diff --git a/pkg/common/accessio/format.go b/pkg/common/accessio/format.go
index 09c29dd660..8ccb113184 100644
--- a/pkg/common/accessio/format.go
+++ b/pkg/common/accessio/format.go
@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ const (
 	FormatTar       FileFormat = "tar"
 	FormatTGZ       FileFormat = "tgz"
 	FormatDirectory FileFormat = "directory"
+	FormatNone      FileFormat = ""
 )
 
 var suffixes = map[FileFormat]string{
@@ -77,18 +78,24 @@ func GetFormatsFor[T any](fileFormats map[FileFormat]T) []string {
 	return list
 }
 
-func FileFormatForType(t string) FileFormat {
+// FileFormatForTypeSpec returns the format hint provided
+// by a type specification.The format hint is an optional
+// suffix separated by a +.
+func FileFormatForTypeSpec(t string) FileFormat {
 	i := strings.Index(t, "+")
 	if i < 0 {
-		return FileFormat(t)
+		return ""
 	}
 	return FileFormat(t[i+1:])
 }
 
-func TypeForType(t string) string {
+// TypeForTypeSpec returns the pure type info provided
+// by a type specification.The format hint is an optional
+// suffix separated by a +.
+func TypeForTypeSpec(t string) string {
 	i := strings.Index(t, "+")
 	if i < 0 {
-		return ""
+		return t
 	}
 	return t[:i]
 }
diff --git a/pkg/common/accessobj/format.go b/pkg/common/accessobj/format.go
index 2971a39b38..fd321ccb5d 100644
--- a/pkg/common/accessobj/format.go
+++ b/pkg/common/accessobj/format.go
@@ -149,3 +149,30 @@ func DefaultCreateOptsFileHandling(kind string, info AccessObjectInfo, path stri
 
 	return NewAccessObject(info, ACC_CREATE, opts.GetRepresentation(), nil, CloserFunction(func(obj *AccessObject) error { return handler.Write(obj, path, opts, mode) }), DirMode)
 }
+
+////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+
+// MapType maps a given type name to an effective type and a format.
+func MapType(hint string, efftyp string, deffmt accessio.FileFormat, useFormats bool, alt ...string) (string, accessio.FileFormat) {
+	typ := accessio.TypeForTypeSpec(hint)
+	f := accessio.FileFormatForTypeSpec(hint)
+	if f != "" {
+		deffmt = f
+	}
+	if typ == efftyp {
+		return efftyp, deffmt
+	}
+	for _, t := range alt {
+		if typ == t {
+			return efftyp, deffmt
+		}
+	}
+	if useFormats {
+		for _, f := range accessio.GetFormats() {
+			if hint == f {
+				return efftyp, accessio.FileFormat(f)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	return "", ""
+}
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/oci/grammar/grammar.go b/pkg/contexts/oci/grammar/grammar.go
index 8280deacd0..e949574f11 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/oci/grammar/grammar.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/oci/grammar/grammar.go
@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@
 package grammar
 
 import (
+	"strings"
+
 	. "github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/regex"
 )
 
@@ -217,3 +219,11 @@ var (
 	// identifier value, anchored at start and end of string.
 	AnchoredIdentifierRegexp = Anchored(IdentifierRegexp)
 )
+
+func SplitTypeSpec(t string) (string, string) {
+	i := strings.Index(t, "+")
+	if i < 0 {
+		return t, ""
+	}
+	return t[:i], t[i+1:]
+}
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/oci/ref.go b/pkg/contexts/oci/ref.go
index d068c65ba0..24500d5faf 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/oci/ref.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/oci/ref.go
@@ -36,14 +36,20 @@ func ParseRepo(ref string) (UniformRepositorySpec, error) {
 		if match == nil {
 			return UniformRepositorySpec{}, errors.ErrInvalid(KIND_OCI_REFERENCE, ref)
 		}
+		h := string(match[1])
+		t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 		return UniformRepositorySpec{
-			Type:            string(match[1]),
+			Type:            t,
+			TypeHint:        h,
 			Info:            string(match[2]),
 			CreateIfMissing: create,
 		}, nil
 	}
+	h := string(match[1])
+	t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 	return UniformRepositorySpec{
-		Type:            string(match[1]),
+		Type:            t,
+		TypeHint:        h,
 		Scheme:          string(match[2]),
 		Host:            string(match[3]),
 		CreateIfMissing: create,
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/oci/ref_test.go b/pkg/contexts/oci/ref_test.go
index feaa9b37fc..3dc52f38b2 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/oci/ref_test.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/oci/ref_test.go
@@ -204,8 +204,9 @@ var _ = Describe("ref parsing", func() {
 			Info: "alias",
 		})
 		CheckRepo("tar::a/b.tar", &oci.UniformRepositorySpec{
-			Type: "tar",
-			Info: "a/b.tar",
+			Type:     "tar",
+			Info:     "a/b.tar",
+			TypeHint: "tar",
 		})
 		CheckRepo("a/b.tar", &oci.UniformRepositorySpec{
 			Info: "a/b.tar",
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/artifactset/uniform.go b/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/artifactset/uniform.go
index 722088b7ef..01aef447f5 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/artifactset/uniform.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/artifactset/uniform.go
@@ -15,9 +15,6 @@ func init() {
 	h := &repospechandler{}
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "")
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, Type)
-	for _, f := range SupportedFormats() {
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, string(f))
-	}
 }
 
 type repospechandler struct{}
@@ -32,14 +29,14 @@ func (h *repospechandler) MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepository
 	}
 	fs := vfsattr.Get(ctx)
 
-	hint := u.TypeHint
+	hint, f := accessobj.MapType(u.TypeHint, Type, accessio.FormatDirectory, false)
 	if !u.CreateIfMissing {
 		hint = ""
 	}
 
-	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForType(u.Type) == Type, path, fs, ArtifactSetDescriptorFileName)
+	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForTypeSpec(u.Type) == Type, path, fs, ArtifactSetDescriptorFileName)
 	if err == nil && !ok {
-		create, ok, err = accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForType(u.Type) == Type, path, fs, OCIArtifactSetDescriptorFileName)
+		create, ok, err = accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForTypeSpec(u.Type) == Type, path, fs, OCIArtifactSetDescriptorFileName)
 	}
 
 	if !ok || err != nil {
@@ -47,8 +44,10 @@ func (h *repospechandler) MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepository
 	}
 
 	mode := accessobj.ACC_WRITABLE
+	createHint := accessio.FormatNone
 	if create {
 		mode |= accessobj.ACC_CREATE
+		createHint = f
 	}
-	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, accessio.FileFormatForType(u.Type), accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
+	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, createHint, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
 }
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/ctf/uniform.go b/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
index a0a9fc4832..aa95a0458a 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
@@ -11,6 +11,8 @@ import (
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/oci/cpi"
 )
 
+const AltType = "ctf"
+
 func init() {
 	h := &repospechandler{}
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "")
@@ -36,12 +38,13 @@ func MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepositorySpec) (cpi.Repository
 	}
 	fs := vfsattr.Get(ctx)
 
-	hint := u.TypeHint
+	typ, _ := accessobj.MapType(u.Type, Type, accessio.FormatNone, true, AltType)
+	hint, f := accessobj.MapType(u.TypeHint, Type, accessio.FormatDirectory, true, AltType)
 	if !u.CreateIfMissing {
 		hint = ""
 	}
-	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForType(u.Type) != "", path, fs, ArtifactIndexFileName)
-	if !ok || err != nil {
+	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForTypeSpec(typ) == Type, path, fs, ArtifactIndexFileName)
+	if !ok || (err != nil && typ == "") {
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
@@ -50,8 +53,10 @@ func MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepositorySpec) (cpi.Repository
 		}
 	}
 	mode := accessobj.ACC_WRITABLE
+	createHint := accessio.FormatNone
 	if create {
 		mode |= accessobj.ACC_CREATE
+		createHint = f
 	}
-	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, accessio.FileFormatForType(u.Type), accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
+	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, createHint, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
 }
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/grammar/grammar.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/grammar/grammar.go
index e48b8f2c5c..96aa3ef385 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/grammar/grammar.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/grammar/grammar.go
@@ -67,3 +67,7 @@ var (
 			Optional(Literal(VersionSeparator), Capture(VersionRegexp))),
 	)
 )
+
+func SplitTypeSpec(t string) (string, string) {
+	return grammar.SplitTypeSpec(t)
+}
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/internal/context.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/internal/context.go
index 13859da388..5e395afad2 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/internal/context.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/internal/context.go
@@ -309,6 +309,7 @@ func (c *_context) SetAlias(name string, spec RepositorySpec) {
 }
 
 func (c *_context) GetResolver() ComponentVersionResolver {
+	c.Update()
 	if len(c.resolver.rules) == 0 {
 		return nil
 	}
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref.go
index b26bb3144e..366027188f 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref.go
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/cpi"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/grammar"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/errors"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/utils"
 )
 
 const (
@@ -37,25 +38,34 @@ func ParseRepo(ref string) (UniformRepositorySpec, error) {
 		if match == nil {
 			return UniformRepositorySpec{}, errors.ErrInvalid(KIND_OCM_REFERENCE, ref)
 		}
+		h := string(match[1])
+		t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 		return cpi.HandleRef(UniformRepositorySpec{
-			Type:            string(match[1]),
+			Type:            t,
+			TypeHint:        h,
 			Info:            string(match[2]),
 			CreateIfMissing: create,
 		})
 	}
+	h := string(match[1])
+	t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 	return cpi.HandleRef(UniformRepositorySpec{
-		Type:            string(match[1]),
+		Type:            t,
+		TypeHint:        h,
 		Host:            string(match[2]),
 		SubPath:         string(match[3]),
 		CreateIfMissing: create,
 	})
 }
 
-func ParseRepoToSpec(ctx Context, ref string) (RepositorySpec, error) {
+func ParseRepoToSpec(ctx Context, ref string, create ...bool) (RepositorySpec, error) {
 	uni, err := ParseRepo(ref)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, errors.ErrInvalidWrap(err, KIND_REPOSITORYSPEC, ref)
 	}
+	if !uni.CreateIfMissing {
+		uni.CreateIfMissing = utils.Optional(create...)
+	}
 	repoSpec, err := ctx.MapUniformRepositorySpec(&uni)
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, errors.ErrInvalidWrap(err, KIND_REPOSITORYSPEC, ref)
@@ -86,9 +96,12 @@ func ParseRef(ref string) (RefSpec, error) {
 			return RefSpec{}, errors.ErrInvalid(KIND_OCM_REFERENCE, ref)
 		}
 		v = string(match[4])
+		h := string(match[1])
+		t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 		spec = RefSpec{
 			UniformRepositorySpec{
-				Type:            string(match[1]),
+				Type:            t,
+				TypeHint:        h,
 				Info:            string(match[2]),
 				CreateIfMissing: create,
 			},
@@ -99,9 +112,12 @@ func ParseRef(ref string) (RefSpec, error) {
 		}
 	} else {
 		v = string(match[5])
+		h := string(match[1])
+		t, _ := grammar.SplitTypeSpec(h)
 		spec = RefSpec{
 			UniformRepositorySpec{
-				Type:            string(match[1]),
+				Type:            t,
+				TypeHint:        h,
 				Host:            string(match[2]),
 				SubPath:         string(match[3]),
 				CreateIfMissing: create,
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref_test.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref_test.go
index decad5b269..4fad348779 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref_test.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/ref_test.go
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ import (
 
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ocireg"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/utils"
 )
 
 func Type(t string) string {
@@ -34,11 +35,14 @@ func Vers(t string) string {
 	return ":" + t
 }
 
-func CheckRef(ref, ut, h, us, c, uv, i string) {
+func CheckRef(ref, ut, h, us, c, uv, i string, th ...string) {
 	var v *string
 	if uv != "" {
 		v = &uv
 	}
+	if len(th) == 0 && ut != "" {
+		th = []string{ut}
+	}
 	spec, err := ocm.ParseRef(ref)
 	Expect(err).WithOffset(1).To(Succeed())
 	Expect(spec).WithOffset(1).To(Equal(ocm.RefSpec{
@@ -47,6 +51,7 @@ func CheckRef(ref, ut, h, us, c, uv, i string) {
 			Host:            h,
 			SubPath:         us,
 			Info:            i,
+			TypeHint:        utils.Optional(th...),
 			CreateIfMissing: ref[0] == '+',
 		},
 		CompSpec: ocm.CompSpec{
@@ -101,8 +106,8 @@ var _ = Describe("ref parsing", func() {
 		})
 
 		It("dir ref", func() {
-			CheckRef("+ctf+directory::./file//bla.blob/comp", "ctf+directory", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file")
-			CheckRef("ctf+directory::./file//bla.blob/comp", "ctf+directory", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file")
+			CheckRef("+ctf+directory::./file//bla.blob/comp", "ctf", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file", "ctf+directory")
+			CheckRef("ctf+directory::./file//bla.blob/comp", "ctf", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file", "ctf+directory")
 			CheckRef("directory::./file//bla.blob/comp", "directory", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file")
 			CheckRef("directory::file//bla.blob/comp", "directory", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "file")
 			CheckRef("directory::./file.io//bla.blob/comp", "directory", "", "", "bla.blob/comp", "", "./file.io")
@@ -120,7 +125,7 @@ var _ = Describe("ref parsing", func() {
 					SubPath:         "dev/v1",
 					Info:            "",
 					CreateIfMissing: false,
-					TypeHint:        "",
+					TypeHint:        "OCIRegistry",
 				},
 				CompSpec: ocm.CompSpec{
 					Component: "github.wdf.sap.corp/kubernetes/landscape-setup-dependencies",
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/comparch/uniform.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/comparch/uniform.go
index f1b611caec..7577571316 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/comparch/uniform.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/comparch/uniform.go
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ import (
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/common/accessio"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/common/accessobj"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/datacontext/attrs/vfsattr"
-	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/oci/repositories/ctf"
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/cpi"
 )
 
@@ -17,11 +16,6 @@ func init() {
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "")
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, Type)
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "ca")
-	for _, f := range ctf.SupportedFormats() {
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, string(f))
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "ca+"+string(f))
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, Type+"+"+string(f))
-	}
 }
 
 type repospechandler struct{}
@@ -35,12 +29,14 @@ func (h *repospechandler) MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepository
 		path = u.Host
 	}
 	fs := vfsattr.Get(ctx)
-	hint := u.TypeHint
+
+	typ, _ := accessobj.MapType(u.Type, Type, accessio.FormatNone, true, "ca")
+	hint, f := accessobj.MapType(u.TypeHint, Type, accessio.FormatDirectory, false, "ca")
 	if !u.CreateIfMissing {
 		hint = ""
 	}
-	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForType(u.Type) == Type, path, fs, ComponentDescriptorFileName)
-	if !ok || err != nil {
+	create, ok, err := accessobj.CheckFile(Type, hint, accessio.TypeForTypeSpec(typ) == Type, path, fs, ComponentDescriptorFileName)
+	if !ok || (err != nil && typ == "") {
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}
@@ -49,8 +45,10 @@ func (h *repospechandler) MapReference(ctx cpi.Context, u *cpi.UniformRepository
 		}
 	}
 	mode := accessobj.ACC_WRITABLE
+	createHint := accessio.FormatNone
 	if create {
 		mode |= accessobj.ACC_CREATE
+		createHint = f
 	}
-	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, accessio.FileFormatForType(u.Type), accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
+	return NewRepositorySpec(mode, path, createHint, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))
 }
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/ctf_test.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/ctf_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2602c36381
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/ctf_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+// SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2023 SAP SE or an SAP affiliate company and Open Component Model contributors.
+//
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+package ctf_test
+
+import (
+	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo/v2"
+	. "github.com/onsi/gomega"
+	. "github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/testutils"
+
+	"github.com/mandelsoft/vfs/pkg/memoryfs"
+	"github.com/mandelsoft/vfs/pkg/vfs"
+
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/common/accessio"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/datacontext"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/datacontext/attrs/vfsattr"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/comparch"
+	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf"
+)
+
+var _ = Describe("access method", func() {
+	var fs vfs.FileSystem
+	var ctx ocm.Context
+
+	BeforeEach(func() {
+		ctx = ocm.New(datacontext.MODE_EXTENDED)
+		fs = memoryfs.New()
+		vfsattr.Set(ctx.AttributesContext(), fs)
+	})
+
+	Context("create", func() {
+		It("create ctf", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "+ctf::test/repository"))
+			Expect(ctf.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_CREATE, "test/repository", accessio.FormatDirectory, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+		It("create directory", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "+directory::test/repository"))
+			Expect(ctf.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_CREATE, "test/repository", accessio.FormatDirectory, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+		It("create tgz", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "+tgz::test/repository"))
+			Expect(ctf.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_CREATE, "test/repository", accessio.FormatTGZ, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+		It("create ca", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "+ca::test/repository"))
+			Expect(comparch.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_CREATE, "test/repository", accessio.FormatDirectory, accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+	})
+
+	Context("read", func() {
+		It("read ctf", func() {
+			ExpectError(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "test/repository")).To(MatchError(`repository specification "test/repository" is invalid: repository "test/repository" is unknown`))
+		})
+
+		It("read ctf", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "ctf::test/repository"))
+			Expect(ctf.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_WRITABLE, "test/repository", accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+		It("read ctf", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "tgz::test/repository"))
+			Expect(ctf.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_WRITABLE, "test/repository", accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+		It("read ca", func() {
+			MustBeSuccessful(fs.Mkdir("test", 0o700))
+
+			spec := Must(ocm.ParseRepoToSpec(ctx, "ca::test/repository"))
+			Expect(comparch.NewRepositorySpec(ctf.ACC_WRITABLE, "test/repository", accessio.PathFileSystem(fs))).To(DeepEqual(spec))
+		})
+
+	})
+})
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/type.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/type.go
index 9a69dabae9..d9ee6cbdd8 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/type.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/type.go
@@ -11,6 +11,8 @@ import (
 	"github.com/open-component-model/ocm/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/genericocireg"
 )
 
+const Type = ctf.Type
+
 func NewRepositorySpec(acc accessobj.AccessMode, path string, opts ...accessio.Option) (*genericocireg.RepositorySpec, error) {
 	spec, err := ctf.NewRepositorySpec(acc, path, opts...)
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/uniform.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
index 52f47228c0..616aa03780 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/repositories/ctf/uniform.go
@@ -23,8 +23,6 @@ func init() {
 	cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "ctf")
 	for _, f := range SupportedFormats() {
 		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, string(f))
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, "ctf+"+string(f))
-		cpi.RegisterRepositorySpecHandler(h, ctf.Type+"+"+string(f))
 	}
 }
 
diff --git a/pkg/contexts/ocm/utils.go b/pkg/contexts/ocm/utils.go
index ed14105232..1518dbab84 100644
--- a/pkg/contexts/ocm/utils.go
+++ b/pkg/contexts/ocm/utils.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ package ocm
 import (
 	"fmt"
 	"io"
+	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/mandelsoft/vfs/pkg/vfs"
 
@@ -48,17 +49,16 @@ func AssureTargetRepository(session Session, ctx Context, targetref string, opts
 	if err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	if ref.Type != "" {
-		format = accessio.FileFormat(ref.Type)
+	if ref.TypeHint == "" {
+		ref.TypeHint = archive
 	}
-	if archive != "" && format != "" {
+	if format != "" && ref.TypeHint != "" && !strings.Contains(ref.TypeHint, "+") {
 		for _, f := range ctf.SupportedFormats() {
 			if f == format {
-				ref.Type = archive + "+" + format.String()
+				ref.TypeHint += "+" + format.String()
 			}
 		}
 	}
-	ref.TypeHint = archive
 	ref.CreateIfMissing = true
 	target, err := session.DetermineRepositoryBySpec(ctx, &ref)
 	if err != nil {