[linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Alexandre Conrad]

Hi,

we just bought around 70 SkyStar2 PCI cards for deploying at our
customer's sites meant for a digital signage application. We've always
been working with these cards before which have always worked flawlessly
under linux.

Anyway, it turns out that after we have ordered more SkyStar 2 cards
from our supplier, the "new" cards we have recieved this morning looked
physically different from the previous generation we were using for a
couple of years now. So I opened one and tested it in our system. It
seems to be recognized by the kernel somehow, but after a few "i2c
master_xfer failed" messages ending with a "no frontend driver found for
this B2C2/FlexCop adapter" message in dmesg, the card doesn't work. On
the circuit board, it says REV 2.8A. I took a card that worked fine
before, it's says REV 2.6D.

After searching over the linux-dvb mailing list, I ran across the
following post from Patrick Boettcher regarding the REV 2.8A card:

http://www.linuxtv.org/pipermail/linux-dvb/2008-February/023866.html

"""
an OpenSource driver is not in sight for that card. There are some NDA
problems... I will see what I can do.
"""

Of course, that's puts us in a very uncomfortable situation with our client.

The message is from last febuary. I'm posting a message here to ask the
dvb experts if anything has changed since then.

Thanks for your help, pointers and suggestions.

Best regards,
-- 
Alexandre CONRAD





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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Patrick Boettcher]

Hi,

On Mon, 16 Jun 2008, Alexandre Conrad wrote:
> [...]
>
> The message is from last febuary. I'm posting a message here to ask the
> dvb experts if anything has changed since then.

No. Well, yes. Technisat will release a binary driver. My last status 
is that:

http://www.linuxtv.org/pipermail/linux-dvb/2008-May/026179.html

All I can add is: post a request to Technisat.

best regards,
Patrick.

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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Alexandre Conrad]

Hello Patrick,

Patrick Boettcher wrote:

> On Mon, 16 Jun 2008, Alexandre Conrad wrote:
>> The message is from last febuary. I'm posting a message here to ask the
>> dvb experts if anything has changed since then.
> 
> No. Well, yes. Technisat will release a binary driver. My last status is 
> that:
> 
> http://www.linuxtv.org/pipermail/linux-dvb/2008-May/026179.html
> 
> All I can add is: post a request to Technisat.

So you seem to have working drivers for REV 2.8. Which would save my 
life. :) Although, you can't make them public...

So I suppose you are working for TechniSat or you have tight relations 
with them? I will contact TechniSat here:

   http://www.technisat.com/index5cdb.html?nav=Contact_Hotline,en,34

Alternativly, would you have any recommendations on who to contact 
directly for better impact (maybe off-list)? We're really under big 
pressure and the situation is very urgent/critical to us according to 
our deployment planning.

Thanks a lot.

Regards,
-- 
Alexandre CONRAD


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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Alexandre Conrad]

In the worst of the cases, I'll have to return the cards to my vendor as 
TechniSat might just no longer make 2.6 cards anymore. Then what would 
be the recommanded alternative hardware that could work for me? A few 
years back, I've was using a budget Hauppauge Nova-S card. But it might 
be outdated and/or hard to find in large quantities these days.

Any recommendation for cards that would be well supported by the kernel 
and are still "comfortably" available? We're doing DVB-IP stuff (no TV 
watching).

Regards,
-- 
Alexandre CONRAD

Alexandre Conrad wrote:

> Hello Patrick,
> 
> Patrick Boettcher wrote:
> 
> 
>>On Mon, 16 Jun 2008, Alexandre Conrad wrote:
>>
>>>The message is from last febuary. I'm posting a message here to ask the
>>>dvb experts if anything has changed since then.
>>
>>No. Well, yes. Technisat will release a binary driver. My last status is 
>>that:
>>
>>http://www.linuxtv.org/pipermail/linux-dvb/2008-May/026179.html
>>
>>All I can add is: post a request to Technisat.
> 
> 
> So you seem to have working drivers for REV 2.8. Which would save my 
> life. :) Although, you can't make them public...
> 
> So I suppose you are working for TechniSat or you have tight relations 
> with them? I will contact TechniSat here:
> 
>    http://www.technisat.com/index5cdb.html?nav=Contact_Hotline,en,34
> 
> Alternativly, would you have any recommendations on who to contact 
> directly for better impact (maybe off-list)? We're really under big 
> pressure and the situation is very urgent/critical to us according to 
> our deployment planning.
> 
> Thanks a lot.
> 
> Regards,




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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Patrick Boettcher]

Hi,
On Mon, 16 Jun 2008, Alexandre Conrad wrote:
>>  http://www.linuxtv.org/pipermail/linux-dvb/2008-May/026179.html
>
> So you seem to have working drivers for REV 2.8. Which would save my life. :) 
> Although, you can't make them public...

That's the problem. You can say thanks to Conexant (NXP, Philips ?). 
Technisat is trying hard (and the LinuxTV people as well) to convince the 
people involved...., without success so far.

> So I suppose you are working for TechniSat or you have tight relations with 
> them?

No, my relation is not so tight. I'm just an individual is writing some 
Linux-drivers for things I want to use.

> I will contact TechniSat here:
>
>  http://www.technisat.com/index5cdb.html?nav=Contact_Hotline,en,34
>
> Alternativly, would you have any recommendations on who to contact directly 
> for better impact (maybe off-list)?

No, not at all. On the contrary I heard that the support of Technisat was 
not really aware ( 3 weeks ago ), that they are going to release the 
linux-driver this time.

> We're really under big pressure and the situation is very 
> urgent/critical to us according to our deployment planning.

I'm sorry to hear that, but in that case maybe you need to switch your 
supplier.

regards,
Patrick.

--
   Mail: patrick.boettcher@desy.de
   WWW:  http://www.wi-bw.tfh-wildau.de/~pboettch/

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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Alexandre Conrad]

Good morning,

I've seen this card and it seems to be supported by the DVB linux 
kernel. Any experience with this card?

http://www.dvbshop.net/product_info.php/info/p179_Technotrend-Budget-PCI-CI--for-Budget-Nova-Serie---V-1-0A.html

For reminder, that would be a replacement card for the SkyStar2 2.8A we 
have recieved and which doesn't work under linux (yet).

Regards,
-- 
Alexandre CONRAD


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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Alexandre Conrad]

>>I've seen this card and it seems to be supported by the DVB linux
>>kernel. Any experience with this card?
>>
>>http://www.dvbshop.net/product_info.php/info/p179_Technotrend-Budget-PCI-CI
>>--for-Budget-Nova-Serie---V-1-0A.html
>>
>>For reminder, that would be a replacement card for the SkyStar2 2.8A we
>>have recieved and which doesn't work under linux (yet).

I've been pointed out that this is a CI only - not a DVB card. :)

So I guess that would be the appropriate DVB card.
http://www.dvbshop.net/product_info.php/info/p53_Technotrend-Budget-S-1500-incl--remote.html

Regards,
-- 
Alexandre CONRAD


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Re: [linux-dvb] SkyStar 2 - rev 2.8A

[Oliver Endriss]

Alexandre Conrad wrote:
> In the worst of the cases, I'll have to return the cards to my vendor as 
> TechniSat might just no longer make 2.6 cards anymore. Then what would 
> be the recommanded alternative hardware that could work for me? A few 
> years back, I've was using a budget Hauppauge Nova-S card. But it might 
> be outdated and/or hard to find in large quantities these days.
>
> Any recommendation for cards that would be well supported by the kernel 
> and are still "comfortably" available? We're doing DVB-IP stuff (no TV 
> watching).

There are tons of well-supported cards. ;-)

For example: http://www.technotrend.com/2762/PRODUCTS_for_PC.html
- Budget DVB-S 1401 (w/o CI connector) --> driver: budget
- Budget DVB-S 1500 (with CI connector) --> driver: budget-ci
(There is also an experimental driver for the DVB-S2 3200)

CU
Oliver

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