Catchup not working

[Sandra]

Hello ,

I just got the B5 box and am having an issue with the Catchup feature. I like to go back and watch shows I missed earlier, so I use this feature a lot. It worked fine for the first couple of hours that I had the box set up , but then it stopped working. I could also go to the Guide and scroll back to shows that were on earlier. That no longer works either. I didn’t change a single setting. The only thing I did was add some tv shows and movies to my favourites on VOD. When I try the feature under the Live tv shows , the shows listed have a 3/4 sized circle with an arrow in the middle ( like a “ Play “ symbol. What does this mean ? It seems to come and go. Thank you in advance for any help! 

[nbs.]

That symbol is to show you catchup is available on that channel

Post your software and firmware please 

[dishuser]

it could be server related

[Sandra]

Thank you both. I talked to the service provider and they don’t seem to know why it isn’t working. I’m exchanging the box for a new one. 

[dishuser]

1 hour ago, Sandra said:

Thank you both. I talked to the service provider and they don’t seem to know why it isn’t working. I’m exchanging the box for a new one. 

when catchup didn't work did it have that symbol?

[Emporium]

If you are going to exchange the box, why not try a hard factory reset first ?

Different box, same procedure:

https://stbtalk.com/topic/300-factory-reset-hard-reset-xr4500-xrs4500/

You'll need to re-setup the box after you reset it obviously.

PS: Don't forget, if you have a lot of favorites configured, you can use the backup option that is under menu->settings->Configure but make sure to do the backup to a USB stick, so you don't lose the backup after a reset.  

 

 

 

Edited June 29 by Emporium

[Emporium]

oops.. dbl post

Edited June 29 by Emporium

[Sandra]

2 hours ago, dishuser said:

when catchup didn't work did it have that symbol?

Yes , it did. When I hit the Ok button , it says “ Loading “ , then the screen freezes up. I got a new box today and am having the exact same issues. 

[Sandra]

15 minutes ago, Emporium said:

If you are going to exchange the box, why not try a hard factory reset first ?

Different box, same procedure:

https://stbtalk.com/topic/300-factory-reset-hard-reset-xr4500-xrs4500/

You'll need to re-setup the box after you reset it obviously.

PS: Don't forget, if you have a lot of favorites configured, you can use the backup option that is under menu->settings->Configure but make sure to do the backup to a USB stick, so you don't lose the backup after a reset.  

 

 

 

Sorry , I should have mentioned that I did that. Once I did , the portal wouldn’t load. I got a new box today , but still having the same problem. This is actually the third box I’ve had since Wednesday. 

[Emporium]

What type of Subscription do you have ?  XC based (URL, username/password) ?  Or does your provider just provide the boxes preconfigured without giving you details ?  

I'd say, that if you are using an XC based subscription, you can try loading up other 3rd party software (like "smarters") and see if it does the exact same thing.  If it does, then the problem would be on the server side, not the box itself.  That is how I usually confirm if the catchup server on my service is down or not.

 

 

 

[Sandra]

On 6/29/2025 at 7:48 AM, nbs. said:

That symbol is to show you catchup is available on that channel

Post your software and firmware please 

Thank you for that. 
 

How do I find that information? It’s a B5 , MAC: 

S/N: 

I’m seriously ready to throw the box out the window! 

Edited July 2 by allaboutbuzz
Shouldnt post mac or serial #

[Sandra]

10 minutes ago, Emporium said:

What type of Subscription do you have ?  XC based (URL, username/password) ?  Or does your provider just provide the boxes preconfigured without giving you details ?  

I'd say, that if you are using an XC based subscription, you can try loading up other 3rd party software (like "smarters") and see if it does the exact same thing.  If it does, then the problem would be on the server side, not the box itself.  That is how I usually confirm if the catchup server on my service is down or not.

 

 

 

Thank you. They just provide the box preconfigured. This is the third box I’ve gotten , so surely it must be on their end ? I’ve gotten boxes from them for the past 4 years with no problems .

[Sandra]

Okay , so the Catch Up works for every show that was on today . Just not from past days . Is this because it’s a brand new box ?  Or is there a setting I should change ? 

[nbs.]

Its most likely a provider issue despite what your contact says

 

[Emporium]

Like nbs said.  If the catchup server from the provider goes down, then it does NOT record the streams, so you will get an error when you try to access them.  In my years of experience, catch-up is a hit & miss on most servers.  There will be times where it is rock solid and always works.  And there are other periods of time, where it will be an exercise of patience and frustration.  I am lucky enough that the main service I use is pretty quick in updating their TV Series section with episodes typically withing an hour or two after it airs.  So often I will not use Catchup, but rather go to the TV Series section, find the show I want and most often, the episode is already online.  Also the fact that I am on the east coast (North America), I often catch shows I miss, by using the network local channels from the central and west coast feeds (this is where having a full program guide even for local stations [like 50+ CBS, ABC, NBC channels, etc..] is critical).  Obviously this option does not work well for "live" events, typically sports.

It can happen with the best of servers out there.  At the price many of these services cost, I tell people that they should probably get more than one decent service if they can't deal with occasional glitches and downtime.  This will ensure that if one service is down, hopefully the other service is up.  There is no Service Level Agreement, like you would get with a cable company.

Also, keep in mind that Buzz does not provide support for any specific service.  They provide the boxes and software and do NOT sell or recommend any services themselves.  Buzz TV themselves will never sell you any box with a service preinstalled.  So this type of issue, should be addressed with your service provider typically.

 

[Sandra]

1 hour ago, nbs. said:

Its most likely a provider issue despite what your contact says

 

Thank you. 

[dishuser]

2 hours ago, Sandra said:

Okay , so the Catch Up works for every show that was on today . Just not from past days . Is this because it’s a brand new box ?  Or is there a setting I should change ? 

catchup is stored by server

it's a server issue no matter what they tell you