Group 42 Sells Out!

Programming the Battery Card

From American Hacker V1.7, (c)1996 American Hacker

HTML'ed by Group42
American Hacker is great source of timely information on the scrambling scene. Check out there WWW site at http://www.scramblingnew.com or drom them a snail mail at American Hacker, 3494 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY, 14217-1230. - Group 42

Introduction

To the best of our knowledge it is legal to use battery cards in Canada and some Caribbean countries. We believe it is illegal to use them in the United States. This is not a legal opinion. Battery card users have had to have their cards reprogrammed twice recently and more reprogramming is ahead. Most of those using battery cards never see the programming involved because there service is maintained by a professional dealer. Some may wish to maintain there own service or at least have an understanding of the process. Here is how it is done. We present this information for educational purposes only. The reader alone is responsible for obeying the laws of the country in which he resides. Anti-static precautions must be take during the following procedure.

1. Install the Master Program

The first step in programming the battery card is performed by the dealer. He purchases software which allows him to program a fixed number of cards. In order to get his own clone IRD numbers he sends in the official smartcard of an authorized unit. This keeps the number of clones per master low that it is not practical for DirecTV to purchase cards in order to try to obtain the clone ID's. Part of this program incudes a unique dealer ID. If a consumer goes to another dealer he will have to have that dealer reprogram his card with his master program. The public has no access to the master program.

2. Archive the IRD Number

It is important to archive the serial number of the IRD so it will always be possible to return the box to stock condition. This is impoortant for authorized customers also. As long as the IRD number is archived, the board can always be reprogrammed in case of memory loss. Boards which have been modified can the be authorized the same as a box which is fresh from the factory. The IRD number is obtained by pressing the TV/DSS and down arrow buttons simultaneously with the unit powerd up and the smartcard removed from its slot. Depressing these buttons puts the box into Service Test mode. When the test button is pushed a variety of tests are performed. The IRD# is displayed on the first line and it consists of 10 characters. A device costing $99 is being sold through magazine ads and it does only this.

3. Programming the Card

The card is programmed through the 18 pin edge connector which is on one end of the card. Programmers sell for $150-$250 and they will program both the battery card and the EEPROM in the receiver. The programmer used in this demo is the one sold by Open Skies and we had no problems with it. A programmer can also be built for about $20 in commonly available parts. The mainxx file is programmed into the card first and then the IRD number file is programmed second. The program used to do this is load.exe and the current version is 3.17 though earlier versions are circulating.

The programmer is connected to a parallel printer port via the cable marked card and the battery card is inserted. The edge connector on the card is only plated on one side and pins 12 thru 16 on the connector in the programmers have no connections in case orientation of the card in the programmer is an issue. It is necessary to ensure that the card is inserted so it makes good contact. Sometimes it is necessary to add 2 or 3 layers of electrical tape on the back of the card. After the card is inserted in the programmer it is turned on. The LED indicates it is turend on. Some programmers use a 9 volt battery while others use 155 volts and a transformer.

From the directory or disc the following is entered: 

c:\program> load main04 [enter]

Load Version 3.17
Using printer port 3BCh
Port not initailized: please remove and re-insert the card.
Hit any key when ready.
Reading 16420 bytes from main04.enc
Timed out.... no Byte ACK
This is a common error. It may usually be corrected by turning the programmer off and then turning it back on 5 seconds later. If the card still does not program, check the cables, and make sure the card is properly inserted. It is possible to force the use of a particular printer port by adding -pn to the command line where n=3BC, 378 or 278. The command line would look like this: 

load main04 -p378
Not that the .enc is not used. When the card is successfuly programmed it looks like this: 

c:\program> load main04

Using printer port 3BCh
Reading 16420 bytes from main03.enc
Load successful, 16420 bytes sent.
Once the mainxx file is loaded into the card the IRD number file must be loaded. The number of the file represents the new IRD number which will appear during the diagnostic test. It is not the real IRD number. The IRD number file is of the form xxxxxxxx.enc where x can represent any hex characters. For example we will say the file is 21965f29.enc. Programming is as follows: 

c:\program> load 21965f29

Load Version 3.17
Using printer port 3BCh
Reading 3480 bytes from 21965f29.enc
Load successful, 3480 bytes sent.
Once the card has been successfully programmed the programmer may be turned off, and the card may be removed.

4. Program the EEPROM

U161 is an 8 pin 24C16 EEPROM located in the IRD. The IRD number stored in this chip must be the same as that in the card. The programmers we have seen have two seprate parallel cables. This is because the programmers being sold contain two seprate circuits. The DB-25 connector on one is marked card while the other is labeled clip. The cable marked clip must be connected to the program the EEPROM. The program used is called eep.exe. The current version is 3.11.

The 16 pin test clip is connected to U161. Pins 4, 5, 6 and 8 on IC U161 are used for programming. Pin 1 is at the top left side of the chip, pin 4 is on the bottom left, pin 5 is on the bottom right and pin 8 is on the top right hand side. The micro test clip is connected to the positive side of C553. The battery card must be inserted in the card slot for this operation. Then the receiver is plugged in. The on/off switch on the programmer is part of the circuit for programming the card so it is not used. The file to be programmed into the EEPROM is the IRD number file, not the mainxx file. In this case it is 21965f29.exp. Progrmming proceeds as follows: 

c:\program> eep

EEP Version 3.11
Using printer port 3BCh
Enter ID, CR to exit: 21965F29
21 96 5F 29: OK? [yN]
Y
Programming ID....
Programmed OK
Enter ID, CR to exit:
The unit may then be unplugged and the test clips may be removed.

5. Finishing the Job

A standard practice among dealers is to reverse the position of the card slot as shown in the photo. This eliminates any potential problem which could be caused by the end of the batery card protruding fromt he receiver. Note that the black plastic housing which covers the chips on the cards prevents proper contact. If the cardslot is not reversed the black protective housing may have to be filed back. A message requesting that a valid smartcard be inserted probably means that the card is not inserted far enough. To do this the front cover of the IRD must be removed but it is only held in place with plastic clips. Two clips were hotglued in the unit we saw but the glue was easily removed. The contact pad on the card should face down when it is inserted into the cardslot. A dab of hot glue is then used to ensure that the card does not become loose. When the black plastic guard which normally covers the smartcard is put in place it is not obvious that there is anything different about the unit. When turned on the box received all services.

6. Restoring the Unit to Stock Condition

It may be desireable at some point to restore the box to stock condition. Then it can be authorized like any other unit. Some battery card users maintain some level of subscription so they are never without service during periods when the cards are shut off. Units which are only subscribed during periods of card swaps or shutoffs due to ECM's fit a profile which could target them for additional ECM's.

In order to return the unit to stock condition it is necessary to use the first 8 characters of the IRD number which was archived earlier. In our example the IRD number was 619C873291. The steps are exactly the same as in step 4 except that now the official smartcard must be inserted into the cardslot instead of the battery card. When the EEP program requests the ID to program, the first 8 characters of the IRD number are entered. That is 619C8732. Once compleated, the diagnostic test may be run to verify that the correct ID has been programmed. The screen will read exactly as it does in step 4.

The Examiner: The Do-it-yourself Programmer

Instructions are available from American Hacker for $49 includeing shipping. It includes the latest version of EEP (Ver 3.11) and LOAD (Ver 3.17). It includes all schematics and connection points. The programmer and files can be used to program battery cards and U161. Intended for those experienced in the assembly of electronic devices only. 
A.H
3494 Delaware Ave., #123,
Buffalo, NY 14217-1230

Other Sources

Open Skies sells battery cards, programmers and carries the latest programming software. They can be reached at Voice Mail(514)484-1603 or by fax at (514)458-0798.