DtRecord Usage Instructions Dt Record
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© 2002-2005 DEKTEC Digital Video BV DtRecord – Usage Instructions
Page 1 of 5 September 2005
DtRecord
MPEG-2 Recording Software
Usage Instructions
Linux
Windows 2000/XP
www.dektec.com
1. Introduction
The DEKTEC DtRecord software is an elementary command-line program to record an MPEG-2
Transport Stream into a file with the DTA-120 (DVB/ASI input), the DTA-122 (DVB/SPI input), DTA-
124 (QUAD ASI/SDI input), DTA-140 (DVB/ASI input+output) or the DTU-225 (USB-2 ASI/SDI
input).
The package includes the DtRecord source code, to (1) illustrate the use of the DTAPI library for
building digital-video applications and (2) to provide a basis for creating a custom Transport-Stream
recorder application.
The DtRecord package consists of the following files:
File Version Description
DtRecord.exe none1 DtRecord compiled for Windows 2000/XP
DtRecord.cpp V2.2.0 DtRecord source file with all application
code
Makefile - Makefile for compiling DtRecord under Linux
DtRecord Usage Instructions.pdf V2.2.0 This document
2. Running the DtRecord application
The following items are required to run the DtRecord application:
The DtRecord executable file;
The Dta1xx and Dtu2xx drivers2, installed on the target system (the latest version of the
drivers can be downloaded from on www.dektec.com);
One or more DTA-120, DTA-122, DTA-124, DTA-140 and/or DTU225 devices installed in
the target system.
After start-up, the DtRecord application first prints the specified settings to the console3. Then
recording commences. Recording stops when until the record file reaches its maximum size (as
specified on the command line), the user presses a key or an error occurs. Please refer to the
Troubleshooting section (§5) for help on errors.
1 DtRecord.exe does not contain a version resource. “DtRecord -?” prints out the version number.
2 Note: the Linux version of the Dta1xx driver is part of the Linux SDK. Dtu2xx driver for Linux will be available soon
3 Provided that the run-silent option (-s) has not been specified.
© 2002-2005 DEKTEC Digital Video BV DtRecord – Usage Instructions
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3. Command-Line Usage
3.1. Syntax
DtRecord recfile4 [-x MaxSize] [-m Mode] [-t Type] [-i Port] [-n Number]
[-s] [-?]
3.2. Options
-x Maximum file size in MB. If this option is not specified, the size of the record file is
unbounded
Receive Mode (default ST188). See §3.2.1 for a more detailed description
ST188 Store packets as 188-byte packets
ST204 Store packets as 204-byte packets
-m
Use:
STRAW No notion of packets. Store all valid bytes.
-t Board Type to use (default: any input board5)
Use: 120 for DTA-120
122 for DTA-122
124 for DTA-124
140 for DTA-140
225 for DTU-225
-i Port index of the input channel to use (default 1)
Note: 1 indicates the first input channel
-n Board Number to use (default 1)
Note: 1 indicates the first board
-s Run in silent mode (i.e. no messages printed to the screen)
-? Display command line help
Note:
• The first option should either be the recfile or the help option.
3.2.1. Receive Mode
This section provides a more detailed description of the Receive-Mode option. For a complete
description of the Receive Modes refer to the datasheets of the PCI input card that is used. As
mentioned above the Receive-Mode option supports the following five modes:
• ST188: This mode can be used if the recfile should contain 188-byte packets only. In
this mode, the DEKTEC input board will remove the trailing 16 bytes of each incoming 204-
byte packet; 188-byte packets are left untouched. If the hardware is not synchronised to the
incoming Transport Stream, all packets will be dropped until synchronisation is achieved.
• ST204: This mode can be used if the recfile should contain 204-byte packets only. In
this mode, the DEKTEC input board will add 16 dummy bytes to each incoming 188-byte
4 Name of the file in which the Transport Stream is recorded.
5 Any input board means the Nth input device (either DTA-120, DTA-122, DTA-124, DTA-140 or DTU-225) found in the
system, where N is the board number specified with the –n option.
© 2002-2005 DEKTEC Digital Video BV DtRecord – Usage Instructions
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packet; 204-byte packets are left untouched. If the hardware is not synchronised to the
incoming Transport Stream, all packets will be dropped until synchronisation is achieved.
• STRAW: In this mode, the DEKTEC input board stores all valid data bytes without regard to
packet boundaries (i.e. no synchronisation required). This mode is especially helpful for
analysing the cause of a synchronisation problem (e.g. packets do not start with a sync byte
or invalid packet sizes).
3.3. Examples
DtRecord myfile.ts
DtRecord “c:\Video streams\myfile.ts” -x 100 -t 122 -m STRAW -n 2
4. Compiling the DtRecord Application
4.1. Compilation under Windows
Before compiling DtRecord.cpp, be sure to include the (path to the) DTAPI header file (dtapi.h)
and to link with the library (dtapi.lib). The latest version of these files is available on the
DEKTEC website (www.dektec.com).
The DTAPI library has been compiled with the C/C++ Code-Generation Options in VC++ set to:
“Use run-time library: Multithreaded.” On the compiler command line this corresponds to the /MT
option. DtRecord has to be compiled with this same setting, or a conflict with the version of the run-
time library will occur.
4.2. Compilation under Linux
The DtRecord package comes with a makefile intended for compilation on a Linux machine. Before
compiling make sure the makefile uses the correct include paths to the DTAPI include file
(dtapi.h) and the DTAPI library file (dtapi.o). To compile, type ‘make’ in the directory
containing DtRecord.cpp.
The DTAPI library for Linux is part of our Linux SDK, which can be downloaded from the DEKTEC
website (www.dektec.com).
5. Troubleshooting
This section provides help for problems that might occur while using the DtRecord application. If the
problem persists refer to §6.
5.1. DtRecord Errors
The DtRecord application can generate two types of errors, namely: command-line errors and
application errors. Command-line errors are caused by missing or invalid options. Application
errors indicate a problem with the system.
© 2002-2005 DEKTEC Digital Video BV DtRecord – Usage Instructions
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DtRecord
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5.1.1. Command-Line Errors
The table below shows the possible command-line error messages and their probable cause(s):
Message: Cause(s):
“Missing or invalid command line
option(s)”
An invalid option parameter has been specified (e.g.
character(s) instead of a number, negative numbers or
unknown parameter);
An option has been specified more than once;
An option is unknown;
The option prefix is missing (all options except the
recfile should start with ‘/’ or ‘-‘, followed by the
option identifier and an optional parameter).
“No record file specified“ The recfile has not been specified as the first
argument
5.1.2. Application Errors
Application-error messages start with “Error: ”, followed by the error cause.
The table below shows the possible application error messages and their probable cause(s):
Message: Cause(s):
“Can't set Receive Mode” The specified Receive Mode is not supported by the
DTA-120, DTA-122 or DTA-140
“Can't open recfile for writing” The specified recfile is not accessible. Possibly the
file is used by another application or the user does not
have access rights for the file/directory.
“FIFO underflow. Can't write data
fast enough”
The system is not fast enough for recording data at the
current input rate: the hard-disk may not be fast
enough or not enough memory is installed.
Other applications are performing processor and/or
hard-disk intensive tasks.
“No input board in the system” or
“No DTA-1xx in the system” or No
“DTU-2xx detected”
No DTA-120, DTA-122, DTA-124, DTA-140 or DTU-
225 device is installed in the system;
The DTA-1xx or DTU-2xx driver is not installed or not
working correctly6.
“Could not find input board #X in
the system” or “Could not find
DTA-1xx #X in the system” or “Could
not find DTU-2xx #X in the system”
The Xth board as specified by the Board-Number
option is not present in the system;
See also item above.
DtRecord can generate more application errors than specified above. However, the cause of such
errors is not always evident and may require support from DEKTEC.
6 Refer to the troubleshooting section in the Dta1xx or Dtu2xx driver installation guide for more details.
© 2002-2005 DEKTEC Digital Video BV DtRecord – Usage Instructions
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DtRecord
www.dektec.com
6. Contacting DEKTEC for Support
If the troubleshooting section does not provide a solution for your problem or the error(s) does
persist you may send an email to support@dektec.com.
Please specify the following items in your problem report:
• The error message generated by the DtRecord application;
• The type of board used (DTA-120, DTA-122, DTA-124, DTA-140 or DTU-225);
• Operating System;
• Driver Version;
• DTAPI library version (for custom applications).
7. DtRecord Revision History
Revision Date Changes
V2.2.0 2005.03.14 • Added support for DTA-124
• Added support to record files >2GB
V2.1.0 2004.11.18 • Added support for DTU-225
• Updated to use DtDevice class as defined in the DTAPI (v2)
V2.0.1 2003.20.01 • Fix recording bug for DTA-140
• Set Receive-Control field to idle when done, to avoid Receive-FIFO overflow
(with corresponding green/red flashing of the status LED) some time after
running DtRecord
V2.0.0 2002.12.06 • Can now be compiled both under Linux and under Windows
V1.1.0 2002.11.14 • Support for DTA-140
V1.0.1 2002.07.26 • Fix bug to recognize DTA-120 without /t option
