Copying From a Sky+ Box

stage_fright

We are switching from Sky to Virgin for our TV supplier (no horror stories please from anyone who has already done this...) and I have a couple of things stored on the hard drive of the Sky box that I would like to keep - primarily a nice shot of my then ten-month-old son at a sports event.

Is there any way to get anything from the box onto a computer etc - and is it even legal to do so?

I promised Mrs Fright I would ask, so would appreciate the wisdom of the forum - even if the answer is a resounding no!

dirtymonkey1985

It is possible yeah this is the best description of what to do I can find
http://helpforum.sky.com/t5/Sky-HD-Reco ... /td-p/4139

BigDarbs

I have done this for exactly the same reason, I wanted a copy of our cat when he was on BBC news (don't ask).

The Sky guide in that link is correct but it makes it sound quite complicated. I purchased a second hand DVD recorder off eBay. I connected the scart output from the Sky box to the DVD recorder and the Scart output form the DVD recorder to the TV.

I played the programme I wanted to record on Sky+, pressed record on the DVD recorder, hey presto. Exactly as you would have done with a VCR a few years ago.

If I recall the only problem I had was that the DVD's had to be formatted before the recording, so after struggling with DVD-RW discs for a while I opened a brand new pack of DVD's, formatted them on my PC as a blank disc and they worked fine. I am not sure what the original formatting problem was but using fresh discs cured it.

redvee

Can't you just take the HDD out of the Sky+ box and connect it to the PC? Sky equipment is yours after the first year of the contract.

inkyfingers

redvee wrote:

Can't you just take the HDD out of the Sky+ box and connect it to the PC? Sky equipment is yours after the first year of the contract.

I believe that the Sky box has some sort of encrytion to stop you doing this. I think that the way described above is the only easy way of doing it. It's a bit of a pain but once you've burned the files onto the DVD you can of course copy them onto your computer.

redvee

If somebody can crack the Sky encryption there is a handsome reward available. People have been trying to crack it for years with no scuccess.

Rudd

I'd like to ask why your cat was on TV????

CyclingBantam

Rudd wrote:

I'd like to ask why your cat was on TV????

It's not because of this is it?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1306033/Cat-bin-woman-Mary-Bale-Please-forgive-says-bank-worker.html

BigDarbs

Rudd wrote:

I'd like to ask why your cat was on TV????

He is a bit daft and was filmed sitting on top of a snowman that had been buit in a garden, it must have been a very, very slow news day!!

I guess we should be glad about the days that a cat sat on a snowman makes the news, its better then death, destruction and overblown financial problems!

magoo289

Yeah. Can be done I've my DVD recorder cabled into my HD box via scart. Some programmes are encrypted, mainly movies. Though you can't watch any other channel while copying.