CCcam Free Plugin: Setup, Config & Troubleshooting Guide

If you've been searching for a cccam free plugin to get your satellite receiver talking to a CCcam server, you're probably staring at a bunch of half-finished forum posts and outdated YouTube tutorials. This guide covers the full picture — from picking the right plugin build for your receiver's CPU architecture, to editing the CCcam.cfg file without introducing silent parse errors, to actually verifying the connection is working rather than just assuming it is.

This is written for people who already understand the basic concept of card sharing and just need the technical specifics to get it running. No hand-holding, no vague advice.

What Is a CCcam Plugin and How Does It Work

The term "cccam free plugin" gets thrown around loosely, but it specifically refers to the freely distributed CCcam client software that runs on your receiver — not any paid service or subscription. The plugin itself costs nothing. What you're paying for (if anything) is access to a remote CCcam server that has a valid smart card inserted.

The plugin connects outbound to a remote server, authenticates, and then forwards ECM (Entitlement Control Message) requests from your receiver's tuner to that server. The server decrypts those requests using its physical smart card and sends back the control word. Your receiver uses that control word to descramble the channel. The whole round-trip needs to happen under about 500ms or you'll see freezing.

CCcam client vs. CCcam server: what the plugin actually does

Running CCcam as a client plugin is completely different from running it as a server daemon. As a client, it connects outbound to port 12000 (default), authenticates, and receives shared cards. As a server, it listens on port 12000, accepts connections from clients, and shares cards it has locally — either physical smart cards or cards received from upstream.

Most home users running a cccam free plugin are in pure client mode. They have no local card. The plugin just proxies ECM requests upstream. Confusing the two roles leads to misconfigured firewalls and init scripts that never work properly.

How the CCcam protocol communicates on port 12000

CCcam uses a proprietary binary TCP protocol. The connection starts with a SHA1-based handshake where both sides exchange a cyclic redundancy check to verify the other end is a legitimate CCcam node. The default port is 12000/TCP, and both client and server must agree on it exactly.

Protocol versions matter more than most guides acknowledge. CCcam 2.0.x, 2.1.x, 2.2.x, and 2.3.x all have slightly different handshake structures. A 2.0 client trying to connect to a strict 2.3 server can fail silently — the log just shows a disconnection with no useful error message. If you're seeing this, version mismatch is a real possibility worth investigating before you blame your config.

One more thing worth knowing: your receiver's system clock matters. CCcam's handshake includes a timestamp, and some servers validate it. If your receiver's clock is significantly off because NTP hasn't synced, you can get auth failures that look completely random. Run date via SSH and check it's correct before debugging anything else.

Difference between CCcam, OScam-emu, and MGcamd as client options

CCcam is the original protocol and plugin. OScam (with or without emu) is an open-source alternative that natively supports the CCcam protocol in reader mode — meaning you can use OScam to connect to a CCcam server without running the CCcam binary at all. MGcamd is a separate client that uses the Newcamd protocol primarily, though it has some CCcam support via a different config format.

OScam has become the preferred choice for stability on Enigma2 boxes. Better logging, more granular control, and active development. If you're having persistent issues with the CCcam binary, switching to OScam's CCcam reader is worth the extra config work. More on that in Section 2.

Compatible Plugins for Enigma2 and Other Receivers

Enigma2 is the dominant platform for satellite receivers, and it has the best plugin ecosystem for CCcam. But even within Enigma2, the image matters — OpenATV, OpenPLi, and OpenVix have different feed locations, softcam panel paths, and init script names.

CCcam plugin for Enigma2 (OpenATV, OpenPLi, OpenVix)

On OpenATV, the easiest route is via SSH. Connect to your receiver and run:

opkg update
opkg install enigma2-plugin-softcams-cccam

That pulls the plugin from the distro's official feed and installs it with the correct architecture binary for your box. After installation, the softcam panel is at Menu → Setup → System → Softcam on OpenATV.

OpenPLi puts the softcam panel in a slightly different location — Menu → Setup → System → Softcam Manager. The init script names also differ between images. On OpenATV you typically use /etc/init.d/softcam. On some OpenPLi builds it's /etc/init.d/CCcam. Know your image before scripting anything.

On some Vu+ boxes, the /etc partition is read-only. If you can't write CCcam.cfg to /etc/, place it at /var/etc/CCcam.cfg and create a symlink: ln -s /var/etc/CCcam.cfg /etc/CCcam.cfg. The plugin will follow the symlink.

OScam as a CCcam-compatible client on Enigma2

Install the OScam plugin via opkg the same way, then configure a CCcam reader block in /etc/oscam/oscam.server. A minimal reader block looks like this:

[reader]
label = my_cccam_server
protocol = cccam
device = yourserver.example.com,12000
user = your_username
password = your_password
cccversion = 2.3.0
cccmaxhops = 1

OScam doesn't use CCcam.cfg at all. All config lives in /etc/oscam/oscam.conf, oscam.server, and oscam.user. The web interface for OScam runs on port 8888 by default and is far more detailed than CCcam's built-in page.

If you're running both CCcam and OScam simultaneously and one of them is also set up as a local server on port 12000, you'll get a port conflict. Only one process can bind to a given port. Shut one down before starting the other.

CCcam on non-Enigma2 receivers: Dreambox, Vu+, and IPBOX

Dreambox hardware running Dreambox OS (not Enigma2) has its own plugin system, but most modern Dreambox boxes run Enigma2 images anyway, so the instructions above apply. Older DM500/DM600 boxes running original Dreambox OS need platform-specific SH4 binaries.

Android-based IPTV boxes — Formuler Z8, Zgemma H series running Android, Medialink boxes — do not support CCcam natively. The CCcam binary is a Linux ARM/MIPS executable. It won't run on Android without significant hacking that isn't worth the effort. CCcam on Android simply isn't a viable path.

IPBOX receivers running their own Linux firmware sometimes have CCcam available via their package manager, but you may need to compile from source for the specific CPU. That's a rabbit hole worth avoiding unless you're already comfortable cross-compiling.

Installing via feed vs. manual .ipk upload

Feed installation via opkg install is always preferable — it handles dependencies and gets the right architecture automatically. But if your receiver has no internet connection at install time, the feed will fail silently (no package downloaded, no error message that's useful). In that case, download the correct .ipk for your architecture from a trusted source on a PC, upload it to your receiver via FTP or SCP to /tmp/, then install it:

opkg install /tmp/cccam_2.3.0_mipsel.ipk

CPU architecture is where a lot of installs go wrong. Dreambox DM800 is SH4. Most modern Vu+ and AX receivers are ARM (specifically armv7). Installing an x86 or wrong-arch binary results in an "Exec format error" when the plugin tries to start — and it fails silently in the softcam panel with no obvious indication of what went wrong. Always verify with file /usr/bin/CCcam after install.

CCcam.cfg Configuration File: Complete Syntax Guide

This is where most setups break. The CCcam.cfg syntax is simple, but it's unforgiving about whitespace, line endings, and field order.

Locating the CCcam.cfg file path on your receiver

The standard path is /etc/CCcam.cfg. On some images (particularly OpenPLi and some Vu+ builds), it's at /var/etc/CCcam.cfg. If you're not sure which your image uses, run this via SSH:

find / -name CCcam.cfg 2>/dev/null

If the file doesn't exist yet, create it. The plugin won't create it for you, and it will often start without error but do nothing useful if the config is missing or empty. File permissions should be 644: chmod 644 /etc/CCcam.cfg.

Correct C: line syntax for connecting to a server

The C: line is the connection directive. Syntax:

C: hostname port username password

Fields are space-separated. No quotes around any value. No trailing spaces. No blank field. Example:

C: cccam.example.com 12000 myuser mypassword

Port 12000 is the default, but servers may use 11000, 13000, or entirely custom ports. Whatever port your server operator tells you — use that exactly. Some servers run on ports above 32768, and be aware that some receiver firewall rules (via iptables) block high outbound ports by default. Check with iptables -L OUTPUT if you're seeing connection refused on an unusual port.

N: lines, F: lines, and B: lines explained

Almost every guide out there just shows the C: line and stops. Here's what the others do:

• N: line — Newcamd server connection. Same concept as C: but uses the Newcamd protocol instead of CCcam protocol. Syntax: N: hostname port username password deskey where deskey is a 14-byte hex key (space-separated). Use this if your server speaks Newcamd rather than CCcam native.
• F: line — Fake card definition. Used for local testing. Tells CCcam to pretend it has a card with a specific CAID. Useful for verifying your receiver's ECM routing without a real server. Syntax: F: CAID providerid.
• B: line — Block specific CAID from being shared. If you're running CCcam in mixed mode (client + limited server), you can use B: lines to prevent certain cards from being re-shared downstream. Syntax: B: CAID.

Hop count, share limit, and AU settings

Three directives that are worth understanding rather than copying blindly:

HOPS controls how many re-sharing steps away a card is accepted. HOPS: 1 means only cards that are directly connected to your upstream server — not cards your upstream server got from its own upstream. Default is 1. Setting this higher accepts more cards but those cards tend to have higher ECM latency because they've been passed through more nodes.

SHARE LIMIT controls re-sharing of cards you've received. If you're purely a client with no downstream users, this doesn't matter. If you're forwarding to local clients, set it to the number of hops you want to allow.

CLIENTAU controls auto-update (the AU flag). Set CLIENTAU: yes if your server supports it and you want your receiver to handle EMM (Entitlement Management Message) processing. For most client-only setups, this should be no unless specifically needed.

KEEPALIVE — add KEEPALIVE: yes if you're experiencing frequent disconnects. This sends periodic keepalive packets to maintain the TCP session through NAT routers that drop idle connections.

Minimal working config example

# CCcam.cfg - minimal client configuration
# Lines starting with # are comments
C: cccam.example.com 12000 myusername mypassword
HOPS: 1
CLIENTAU: no
KEEPALIVE: yes
SHARE LIMIT: 0

Save this file with Unix line endings (LF only, not CRLF). This is a real trap: if you edit CCcam.cfg in Notepad on Windows and save it, it will have CRLF line endings. CCcam parses these incorrectly — the carriage return character gets appended to the last field on each line, so "mypassword\r" doesn't match "mypassword". The connection appears to hang. To check your file, run:

cat -A /etc/CCcam.cfg | head

If you see ^M at the end of lines, you have CRLF. Fix it with: sed -i 's/\r//' /etc/CCcam.cfg

Starting, Stopping, and Verifying the CCcam Plugin

Getting the plugin installed is only half the job. Verifying it's actually connected and working is where most people get stuck — they assume "started" means "working."

Starting CCcam from the Enigma2 softcam panel

On OpenATV: Menu → Setup → System → Softcam. Select CCcam from the list and press the green button to start. The panel shows a status indicator but it's not always reliable — a green dot doesn't guarantee the server connection is established, just that the binary is running.

Starting and stopping via SSH command line

SSH gives you more control and better feedback:

# Start
/etc/init.d/softcam start
# Stop
/etc/init.d/softcam stop
# Restart
/etc/init.d/softcam restart

On images where CCcam has its own init script rather than going through the generic softcam wrapper:

/etc/init.d/CCcam start
/etc/init.d/CCcam stop

If you're unsure which applies, check what exists: ls /etc/init.d/ | grep -i cam

Reading CCcam.log to verify server connection

The log file is usually at /tmp/CCcam.log or /var/log/CCcam.log. Tail it live during startup:

tail -f /tmp/CCcam.log

A successful connection looks something like:

connected to cccam.example.com:12000
login ok
got 3 cards

An auth failure looks like:

connected to cccam.example.com:12000
login failed
disconnected

If you see "connected" but immediately "disconnected" with no login result, suspect protocol version mismatch or a timestamp/clock issue.

Checking active shares with the CCcam info page (port 16001)

CCcam has a built-in HTTP interface that most guides never mention. Point a browser at http://<receiver-ip>:16001 while CCcam is running. You'll see connected servers, the list of shared cards with their CAIDs, and ECM response times for recent requests.

This is your primary diagnostic tool. If the server shows as connected but the card list is empty, the issue is on the server side (no valid card for your CAID) or your HOPS setting is filtering it out. If ECM times are consistently over 600ms, expect channel freezing.

Troubleshooting Common CCcam Plugin Errors

Systematic approach: rule out each layer before moving to the next. Network → authentication → card availability → ECM performance.

Cannot connect: connection refused or timeout

"Connection refused" means the TCP connection was actively rejected — the port isn't open on the server, or the server process isn't running. "Connection timeout" means the packet never got a response — firewall is dropping it somewhere.

Check the basics first. Is the port right? Is the hostname resolving? Run nslookup yourserver.example.com from the receiver. If DNS is slow (DDNS hostname), CCcam may time out before resolution completes — add the IP directly to test, or increase the DNS timeout on your receiver.

Check your receiver's outbound firewall: iptables -L OUTPUT. Some images ship with restrictive outbound rules. Add an exception if needed: iptables -A OUTPUT -p tcp --dport 12000 -j ACCEPT

Connected but no cards showing (0 cards)

This is probably the most common post-connection complaint. The TCP session is up, authentication passed, but the card list on port 16001 shows nothing.

Most likely cause: the server doesn't have a card for the CAID you're requesting, or HOPS filtering is excluding the card. Get the CAID for your target channel (visible in the channel info on your receiver), check it against what the server says it provides, and compare with what port 16001 shows as received CAIDs.

Also check whether your HOPS value is too low for the server's card depth. If the card on the server came through 2 hops and your HOPS is set to 1, it gets filtered out.

Frequent disconnects and reconnects in the log

If the log shows a repeating pattern of connect → login ok → disconnect every few minutes, the culprits are usually: NAT router dropping the idle TCP session (fix: KEEPALIVE: yes in config), the server's client limit being reached and kicking your connection, or network instability on either end.

Add KEEPALIVE: yes to CCcam.cfg first. If it persists, check with your server operator whether you've hit the simultaneous connection limit.

ECM errors and channel freezing despite active connection

Watch the ECM response times on port 16001. Anything consistently above 500-600ms will cause visible freezing or pixellation even when the connection is technically active. Above 800ms, many channels will be unwatchable.

High ECM times usually mean server overload, high hop count (card has been re-shared through multiple nodes), or network latency. Check your HOPS setting — lower is more stable. A cccam free plugin on your end can't fix a server that's simply overloaded.

Also check: are you requesting a CAID that requires a specific provider ID? Some channels need both CAID and provider ID to match. Check the CCcam log for lines containing "ECM time" to track the pattern.

Plugin installs but fails to start on boot

Three main causes: wrong architecture binary (check with file /usr/bin/CCcam), missing shared library (usually libcrypto — check with ldd /usr/bin/CCcam), or a corrupted/CRLF config file that causes the parser to fail on startup.

Check the architecture first: file /usr/bin/CCcam should output something matching your CPU. If it says "ELF 32-bit MSB executable, MIPS" but your box is ARM, that's your problem. Re-download the correct architecture package.

For duplicate C: lines in config — if you accidentally have the same server listed twice, CCcam may enter an auth loop that consumes resources and causes instability. Keep one C: line per server.

Evaluating a CCcam Server Before Connecting Your Plugin

Before you edit a single line of CCcam.cfg, spend some time evaluating whether the server you're connecting to is worth your time. A well-configured cccam free plugin on a bad server will always perform badly.

What server-side metrics actually matter

ECM response time is the headline number — anything under 300ms is good, under 500ms is acceptable, above 600ms is problematic. Ask the server operator for typical ECM times or check their status page if they have one.

CAID coverage matters just as much. Get a written list of which CAIDs the server actually serves before you connect. Vague claims of "all channels" are a red flag. You want specific CAIDs (e.g., 0x0500, 0x0100, 0x1810) that match your target channels.

Simultaneous connection limits are relevant if you're planning to serve multiple TVs from one plugin. A single-connection limit means only one tuner can decrypt at a time. Clarify this upfront.

Also verify whether the server uses a static IP or a DDNS hostname. DDNS is fine if the TTL is short and your receiver resolves it quickly, but slow DDNS resolution on an underpowered receiver can cause connection timeouts before CCcam even attempts the handshake.

Testing ECM response time and stability

The best baseline test is self-hosting a local OScam server with a test card and pointing your CCcam plugin at localhost. This eliminates all network variables and tells you definitively whether client-side issues exist before you start blaming a remote server.

If you can't self-host, ask for a trial period — any server worth using offers one. Connect the plugin, open port 16001, lock on to a channel, and watch ECM times over 30 minutes. A stable server shows consistent times. A bad server shows times jumping from 200ms to 2000ms with periodic disconnects.

Check your CCcam.log for the pattern of reconnects. Occasional reconnects (once per day) are normal. Reconnects every few minutes indicate either network problems or an overloaded server.

Red flags to avoid when assessing a server

Servers using ports above 60000 aren't automatically bad, but it's unusual enough to raise questions — stable production servers typically use well-known ports in the 11000-13000 range. Ports above 32768 can also get blocked by default firewall rules on some receiver images.

No CAID list provided. No trial period. Claims of "unlimited hops" (this should be a yellow flag — re-shared cards with many hops have higher latency by nature). No way to check ECM stats or server uptime. These are all signs of a server that isn't run with much care.

Also watch for CCcam protocol version claims. A server claiming to run 2.3.x but not offering any documentation is worth verifying — set cccversion = 2.3.0 in your OScam reader config or try connecting with a 2.3 binary to confirm compatibility.