IEEE1394/Firewire port problem with XP Pro SP2

[patrick_g]

I have a Sony Handycam HDR-HC3 which only supports its digital video downloads via i.link to firewire conection. I am running Windows XP Pro SP2. My research found that Microsoft upgraded the speed of the 1394 (Firewire) port and as per Microsoft a side effect of that is the port will not communicate with a digital video camera. Interestingly enough I bought my video editing application (Pinnacle Studio) in a Microsoft bundle including Digital Image Suite. Apparently the guys at MS don't talk to each other! I found a MS "fix" for the problem and downloaded it from the MS Knowlege Base web site. This fix is designated WindowsXP-KB885222-v2-x86-ENU. When I try to install it I get an error message that says I don't have permission. Mine is a single user machine. I only see two levels of user: one that is limited and one that has all privs. My account is the higher level one. Just to be sure I created a new account (named it fancifully SYSADMIN) and downloaded and attempted the install from within that account. Same results, it says I don't have permission. I have downloaded other MS knowlege base stuff and installed it successfully and haven't a clue what the problem is with this one. Any insight into the PERMISSION PROBLEM? Also, I have downloaded and installed the latest Pinnacle Studio and it sort of looks like it might work if only I could give it some digital video. I looked into the hardware manager and find that I have a normal looking IEEE port that is enabled and has no error indicating "!" symbol. There is supposed to be an entry for the camera when it is attached and configured correctly. I double checked the handycam config and went step by step out of the manual but of course with the Firewire congfigured incorrectly the computer is ignorant of the camera's connection. The info I found claims that the port, as "upgraded" no longer supports speed S400. Unfortunately I could not confirm the camera wants to use S400. I tried 3 different places with Sony tech support and couldn't get past the morons with cheatsheets speaking pigeon English. No reply from the GURU level. Mostly Sony tells me to buy the video editor software they sell (a watered down Pinnacle product with no expectation of working with a "upgraded" (crippled?) Firewire port. I do not think this is a Pinnacle problem. I believe MS when they claim to be the problem and to have the fix but need assistance installing the fix. The first helpful and successful assistance received via this forum will qualify the assisting person to be entered into a drawing where they may qualify to win a swell prize. TIA for any assistance, Patrick_g Sorry this is not in neat paragraphs, I edited it twice and made paragraphs but apparently I can't make that work either... AAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

[ratboy]

This may be way out there, but have you tryed to update from MS site, not download 1st?

[Chewy]

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/885222

This problem occurs if you connect a 1394a or 1394b FireWire device to a 1394b port. This problem occurs because Windows XP SP2 changes 1394b ports to S100 speed when you upgrade.

validate then apply the registry tweak, MS does it again, what a boo-boo

bill go to the corner and put on the pointy hat for the rest of class

very suspicous, vista will fix this problem
buy vista, looks like more illegal behavior on microsoft's part

rant on!

[patrick_g]

Chewy, I don't understand your suggestion about applying the registry tweak. When I try to install the downloaded Microsoft "FIX" I got from http://support.microsoft.com/kb/885222 the install errors out claiming I do not have permission. The error is intstalling the fix not getting it. Where I am stuck is not being able to install the fix. Sorry if I am being too lame but you may have to break it down for me. Patrick_G

[Chewy]

3/30/2005

sure you haven't already got the update installed?

that was quite a while ago

you have to modify your registry as specified on that page

[atifsh]

Chewy i forgot to ask, does everyone needs to install that patch? or ones who upgraded frm sp1 to sp2 only? for one i dont have that registry key, second how do i know if im getting s100 speed, im not geting any problems.

[qv_]

I have notis two things you have to do to get Microsoft uppgrade to work.

1 The computer time and date must be right
2 You need to have IE6 installed (don't work with IE 5.5)


/Jan

[patrick_g]

chewy (et al), My problem is on my "new computer." The integrator who put together my requirements list to build it installed XP Pro SP2 from CD in a stand alone install not a progressive install with upgrades. I have no access to the original version as my distribution CD is the upgraded to SP2 version. I haven't been using IE (Internet Exploder) but Firefox. Can that be a problem? So far the best advice I have recieved is to buy a Mac and join the ranks of the productive who are enjoying true plug and play video editing, including HD. Since this Windows box is supposed to be able to edit digital video and has so much fast RAID storage I'd really like to get it working. ------------- I just checked and I have IE 6.0----- So I will give it a try AGAIN but I feel like I need to figure out the permissions problem... ---------OK----- I used IE 6.0 and still got the access denied error. Any ideas about how to correct the access denied problem?????????Patrick

[patrick_g]

Chewy et al, I got some MS help from the boys in India. Two hours and 15 min with the one guy and he caused more problems than he fixed (fixed none but messed up my OUTLOOK.) Canadian MS troop (didn't know MS outsourced to Canada) didn't help or hurt. Latest session was an hour or so where I gave the SECOND LEVEL TECH remote access to my computer for an hour and he managed to get a clean install of the KB patch 885222. Unfortunately it made no difference! Brief recap of my understanding of the situation: Sony HiDef Handycam HDR-HC3, Windows XP Pro SP2, and Pinnacle Studio V10.x (latest download from Pinnacle) Studio isn't dead as it can test read and write speed of my system, display a pie chart of my disk, and issue error messages regarding not having an input device. Everything else about this NEW camera works perfectly. It is my understanding that when you go to START-CONTROL PANEL-SYSTEM-HARDWARE-DEVICE MANAGER that in the displayed list you should see the source and destinaton hardware. The IEEE1394 host controller is there and doesn't have a "!" that wold indicate a problem. The port is enabled. There is no digital video input device (camera) listed. With no video source there is no video to transfer into the editor software. the editing software issues an error message---Capture Device Initializatiion Error--- NO big surprise as the computer doesn't know the camera exists since it doesn't show up in the hardware host controller list. Again, I am open for suggestions. Oh by the way, it makes no difference what browser or browser version you use to download the patch so long as it supports FTP or invokes functionality that does. (FTP is file transfer protocol) Patrick

[Chewy]

have you verified that the firewire port and cables even work?

[patrick_g]

have you verified that the firewire port and cables even work?

I have no means of verifying the port as the only IEEE1394 device I have is the camera that isn't seen in the device manager list. I have had help from MS tech support dudes in India, so far 4 hours or so of phone time. I worked my way up to the third level up of the tech guys. We got the patch KB885222 to install but ran into snags. The latest help dude helped me find the some data to use to get to edit the value which controls port speed. The values range from 0..3 and set the port to its range of allowed speeds. It did make a difference. Now when I try to initiate a transfer I can get a RRRRRRR sound that sounds simnilar to keyboard buffer overflow at a high rep. I also have to disconect the camera to use the START/RUN facility. I have a few things I need to do, when time permits (not in any specific order): 1. confirm that the i.Link to firewire cable is for sure the right cable and is good, 2. try to find a 1394 device to use to test the port, try to find another computer with a known working Firewire port to test the camera on. I think I don't need the other computer to have video software. I think when the camera is connected there should be a video input device (camera) show up in the hardware list in the device manager. It should give a host controller entry for the camera. If the other computer is Windows, I may have to do the KB885222 thing to it. If it is a Mac then it will be so much easier. I'm hoping to resolve this SNAFU without buying a Mac. If I can confirm the cable is good and knowing the port speed is now correct I may be able to enlist some help from the applications software guys at either MS or Pinnacle as the problem no longer seems to be an issue with the OS. As always, I am open for suggestions. Patrick

[Chewy]

well I have only tested a few hard drives with the firewire interface, they all worked fine with about 3 or 4 computers and gave transfer rates of about 23MB/s which blew away usb2. All the computers were running sp2 on windows xp.

[patrick_g]

Chewy, I struck out finding an innexpensive way to test the Firewire port as the only local options were to buy an iPod or a relatively expensive external disk that conects by firewire. I'm thinking maybe the cost effective way to proceed is to order another Firewire card and get a double ended Firewire cable (not a mini connector to fit the camera on one end) and make the new port talk to the old port. If I can zfer data from one firewire port to another then I will have elliminated the original firewire port as a source of the difficulty. This approach should be less than $100 for the cable and card. I could try another i.Link to Firewire cable first just in case the first cable I bought happened to be defective. I really don't think it is appropriate to think the Pinnacle editing software is the problem since I have never had the camera show up in the device manager hardware list as a video input/source host controller. Without that entry the computer remains ignorant of the existance of the camera. Pat

[patrick_g]

Latest update... After sucessfully installing the MS patch KB885222 to fix the IEEE1394 port speed problem I can set the SIDSPEED value using REGEDIT to 0..3 which is S100, S-200, S400. or S400/S800 respectively. A phone sesson with Sony and they tell me the problem is the computer not the camera because the camera still is not recognized by the computer. Mostly I gave them lessons in how the camera works and what the manual means when what I wanted was to learn not teach. The Sony help people do not have a clue about speed, i.e. S100..S400. ------------------------------------------------ Can someone confirm for me which speed theSony HDR-HC3 Handycam is using/needs to communicate with the IEEE1394 port? I've tried 3 different Sony "tech???" support folks and none have clue. The only one claiming to know told me S100 which is the upgraded port speed that caused the problem so that can't be right. Pat

[KevinMc]

Hi patrick g and Chewy, newbie here. Were you ever able to get to the bottom of the problem and resolve it? I'm having exactly the same issues, including the "Access Denied" message on the ms download. Were you able to get your pc to recognize your Handycam and if so, how? Any help would REALLY be appreciated - this is killing me.