Why Are My Local Channels on DIRECTV Not Working?

You turn your television on, and you find your local channels on DIRECTV not working, what do you do?

Do you immediately contact DIRECTV about it? Would you immediately jump to the conclusion that you are being ripped off?

Before you do any of those, try this guide out first! In this tutorial, we will walk you through determining what the problem is!

Moreover, we will also give you the steps on how you can solve it!

You can easily solve this problem by refreshing your DIRECTV receiver. Read along to learn and be knowledgeable about the ways to regain the missing local channels on your DIRECTV!

Why Are My Local Channels Missing on DIRECTV?

As opposed to what many people believe in, missing local channels on DIRECTV is more of a regular concern.

Thousands of people experience this every month; so, it’s not just you. But why are local channels not working on DIRECTV?

Receiver Problems

There are certain instances where our receivers become so worked up that they malfunction.

And part of the most common problems that we might experience is missing local channels.

When this happens to you, what you need to do to resolve it is to perform a reset on your receiver.

Server Problems

There are certain situations, too where the problem lies with DIRECTV’s server.

Unlike receiver problems that you can fix and resolve, you wouldn’t be able to do anything if it’s a problem with the server.

You will have to wait until the issue gets fixed or until the DIRECTV team tells you that it’s resolved.

Those are the causes and reasons for the missing channels. But, that being said, how do you work to fix it?

Do you immediately need the intervention and the assistance of a technician or an expert?

How to Fix Local Channels on DIRECTV Not Working

Searching why are my local channels not working on DIRECTV and not getting an accurate resolution is frustrating.

That’s the reason why we’ve detailed and structured this guide for your full understanding.

Before going on to this process, you would want to consider contacting AT&T or DIRECTV first. Ask them if there are any service outages or maintenance problems currently happening.

When you confirm that there aren’t any problems, go and proceed to the guide. 

Refresh or Reauthorize the Receiver

Here’s the process of refreshing or reauthorizing your DIRECTV receiver.

Step #1: Access My DIRECTV

To be able to refresh or reauthorize your DIRECTV receiver, log in to your myAT&T account.

Ensure that your user ID and password are correct to avoid delays. From there, go to Account Overview, then select My DIRECTV.

Step #2: Navigate to the Manage Package Page

When you access this, it will open a few different options. From here, you just have to go to the page where it says Manage Package.

This gives you the list of all the receivers under that account.

Step #3: Select Refresh Receiver

From the list of receivers that you will see, select the receiver that’s giving you problems. Then, hit on the button that says Refresh Receiver.

Step #4: Wait for the Receiver to Refresh

Overall, the process would consume about three to five minutes. During this time, you can expect your DIRECTV service to be interrupted for a few minutes.

NOTE:

It’ll be best to halt or stop using it while you’re refreshing it to avoid problems that could spark up when it comes to refreshing it. 

That’s the process of how you can refresh or reauthorize your DIRECTV receiver! It’s simple and easy to follow, right?

There were separate instances where the problem persisted even after they reauthorized or refreshed their DIRECTV receivers.

If the problem is still existent even after you refreshed and reauthorized it, you may need to reset your DIRECTV receiver.

There are two types of reset: Power Reset and Factory Settings Reset. We will discuss all three so you can try to do it to troubleshoot the problem.

Power Resetting DIRECTV Receiver

There are two ways to power resetting your DIRECTV receiver. Here are those methods so you can determine what method is better and more workable:

1. Reset Button Method

This method entails finding the reset button on the receiver.

• Find or locate the Red Reset button on the receiver.
• You’ll usually find it inside the access door while some have it at the back or the side of the receiver.
• Press and hold the red button until it reboots by itself.

2. Unplugging the Receiver

On the other end of the spectrum, you can also perform the unplugging method. Here’s how it goes:

• Unplug the power cord of your DIRECTV receiver from the wall outlet.
• While unplugged, press the power button on the DIRECTV receiver.
• Wait for the device to reboot and reinitialize.

NOTE:

If you are resetting a Genie Mini, you’ll need to reset the main Genie receiver as well. It will not work if you don’t.

Factory Settings Reset

If all of the above methods did not work for you, then it might be time to perform factory settings reset on your receiver.

Take note, though, that if you perform this method, all of the settings of the receiver will be reset to default.

This would include the favorites, customized settings and preferences, even playlists and saved titles.

So, don’t be shocked when you find that all of what you’ve marked is lost.  For this process, you need to follow these steps:

• Press and hold the blue DIRECTV Power Button
• Hold it for about twenty to thirty seconds.
• After that timeframe, release the power button.

Read Next: How to Align DIRECTV Dish without Meter?

It’s Still Not Working, Is My Receiver Broken?

So, you have been trying to fix and resolve this for hours; you’ve done all of the steps we outlined, and you’re still missing local channels?

What you must do if this is what the case is to contact DIRECTV.

Let them know about your DIRECTV receiver not being able to access local channels. Allow them to perform medium-to-advanced troubleshooting to try and fix it.

Conclusion

Don’t panic if your local channels on DIRECTV are not working or missing. Moreover, don’t immediately assume and expect that the culprit is your receiver.

Try and perform the methods and ways we have outlined here first before you proceed to contact DIRECTV’s customer and technical support team!