User Guide

Including the ADMIRALTY Information Overlay

S-63 Edition 1.1

Version 3.1

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Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs)

Before You Start
ECDIS Containing Existing ENCs
Step 1: Install the Public Key
Step 2: Install Permits
Step 3: Install AVCS ENCs
Step 4: Update AVCS
Step 5: Install the ADMIRALTY Information Overlay
Step 6: Maintain your Holdings

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3
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4
4
4
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5
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2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.6

Introduction
AVCS Overview
Quality
Carriage Compliant
Electronic Navigational Charts
Licensing

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7
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7

3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4

General
Media formats for AVCS
New AVCS Customers
The AVCS Licence

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9

3.5
3.6
3.7

The Schedule A
Data Cleansing
Public Key

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10
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4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6

New ENC Permits

Updating
Base Discs
README.TXT File
Cancelled ENCs
Adding Chart Coverage

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6.1

Important Information for Users

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7.1
7.2
7.3

Common Error Codes

Decryption Failure
Conversion Errors

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8.1
8.2

Technical Support
Feedback

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UKHO 2013 All Rights Reserved

The copyright in this document, which contains information of a proprietary nature, is vested in UKHO.
The content of this document may not be used for purposes other than that for which it has been supplied
and may not be reproduced, either wholly or in part, in any way whatsoever.

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This Quick Start guide is designed to help you to load and maintain your ADMIRALTY Vector Chart Service (AVCS)
data easily and quickly. It describes the basic steps necessary to use AVCS in any ECDIS. However the functionality
for loading and maintaining AVCS will differ from one ECDIS to another and this guide should be used in conjunction
with the User Manual supplied by your ECDIS manufacturer.
For a more detailed guide to AVCS installation and troubleshooting information, refer to sections 2 8 of this
document and the User Manual supplied by the manufacturer of your ECDIS.

Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs)

AVCS is comprised entirely of Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) issued by Government Hydrographic Offices. It
is designed to be used in conjunction with a type approved ECDIS to provide a primary navigation tool that meets the
requirements of SOLAS Chapter V.

Before You Start

When subscribing to AVCS for the first time your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent will provide the following materials:

CD Users
>

AVCS User Guide including the Quick Start Guide (this document)

>

AVCS Base Discs (a set of Base CDs)

>

AVCS Update Disc

>

ADMIRALTY Information Overlay (AIO) CD (if you have a compatible display system and the Overlay has been
added to your licence)

>

End-User Licence Agreement for digital data services

DVD Users
>

AVCS User Guide including the Quick Start Guide (this document)

>

AVCS DVD (containing both base ENCs and updates)

>
>

ADMIRALTY Information Overlay (AIO) CD (if you have a compatible display system and the Overlay has been
added to your licence)
End-User Licence Agreement for digital data services

All users
An e-mail or hard media containing:
>

Schedule A (a PDF document listing the Folios and Units that you have licensed, not required if you are using
ADMIRALTY e-Navigator Planning Station)

>

A set of ENC Permit files (PERMIT.TXT and ENC.PMT) for each ECDIS equipment

>

AVCS Certificate (a PDF or printed document showing your vessel and licence details)

ECDIS Containing Existing ENCs

If ENCs are already installed on the ECDIS it is strongly recommended that these are removed from the system
database to avoid any conflicts. If the option is available it is also recommended that users should remove any
installed permits. Please see your ECDIS User Manual for more information.

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Step 1: Install the Public Key

In order to load ENCs from AVCS onto an ECDIS the correct public key must be installed. For AVCS ENCs
authenticated using the S-63 1.1 standard the IHO Public Key must be used and the user should check that the IHO
Public Key is installed on the ECDIS.
New ECDIS are supplied with the IHO Public Key pre-installed. However users transferring from another service
may find that the system is using the PRIMAR Public Key. In this case the IHO Public Key must be installed before
AVCS ENCs can be loaded.
The IHO Public Key is contained in the root folder on any AVCS S-63 1.1 Media, or is available to download by
following this link: http://www.iho.int/iho_pubs/standard/S-63/S-63_SA_Certificate.htm
The procedure for installing the Public Key is different on each ECDIS and will be detailed in your ECDIS User
Manual. Specific instructions for some common models of ECDIS are available by following this link:
http://www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS

Step 2: Install Permits

Before loading AVCS ENCs, the ENC Permits must be installed on the system. The permits are supplied by your
ADMIRALTY Chart Agent and consist of 2 files for each ECDIS:
>

PERMIT.TXT

>

ENC.PMT

AVCS customers with multiple ECDIS on board should be careful to load the correct permits into the corresponding
system.
Failure to install the correct permit will result in an error being reported similar to the following:
>

CRC failure permit could not be read

>

Failure to uncompress ENC data file

>

Decryption failed

Step 3: Install AVCS ENCs

The AVCS data is supplied on CD or DVD. Each Base CD contains ENCs from one or more producer nations
(countries) and is labelled with the country names. The DVD contains worldwide ENCs and all available updates.
Note that some countries (such as the United Kingdom) produce data worldwide so the Base discs do not directly
correspond to a geographical area.
It is only necessary to load the discs that contain licensed ENCs, as listed in the Schedule A or e-Navigator Planning
Station. The ECDIS will manage the installation of all ENC cells based on the installed ENC Permits.
Customers should be aware that, depending on the manufacturer, ECDIS manage the import of ENCs differently.

Step 4: Update AVCS

Updates to the ENCs in AVCS are available free of charge online and on disc.
Updates can be downloaded online using e-Navigator Planning Station (which is an integrated catalogue, holdings
management, ordering and updating system) or using the stand-alone AVCS Online Updating Service. Contact your
ADMIRALTY Chart Agent for access to e-Navigator Planning Station or download the Online Updating software from
www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS.
All base ENCs and updates are contained on the AVCS DVD and this is issued every week. In order to update the
ECDIS only the latest AVCS DVD held should be used and run as an update.

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Base CDs contain all base charts and updates valid at the time of issue. Subsequent chart editions and updates are
contained on the latest Update CD. Both Base CDs and Update CD are labelled with the week number of the data
that they contain.
Depending on your ECDIS, you now need to load the updates from the Base CDs and the Update CD, or just from
the Update CD.

Step 5: Install the ADMIRALTY Information Overlay

The ADMIRALTY Information Overlay (AIO) is a digital dataset that is designed to be displayed over ENCs in ECDIS
and other chart display systems to provide additional information to the navigator. The Overlay contains all
ADMIRALTY Temporary & Preliminary Notices to Mariners (T&P NMs) and ENC Preliminary Notices to Mariners (EP
NMs), which highlight navigationally significant differences between ENCs and ADNIRALTY paper charts.
The Overlay can be displayed on compatible ECDIS equipment and also in ADMIRALTY e-Navigator Planning
Station. Please see the UKHO website at www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS for an up to date list of compatible equipment, or
consult your ECDIS supplier.
The Overlay data is held on a single CD and is installed and updated in the same way as ENCs. Please notify your
ADMIRALTY Chart Agent if you wish to use the Overlay on any compatible ECDIS so that the Overlay permit can be
added to the ENC Permit files for that equipment.
The Overlay permit will be loaded at the same time as the ENC Permits in Step 2. Follow Steps 3 and 4 to install the
ADMIRALTY Information Overlay CD.

Step 6: Maintain your Holdings

Your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent will supply you with updates to your AVCS data weekly.
For customers using the AVCS DVD all base charts and updates are contained on the DVD and this is issued every
week. In order to update the ECDIS only the latest AVCS DVD held should be installed.
For customers using the AVCS CD each weekly Update CD is cumulative and only the most recent disc should be
installed.
The AIO CD is cumulative and only the most recent disc should be installed.
A new set of ENC Permits will also be supplied by your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent whenever an ENC has a new
edition or you are entitled to access additional ENCs. The new permits relate directly to the discs of the same week
number. The permits may be received from your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent by e-mail or on hard media.
The ENC Permits may be received before you have received the relevant Update discs. It is recommended that you
should not install new permits unless they are accompanied by the appropriate DVD or CDs. The permits will be
accompanied by a Schedule A that identifies the week number for which the permits are valid. Failure to use the
correct set of permits with an Update CD may result in an error being reported similar to the following:
>

There is no valid permit for this version of the cell/chart

>

Edition number is not valid

>

Permit is for an older version of the cell/chart

ENC updates are also available by email and over the Internet through ADMIRALTY e-Navigator Planning Station or
the AVCS Online Updating Service. AIO updates are also available through e-Navigator.
If new ENC Permits have been received, they should be loaded in to the ECDIS before the DVD or Update CD is
loaded.

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Periodically the AVCS Base CDs are re-issued to free up space on the Update CD. Customers who already
subscribe to AVCS should treat these as though they were update CDs and load each in turn. The ECDIS will only
load the additional new editions and updates necessary to bring the system database up-to-date.

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2.1 Introduction
This section of the guide is intended to provide more detailed instructions and troubleshooting information for the
ADMIRALTY Vector Chart Service and provide answers to some questions that users may have after installing
AVCS.
AVCS ENCs are produced and distributed according to well-defined international standards. However each ECDIS
manufacturer has implemented the ENC import module of these standards differently.
As a result the functionality for loading and maintaining AVCS will differ from one ECDIS to another and this guide
provides generic information to assist in managing and maintaining AVCS holdings. This guide should be used in
conjunction with the User Manual supplied by your ECDIS manufacturer.

2.2 AVCS Overview

The ADMIRALTY Vector Chart Service (AVCS) brings together Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) from national
Hydrographic offices around the world and new ENC coverage produced by UKHO in co-operation with Foreign
Governments to provide comprehensive, official, worldwide coverage.

2.3 Quality
AVCS meets customer requirements for a comprehensive, world-wide, fully carriage compliant electronic chart
service. AVCS continues to develop in response to customer feedback through an ongoing programme of
enhancements.
UKHO has instituted a programme of assessment by its professional cartographers where the content of the ENC is
compared to relevant paper charts. Any navigationally significant differences are communicated to users of AVCS
through AIO. No other electronic chart service offers this level of reassurance.

2.4 Carriage Compliant

AVCS only contains ENC data that meets Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Carriage Requirements for use within
Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS).

2.5 Electronic Navigational Charts

Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) are digital vector charts produced to the International Hydrographic
Organization's (IHO's) standards (S-57 Version 3.1 and ENC Product Specification). They are referred to World
Geodetic System 1984 Datum (WGS84) and are regularly updated with official update information distributed
digitally.
Hydrographic offices do not take any responsibility for the accuracy or reliability of privately produced, unofficial
charts.

2.6 Licensing
The ENCs in AVCS are provided under a licence agreement that allows their use for defined periods of time. AVCS
Folios and ENC Units may be added to an AVCS licence at any time for periods of 3, 6, 9 or 12 months (where data
supply agreements allow). This offers maximum choice and the flexibility to match your chart holdings to your
operational patterns.
You will be provided with an AVCS media pack, containing world-wide AVCS data and receive weekly updates.

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3.1 General
AVCS ENCs are distributed on both CD and DVD media and are encrypted according to the International
Hydrographic Organization (IHO) S-63 1.1 Data Protection Scheme.
The CD service comprises 9 base discs containing all ENCs and updates held in AVCS at the time of issue, these
are issued at intervals of approximately 8 weeks. In each week between bases, a cumulative update disc is issued
containing all AVCS updates issued since the most recent base.
The DVD service is a snapshot of all data available from AVCS provided on a single disc on a weekly basis. It
contains all base and update cells applicable at the time of issue. In this respect the DVD contents are equivalent to
an AVCS base release every week rather than bundling a single base release together with the weekly cumulative
update. This simplifies the work for the ECDIS in reading the data into the system.
These two AVCS formats are shown in the diagram at 3.2.

3.2 Media formats for AVCS

3.3 New AVCS Customers

When subscribing to AVCS for the first time your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent will provide the following materials:

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CD Service
>

AVCS User Guide including the Quick Start Guide (this document)

>

AVCS Base Discs (a set of CDs labelled Base)

>

AVCS Update Disc

>

AIO CD (if you have a compatible display system and the Overlay has been added to your licence)

>

End-user Licence Agreement for digital data services (EULA)

DVD Service
>

AVCS User Guide including the Quick Start Guide (this document)

>

AVCS DVD (containing both base ENCs and updates)

>

AIO CD (if you have a compatible display system and the Overlay has been added to your licence)

>

End-user Licence Agreement for digital data services (EULA)

In addition a number of type specific AVCS Installation Guides are available for download by following the link below
and selecting the Display Systems tab: www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS
The latest base and update CDs or the latest DVD will contain all of the ENCs in AVCS. However these cannot be
accessed by the ECDIS until valid ENC Permits are installed.

3.4 The AVCS Licence

In addition to the AVCS media your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent will provide you with an AVCS License Pack
containing the following:
>

A Schedule A this is a PDF document listing the Folios and ENC Units that the user is licensed to use and which
Base CDs must be used to install the users licensed ENCs.

>

A set of ENC Permit files (PERMIT.TXT and ENC.PMT) for each ECDIS on the AVCS Licence.

>

A Certificate, carrying the UKHO crest and Chief Executives signature, which certifies that all charts supplied in
AVCS are ENCs that conform to the requirements of SOLAS Chapter V.

Each permit is unique and is the method which gives the user access to the required ENCs.
The ENC Permits will be supplied in a zipped file and the contents of this file will depend on the users bridge
configuration as each AVCS licence allows for use on up to 5 ECDIS. When extracted one or more set of permit files
(PERMIT.TXT and ENC.PMT) will be copied automatically into folder(s) named MASTER, BACKUP, RESERVE1,
RESERVE2 and RESERVE3 depending on the number of ECDIS configured on the bridge.
The permits may be supplied on physical media, separately by email or directly from e-Navigator. The contents
should be extracted to removable media, e.g. USB flash drive, that is capable of being read by the ECDIS system.
There are currently 9 AVCS Base CDs and the DVD contains 9 equivalent Volumes. It is unlikely that users will need
to install data from every one of the CDs or the equivalent folders on the DVD to load all of their licensed ENCs.
Reference to the Schedule A can avoid the unnecessary loading of CDs and save the user time.

3.5 The Schedule A

The Home CD column of the Schedule A document informs the user which Base CDs or Volumes on the DVD are
required to install all licensed ENCs. A sample of the information contained in the Schedule A is provided below:

RFA03 English Channel

Holding Expiry Date 31.12.2010

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Cell

Title

Home CD

AVCS Update

GB301820

Isles of Scilly and Western Approaches

AVCS Base 3

N/A

GB301840

Land's End to Falmouth

AVCS Base 3

AVCS Update

GB302020

Falmouth to Looe

AVCS Base 3

N/A

PACAS Asian Seas

Holding Expiry Date 31.12.2010

Cell

Title

Home CD

AVCS Update

GB202868

Tokongkemudi to Natuna Utara

AVCS Base 9

N/A

GB202870

Pulau-Pulau Leman to Badas

AVCS Base 9

AVCS Update

GB202872

Selat Karimata and Approaches

AVCS Update

N/A

Note: If the user does NOT have a copy of the Schedule A they should refer to the media.txt file at the root level of the AVCS disc to
determine which Volume contains the data for a given Producer Code. If in any doubt the complete set of AVCS Base CDs must be installed
to ensure that all licensed ENCs are imported to the system.

3.6 Data Cleansing

New AVCS customers who had previously subscribed to other ENC services are strongly recommended to remove
(purge) all ENC Permits and ENCs from the system before installing AVCS. Previously installed ENCs may become
out of date if they are not licensed in AVCS. If the system is not purged redundant ENCs may remain in the system
database (SENC) and be available for use, even if the previous licence has expired. Instructions on how to remove
permits and ENCs are described in the ECDIS operators manual or the ECDIS specific AVCS Installation guide.

3.7 Public Key

Background
In order to load ENCs from AVCS onto an ECDIS the correct Public Key must be installed. This allows the ECDIS to
authenticate the source and integrity of encrypted ENCs from Service Providers. For AVCS ENCs authenticated
using the S-63 1.1 standard the, IHO public key must be used. If the correct Public Key is not installed the ECDIS will
report an Authentication Failure.
The Public Key can be formatted in one of two ways:
>

ASCII text file (.PUB)

>

X509 Certificate (.CRT)

Check the Public Key

Before installing AVCS ENCs encrypted using S-63 1.1 the user must check that the IHO Public Key is installed on
the ECDIS. If the IHO Public Key is not present on the system then it will have to be installed before AVCS ENCs can
be loaded.
New ECDIS are supplied with the IHO Public Key pre-installed. However users transferring from another service
may find that the system is using the PRIMAR Public Key. In this case the IHO Public Key must be installed before
AVCS ENCs can be loaded.
The IHO Public Key is contained in the root folder on any AVCS S-63 1.1 media, or is available to download by
following this link: http://www.iho.int/iho_pubs/standard/S-63/S-63_SA_Certificate.htm

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The procedure for installing the Public Key is different on each ECDIS and will be detailed in your ECDIS User
Manual. Specific instructions for some common models of ECDIS are available by following this link:
http://www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS

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4.1 New ENC Permits

You will automatically be issued with all necessary ENC Permits for access to new or replaced ENCs on your AVCS
license. Please ensure that you load the new permits before installing the latest media to ensure your ECDIS can
use the latest ENCs.
When updating AVCS new permits should only be installed on the ECDIS when the corresponding media has been received.

4.2 Updating
The ADMIRALTY Vector Chart Service can be updated in one of four ways:
CD Issued weekly, the Update CD contains all the latest Notices to Mariners corrections, New Editions and any
New Charts issued since the last Base disc.
DVD Issued weekly, the DVD contains all the latest base and update information for AVCS on a single disc.
e-Navigator Planning Station Allows the user to create a custom exchange set containing the latest Notices to
Mariners corrections, New Editions and New Charts issued since the last time they updated their AVCS holdings.
AVCS Online Updating Service Allows the user to create a custom exchange set containing the latest Notices to
Mariners corrections, New Editions and New Charts issued since the last time they updated their AVCS holdings.
If you are using the AVCS CD or DVD service and you receive multiple discs at the same time, you only need to use
the most recent one because they are cumulative.
If replacement AVCS Base CDs have been issued, containing New Editions or Updates, subsequent Update CDs cannot be installed until the
Base discs have been installed.

Stored Routes and Updates

Updates applied to the ECDIS may have a navigational impact on an area covered by a stored route. It is important
to check the effect of any updates on these routes prior to their use. ECDIS is able to automatically check route
safety where licensed AVCS data is available.

4.3 Base Discs

For users of the CD service, the UKHO periodically issues a full set of AVCS Base discs on CD in order to integrate
newly available data that has been issued on the Update CD. When this happens, all currently available Base discs
are issued simultaneously. All New Editions and updates are then included on the replacement AVCS Base discs
and no accompanying Update CD will be issued in that week.
On receipt of re-issued AVCS Base CDs, only an update routine needs to be run on each disc and there is no
requirement to reload all charts.
The AVCS DVD contains all base ENCs and updates available so there is no distinction between Base and Update
discs.

4.4 README.TXT File

All AVCS discs contain a README.TXT file which includes important safety information that should be read before
using the service. For example it includes a caution concerning ENCs derived from charts which are not on WGS84
or a compatible datum.
The file is located in the ENC_ROOT folder and contains the following information:
>

Specific charting practices of some ENC producers which may be significant to navigation.

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Specific updating practices of some ENC producers such as delays between the issue of paper NMs and ENC
updates.

>

Identified overlaps between ENCs which may cause problems in display systems.

>

ENCs which have been withdrawn from service for any reason and which should not be used (permits will not
normally be issued for these ENCs).

>

Specific licence and disclaimer text required by some ENC producers.

13

The README.TXT file is updated every week and changes are highlighted in a Latest Corrections section at the
beginning. The file should be read as part of the weekly ENC update process to ensure that all relevant changes are
understood.

4.5 Cancelled ENCs

Periodically ENCs are cancelled as part of the continuous maintenance of ENC coverage worldwide. Normally
cancelled ENCs are automatically replaced and you will experience no loss of coverage in your ECDIS.
It is strongly recommended that you choose to delete any cancelled ENCs from the SENC as failure to do so may result in the ECDIS
displaying out of date data in preference to more up to date data.

4.6 Adding Chart Coverage

Additional AVCS Folios and Units may be purchased during the subscription period through your chosen
ADMIRALTY Chart Agent who will supply new ENC Permits to unlock the newly added data. These permit files are
cumulative so as well as unlocking the new coverage they will also hold the permits necessary to unlock all your
existing coverage.

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The ADMIRALTY Information Overlay (AIO) is a digital dataset that is designed to be displayed over ENCs in ECDIS
and other chart display systems to provide additional information to the navigator. The Overlay contains all
ADMIRALTY Temporary & Preliminary Notices to Mariners (T&P NMs) and highlights navigationally significant
differences between ENCs and ADMIRALTY paper charts.
The Overlay gives seafarers an easy way to view information that they need, in addition to the standard chart, to
navigate safely and compliantly. The Overlay makes passage planning simpler and safer by clearly showing where
important Temporary or Preliminary changes may impact a voyage. It also gives seafarers the same consistent
picture of the maritime environment on their ECDIS as they have always had with the ADMIRALTY paper chart.
The Overlay includes all ADMIRALTY T&P NMs in force worldwide and additional information that relates specifically
to ENCs, published as ENC Preliminary NMs (EP NMs).
All ADMIRALTY T&P NMs that are in force are included in the Overlay. Each NM is displayed as a simple polygon
(usually rectangular) with hatched fill which indicates the area affected by the NM. Each NM carries the same NM
number that is used in the ADMIRALTY Notices to Mariners Bulletin.
The full text of the NM is included as an associated text file which can be displayed by selecting the 'Temporary
Notice to Mariners' or 'Preliminary Notice to Mariners' feature in the ECDIS Pick Report. Any associated diagrams
can also be viewed through the Pick Report.
The T&P NMs that are shown in the Overlay relate specifically to ADMIRALTY paper charts and are overlaid on ENCs to alert users to the
availability of this information when passage planning. Many ENC providers include some or all of this information in their ENCs and care
should be taken to understand what has already been included in the ENCs in use. A list of ENC producers whose policy is to include T&P
NM information in their ENCs can be found at www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS and in the \INFO folder on all AVCS discs.

ENC Preliminary (EP) NMs highlight navigationally significant differences between ENCs and ADMIRALTY paper
charts. These NMs are displayed in the same way as T&P NMs, as a simple polygon (usually rectangular) with
hatched fill which indicates the area affected by the NM. Each NM is allocated a unique EP NM number.
The full text of the NM can be viewed in the ECDIS Pick Report against the Information attribute. Where additional
information is needed to explain the NM an associated picture file displays an image showing the ENC superimposed
over the current paper chart information.
The Overlay can be displayed on compatible ECDIS equipment and also in ADMIRALTY e-Navigator Planning
Station. Please see the UKHO website at www.ukho.gov.uk/AVCS for an up to date list of compatible equipment, or
consult your ECDIS supplier.
The Overlay data is held on a single CD and is installed and updated in the same way as ENCs. Please notify your
ADMIRALTY Chart Agent if you wish to use the Overlay on any compatible ECDIS so that the Overlay permit can be
added to the permit files for that equipment.

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6.1 Important Information for Users

The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is aware that some ECDIS system manufacturers have
mistakenly incorporated some or the entire suite of ENC validation checks listed in IHO publication S-58 Recommended ENC Validation Checks. This has resulted in mariners being presented with misleading error
messages indicating that officially produced and released ENC data contains errors, when it does not. In some
cases, official ENC data is even being reported as not suitable for navigational use.
The majority of the checks in S-58 are intended for use in the ENC validation software that is used by Hydrographic
Offices or Regional ENC Coordinating Centres. These S-58 checks were not intended to be used in ECDIS software.
The introduction to S-58 reads, in part specifies the checks that, at a minimum, producers of ENC validation tools
should include in their validation software. This software will be used by hydrographic offices to help ensure that their
ENC data are compliant with the S-57, Appendix B1 ENC Product Specification....
Of particular concern are the S-58 checks classified as warnings. These checks are intended to highlight apparent
discrepancies in the data so that HOs or RENCs can investigate them further. Upon investigation, the data will
usually be found to be correct and no change to the ENC data is required. Such investigations are carried out by the
ENC producer, as well as by the Regional ENC Coordinating Centre before the data is released. Once an ENC has
been officially released, it is therefore not necessary or recommended that these checks be performed again by
ECDIS software, since any warnings of this type that are generated will be incorrect and will be misleading for the
user.
Many ECDIS manufacturers still implement the full suite of tests identified in S-58. This can result in unnecessary
errors and warnings being presented to the user either on screen or in a log file. Users should only report instances
where an ENC has failed to load; these are normally identified by the ECDIS as a fatal error or ENC failed import. In
these instances the UKHO will seek to resolve this with the ENC producer.

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As part of the IHO S-63 Data Protection Scheme, ECDIS have to include standard error/warning messages called
Security Scheme Errors (SSE). The table below shows a list of the SSE codes:

7.1 Common Error Codes

SSE 03

Certificate is invalid (Authentication failure)

SSE 04

Format of Certificate is incorrect (Authentication failure)

SSE 05

SA Digital Certificate file is not available (Authentication failure)

SSE 06

SA Digital Certificate is invalid (Authentication failure)

SSE 07

Certificate file is not available (Authentication failure)

SSE 08

Format of Private Key is incorrect (Authentication failure)

SSE 09

Signature is invalid (Authentication failure)

SSE 10

Files are different (check after decryption)

SSE 11

Cell Permit file not found (Decryption failure)

SSE 12

Cell Permit format is incorrect (Decryption failure)

SSE 13

Cell Permit is invalid (checksum [CRC] is incorrect / decryption failure)

SSE 14

Incorrect system date

SSE 15

Subscription licence has expired

SSE 16

ENC CRC value is incorrect

>

Codes 03 to 09 relate to the ECDIS check of the authenticity of the discs being loaded

>

Codes 11 to 13 relate to the permits supplied

>

Codes 14 and 15 relate to checks on licence validity

>

Codes 10 and 16 relate to checks carried out on the consistency of the ENC data

7.2 Decryption Failure

This is normally due to the ENC Permit available not being compatible with the edition number of the chart being
loaded. Check that the latest permit files have been loaded. If the problem is not resolved by reloading the permits
then contact the UKHO Customer Services Team. Please inform them of the latest Base / Update being used, any
error messages displayed and forward a copy of the PERMIT.TXT file if using email.

7.3 Conversion Errors

When charts are loaded into an ECDIS they are converted from the standard S-57 format they are supplied in to the
systems specific format of the ECDIS being used (the System ENC SENC). Conversion errors are reported when
the ECDIS is unable to interpret the detailed information within the chart during the conversion process.
Data being supplied within AVCS has been validated to very high standards and the number of errors being reported
should be low. However the ENC data standard (S-57) is extremely complex and in some circumstances it is
possible for the ECDIS supplier and ENC producer to have used subtly different interpretations of the standard and
this can result in a warning message being displayed on ECDIS.
When loading charts the ECDIS could report three error conditions:
1. The ECDIS is unable to load the chart or Update at all. This is very uncommon; please report this problem to the
UKHO Customer Services Team.

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2. The ECDIS loads the chart or Update and reports an error. This is not common; users should use the chart with
caution and report the error to the UKHO Customer Services Team.
3. The ECDIS loads the chart or Update and reports a warning. This is quite common on some ECDIS systems and
reflects minor interpretational differences of the S-57 standard. We are not aware of any evidence that the correct
operation of the chart in the ECDIS is affected in these cases.

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Many of the difficulties that could be experienced when using AVCS can be avoided by carefully following the
instructions provided in the ECDIS specific AVCS Installation Guide and the ECDIS Operators Manual. However,
issues that are known to have caused confusion in the past are detailed in the Frequently Asked Questions FAQs at:
http://www.ukho.gov.uk/Support
If you encounter problems that are not solved by referring to the FAQs, you may wish to seek technical support.
Please see the section below for contact details.

8.1 Technical Support

You will receive the most effective support if you address your initial query to the correct organisation. This will usually
be the manufacturer of the ECDIS equipment, or the ADMIRALTY Chart Agent you obtain your AVCS charts from,
but in certain circumstances you may need to contact UKHO Customer Services.

Problem

Contact

Hardware problems: difficulties with the keyboard, mouse, display or main system console, failure of a
floppy disk, CD or DVD drive.
Software problems: difficulties with configuring or using the ECDIS system software, interfacing
problems.

ECDIS Manufacturer

Chart installation problems: problems with installing certificates, permits and AVCS ENCs, standard
error codes displayed (see AVCS User Guide).
Chart content problems: display anomalies or mismatched data displays.

ADMIRALTY Chart Agent

Problems that have not been resolved by your ADMIRALTY Chart Agent.

UKHO Customer Services

When reporting a chart related problem it is useful if you can provide the following details:
>

Licence Number

>

Vessel Name

>

ECDIS/Software Manufacturer

>

Details of error message Including SSE error code

>

Screen shot(s) of error

>

Details of Base Discs or DVD used (date)

>

Details of Update CD used (date)

>

Details of permits used (date)

>

Details of Cell number(s) errors apply to

>

Have there been any configuration changes to computers

>

Details of User Permit(s) and PIN(s)

Emergency ENC Permit Generation

In certain circumstances it may be necessary for a vessel to get access to an AVCS chart at very short notice, for
instance if a vessel needs to be diverted due to a medical or safety emergency. In these emergency circumstances
only, individual AVCS ENC Permits can be obtained from the UKHO 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. These permits
can be transmitted direct to the vessel by email, by fax, or simply by reading the characters out over the telephone or
radio.

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To obtain an AVCS emergency permit please contact UKHO Customer Services. Please quote your Vessel Name,
the User Permit Number of your ECDIS system and the required ENCs.

Support Hours: 24/7

Telephone: +44 (0) 1823 723366
Facsimilie: +44 (0) 1823 330561
Email: customerservices@ukho.gov.uk
Contact: UKHO Customer Services
Web: www.ukho.gov.uk/Support

8.2 Feedback
We hope this User Guide assists you in using the ADMIRALTY Vector Chart Service with your ECDIS. If you have
any feedback on the content of this guide, or any of the AVCS Installation Guides please forward your comments to
UKHO Customer Services.