Hi!
I don't use encrypted channels myself, but I try to clarify some things based on posts what I've read. I hope I don't give you any false information.
Simon Baxter wrote:
Has anyone been able to get VDR working for encrypted channels? Whether it be digital terrestrial, cable or satellite?
Many have. AFAIK the encryption system is identical in DVB-S/C/T, so it doesn't matter.
I'm not wanting to do anything illegal, but I would like to know how this works. Some providers give you a smart-card, so I guess you'd need some kind of plug-in to allow validation of the 'key'.
You have to have a (supported) CI (Conditional Interface IIRC) in your DVB card (or an interface in which you can buy the CI board separately, as in FF DVB cards). In that CI interface you put a CAM (Conditional Access Module IIRC) which you can buy yourself or sometimes get from your provider. In that CAM there is a smart-card slot, where you obviously put your smart-card.
The CAM uses smart-card and the broadcasted stream to generate some "decrypt codes", whatever those are called. Those codes are then transfered to a descrambler chip in the DVB card, which does the decrypting of the broadcast stream.
If the user wants to subscribe/unsubscribe channels, the provider sends the updated subscription information over the stream.
VDR doesn't require any plugins whatsoever for viewing encrypted channels.
I've also had cable subscriptions where if you want another channel added, you phone the provider of your set-top-box and they enable something. How does this work? Could this be done with a DVB-C VDR setup?
Well, you can only use subscriptions which have CAMs with VDR, and as far as I know those are all smartcard-based.