What is IKS? Provided by SimpleFTA.com – An Explanation for the masses…

IKS (Internet Key Sharing) receivers have been growing in popularity due to their reputation of almost always being “UP.” Owners of IKS units often boast that “their” receivers can weather most ECMs and downtime can usually be measured in mere minutes. In contrast, most cardless receivers must endure wait times of many hours or even days before new bin files are released. More recently, IKS dongles have been developed that can transform some brands of FTA receivers into IKS receivers. Proponents of IKS claim that the dongle will give a whole new lease on life to discontinued models of receivers. The price of the IKS dongle is approximately $89 or about half the price of purchasing a new IKS receiver. The dongle does require a source of power.

How does an IKS dongle work? By forming an interface or bridge between the receiver and an Internet IKS server. You simply connect the dongle to the serial port of the FTA receiver; then connect the dongle to the Internet using a standard CAT5 Ethernet cable. IKS requires an Internet connection in order to connect to one of half a dozen or more relay servers that, in turn, connect to the “real” server usually outside the US. The IKS receivers obtain certain data (not really “keys” in the conventional sense) from the server via the relays and then uses that information to unscramble encrypted video content. The precise mechanism has not been revealed for probably a couple of reasons: one may be to protect a trade secret but the more likely reason is to make it more difficult for the satellite providers to launch an effective ECM against it.

IKS does NOT mean you won’t go “down.” It only means that you will be able to come back up much faster than having to wait for a new bin release.