I just finshed my dusk flats on a target run and I noticed an "Access Denied" entry. Does anyone understand what these Exception errors mean? Are they something to worry about?

------------------------------------------------
18:07:33 Series 2 completed
18:07:35 P:TO2, : Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))
18:07:35 Tracking on failed.
18:07:35
18:07:35 Light Frames
18:07:35 Telescope connected (0)
18:07:37 P:TO2, : Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))
18:07:37 Tracking on failed.
18:07:37 Waiting until 20:00 8 May to start imaging.
-----------------------------------------------

Thank you for any feedback.

Hi Bill,

Could you post the complete log from the run. That gives more details on your setup, equipment, options selected, etc. and can help with the diagnosis. What type of mount are you connecting to?

Hi Frank,

Thank you for your interest. I have an SB Paramount GT1100S via a serial port.

Here is the complete session log:

-----------------------------------------------
17:36:28 Setup Information
17:36:28 Equipment Settings
Observer: Bill Smith
Observatory: Curitiba, Brazil
Telescope: Takahashi FCT-150 @ F/7
Mount type: Equatorial
Self guider or off-axis guider used for guiding
Imaging camera: SBIG ST-8 Dual CCD Camera
Imager pixel size: 9.00
Telescope focal length: 1050
Imager image scale: 1.77
Imaging camera gain: 2.3

Guide camera pixel size: 9
Guide focal length: 1050
Guider image scale: 1.77
Guide rate: 0.00
Guider1: 0x0.00.0
***WARNING: Guider not initialized.
Mount settling time: 5 sec.
1x1 download time: 60 sec.
2x2 download time: 20 sec.
3x3 download time: 12 sec.
Other delays: 0 sec.

Software Settings
CCDAutoPilot, Version: 3.42.5, Professional Edition
Licensed to: bill.smith@brazilianstars.com
System profile: C:\Documents and Settings\Bill Smith\My Documents\CCDWare\CCDAutoPilot3\System Profiles\ccdap341.app
Operating System: Microsoft Windows NT 5.1.2600 Service Pack 3, v.3311
CCDSoft version 5.00.188 being used for image acquisition.
DirectGuide being used for guider movement
Minimum move: 0.01 arc-sec.
Maximum move: 1 arc-sec.
Aggressiveness: 10
TheSky version 6.0.0.58 being used for telescope control.
CCDSoft/TheSky used for plate solving
Plate solve sub-frame: Full
Plate solve filter: Clear
Plate solve binning: 3x3
Plate solve exposure time: 10
SBIG standard FITS keywords will be inserted into the FITS header.

Tracking and Guiding Settings
Telescope slew to an altitude below 5 will be prevented.
Guided operation being used with a peak enhanced dither of 1.00 pixels.
WARNING: With Guide Error set to 0, AGSR is disabled.

Focus Settings
WARNING: no automatic focusing is possible without a focuser connected via a focus control program.
WARNING: No periodic focusing specified.


Meridian Flip Settings
Automatic meridian crossing enabled.
The mount will not be resynchronized after the meridian crossing.
The guide star will be automatically selected after meridian crossing.
A focus run will not occur after the meridian crossing.
The mount will track for 5 minutes past the meridian before flipping.
The rotator will not rotate upon meridian crossing.


Session and Options
1. Startup Tasks

Sky Flat settings
with tracking on and a dither of 4 arc-min.
Null point automatically set.
Dusk starting sun altitude is 0.5 deg.
Dawn starting sun alittude is -8 deg.
Flat exposure range is from 1 to 15 sec.
Bias is determined automatically.

Dusk flats will be acquired
Light frames for the specified target(s) will be obtained.

2. After Light Frames
Telescope will be parked after light frames are completed.

Dark and/or bias frames will be acquired after the target light frames.
Any light frames or dark/bias frame exposures will be aborted at dawn approaches.

3. Shutdown tasks
Telescope will be re-parked after dawn flats are completed.

17:36:28
17:36:28 Run starting...
17:36:28 Log saved to: C:\Astrophotos\CCDAutoPilot_Logs\ccdap20080508_173628.log
17:36:28 *** Review setup before starting session ***
17:36:28
17:36:28 Root save path: C:\Astrophotos\
17:36:28 System profile: C:\Documents and Settings\Bill Smith\My Documents\CCDWare\CCDAutoPilot3\System Profiles\ccdap341.app
17:36:28 Target List: C:\Documents and Settings\Bill Smith\My Documents\CCDWare\CCDAutoPilot3\System Profiles\My Targets.xml
17:36:28 Start sequence number: 1
17:36:28
17:36:28
17:36:28 Waiting for twilight...
17:36:28 Waiting for dusk: Sun's altitude is above 0.5
17:36:28 Sun's Azimuth = 289.8
17:36:28 Sun's Altitude = 0.9
17:37:28 Waiting for dusk: Sun's altitude is above 0.5
17:37:28 Sun's Azimuth = 289.6
17:37:28 Sun's Altitude = 0.6
17:38:29 Waiting for dusk: Sun's altitude is above 0.5
17:38:29 Sun's Azimuth = 289.5
17:38:29 Sun's Altitude = 0.4
17:38:29 Null point set
17:38:29 Azimuth = 72
17:38:29 Altitude = 80
17:38:31 Telescope connected (0)
17:38:33 Slewing scope...
17:38:49 Slewed to RA: 09 10 40.1, Dec: -21 57 56
17:38:49 Mount settling for 5 sec. after slew.
17:38:56 P:TO2, : Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))
17:38:56 Tracking on failed.
17:38:58 Telescope RA: 09 10 40.6, Dec: -21 58 03
17:38:58 Taking flats...
17:39:08 Bias ADU: 103
17:39:08 Clear_Flat series 1 starting...
17:39:22 Current ADU: 28,601
17:39:22 Exposure adjusted to 2.8 sec.
17:39:23 Dither: +0.0, +0.0,
17:39:23 Exposing...
17:40:28 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 26,083
17:40:29 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Clear_Flat_NGC3372_00001.fit
17:40:30 Exposure adjusted to 2.3 sec.
17:40:31 Dither: +240.0, +0.0,
17:40:31 Exposing...
17:41:36 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 26,102
17:41:36 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Clear_Flat_NGC3372_00002.fit
17:41:37 Exposure adjusted to 1.8 sec.
17:41:39 Dither: -240.0, +0.0,
17:41:39 Exposing...
17:42:43 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 26,111
17:42:43 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Clear_Flat_NGC3372_00003.fit
17:42:44 Exposure adjusted to 1.5 sec.
17:42:46 Dither: +120.0, +207.8,
17:42:46 Exposing...
17:43:50 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 26,124
17:43:50 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Clear_Flat_NGC3372_00004.fit
17:43:51 Exposure adjusted to 1.2 sec.
17:43:53 Dither: -120.0, -207.8,
17:43:53 Exposing...
17:44:56 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 26,137
17:44:56 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Clear_Flat_NGC3372_00005.fit
17:44:57 Series 1 completed
17:44:57 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:45:10 Current ADU: 67,673
17:45:10 Overexposed. Retry at 0.6sec. exposure
17:45:10 Too light
17:45:10 Series 2 completed
17:45:10 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:45:25 Current ADU: 67,673
17:45:25 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:45:36 Current ADU: 67,673
17:45:36 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:45:36 Too light
17:45:36 Series 3 completed
17:45:36 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
17:45:51 Current ADU: 67,673
17:45:51 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:46:02 Current ADU: 67,673
17:46:02 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:46:02 Too light
17:46:02 Series 4 completed
17:46:02 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
17:47:02 Taking flats...
17:47:12 Bias ADU: 102
17:47:12 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:47:27 Current ADU: 67,674
17:47:27 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:47:38 Current ADU: 67,674
17:47:38 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:47:38 Too light
17:47:38 Series 2 completed
17:47:38 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:47:53 Current ADU: 67,674
17:47:53 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:48:04 Current ADU: 67,674
17:48:04 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:48:04 Too light
17:48:04 Series 3 completed
17:48:04 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
17:48:19 Current ADU: 67,674
17:48:19 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:48:30 Current ADU: 67,674
17:48:30 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:48:30 Too light
17:48:30 Series 4 completed
17:48:30 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
17:49:30 Taking flats...
17:49:40 Bias ADU: 101
17:49:40 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:49:55 Current ADU: 67,675
17:49:55 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:50:06 Current ADU: 67,675
17:50:06 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:50:06 Too light
17:50:06 Series 2 completed
17:50:06 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:50:21 Current ADU: 67,675
17:50:21 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:50:32 Current ADU: 67,675
17:50:32 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:50:32 Too light
17:50:32 Series 3 completed
17:50:32 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
17:50:48 Current ADU: 67,675
17:50:48 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:50:58 Current ADU: 67,675
17:50:58 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:50:58 Too light
17:50:58 Series 4 completed
17:50:58 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
17:51:59 Taking flats...
17:52:08 Bias ADU: 102
17:52:08 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:52:23 Current ADU: 67,674
17:52:23 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:52:34 Current ADU: 67,674
17:52:34 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:52:34 Too light
17:52:34 Series 2 completed
17:52:34 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:52:49 Current ADU: 67,674
17:52:49 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:53:00 Current ADU: 67,674
17:53:00 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:53:00 Too light
17:53:00 Series 3 completed
17:53:00 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
17:53:15 Current ADU: 67,674
17:53:15 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:53:26 Current ADU: 67,674
17:53:26 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:53:26 Too light
17:53:26 Series 4 completed
17:53:26 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
17:54:26 Taking flats...
17:54:36 Bias ADU: 103
17:54:36 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:54:51 Current ADU: 67,673
17:54:51 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:55:02 Current ADU: 62,748
17:55:02 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:55:02 Too light
17:55:02 Series 2 completed
17:55:02 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:55:18 Current ADU: 67,673
17:55:18 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:55:29 Current ADU: 47,367
17:55:29 Overexposed. Retry at 1.0sec. exposure
17:55:29 Too light
17:55:29 Series 3 completed
17:55:29 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
17:55:44 Current ADU: 67,673
17:55:44 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:55:55 Current ADU: 42,615
17:55:55 Exposure adjusted to 0.9 sec.
17:55:55 Too light
17:55:55 Series 4 completed
17:55:55 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
17:56:55 Taking flats...
17:57:05 Bias ADU: 99
17:57:05 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
17:57:20 Current ADU: 67,677
17:57:20 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:57:31 Current ADU: 43,510
17:57:31 Exposure adjusted to 0.9 sec.
17:57:31 Too light
17:57:31 Series 2 completed
17:57:31 Green_Flat series 3 starting...
17:57:46 Current ADU: 56,032
17:57:46 Overexposed. Retry at 1.9sec. exposure
17:57:57 Current ADU: 30,376
17:57:57 Exposure adjusted to 1.3 sec.
17:57:58 Dither: +0.0, +0.0,
17:57:58 Exposing...
17:58:24 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 16,660
17:58:24 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Green_Flat_NGC3372_00006.fit
17:58:25 Exposure adjusted to 1.5 sec.
17:58:27 Dither: +240.0, +0.0,
17:58:27 Exposing...
17:58:52 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 19,473
17:58:52 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Green_Flat_NGC3372_00007.fit
17:58:53 Exposure adjusted to 1.6 sec.
17:58:55 Dither: -240.0, +0.0,
17:58:55 Exposing...
17:59:21 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,959
17:59:21 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Green_Flat_NGC3372_00008.fit
17:59:22 Exposure adjusted to 1.8 sec.
17:59:24 Dither: +120.0, +207.8,
17:59:24 Exposing...
17:59:50 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 15,771
17:59:50 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Green_Flat_NGC3372_00009.fit
17:59:51 Exposure adjusted to 2.2 sec.
17:59:53 Dither: -120.0, -207.8,
17:59:53 Exposing...
18:00:19 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,296
18:00:19 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Green_Flat_NGC3372_00010.fit
18:00:20 Series 3 completed
18:00:20 Blue_Flat series 4 starting...
18:00:34 Current ADU: 17,896
18:00:34 Exposure adjusted to 2.5 sec.
18:00:36 Dither: +0.0, +0.0,
18:00:36 Exposing...
18:01:02 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,171
18:01:02 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Blue_Flat_NGC3372_00011.fit
18:01:03 Exposure adjusted to 2.9 sec.
18:01:05 Dither: +240.0, +0.0,
18:01:05 Exposing...
18:01:32 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 18,487
18:01:32 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Blue_Flat_NGC3372_00012.fit
18:01:33 Exposure adjusted to 3.1 sec.
18:01:35 Dither: -240.0, +0.0,
18:01:35 Exposing...
18:02:03 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,483
18:02:03 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Blue_Flat_NGC3372_00013.fit
18:02:04 Exposure adjusted to 3.6 sec.
18:02:06 Dither: +120.0, +207.8,
18:02:06 Exposing...
18:02:33 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,338
18:02:33 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Blue_Flat_NGC3372_00014.fit
18:02:34 Exposure adjusted to 4.1 sec.
18:02:36 Dither: -120.0, -207.8,
18:02:36 Exposing...
18:03:05 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,042
18:03:05 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Blue_Flat_NGC3372_00015.fit
18:03:06 Series 4 completed
18:03:06 Too Light for one or more filters. Try again in 1 min.
18:04:06 Taking flats...
18:04:16 Bias ADU: 102
18:04:16 Red_Flat series 2 starting...
18:04:32 Current ADU: 11,530
18:04:32 Exposure adjusted to 6.7 sec.
18:04:34 Dither: +0.0, +0.0,
18:04:34 Exposing...
18:05:05 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,882
18:05:05 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Red_Flat_NGC3372_00016.fit
18:05:06 Exposure adjusted to 7.5 sec.
18:05:08 Dither: +240.0, +0.0,
18:05:08 Exposing...
18:05:40 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,031
18:05:40 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Red_Flat_NGC3372_00017.fit
18:05:41 Exposure adjusted to 8.8 sec.
18:05:43 Dither: -240.0, +0.0,
18:05:43 Exposing...
18:06:16 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 18,776
18:06:16 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Red_Flat_NGC3372_00018.fit
18:06:17 Exposure adjusted to 9.4 sec.
18:06:19 Dither: +120.0, +207.8,
18:06:19 Exposing...
18:06:53 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 15,357
18:06:53 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Red_Flat_NGC3372_00019.fit
18:06:54 Exposure adjusted to 12.2 sec.
18:06:55 Dither: -120.0, -207.8,
18:06:55 Exposing...
18:07:32 Average ADU after bias subtraction: 17,919
18:07:32 C:\Astrophotos\080508_CalibrationFrames\Red_Flat_NGC3372_00020.fit
18:07:33 Series 2 completed
18:07:35 P:TO2, : Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))
18:07:35 Tracking on failed.
18:07:35
18:07:35 Light Frames
18:07:35 Telescope connected (0)
18:07:37 P:TO2, : Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))
18:07:37 Tracking on failed.
18:07:37 Waiting until 20:00 8 May to start imaging.
19:35:13 Run aborted.
----------------------------------------------

Bill,

See the help file, Walkthrough, step 4. It appears you don't haven't set up the server settings in TheSky.

It is worthwhile going through the Walkthrough in its entirety.

Thanks John, I will take a look at the help file.

BTW I love this product. I just wish that I had discovered it years ago when you guys launched it. I thought I saw some mention of a new version 4 on the way, is that correct?

Would be nice to have support for the Canon EOS 40D DSLR since it has live video via USB.

Anyway, thank you for the help.

Bill Smith

Hi Bill,

Thanks. CCDAP supports whatever camera Maxim and/or CCDSoft supports as it controls the camera through one of them.

Yes, version 4 was announced and demo'd at NEAIC. It will be released before the end of June. Rather than spend time on a pre-announce web site, I have decided to focus on getting version 4 completed and then do the release announcement.

It will be a free upgrade to all users who purchased version 3 after April 1, 2008.