The most forward component of the HERMES tracking system is the vertex chamber (VC), which comprises 12 planes with 3 or 5 multi-strip gas chambers each. The VC was developed and constructed at NIKHEF. Originally the efficiency of the MSGC's fell below expectations due to the use of APC64 readout chips with a strongly rising non-linear baseline. In 1996 these chips were replaced by upgraded APC64 chips, resulting in a significant improvement of the MSGC efficiency. The efficiency of the VC was found to be very stable exceeding the 90% level in all cases. After an extended period of reliable operation (1997-1998), the APC64 chips started to suffer from radiation damage caused by unwanted beam losses near the HERMES interaction point. For that reason the APC64 chips were replaced once more. In view of the sensitivity of the APC64 chips to radiation the VC is kept as a spare tracking detector since then.