Pete Hodd I am guessing you're not getting any responses because the procedure differs depending on the Tvheadend version, how it is installed, and whether or not you used Docker at any point. This is a procedure that I have used in the past, but note this is for a non-Docker installation, and I make no guarantees it will work for you. At the very least the paths will be different if you are using Docker. Note that it would be a really good idea to have a full backup of your current system in case things go haywire. Also, to be extra safe you could start a screen capture video and then one by one bring up all the various tabs in the web interface (scrolling where necessary) so you at least have a visual record of your settings, in case all else fails and you have to enter them manually.
So this is the procedure I have used when Docker is NOT involved:
Delete any recordings that do not need to be saved (only on the backend being moved, this is optional and just to save time).
On the existing system, enter the following commands:
sudo service tvheadend stop
sudo -s
cd /home/hts/.hts
sudo tar cvfp ../tvheadend.tar tvheadend
cd /home/hts/
At this point you need to move tvheadend.tar file to a different system if you plan on reformatting the drive, or to the new system if you’re creating an entirely new setup after you have installed TVHeadEnd as described below. I would also urge you to copy any recordings you wish to keep, and any programs/scripts you may run outside of TVHeadEnd (for example, scripts and data to provide guide information to TVHeadEnd). You can use a Linux tool such as scp for this process (for example, sudo scp tvheadend.tar root@ip:~/) or if you have a way to transfer files via nfs, samba, ftp, sftp, etc. it doesn’t matter, just so long as you can move the tvheadend.tar file and any other files you want to save to a safe place.
On the new system, install your operating system and the driver(s) for your tuner card(s)/device(s), if any. Then install TVHeadEnd. After you have done that, check to make sure that TVHeadEnd can find your tuners (in the TV adapters tab) – if it can’t then you need to figure out why before proceeding. Next, copy back/over all the files you saved in the previous step, putting them in the exact same directories they were in on the previous system (this is especially important if you want TVHeadEnd to find any recordings you saved). Then enter the following commands on the new system:
sudo service tvheadend stop
sudo -s
cd /home/hts/.hts
sudo mv tvheadend tvheadend-backup
tar xvfp ~/tvheadend.tar
Now if you reboot (or restart TVHeadEnd) you should find that your previous configuration is restored, except that your tuner(s) will not be linked to any network(s). So go back to the TV adapters tab and make sure that each tuner is enabled and that it is linked to the correct network. Also, if you did not copy over the recordings from your previous system (or did not put them back in the exact same spot in the directory tree), they will show up under the “Failed Recordings” tab in the TVHeadEnd web interface, so you can go ahead and delete those. Also, check the “Recording System Path” and the Timeshift “Storage Path” (under the Recording tab) to make sure that they are correct and that you have actually created directories with those names, and that they have the correct permissions and ownership.
That is from my notes on past installs, but again if you are using a Docker install on either the old or new system then things get more complicated. I know the paths will be different and I do not believe the Docker version uses the hts user in the same way the non-Docker version does (there is no /home/hts directory as I recall). Do be sure that all your old recordings have been moved over BEFORE you move the configuration files but even so be prepared for the fact that Tvheadend may lose track of them if the paths are different (or if the drive is inaccessible or anything like that) and once Tvheadend loses track of a recording there is no way I am aware of to get Tvheadend to recognize it again, but you may have better luck. Also if anyone gives you better advice feel free to use it, I am not super confident the above procedure will still work with the latest Tvheadend version. WHY Tv headend doesn't have any kind of backup/restore function is beyond me, but at least I wanted to try to give you something to work with in case no one else responds.
