Cisco Headend System Release 2.7 Installation Guide

 

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4022900 Rev C 

Versions of GQAM software prior to software version 1.0.6 inserted the PowerKEY 

Conditional Access (CA) descriptor into the PMT for unencrypted on-demand 

content. If the Digital Home Communications Terminal (DHCT) operating system 

(OS) found the CA descriptor in the PMT, the OS started the PowerKEY decryptor. 
The PowerKEY scheduler within the DHCT then prioritized Entitlement Control 

Messages (ECMs) by waiting until an ECM was processed before allowing any other 

CA messages or requests to be processed. 

 

During this waiting period, when no ECMs were delivered, non-ECM requests (for 

example, a request for a Multi-Room™ DVR session) remained in the queue and 

were not processed until the PowerKEY decryptor was stopped. Therefore, no Multi-

Room DVR sessions could be established while the Multi-Room DVR server was 

streaming unencrypted VOD. 

 

GQAM software version 4.2.1 carries forward the modification from GQAM 

software version 1.0.6 to insert the CA descriptor only for encrypted sessions, 

including those that will be encrypted after interactive session key (ISK) setup. 

Consequently, the OS now correctly detects the encryption status of the stream. 

Detecting the encryption status enables sessions (including VOD and Multi-Room 

DVR sessions) to be established correctly on a Multi-Room server.