LinuxDevices.com received the following inquiry from a reader:

“I believe the Dish Network PVR721 uses embeded Linux. It even comes with breakout built in. Am I wrong? Please reply.”

Editor Rick Lehrbaum jumped at the opportunity to research this question, and came up with the following . . .

The following announcement by National Semiconductor from Jan. 22, 2002 indicates a “yes” answer:

Award-winning EchoStar DishPVR 721 Powered by National's Geode Processor

excerpt: “The DishPVR 721 is technologically significant through its selection of the Geode processor, a Pentium-class x86 chip, to manage the multiple applications of the system and the use of the Linux operating system.”

A search on Dish Network's website soon yielded pay dirt, in the form of a link to the DishPVR 721's Source Code download page.

Excerpt: “This site has been set up to accommodate requests for the portions of the DishPVR 721 source code that are subject to the GNU Public License, or GPL. In compliance with the terms of the GPL, we are making this source code available to the public to download. Please note that the DishPVR 721 software also includes some proprietary elements that are not subject to the GPL. You cannot perform a working DishPVR 721 software build without the additional proprietary code.”

GPL source code items available for download are as follows:

• hLinux — This is a modified version of the Linux kernel for the DishPVR 721. (tar.gz file download)
• dishlinux — This contains many GPL programs that are used on the DishPVR 721. (directory of downloadable files)
• games — This contains several GPL games that are available on the DishPVR 721. (tar.gz download)

. . . plus the following warning: “Do not replace or add any software to the DishPVR 721 with items compiled from these source trees. Doing so will void all warranties and cause the unit to fail.”

About the DishPVR 721 receiver

The DishPVR 721 receiver, which is described by Dish Networks as “our newest, hottest receiver with Personal Video Features,” is a two-tuner, personal video recording (PVR) satellite receiver with advanced features that enable users to pause live TV, record two live programs at the same time, and simultaneously display picture-in-picture on any television. It is equipped with a 120 GB hard drive for up to 90 hours of 100% digital video recording.

 
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