On demand download failure Sky+ on 2 boxes

[Lisa-P1987]

Update – Thanks for chatting to us RogerC43. Unfortunately, there was no further response on the chat in 48 hours, we are still waiting to help you. If you need our support let us know and we can re-escalate to our chat team. Your chat has been closed now. Thanks 🙂   

[pn66]

@MogwaiSatTV 

I didn't specifically change any of the DNS settings. The Google hub setting is Automatic which says "this sets your Wi-Fi points to use google DNS, however it may fall back to your ISP's DNS depending on performance"

the router had its DNS switched on so not sure what happens when you have both but the only issue I had was the sky+ downloads. Anyway the router is now gone so the only DNS left is Google's. Hope that helps 🙂

[MogwaiSatTV]

Sadly not as I have already tried switching from my isp's dns to google dns and it has not helped.

[RogerC43]

Hi,

Sorry but was tied up with work during the working hours.

If you've got time today, happy to help.

One thing I've noticed, which I don't know if it helps, and is aligned with someone else's comments.

My sky boxes are wirelessly connected to a BT mesh wifi, which is connected via ethernet to the router (which has wireless switched off)

When I switch the wireless on the router, and connected one of the sky boxes to it via wifi, the download works.  The other sky box is too far away to connect directly to the wifi router.

[MogwaiSatTV]

For my 3 boxes 2 are connect via wifi and 1 is directly connected via Ethernet and all 3 are suffering the issue.

[PocketDog]

FYI my Sky Box is connected via ethernet only and has the problem.

[MarkOfR]

Having exactly this issue too.

Can anyone tell us if we upgraded to SkyQ, would the problem be solved by that?

[Thirly]

@MarkOfRI can tell you that I had this download issue on Sky+HD as of day 1 (Jan 31st ish). As I was already thinking about getting Sky Q I decided to order it. I've now had Sky Q for two weeks and I can confirm that (for me) all downloads and streaming (using On Demand and Catch Op) work fine on all the main channels whether from BBC through to the likes of Alibi and National Geographic etc. Of course Sky Q also gives you tons more choice than I had on Sky+HD.

It also gives you Apps like the BBC iPlayer and ITVX. One important thing though. I have found that any App that needs a paid subscription, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime have a problem which, from reading the hundreds of complaints and forum threads on the Internet, sounds very similar to the Sky+HD download issue. These Apps never load in and cannot be used on Sky Q and I see (from the comments I've read) that many of the sufferers are the same people who suffered the download issue on Sky+HD. And, like the Sky+HD issue, Sky refuse to acknowledge that any problem exists and claim the problem is with the ISP or the App's owner (Netflix and Amazon etc) while thiose companies say the problem lies with Sky.

If you want Sky Q for its Apps I suggest first searching Google for "Netflix not working with Sky Q" or "Amazon not working with Sky Q" etc to see what I mean. But if you only want the ability to record from your dish and to download from the Internet using On Demand and Catch Up I have found they work 100%.

[thegfb]

@MarkOfR 

I upgraded to Sky Q, only really because my wife was getting understandably annoyed at the service.

I was a little hesistant but it has cured all the problems for us.  I am now using my redundant Sky+ boxes as improvised heat mats for germinating my chilli plants on.

[AliDun]

I've just had a telephone call from Sky responding to my complaint. The caller was very pleasant but of course couldn't fix the problem. She told me that her screen kept coming up with "upgrade to Sky Q". For me this would be an issue because my satellite dish is on my roof and Sky will refuse to go up there. A couple of people have helpfully posted answers saying upgrading to Q cured the problem, but is there anyone who upgraded and STILL had the problem?

Thanks

[Annie+UK]

---

@AliDun wrote:

I've just had a telephone call from Sky responding to my complaint. The caller was very pleasant but of course couldn't fix the problem. She told me that her screen kept coming up with "upgrade to Sky Q". For me this would be an issue because my satellite dish is on my roof and Sky will refuse to go up there. A couple of people have helpfully posted answers saying upgrading to Q cured the problem, but is there anyone who upgraded and STILL had the problem?

Thanks

---

You could get a 3rd party to install a wideband (hybrid) LNB with extra cables, then sky should not need to access the dish

[AliDun]

Thanks for the reply @Annie+UK.  Yes, I realise I could get the LNB changed but I don't want to pay out to have this done only to find the Sky Q box has the same problem, hence my question. 

[Gavi+B]

I have found a solution to this issue, at least on the 2 Sky+HD boxes in my house anyhow 😉.

As a test, I connected one of my boxes to my neighbour's wifi. They have BT as their ISP, I'm with SKY.
The On Demand service worked and I was able to download any channel's output. I tested Sky Cinema, Sky Showcase, Sky Sports Main Event, Channel 4, Gold and Dave.

I concluded that, although a change at Sky's end has no doubt prompted the issue in the first place, a solution may be found within my router's network configuration. Long story short (and after many config changes and reboots), my solution turned out to be quite simple...

I manually reset my network settings on both my Sky+HD boxes to use a static LAN IPv4 address, which also turns off the box's DHCP setting too. (Go into your Services > Settings > Network and look for an option which mentions 'Manual IP Configuration' or similar). 
I then reserved these IPv4 addresses in my router's DHCP configuration for my Sky+HD's MAC addresses. This makes sure the IPs were always available to my Sky+HD boxes.

For reference, my manual IP details are something like this:
IP Address of thie Sky box: 192.168.1.50
Subnet: 255.255.255.0

Gateway Router: 192.168.1.1

DNS: 192.168.1.1

I have now run the same download tests on both my Sky+HD boxes as I did when connected to my neighbour's wifi. The results are the same. The On Demand service is now operating as it did before all this debacle began at the start of February. Phew!😋

Hope this helps others.
Any questions or clarifications about any of the above, just shout.
 

[MogwaiSatTV]

@Gavi+B  Thanks for taking the time to post all that. I have just tried the same thing short of making ip reservation and it has not resolved the issue.

I see that you have your Default Gateway and DNS set to the same IP. What is the DNS set to on your router?

[Gavi+B]

Primary: 90.207.238.97

Secondary: 90.207.238.99