Error 101 "something went wrong" (Fibe TV Whole Home PVR)

[NewUser]

A few nights ago, watching any channel would result in a blue screen coming up saying that "Oops something went wrong", with an Error 101.

After rebooting things a few times, and trying both WiFi and Ethernet, the issue was still not resolved. I called the number on the screen, and the tech I reached had me reboot things again. She hinted she was doing something at her end, but was quite vague. After the third sequence of rebooting the modem, and the PVR, it started working. She couldn't give me a good explanation just "maybe there was an update or a power outage recently". (We also had a 7 second delay on the phone line, which she acknowledged was her end, and made communication very difficult).

I don't know if there's been a software update on the PVR, but there certainly has not been a power outage. My Internet is 1Gb/s, and it runs very well, testing at a consistent 936Mb/s down, and about 700Mb/s up, on a wired connection. I should also note that watching Fibe on my other devices, including Fire TV on the same TV works just fine. It's just the PVR.

The tech didn't really understand what it meant to be hard-wired with Ethernet. She had me try with WiFi also (same issue). She had to put me on hold to ask someone about how to deal with me being hard-wired, so I'm not confident she fully understood, and maybe didn't actually do anything at her end.

The real issue now is that it wasn't a one-time issue. It just it did it again today. Any channel would work for about 5 seconds before the blue screen would come up. Rebooting the PVR did not solve it. Although the Internet was running just fine, (as was Fibe on my other devices), I rebooted the modem, then the PVR again. It's working again now - it's been 15 minutes without failing, but I'm not sure for how long it will last before it happens again.

Again, my Internet connectivity is rock solid and fast. Fibe works well on apps, and on Fire TV. It's just when using the PVR. 

Is anyone else experiencing this issue? Was there a recent update that may be buggy?

[BellPatricia · Accepted solution]

Hi @NewUser 

Thanks very much for your post.

Sorry that you are having trouble with your Fibe TV service.

As you've done testing while wired, and on Wi-Fi it sounds like there could be a network issue.

Check out this How To: Fibe TV not working? Try these quick fixes It includes some troubleshooting tips, and if those don't work there is also information on using our Virtual Repair tool . We recommend using the Virtual repair tool right when the issue occurs.

The Virtual repair tool will:

• Look for service outages in your area
• Check the equipment outside your home
• Reboot all your hardware
• Optimize the settings for your service

If it can’t solve the problem, the tool will even help you book a technician appointment.

Let the Community know how everything goes.

- Patricia

[NewUser]

Thanks. I've bookmarked the tool for next time.

Nobody on our community Facebook page is reporting any similar issues. There's no equipment outside my house. The fibre comes out of the ground, right into my house, and into my modem. The Internet runs flawlessly, so I doubt a network issue. I've rebooted numerous times.

I will try the tool though next time. Do you know if there's been any updates lately? I've been seeing a couple of strange bugs that weren't happening before.

Thanks

[jzanin]

Warning - very disgruntled Bell customer here. I jumped ship from my previous cable provider (of several decades) and joined Bell because of their sweet fiber promos last November. Honestly it has been a gong show from the start. I am now on my 4th HH4000 modem, and my 2nd set-top box, having endured at least a half-dozen technician visits in the 5 short months I have been a customer. The recurring issue is that my TV service keeps dropping. It is almost like clockwork - every 4-5 days I will turn on my TV. Everything will be fine and then after 10 seconds or so the image will freeze, then I will get a blue screen and it will say "something went wrong" blah blah blah Error Code 101. If I change the channel, the next channel will be fine for about 10 seconds, and then exact same thing happens... Internet service is fine (> 1 Gbps) and home phone is fine. I know that I can resolve the issue by rebooting the HH4000, but why should I have to???? Rebooting the set-top box does NOT fix the issue. 

It happened again just now. Rather than call Bell and have them send yet ANOTHER tech, I tried the virtual repair service, while I was on hold with Rogers asking about reactivating my cable service.

The Virtual repair worked (because it reboots all the boxes as part of its repair sequence), BUT it also said that as part of the "Outside Hardware Check" that "we made a change to improve your service". Nowhere in the summary does it give details around what change or changes it made, so I have no idea if this is just a gimmick, or if there was truly a change that needed to be made (that 5 unique Bell technicians all overlooked).

Anyone have any advice? I love having 1 Gbps service, but I value consistent TV service as well. Having to reboot my homehub every few days is ABSOLUTELY a deal breaker.

If anyone from Bell is reading, the clock is ticking. Either provide a permanent fix, or I am going back to Rogers, and I will most certainly NOT be paying you any sort if early cancelation fees...

It is your choice Bell... fix the problem properly, or lose my business. I am tired of your excuses, and I am tired of arguing.

You know how to reach me.

Sincerely,

John in London Ontario

[AlexS]

That's a lot of visits. Did they replace the modem or only the dvr for just once?

[jzanin]

Hi AlexS

The first five or so visits, ONLY the HH4000 was replaced. I then had the pleasure of updating my Wifi name and password on a bunch of devices each time....

The last visit (Friday 4/22), after I explained the situation to the tech, he suggested we switch out the PVR box instead (and leave the HH 4000 alone). That is what we did. And in that case, I ended up losing all the PVR shows I had recorded (although granted I can still see them via the app on my phone).

The set-top boxes (I have two - the fancy one with whole-home PVR, and the "dumb" one that does not have its own internal PVR) are connected to HH 4000 over Wifi. Both have strong signals, and aside from when everything goes very wrong, the system is otherwise stable, picture is decent, no issues with pixelation, etc.

The techs don't share much about what they do at street level, but during one visit, the tech, after having spent an hour working inside the street box, came back to tell me "I honestly don't know how your unit was even functioning. There are two sets of connections inside the box - one set for Alcatel, and the other for Huawei. Your connection was connected to Alcatel. It should be connected to Huawei. I fixed that for you. Your problem should be solved now Mr. Zanin."

That was three visits ago....

[Wakka197]

Man that bad . Why would a tech not find it . It not good . Sometimes technisions don’t know everything 

[BellAntgio]

Hi @jzanin,

Welcome to the Community and awesome troubleshooting. 

We'd like to gather more information in order to review. 

Please check your inbox, next to your profile avatar in the top right corner.

Unsure how to check or send a private message? See How to send a private message

[AlexS]

I can see lots of forums mention error code 101. Did u check them out?

[jzanin]

Hi AlexS - no, nothing useful has come up in the forums. I was told by Bell Tech Support that Error Code 101 is so generic that it essentially means nothing.