How To Reset Sky Q Box – The Quick & Easy Method
If you’re having issues with your Sky Q box, one of the quickest ways to fix things is by resetting the system. Here’s how you reset your Sky Q box properly to fix any potential issues…
Launched in 2016, Sky Q has been widely received as one of the best major updates to the Sky platform in living memory. Sky Q is faster, easier to use, comes with a new remote, new connectivity and sharing options, even more storage and support for 4K Ultra HD.
These are all good things. They are also why Sky Q has grown massively since 2016, securing itself millions of new users. But Sky Q is a tech product, and, like all tech products, it can have its moments. Things can and do go wrong. And there’s no way to avoid these gremlins, sadly.
But having the right tools ready for when your Sky Q box does go on fritz will ensure that you can quickly troubleshoot the problem and get back to what you were trying to watch. And these tools involve restarting your Sky Q box, resetting your Sky Q box, knowing what the lights mean on your Sky Q box, and performing a factory reset on your Sky Q box – we’ll cover each of these things below.
As always, one of the quickest and most efficient ways to fix ANYTHING is to switch the device off and on again – this will clear the device’s memory and cache banks, potentially removing the offending issue as a result. If that fails, you may need to restart or reset the system. First, let’s get some Sky Q troubleshooting best practices out of the way first…
Sky Q Troubleshooting: Things To Try Before Resetting Sky Q Box…
First things first, don’t just go nuclear and perform a factory reset on your Sky Q box every time it acts a little squiffy – this is completely unnecessary.
Restarting Your Sky Q Box – The “FIX ALL” Solution
If your Sky Q box is playing up, or just not working very well, your first port of call should be switching the system off completely, waiting 30 seconds, and then switching it back on again – this usually fixes any errant performance issues with Sky Q.
If this solves your issue, you’re golden. Just get back on with what you were doing. If the issue is still there, you’ll have to investigate further. And the next logical step, if you’re having problems with Sky Q, is to check your internet connection. Is your WiFi network up and running? You can check this on your modem or on your phone.
You can also check if your internet is functional by looking at your Sky Q box. Each Sky Q box comes with a small light fitted to its front which flashes different colors to communicate different processes that are happening inside the Sky Q box. These lights are really handy as a reference, but you need to know what your Sky Q box’s lights actually mean.
Sky Q Box Lights Explained
If the light on your Sky Q box is flashing ORANGE, it means your Sky Q box is NOT connected to the internet – not good. If there is no light, it means your Sky Q box has no power – again, not good. If there’s a RED light, it can mean one of three things: 1) your Sky Q box is in standby mode, 2) it’s recording something, or 3) there is something wrong with the hardware. And Green means everything is functioning correctly.
If the RED light is constant and doesn’t go away, and you know you’re not recording anything, you have got yourself a hardware issue and this usually – but not always – requires that you factory reset the system. But before you perform a factory reset on your Sky Q box, first try switching it off and on. Is the problem still there? If yes, you need to factory reset your Sky Q box.
How To Factory Reset Sky Q Box
- Press the Home button on your Sky Q remote
- Go to settings – enter 001 on the remote and press select
- The Factory reset option will appear on your screen. Next, press the STANDBY button on your box and this will initiate the factory reset of your Sky Q box
Factory resetting your Sky Q box usually – like 98% of the time – will fix any and all issues you’re experiencing with your Sky Q box. Once the factory reset is complete, you will have to go through and set up your Sky Q box all over again. This is annoying. But it should have gotten rid of the issue that was plaguing it before.
What If The Issue Is A Hard Drive Issue?
If you have a Sky Q box, you’ll either have the 1TB version of the 2TB version. These hard drives are where all your recorded shows and movies purchased from Sky Store are stored.
It’s kind of important. But a hard drive can go wrong. It’s rare, of course, but it does happen from time to time, and if you’re having hard drive issues, you will have to reset your Sky Q’s hard drive.
To reset your Sky Q’s hard drive, follow these steps:
- Press the Home button on your Sky Q remote
- Go to settings – enter 001 on the remote and press select
- You should now see an option to RESET HARD DRIVE, select this option, then press the STANDBY button on your box
My Sky Q Box Will Not Turn On
If your Sky Q box is unresponsive and will not turn on, it could be related to a number of things: 1) something is up with its power supply, 2) the system is switched off (if you have toddlers, this happens all the time, in my experience), or 3) the box has over-heated and switched itself off to cool down.
To quickly check if your Sky Q box is actually switched on and has power, just press the ? BUTTON on your Sky Q remote. If your Sky Q box is connected and working, you should see a RED light flash on the box when you press the button. If there is no RED light, it means something is definitely up with your Sky Q box.
The first thing I’d do if the Sky Q box is unresponsive and/or won’t switch on is, yep, you guessed it: switch it off at the mains, wait for 30 seconds or thereabouts, and then switch it back on. Again, a quick switch on/switch off tends to fix most issues – it works on PCs, Macs, iPhones, Android phones, and Sky Q boxes. Trust me, I’m a tech expert.
If that doesn’t work, then you may need to do a factory reset on your Sky Q box. We’ve already covered that in the How To Factory Reset Your Sky Q Box section. Just follow the steps listed there and reboot your system. Nine times outta ten, this will fix whatever issues you’re experiencing with your Sky Q box.
Common Sky Q Error Messages & What They Mean
If you’re dealing with issues with your Sky Q box, chances are you’ve already seen your fair share of error messages pop up on your TV’s screen. But what do these Sky Q error messages mean? Here’s a handy breakdown of some of the most common Sky Q error messages and what they mean.
Sky Q Error Messages + What They Mean
- MR001 – IP address error. Reset your router and install any firmware updates
- MR102 – The mini box and your main box or router aren’t connected to each other properly
- MR104 – There’s an issue with your Wi-fi connectivity. Reboot your router and it should resolve the problem
- MR106 – Your main Sky Q box can’t connect to a mini Sky Q box properly
- MR109 – This definitely indicates a proximity problem between your devices, so they’re probably too far away from each other
If you need to know anything else about Sky Q, make sure you check out our Sky Users’ Resource Centre – it has LOADS of helpful guides and actionable advice for new and old Sky users, including reviews, user guides, and plenty of how-to guides for Sky Q, Sky Glass, and Sky+, as well as Sky Go and Sky Mobile
Richard Goodwin
Richard Goodwin has been working as a tech journalist for over 10 years. He is the editor and owner of KnowYourMobile.
