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OpenWRT router / TAP / Tivo

Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2021 1:01 am
by bdemchak
Hi --

I'm going to be traveling a lot, and I'm looking for a way to connect my phone to my TIVO DVR. I understand that TIVO wants to broadcast (e.g., using BonJour as a discovery protocol) to clients (but that may be wrong).

Using VPN Client Pro, I can connect the phone to my router's OpenVPN via the phone carrier network (as TAP ... home router is ASUS RT-AC68R), and I can ping the phone from a PC on the network. It really does look like the phone is on my home network. TIVO is also on this network, so I'm hoping the phone can work with it.

When I start the TIVO app on the phone while going through OpenVPN, it won't play content ... it claims that the content is copy protected. When I connect the phone directly to the WiFi network (without OpenVPN or VPN Client Pro), the app plays.

The only thing I can think of is that the TIVO app itself on the phone is detecting a VPN in use, and then refusing to play copyrighted content.

BTW, I'm getting the same problem with my cable company's app on my phone ... the Spectrum player detects a VPN and won't play anything.

Have I characterized the problem correctly? Are these apps detecting a VPN in use, and then refusing to play?

Does anyone here have experience getting streaming apps to play when using a phone to connect via VPN to a home network??

(I applaud VPN Client Pro for getting a TAP interface at all ... this is a lot of work, and I certainly recognize its coolness.)

Thanks!

Re: OpenWRT router / TAP / Tivo

Posted: Fri Jan 22, 2021 5:55 pm
by admin
I'm sorry but I don't know how the TIVO works.
However from the description of the problem, yes it seems that the TIVO app checks for the presence of a VPN and/or geolocation data and then blocks access to the content.

P.S.
Sorry for the delay, but I forgot your post :oops:

Re: OpenWRT router / TAP / Tivo

Posted: Fri Jan 22, 2021 7:21 pm
by bdemchak
Thanks.

So close, but not quite a solution for this situation.

I do appreciate your TAP work ... hard work, good result.