How to Expand My DVR Storage for Cablevision
If you are a Cablevision subscriber and you have a DVR, you've undoubtedly discovered the convenience of being able to record your favorite TV programs and movies when you are not at home to watch them. Perhaps the only real disadvantage of a DVR is that, sooner or later, the hard drive will fill up. When you run out of room, you'll probably wonder if it's possible to expand the storage – and the answer is yes. Learn how to add more storage to your DVR in a few easy steps.
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Things You'll Need
- My DVR Expander eSATA Edition from Western Digital
- Scientific Atlanta DVR box provided by Cablevision
Instructions
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1
Make sure you have the proper cable box. The Scientific Atlanta 8300 and 8300-HD models are expandable.
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2
Unpack your My DVR Expander eSATA Edition hard drive. This Western Digital drive is fully compatible with the Scientific Atlanta 8300 and 8300-HD DVRs. Other eSATA drives may not be compatible or might not work at all with this SA 8300 cable box.
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Unplug your cable box from the power source.
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Locate the eSATA cable that came with your hard drive. Connect one end of the cable to the drive and the other end to the port labeled "SATA" on the cable box.
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Plug the power cable into the hard drive. Wait about one minute to allow the drive to boot up.
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Plug the power cord into your cable box and let it boot up. DO NOT TURN IT ON! It may take up to 10 minutes for the cable box to boot up. Wait until the time displays on your box.
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Turn on your TV and the cable box. You should see a message asking you to format the hard drive. Allow this operation to proceed.
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Wait for the drive format operation to finish. A message will appear confirming that the drive is ready for use. Select "OK" and you are ready to begin recording!
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Tips & Warnings
Follow the instructions in this article to the tee to avoid potential problems. Adding an eSATA drive to a DVR can be challenging if each step is not performed correctly.
Your cable box will not notify you when it is using the external drive rather than the built-in storage. The only way you can verify that the drive is being used is to check the storage space from time to time.
If you need to disconnect the external drive for any reason, turn off your cable box and then disconnect the power first. Remove the eSATA cable from the back of the cable box and then turn the cable box back on.
