe.txt file-----------------------------------------------

If you have a previous version of OpenSky Client Application installed on your computer, the recommended procedure is the following:

1. stop OSListener if it is running (right-click on the taskbar icon and select "Exit OSListener")
2. uninstall the previous version of OpenSky Client Application
3. manually delete spurious files that may be located in c:\Program Files\OpenSky
4. reboot your computer

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are also important instructions in this file for RAS (Network Services in NT) and XP (Firewall) and general options.

If you want to try to uninstall / reinstall the device drivers only, then you must shut down the OPENSKY Control and "Exit OS Listener". Make sure to "Exit OS Listener" as it starts up after every reboot.

2. Uninstall the Data Receiver

2.1       Use Device Manager to check that the data receiver appears in the normal two places:

Network Adapter - may be identified as

• TechnoTrend Virtual USB Network Adapter
• Virtual USB Network Adapter
• Manhattan Virtual USB Network Adapter

depending on driver version (most up-to-date will be identified as Manhattan)

Sound, video and game controllers - may be identified as

• TechnoTrend
• Manhattan DVB-IP1000

2.2       Use Hardware Wizard to remove both of these devices.

2.3       Shut down the computer.

2.4       Unplug the receiver.

2.5       Restart the computer.

3. Re-Install the Data Receiver

3.1       Before re-installing, you must:

• ensure the PC is configured as a stand-alone, non-networked computer. OPENSKY does not support networks
• disable all firewalls
• disable anti-virus
• shut down all other programs

3.2       Follow the instructions in the Manhattan Quick Start Guide.

3.3       Please note:

-        you should ensure that the latest drivers are used in the installation process. You can either do this by allowing the install to proceed normally and then (before installing OPENSKY) forcing a Driver Update via Device Manager or Hardware Wizard.

-        in either case you must force the update to use the specific drivers in the right location. Allowing the PC to search will probably allow it to find and re-install the old drivers

-         Windows should automatically find first one device to install and then the other. You must allow this dual install to complete. Both devices contained within the USB data receiver must be installed correctly for it to work.

3.4     After the installation process,

use Device Manager to check that both the devices have installed correctly:

Network Adapter - may be identified as

• TechnoTrend Virtual USB Network Adapter
• Virtual USB Network Adapter
• Manhattan Virtual USB Network Adapter

Sound, video and game controllers - may be identified as

• TechnoTrend
• Manhattan DVB-IP1000

3.5       The current drivers are:

The manufacturer website is www.technotrend.de

4. Re-install OPENSKY

Having checked the correct drivers for both devices are installed correctly, you can proceed to installation of OPENSKY as per the instructions on the CD-ROM and the on-screen prompts.

The current version of OPENSKY from BeyonDSL.net is OPENSKY 1.5.1

You can check version number by placing your cursor over the OSListener (Sun) icon in the system tray.

Note:

We recommend you reboot the PC after the OPENSKY install.

©2008 BeyonDSL.net Ltd

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