Roku unexpected failure. (Not directly Emby related)

[Gilgamesh_48 1240]

This was not caused by Emby at all. I was using my Roku Ultra to watch paramount TV for a Italian soccer match. I had earlier watched several shows on my Roku. I left Paramount by pressing "home" and navigated to the Emby app. I tried to start it but nothing actually happened except a pretty quick return to the Roku home screen. I then tried a few other apps and the same thing happened. I thought that a Roku reset was required so I used my remote to restart Roku. (Yes the Roku menus seemed to work fine) After the restart it was locked in a reboot loop with the bouncing Roku appearing over and over. After several minutes a green screen popped up with a message saying the operating system needs to reload so i tried that choice and it took 8-10 minutes and the Roku went into another reboot loop. I also tried a power off reset and that did not change anything. 

I then decided it had died so I moved an older Roku 3 into my bedroom and the Roku Ultra that was there into my main viewing area. 

After doing that everything seems to be working correctly and, after taking the time to get everything configured the way I like it my entire setup is fine.

I wanted to post this here just to be sure that I had exhausted all possibilities of recovery for my Ultra. I very much like the Ultra better than the Roku 3. 

I tried to use the actual Roku forums but they are a greater mess now that they ever were when I actually used them regularly.

If this is improper for this forum the a mod can move it or delete it. It will be no loss for me. I seem to remember that there was a way to force a full Roku reset by holding some button on the Roku during power on but I cannot remember how to do that. I have very little hope that a factory reset will fix the problem but I thought I would try but the factory reset option in the menus cannot be used if the Roku will not boot. I would like to salvage my Ultra but it looks like, if i also want a Roku Ultra in my bedroom I will have to buy another one.

I cannot complain much as this is the first Roku I have ever had that totally failed. I even have my original Roku (an old N1000) and it still works but most current apps will not run on it. Too little memory and to weak a processor. 

Oh well, should I want to buy a new one, I have found them on Amazon for under $60.00 so it will not break me to replace it if i decide to.

Thanks for any help and thanks for reading my sob story.   

[Luke 42077]

Hi, did you figure anything out?

[Gilgamesh_48 1240]

17 minutes ago, Luke said:

Hi, did you figure anything out?

Yeah. I was able to try to factory reset my Ultra but, after the reset completed, it ended back in the reboot loop. 
I have now decided to get another one, it should arrive Wednesday. My Roku 3, that is in place of the dead Ultra, works OK but it is not as good as the Ultra. 

[speechles 2055]

On 11/26/2024 at 2:45 AM, Gilgamesh_48 said:

Yeah. I was able to try to factory reset my Ultra but, after the reset completed, it ended back in the reboot loop. 
I have now decided to get another one, it should arrive Wednesday. My Roku 3, that is in place of the dead Ultra, works OK but it is not as good as the Ultra. 

When you factory reset did you hold down the reset button on the device or use the Factory Reset option in the Roku menu?

https://support.roku.com/article/208757008

There is a difference between using the menu option and using the reset button. The reset button will fully wipe the Roku. The menu option leaves some traces of things behind.

 

https://community.roku.com/t5/Discussions/Guest-Mode-Loop-Boot-Loop-After-Upgrading-to-Roku-OS-14/m-p/1006483
https://community.roku.com/t5/Features-settings-updates/Roku-Guest-Mode-Reboot-Loop/m-p/1006829
https://community.roku.com/t5/Roku-setup/Roku-express-4k-software-update-loop/m-p/981244
https://community.roku.com/t5/Roku-setup/Seemingly-endless-loop-of-update-and-restart/m-p/968792

https://community.roku.com/t5/forums/searchpage/tab/message?q=loop&noSynonym=false&sort_by=score&collapse_discussion=true

You are not the first to complain about this. I've experienced it myself with a Roku express and had to use the paper clip method and reset button on the back to get it corrected. If you have already tried with using the Reset Button you may want to do it again, but this time deny the Roku access to your internet/LAN/WiFi after you reset it. Then unplug power from it once on that screen. Leave it in that state wanting internet access and have it turn off. Then plug it back in and restart. Then once it reboots back into that state asking for internet access allow it and it will take the firmware updates to get the Roku OS updated. It is the OS firmware update applied during a factory reset causing the problems.

 

Edited November 27, 2024 by speechles

[Gilgamesh_48 1240]

1 hour ago, speechles said:

When you factory reset did you hold down the reset button on the device or use the Factory Reset option in the Roku menu?

https://support.roku.com/article/208757008

There is a difference between using the menu option and using the reset button. The reset button will fully wipe the Roku. The menu option leaves some traces of things behind.

 

https://community.roku.com/t5/Discussions/Guest-Mode-Loop-Boot-Loop-After-Upgrading-to-Roku-OS-14/m-p/1006483
https://community.roku.com/t5/Features-settings-updates/Roku-Guest-Mode-Reboot-Loop/m-p/1006829
https://community.roku.com/t5/Roku-setup/Roku-express-4k-software-update-loop/m-p/981244
https://community.roku.com/t5/Roku-setup/Seemingly-endless-loop-of-update-and-restart/m-p/968792

https://community.roku.com/t5/forums/searchpage/tab/message?q=loop&noSynonym=false&sort_by=score&collapse_discussion=true

You are not the first to complain about this. I've experienced it myself with a Roku express and had to use the paper clip method and reset button on the back to get it corrected. If you have already tried with using the Reset Button you may want to do it again, but this time deny the Roku access to your internet/LAN/WiFi after you reset it. Then unplug power from it once on that screen. Leave it in that state wanting internet access and have it turn off. Then plug it back in and restart. Then once it reboots back into that state asking for internet access allow it and it will take the firmware updates to get the Roku OS updated. It is the OS firmware update applied during a factory reset causing the problems.

 

i actually have found on that Roku Ultra no reset button of any sort. But i found out that if the Roku was in its reboot loop and i waited long enough then a screen came up offering a total reload of the operating system. I took that option but the reboot loop just continued after the reload of the OS finished. I checked online and actually did not find my Ultra listed at all. It has no reset button and no pinhole I could find. The only button on my Ultra is on the top and is marked with a "+ -". I do not know what that actually does but it does not matter much as my new Ultra is here now, just arrived. And i am going to get it set up. 

Thanks.

[Gilgamesh_48 1240]

@speechles  @ebr
I just wanted to follow up and say that the new Ultra i received is quite good and working fine. I had no problem with its setup except that Roku has complicated setup a lot with a BUNCH of useless to me channels and settings and, for some reason, all my channels were imported correctly except for Emby. I do not know why Emby was not but it was nowhere in my listings until I installed it from the streaming store. 
I also looked at my old ultra much closer and actually found its reset button. (It was well hidden on the bottom without any marking and it was not even a pinhole. I finally found it by feeling around the bottom and felt a "click" at one point. I plugged the Ultra back in and then pressed an held hat button for a while and the Ultra went into a full reset. It went through the whole setup just fine and appears to be fine but I am going to keep it stored as a spare because, for now at least, I do not trust it. But it will be good to have a viable backup in the wings should something go horribly wrong again.
I thank you for trying to help and for responding to me. I now have three working Ultras and a Roku 3 and my old Roku N1000. (Nearly totally dysfunctional now)  

While i was waiting for the new Ultra i used, along with my Roku 3, my Fire Stick for a number of things and it reinforced my feeling that Rokus are much easier to use and actually much better for me that the Android devices (including the Fire) are much more trouble to use and "jerkier" than the Ultras. 

I am now happily content with my TV viewing again.   

Last BTW: I like the newest Ultra remote (The rechargeable one) a lot more than the earlier ones. it is lighter in weight and smaller and the keys light up when a button is pressed.  All i have to do now is remember to recharge it from time to time.