Solved How did Media Center get installed without an install file?

I'm researching how to get my Media Center guide working again and one suggestion was to turn the Media Center feature of Windows off, then on again. Media Center is not listed in my Windows Features. It is also not listed in Programs to uninstall or repair. I also tried downloading the Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista (KB982480), but the install said it was not for my system. It is for Windows Vista 32-bit and must be Vista SP1 or SP2, which is what my computer is.

How did it get installed in the first place and how can I reinstall it? Maybe then I can continue to work on getting the guide back. Oh, and if you have any tips on how to make my mouse cursor visible in full screen mode, I'd appreciate that too.

Media Center is an integral part of Vista Home Premium and Ultimate and cannot be uninstalled. If your Vista installation is fully updated, then there's no point in looking for old patches. I don't think you will be able to download the new Rovi data without TV Pack (perhaps you noticed my nearby post), but please let us know if you find another way.

Media center is installed by default on Vista home premium and ultimate. I didn't know though that it couldn't be removed. I wouldn't try to do so. As for the update I bet that it is already installed. For me it shows up as "Update for Microsoft Windows." As for the tv guide section it sounds to me like Vistaar knows what he is talking about. I haven't used Media center for anything other than watching movies. You can go under services (start menu services.msc) and make sure that all Media center services are turned on.

Do you know of any other free TV Tuner software that supplies a guide so that I can schedule recordings?

I would suggest NextPVR with a Schedules Direct subscription ($25/yr). (The free mc2xml grabber no longer works for the same reason you aren't getting EPG data for WMC.) Some WMC users have explored ways of using Schedules Direct data, but I think they're all Win7/8 users who are dissatisfied with the Rovi data: View topic - Attempts at Manual Guide Implementation

[Edit] For CableCard users, no other PVR equals WMC. However SiliconDust is said to have a program under development.

Would Media Center for Windows 7 (if I could find it) install over Vista's and still work?

Well if you upgraded to Windows 7 Home Premium, then you would have W7MC. For Vista, the closest you can get is the previously mentioned TV Pack. Microsoft didn't start selling WMC separately until Windows 8. (Sales were presumably not very good, since WMC is not offered for Windows 10.)

Hmmm, upgrading this computer to W7 is not an option. I'm trying to install the TV Pack. It appears that it installed, but this page (Windows Media Center TV Pack 2008 Download and Installation Guide) says then to install two patches:

KB951685 - The video playback application stops responding when you watch video or Live TV on a Windows Vista-based computer.

Download KB951685 (X86 and x64)

KB950754 - Noticeable problems occur in the video when you use the DirectSound renderer on Windows Vista.

Download KB950754 (x86 and x64)


Both of them say the updates do not apply to my system. I'm posting this before I get a result because I'm having power supply problems too and don't want to lose what I've typed. I'll edit this post with the result of the TV Pack install when I have one.

That post is 7 years old, and yes the two patches are obsolete. BTW PlayReady v1.3 can be downloaded directly from Microsoft. After restarting, check for updates in Windows Update.

Vistaar said:

That post is 7 years old, and yes the two patches are obsolete. BTW PlayReady v1.3 can be downloaded directly from Microsoft. After restarting, check for updates in Windows Update.

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Yes, it is 7 years old, but we are installing TV Pack 2008 after all. I installed the TV Pack and after a reboot it didn't work. Overnight, my UPS died and shut me down again, but on boot I had 5 updates to install. I installed them and rebooted, but still didn't have any program data. I can't even finish the setup. Upon downloading the TV Setup Data, I get the message that the download has failed.



When I click OK, I get a message that the guide is not available.



I can't find the About page to tell me if it's trying Rovi or Zap2it. Where was that page?

Is there a way to reset WMC so that all downloaded files are gone?

I also have 2 Netflix channels now. Both fail to launch.

You actually had less trouble getting a TV setup data download than many Win7/8 users at The Green Button forum. Your tuner does not appear to support QAM (although your WMC now does), so there's probably nothing to gain by selecting a digital lineup - however cable lineups are sometimes listed twice these days. If your analog lineup has a twin, it might prove helpful to try the other one, but be prepared to face the Download Failure notification again. (I'm pretty sure that's a server issue.) In any case, some channel editing might be necessary.

You are a man of many questions... If you finished TV setup without a setup data download, then you had neither Rovi nor Zap2It data at that time, therefore "About Guide Listings" wasn't an option at all. Prior to that time, you still had some Zap2It data from July.

Microsoft killed the internet tv component 3 years ago: http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...l-not-be/41693b1d-43df-4144-86bd-dffc973c1bcc
Netflix will reportedly end support for WMC next month: Netflix is turning its back on Windows Media Center users. - Windows 7 Help Forums

I don't know that I'm having less trouble than Win7/8 users. I've been working on this for a week and still haven't gotten it to work.

Yes, I have many questions and sometimes answers bring more questions. Questions like "Do I really need PlayReady TV? I've read posts where it said "don't bother to install that piece of *, you don't need it." What does PlayReady do and why did you suggest v1.3 instead of 3 or higher?

For analog I'm pretty sure that you don't need PlayReady, but we didn't know you were tuning analog until post #11. PlayReady is DRM software. Could you please post a download link for PlayReady 3? I can't seem to find it.

Vistaar said:

For analog I'm pretty sure that you don't need PlayReady, but we didn't know you were tuning analog until post #11. PlayReady is DRM software. Could you please post a download link for PlayReady 3? I can't seem to find it.

Click to expand...

I didn't know I was using analog either. I thought it was digital. I called my cable company and they said the lower channels are mixed. Some channels I used to get are now completely digital and those are the ones I cannot tune into.

I do not have a link to PlayReady of any version. The Microsoft PlayReady page talks about it to digital rights providers (?). So I guess it's working. I just have to re-run setup to choose ONLY the analog signal now and I'll have to say goodbye to the channels I can't get. I'm not going to buy a new tuner card for this old piece of junk. This morning I got a drive failure warning. I don't know what it means yet, but I may have to replace the hard drive again. I just replaced it less than 6 months ago with a drive I bought a couple years ago and never installed. So now it's out of warranty. I am soooooo pissed off right now. GRRRRR. I'm going to post questions about that in another discussion. This horse has been whipped enough.