Sorry, remotes again :-(

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drifting
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Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by drifting »

Hi all.

First I must explain that I am partially sighted, so am limited to how much I can read in one go.

Right, had a perfect working Ubuntu 18 with .29 Mythbuntu. The frontends were all Rivo's and used MCE remotes. Eveything worked like a dream.

In a foolish moment I decided to upgrade to 20.4 Ubuntu and .31 Myth. Suprisingly the server went very well without too much issue. The frontends pretty much the same. Now we come to the remotes on the Frontends. For the life of my I cannot understand the conflicting information I have read on the best way of setting them? Is LIRC to be installed? Or do I use the kernels ability to control them? To date I have tried both, and neither work the same as before in the mythbuntu config. Surely I do not have to go through the front end key assingments and change them? There must be a way to do this on more than one machine in a easy way?

Willing to invest in new remotes if I have to, anything to take the pain away from trying to configure the old MCE ones, the way they worked before.

Kind regards
Paul.
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heyted
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by heyted »

One important note is to be sure you are using the most recent kernel on Ubuntu 20.04.

Code: Select all

uname -r
5.11.0-40-generic
Is LIRC to be installed?
LIRC can be used to configure the remote, but it is not required for a remote and receiver that are compatible with a kernel driver.
Or do I use the kernels ability to control them?
This is what I do.
Surely I do not have to go through the front end key assingments and change them?
I have never needed to do that.
There must be a way to do this on more than one machine in a easy way?
Coincidentally, a new tab will be added to Mythbuntu Control Panel soon (possibly as early as tomorrow) if you want to use that. This will be one option to try for hopefully an easy way to configure a compatible remote with a compatible receiver.

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drifting
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by drifting »

Brilliant, thanks for the reply.
I must admit I sorely miss Mythbuntu, it made a nightmare task so simple, even I could do it!
Have 5.4.0.90-generic so mine seems somewhat older, and I have updated when promoted to? However I do have the later Mythbuntu control panel. But sadly amongst the very large list of supported devices, the MCE Microsoft remote is not there? Have they called it something else perhaps?

Kindest regards
Paul.
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heyted
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by heyted »

I'm thinking that kernel needs to be updated before proceeding with troubleshooting steps. In Ubuntu Settings, last tab About, is "Ubuntu 20.04.3 LTS" listed for the OS Name? In Ubuntu Software and Updates, Updates tab, is automatically check for updates enabled?
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drifting
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by drifting »

Hi
Yes it is the LTS version of Xbuntu, I find that more lightweight for Mythtv. And yes, it is set to auto update. still not found which to select in Mythbuntu control panel?

Paul.
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heyted
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by heyted »

I'd update the kernel, but we can give it a go anyway.

From a quick google search, it appears that a Microsoft MCE remote uses the rc6 protocol. Try selecting rc6_mce in MCP to copy the file to the home folder. Next, select rc6_mce in the second list, and choose the option to temporarily set the file active. Modifying the file is not necessary to check the protocol. Next, start a terminal and enter sudo ir-keytable -t. If "no device found" is displayed, the IR receiver may not be supported. If that is not displayed, try pressing a remote button to see if a scancode is displayed in the terminal.
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drifting
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by drifting »

Hi Ted
Yes, I can see the key presses in keytable, however in Mythfrontend they do not do what the used to on my previous Mythbuntu? Hope that makes sense. I also have to put hand on heart and admit I get very lost about the key mappings etc. Are they all supposed to work? or are you expected to go in and edit the keys? I have messed with mine, but for some reason certain keys just seem to do nothing? Menu for example. Can you default all the keys? As after a few hours of messing, I assume it would be the right thing to do.

Paul.
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heyted
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by heyted »

Hi. Please see this video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9Pcq3bAoOQ.

Use MCP to modify the rc6_mce file. Then, use MCP to set the file active for continued use. After rebooting, the number buttons and likely the enter, back/esc, and some of the other buttons should work in MythTV. All of the buttons that generate a scancode in ir-keytable -t can work using this method. Manually copy each scancode for the buttons that are not already working to the rc6_mce file, enter a corresponding key, set the file active for testing, test using ir-keytable -t, set the file active for continued use as shown towards the end of the video, and reboot. For the menu button, start ir-keytable -t, press the menu button on the remote, copy the scancode to the rc6_mce file in the home folder, enter " = "KEY_M" after the scancode, and repeat the set-test-set procedure. Make sure there are no duplicate scancodes in the rc6_mce file.

One potential issue is the original rc6_mce file. The rc6_mce file is the default file loaded by Ubuntu, and it is loaded even if not entered in rc_maps.cfg. There may be conflicting key maps. If the steps indicated in the paragraph above are not working, use sudo nano /lib/udev/rc_keymaps/rc6_mce, and remove all of the lines with scancodes except one, and reboot.
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drifting
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Re: Sorry, remotes again :-(

Post by drifting »

Thank you so much for all your help, took my way longer due to my eyesight, but got there in the end. The Video was a real help.

Kindest regards
Paul.
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