Getting The Most Out Of Your TiVo

Before You Get Started, Just A Few More Things

There are a few things you must do before getting started. You will need to download the Kazymyr Boot CD ISO from 9th Tee (see link in Required Items list). The image is only 8.66 MB, but if you have a slow connection it may take a little while to download. Burn the image to a blank CD with any package that will burn ISO images. We used Nero Burning ROM, but there are many applications that will work. In the Required Items list above, we specified a TiVo mounting bracket from 9th Tee. You should purchase this bracket and have it on hand before you start taking anything apart. Although we have seen people use such diverse items as wire ties and makeshift brackets to mount the drive in a TiVo, we feel that the 9th Tee bracket is the best option available and will cause the least amount of headaches.

Now, clearly label both of your new drives. This way there will be no confusion later. If both of your drives are the same size, that's fine, just pick one drive and label it 'A'; then label the other one 'B.' If you are using drives that you already have on hand, there is no need to format them. Before you start, be sure to save and remove any data that you want to keep from the drives. This process will completely destroy and overwrite any data on the drives to be added to your TiVo .

Power must be removed from the Tivo before you start. Before you shut down your TiVo, however, you will need the software version number of your TiVo. This information is available by pushing the TiVo button on your remote and selecting "Messages & Setup;" next, choose "System Information" and press "Select." Look for 'Software Version,' and write down the number that follows it. Also note the recording capacity, which is listed in hours, in "Basic" and "Best" Quality. We will refer to that number once we are finished to compare the 'before' and 'after' total record times.

TiVo System Information Screen, note the Software Version and Recording Capacity.