CCcam lines: setup, config, and troubleshooting

If you already have the data from your line in hand, but the connection is not established — you’ve come to the right place. CCcam lines may seem simple at first glance: a line of text with a host, port, and password. In practice, there are enough nuances that can cause everything to be silent or drop after a few seconds. Let’s go through everything step by step — from the format of the line to conversion to OScam.

What is a CCcam line and what does it consist of

A CCcam line is a configuration string that describes your client’s connection to the card-sharing server via the CCcam protocol. This string tells the daemon where to connect, with what credentials, and with what exchange parameters.

Structure of C-line: host port username password

The basic format of a C-line looks like this:

C: hostname port username password

Fields in order:hostname — DNS name or direct IP of the server;port — TCP port on which the server listens for connections;username andpassword — your account credentials. The host can be either a domain name likeserver.example.net or a numeric IP address — the CCcam daemon will resolve both options. The port is not strictly standardized: the range of 12000–19000 is most common, but the server sets it itself — refer to what is written in your line.

Differences between C-line, N-line, and F-line

C-line — is the native CCcam protocol. Most servers work with it.

N-line — is the newcamd protocol. Used with OScam, MGcamd, and similar software. The format is fundamentally different — there is a DES key at the end of the line, and simply copying a C-line to replace an N-line will not work. These are different protocols.

F-line — is for a local user on the same CCcam server. It is used when you need to grant access to another client within the same instance. In everyday client configuration, F-line is rarely needed.

Where exactly to write the line in CCcam.cfg

On receivers with Enigma2 firmware (Dreambox, Vu+, GigaBlue, etc.), the config file is located at/var/etc/CCcam.cfg. On a Linux server — most often/usr/local/etc/CCcam.cfg or the working directory of the binary. It is edited via SSH/Telnet (nano, vi) or FTP. Any changes take effect only after restarting the daemon — the config itself is not picked up automatically.

Setting up C-line in CCcam.cfg step by step

Open the file/var/etc/CCcam.cfg and add the line. A minimal working example:

C: server.example.net 12000 myuser mypass

An extended version with explicit parameters:

C: server.example.net 12000 myuser mypass no { 0:0:2 }

Adding a client line and parameters at the end of the line

After the password come optional but important parameters. The keywordno oryes after the password is a flag for reshare. If you writeyes, your client will share the channels it has locally back to the server. In most cases, setno — unless the server explicitly requires reshare by agreement.

C-line options: { 0, 1, 1 } and their meaning

The block in curly braces is what most guides ignore. Format:{ hop:reshare:uphops } or in some versions three numbers separated by commas. The first number is the maximum hop depth from which you accept channels from the server. The second is the depth to which you forward these channels to your clients. The third is uphops, the limit on channel uplink. For a standard client connection,{ 0:0:2 } means: you accept channels from any depth, do not forward further, uphops up to 2.

If there is no block at all — CCcam uses default values from the main config section. For pure client use, this is usually fine.

Restarting the daemon and applying the config

After any config change — a restart is mandatory. On Enigma2:

killall -9 CCcam

or for a specific binary:

killall CCcam.x86

CCcam usually starts automatically via init script, but if not — start it manually. Through the Enigma2 GUI, you can restart via the Blue button menu → Software Management → CCcam, or simply via Telnet. On a Linux server:

/etc/init.d/cccam restart

or via systemd, if configured that way. A good habit is to wait 10–15 seconds after restarting and check the status in the web interface.

Checking the status of lines via cccaminfo and the web interface

Configured — now you need to check that it actually works. CCcam raises an embedded HTTP server, and this is the first place for diagnostics.

Accessing the web interface on port 16001

The config should have the directive:

WEBINFO LISTEN PORT : 16001

Open a browser and go to the addresshttp://<IP-receiver>:16001. No authorization by default. There are three key tabs:Servers — a list of your outgoing C-lines and their statuses;Clients — who is connecting to you;Shares — a list of cards/CAID that the server gives you. The Shares tab is critical for diagnostics: if it's empty or missing the required CAID, the channel won't open, no matter how many times you reconnect.

Utility cccaminfo in the console

If the web interface is unavailable or you are working via Telnet, there is a utilitycccaminfo. It runs directly in the receiver's console:

cccaminfo

Shows a text version of the same: server statuses, number of cards, clients. Some firmware may not have it by default — it is installed as a separate package via ipkg/opkg.

Reading statuses: Connected, OFF, CONNECTING

Connected — handshake completed, the server accepted your credentials, exchange is ongoing. Good, but does not guarantee channel opening — depends on the availability of the required CAID.

OFF — the server is unavailable, or it rejected the connection. There are many reasons: host not resolving, port closed by firewall, incorrect username/password, server down.

CONNECTING — the daemon is trying to establish a connection, handshake not yet completed. If it hangs for more than 30–60 seconds — something is blocking at the network level.

Be sure to check the columncards opposite each line. Connected with zero cards — either the server is empty, or all cards are already allocated to other clients.

Typical CCcam line errors and their resolution

This is where most time is lost. Let's go through each scenario specifically.

Line in OFF status: check host, port, and firewall

The first step is to check if the host is actually accessible. From Telnet/SSH of the receiver:

ping server.example.net

If the ping does not go through by name, but goes through by IP — there is a DNS problem on the receiver. Solution: enter the direct IP in the C-line instead of the domain, or edit/etc/resolv.conf. This is a real and common situation, especially on older Enigma2 firmware with faulty DNS servers.

The second step is to check the port:

telnet server.example.net 12000

If the connection cannot be established — either the server is down, or the port is blocked. Check iptables on your side:

iptables -L OUTPUT -n

Some providers block non-standard ports at the NAT level. In this case, the line can only be raised via VPN — or you need to ask the server on port 80/443 if such an option is available.

And be sure to check the username/password for extra spaces and characters — copying from PDF or messenger is risky, as invisible characters often stick.

Connected, but channels do not open (missing required CAID)

This is the most common confusion. There is a connection, status is Connected, but the channels are black. You open the Shares tab in the web interface at:16001 and check the CAID list. For example, for Viacess it is 0500, for Nagravision — 1800, for Irdeto — 0602. If the CAID of the required package is not there — the server simply does not have these cards. No reconfiguration of the config will help.

If the CAID is present, but the channel still does not open — check the provider ID and hop. A too large hop may be filtered out by the receiver's own settings.

Frequent disconnections and picture freezes

If the line keeps reconnecting — there are several versions of the problem. The first: mismatch cccversion. CCcam exchanges protocol version during the handshake, and if the client states version 2.3.0, while the server expects 2.0.11 — the connection drops cyclically after a few seconds. The version in the config is set by the directiveVERSION.

Second: duplicate connection. If you logged in with the same account from two receivers simultaneously — the server will drop both or keep only one. The lines will mutually kill each other. Check if there is a parallel connection with the same username.

Third: internet instability.tail -f /var/log/cccam.log or through the directiveDEBUG 1 in the config — check the reconnection frequency and timestamps.

A separate case for Enigma2: the config/var/etc/CCcam.cfg is sometimes overwritten during reboot due to a plugin or firmware image. Check if you have something that generates the config at boot — then manual edits will be lost.

Another non-trivial reason for disconnects is the desynchronization of system time. CCcam uses timestamps in the handshake, and if the receiver's clock is off by several minutes — the connection drops. Check the time viadate and synchronize viantpdate pool.ntp.org.

CCcam line against OScam: when to switch to reader

OScam is not a competitor to CCcam, but a more flexible alternative with better logging and support for multiple protocols simultaneously. The data lines remain the same during the transition — only the config syntax changes.

Equivalent of C-line in oscam.server (protocol = cccam)

Config file for readers:/etc/oscam/oscam.server. Here’s how the equivalent C-line looks:

[reader]

Everything is the same: host, port, credentials. Just in a different syntax.

Parameters cccmaxhops and cccwantemu

cccmaxhops — is analogous to hop from the curly braces block in C-line. It limits how deep you accept cards. A value of 2 is a reasonable default for a client.cccreshare — the forwarding depth further, 0 if you don’t want to share.cccwantemu — whether emulated cards (softcam) are needed, 0 or 1. By default 0, and for most situations, this is correct.

cccversion — an important parameter. It must match what the server expects. Try values 2.0.11, 2.1.4, or 2.3.0 in turn if the connection is unstable. OScam logs the version during the handshake, so in/var/log/oscam/oscam.log it is immediately clear where the discrepancy is.

Converting existing lines to OScam format

If you have several cccam lines, each turns into a separate block[reader] with a uniquelabel. All blocks can be kept in one file.oscam.server — OScam will raise them all in parallel. The advantage over CCcam is detailed logs at the level of each reader, flexible CAID routing rules throughoscam.routing and monitoring through the OScam web interface on port 8888.

Arguments for switching: if you have more than two or three active lines, different protocols simultaneously (CCcam + newcamd), or need proper diagnostics — OScam pays off the setup time very quickly.