English explanation for Serial Patching

English explanation for Serial Patching

Extraction from existing firmware

To know what firmware version you have in your Philips receiver, the best thing to do is to secure first your original version. Than you can check it out with a textbrowser (e.g. Wordpad) We're going to explain this step by step. This part is absolutely not dangerous, you're only reading from the receiver, so no writing yet.

First I would suggest that all screensavers and energysaving programs are closed. This is to prevent hanging of the system while reading/writing to the receiver. We are using a normal serial cable, the same one you use for the programmer, or for the older analogue modem. Watch out! This is not the same cable as is used for the Nokia MediaMaster or the Humax (by the way, it wouldn't even fit). Connect this cable to your comport of the PC and the serial sub-D9 connector of the Philips receiver. If you want to be completely safe, restart your computer in Dos-mode. You can do this by pressing F8 while restarting, and than choose for "Startup in only MS Dos-mode". But I had no problems doing the serial patch in a normal dos-window. For extraction of the original firmware we use the program from Bonny Gijzen, called Bonny-secaboxer. To prevent getting confused with other files, it is best you make a new map in which you put this program. Run the program (Bonnysecaboxer.exe for com 1, or Bonnysecaboxercom2.exe voor com 2) and now switch the mainpower button of the receiver on. Leave it in standby.

You will now see the screen above. To be able to communicate with your receiver you must set it to service mode.Watch out! You can't use the receiver until the service mode is switched of by the computer.

Press the number 1 button and enter on your PC to get connection with the receiver, now the service mode is switched on. You will see -SE- on your Philips-box. Also the program tells you that the service mode is entered.
To be able to read out the data with a higher speed, press the s-button and enter.
You can read out the eprom, this contains information on the settings of the receiver and teh EPG. It is not nescassary to secure this eprom, but to be safe you could do it anyway. Press nomber 2 and enter, in about 10 seconds you will have a file called eeprom.bin in your map.

Now we will do the same with the 2 Megabyte Flash, this is the memory part where we have the firmware (including all settings). So you press 3 and enter, the receiver will be read out completely, it will take about 45 minutes! When this has finished the file appears in your map.
You can now leave the service mode by pressing 0 (zero) and enter, confirm and the time will come back on the display. Press q to quit the program.
By double-clicking on the flash.bin file you will be asked with which program you want to open this file. It looks like this on your screen, but this is the dutch windows version...

Choose wordpad top open the file. And be sure to switch of the button in the last sentence "Always us this program to open this file-type", now press the OK-button.
Wordpad opens the flash.bin and you'll see al lot of strange text, it is the unreadable firmware with all the hidden possibilities of your Philips receiver. We will no search for the software version by pressing the binocular:

Type in the three characters "dsx" and press 'search next', mostly 2 times, now you will see:

Finished! This is your basic firmware version. So this has noting to do with the type number of the receiver. It is possible you have a DSX7071 with basicversion DSX6072. That's why you always have to read out the original version first to be sure which version you have in your receiver.

DST5816/13 has mostly DSX6071 basicversion.
DST5816/23, DST5816/33, DSX6073, DSX7071/13, DSX7072/03 mostly have DSX6072 basicversion.

If you can't find the DSX-characters, search for DSI, than you are not so lucky! You have an older version of the DST5816 with extension /03. It is the basic DSI185 (or even DSI175) which has total different software. You can't use this version with Declink, neither can you patch this receiver with a serial cable. You have to use an Oslink for these firmware versions. It is absolutely impotant never to program the wrong software version to your receiver, because it will absolutely become a dead box! Than you can only send the box to Philips repaircenters, or search someone who has an Oslink. You can never solve this problem yourself with the serial cable, simply because you can't enter the service mode anymore.

Writing new firmware to the receiver

Don't start this before you extracted en secured your receiver, and found out which basicversion is used in your receiver. Again I want to remind you to close alle screensavers and enegyprograms. This is to prevent hanging of the system while reading/writing to the receiver. Also the internet connection has to be shut off, and of course close all other programs.

For this step we use the program 'serial.exe'. Make a new map, and put the program into this new map, also the new firmware your want to write and the eprom file. The new firmware has to be renamed to 'flash.bin' and be sure to rename the epromfile 'eeprom.bin' (with a double e). These three files have to be in the same map, or else the program will not execute. Hook up the serial cable to the receiver, and run the program 'serial.exe'. Turn on the receiver with the mainpower button, leave it in standby.

Standard this program operates on com2! So first press 0 (zero) and enter to choose the comport (if nescassary) The program asks for the right port number, press 1 and enter.

To be able to communicate with the receiver you must enter the service mode. Important! You can't use the receiver until the service mode is switched of by the computer. Be absolutely sure that the firmware is programmed without any errors before exiting the service mode, but later more on that subject.

Press the number 1 button and enter on your PC to get connection with the receiver, now the service mode is switched on. You will see -SE- on your Philips-box.
To write the data with a higher speed to receiver you must press 2 and enter. Now choose the highest speed (115200) by pressing 5 and enter.
Are you sure! Then choose option 3 and press enter. You can't use your computer anymore for at least 4,5 hours. Don't use any other programs, let the PC do it's job. If you forget to adjust the communication speed it will even take 19 hours!
If you have any verify errors after programming, you can use option 9 to program block by block.
If all blocks are programmed without any errors (only block 18 is sometimes not possible to program because it is write protected) you can verify again with option 6, or with option 10 block by block verification.
If you have any error on some blocks, you can reprogram it with option 9. Never leave the service mode before all blocks (with the exception of block 18, as told). THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!
If you like you can now program your eprom file. This is mostly done for switching on the Multi-EPG or on the contrary for switching the EPG function completely off. It depends on the used file, if you reprogram the original eprom file, everything is set back to normal.
Be sure to put the wanted epro file in the same map, and the name is 'eeprom.bin' (with a double e) So you better rename the original first to 'eprombackup.bin'
Again I ask you, to be absolutely sure you have programmed all blocks with no errors. Now you can exit the service mode with option 4.

If everuthing is o.k. you will now see the time in the display of the receiver. This gives a good feeling!

If you have 'update error' in the display, you made somewhere a mistake, and it is not possible to solve this problem with your serial cable. You programmed the wrong basicversion, or there were still some verify errors (don't tell me I didn't warn you) before you exited the service mode. This problem can only be solved with a special inetrface called the Oslink.

Overwriting the firmware is a dangerous process, but if you follow this manual right, you too could do it. I don't take any responsabillity for broken receivers. I can't help you repairing your receiver, because I do not have the time for it. Even if you would pay me for doing this, I don't have a registration for traders, so don't mail me for this. Build your own Oslink! You may not use other firmware in your receiver if you do this with the purpose of watching pay-tv channels without supscription. You could use other firmware version for getting more options or other languages in your menu. There are many possibillities but you can refer to the makers of this firmware/patches.

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