Category: Direwolf

Jnos and QtSoundModem

Posted onAuthorPD9Q1 Comment

Today I was playing with Jnos, on my main system I have BPQ32 running with Direwolf and QtSoundModem. BPQ32 uses the Kiss port on Direwolf and the AGW port on QtSoundModem. Now I know that Jnos can easily handle the AGW interface/driver, so I linked Jnos with the AGW poort of Direwolf.

attach agwpe agw 44.137.31.70 8000
ifconfig agw description "AGW - 1200 baud port"
ax25 hport agw on
trace agw 0111

Direwolf is running on 144.850Mhz 1k2 and 430.950Mhz 9k6

Now I thought it would be nice to hook Jnos to QtSoundModem as well. But BPQ32 already uses the AGW port of QtSoundModem. Now I had read that Maiko VE4KLM had written a Kiss over tcp/ip for Winrpr. Who doesn’t dare don’t win. Here we go.

QtSoundmodem is running on 14.102Mhz 300Baud with 1100Hz on the left channel and 2000Hz on the right channel.

Autoexec.nos

attach winrpr qt0 44.137.31.76 8105
attach kiss qt0 1 qt1
#
ifconfig qt0 description "Kiss tcp/ip port 14.102Mhz 1100Hz"
ifconfig qt1 description "Kiss tcp/ip port 14.102Mhz 2200Hz"
trace qt0 0x211 qt0.log 1000
trace qt1 0x211 qt1.log 1000
#
ax25 hport qt0 on
ax25 hport qt1 on

The winrpr is the kiss over tcp/ip driver of Jnos. It`s written to use with Winrpr.

jnos> ifconfig  
qt1      IP addr 44.137.31.67 MTU 256 Link encap AX25
         Link addr PD9Q-1   BBS PD9Q   Paclen 256   Irtt 5000
         BCText: PD9Q Jnos Packet BBS/Gateway
         flags 0xcb0 trace 0x211 netmask 0x00000000 broadcast 0.0.0.0
         sent: ip 0 tot 0 idle 0:00:01:51
         recv: ip 0 tot 0 idle 0:00:01:51
         descr: Kiss tcp/ip port 14.102Mhz 2200Hz
qt0      IP addr 44.137.31.67 MTU 256 Link encap AX25
         Link addr PD9Q-1   BBS PD9Q   Paclen 256   Irtt 5000
         BCText: PD9Q Jnos Packet BBS/Gateway
         flags 0x400 trace 0x211 netmask 0x00000000 broadcast 0.0.0.0
         sent: ip 0 tot 0 idle 0:00:01:51
         recv: ip 0 tot 0 idle 0:00:01:51
         descr: Kiss tcp/ip port 14.102Mhz 1100Hz

Some trace of the tun0 interface, there is traffic back and forward from Jnos to the remote QtSoundModem.

Mon Feb 21 15:34:09 2022 - tun0 sent:
IP: len 40 44.137.31.67->44.137.31.76 ihl 20 ttl 254 prot TCP
TCP: 1025->8105 Seq x1040001 Ack x3bf15fb1 ACK Wnd 5840

Mon Feb 21 15:34:13 2022 - tun0 recv:
IP: len 159 44.137.31.76->44.137.31.67 ihl 20 ttl 64 DF prot TCP
TCP: 8105->1025 Seq x3bf15fb1 Ack x1040001 ACK PSH Wnd 64240 Data 119
0000  ....n......b...a..033  .IR2UFV-15  00:00:06:12  14.1033  .IW7DVM
0040       00:00:08:37  14.1033  .SM7PET+    00:00:12:36  14.

Mon Feb 21 15:34:13 2022 - tun0 recv:
IP: len 159 44.137.31.76->44.137.31.67 ihl 20 ttl 64 DF prot TCP
TCP: 8105->1025 Seq x3bf15fb1 Ack x1040001 ACK PSH Wnd 64240 Data 119
0000  ....n......b...a..033  .IR2UFV-15  00:00:06:12  14.1033  .IW7DVM
0040       00:00:08:37  14.1033  .SM7PET+    00:00:12:36  14.

Mon Feb 21 15:34:13 2022 - tun0 sent:
IP: len 40 44.137.31.67->44.137.31.76 ihl 20 ttl 254 prot TCP
TCP: 1025->8105 Seq x1040001 Ack x3bf16028 ACK Wnd 5840

Here is a trace of the log file (trace qt0 0x211 qt0.log 1000)

Mon Feb 21 15:25:03 2022 - qt0 recv:
KISS: Port 0 Data
AX25: UT1HZM->SM7PET I(P) NR=2 NS=3 pid=Text
0000  00 a6 9a 6e a0 8a a8 e0 aa a8 62 90 b4 9a 61 56  .&.n .(`*(b.4.aV
0010  f0 4d 69 6e 65 2c 20 4c 3e 20 43 61 6c 6c 2c 20  pMine, L> Call, 
0020  4c 3c 20 43 61 6c 6c 2c 20 4c 40 20 3d 20 4c 69  L< Call, L@ = Li
0030  73 74 20 74 6f 2c 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 6f 72 20 61  st to, from or a
0040  74 0d 20 20 20 4c 4c 20 6e 75 6d 20 3d 20 4c 69  t.   LL num = Li
0050  73 74 20 6d 73 67 20 6e 75 6d 2c 20 4c 20 6e 75  st msg num, L nu
0060  6d 2d 6e 75 6d 20 3d 20 4c 69 73 74 20 52 61 6e  m-num = List Ran
0070  67 65 0d 20 20                                   ge.

Mon Feb 21 15:25:17 2022 - qt0 recv: 
KISS: Port 0 Data 
AX25: IW7DVM->APRS v WIDE3-3 UI pid=Text
0000  00 82 a0 a4 a6 40 40 e0 92 ae 6e 88 ac 9a 60 ae  .. $&@@`..n.,.`.
0010  92 88 8a 66 40 67 03 f0 21 34 30 32 33 2e 32 38  ...f@g.p!4023.28
0020  4e 5c 30 31 37 31 37 2e 31 31 45 2d 48 46 20 42  N\01717.11E-HF B
0030  65 61 63 6f 6e 20 31 34 2e 31 30 35 20 4c 53 42  eacon 14.105 LSB
0040  20 33 30 30 62 64 20 2d 20 54 61 72 61 6e 74 6f   300bd - Taranto

Connect from my Jnos system to UT1HZM on port qt0 (qtsoundmodem 300Baud 1100Hz port)

Mon Feb 21 15:08:33 2022 - qt0 recv:
KISS: Port 0 Data
AX25: UT1HZM->PD9Q-15 I(P) NR=0 NS=0 pid=Text
0000  00 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 fe aa a8 62 90 b4 9a 61 10  . .r"@@~*(b.4.a.
0010  f0 55 54 31 48 5a 4d 7d 20 57 61 69 74 2e 2e 2e  pUT1HZM} Wait...
0020  0d                                               .

Mon Feb 21 15:08:33 2022 - qt0 sent:
KISS: Port 0 Data
AX25: PD9Q-15->UT1HZM RR(F) NR=1
0000  00 aa a8 62 90 b4 9a 60 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 ff 31  .*(b.4.` .r"@@.1

Mon Feb 21 15:08:38 2022 - qt0 recv:
KISS: Port 0 Data
AX25: UT1HZM->PD9Q-15 I NR=0 NS=1 pid=Text
0000  00 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 fe aa a8 62 90 b4 9a 61 02  . .r"@@~*(b.4.a.
0010  f0 4b 52 53 3a 55 54 31 48 5a 4d 2d 35 7d 20 43  pKRS:UT1HZM-5} C
0020  6f 6e 6e 65 63 74 65 64 20 74 6f 20 42 42 53 0d  onnected to BBS.

Mon Feb 21 15:08:39 2022 - qt0 sent:
KISS: Port 0 Data
AX25: PD9Q-15->UT1HZM RR NR=2
0000  00 aa a8 62 90 b4 9a 60 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 ff 41  .*(b.4.` .r"@@.A

Now the trace of port qt1 (tail -f qt1.log)

Mon Feb 21 15:22:31 2022 - qt1 sent:
KISS: Port 1 Data
AX25: PD9Q-15->TEST SABM(P)
0000  10 a8 8a a6 a8 40 40 e0 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 7f 3f  .(.&(@@` .r"@@.?

Mon Feb 21 15:22:31 2022 - qt1 sent:
KISS: Port 1 Data
AX25: PD9Q-15->TEST SABM(P)
0000  10 a8 8a a6 a8 40 40 e0 a0 88 72 a2 40 40 7f 3f  .(.&(@@` .r"@@.?

Boooommm Crashed……dammmm

It went so well. But now Jnos crashed. The winrpr driver is probably not written for two ports. Receiving is fine, but a packet that leaves the system on port qt1, Jnos can’t handle that.

So I removed this line (attach kiss qt0 1 qt1) from autoexec.nos and Jnos is running just fine. It is a pity that it only runs on 1 port, and that is the same as the AGW port. Maybe Maiko VE4KLM will look at it again.

Direwolf Vs QtSoundModem (part 2)

Posted onAuthorPD9Q1 Comment

Rx Only

Okay, that was a bit of a disappointment. I ran the test at 14.1022Mhz on 300 Baud. I think the conditions were very bad in those 24 hours.

For the test I use Kissutil.

https://www.mankier.com/1/kissutil

kissutil  can be used interactively for troubleshooting a KISS TNC. It is usable with direwolf and other generic KISS TNCs connected to a serial port. It can also be used as an application interface where each side places files in a directory for the other to process.

First I wrote two start files for the test.

Direwolf.sh

#!/bin/bash
cd /home/niels/testbed/
./kiss-direwolf -p 8009 -o /home/niels/testbed/rec-direwolf

Qtsm.sh

#!/bin/bash
cd /home/niels/testbed/
./kiss-qtsm -p 8105 -o /home/niels/testbed/rec-qtsm

The test ran for 24 hours, which is 86400 seconds.

timeout -s 9 86400 ./qtsm.sh

After 24 hours I can start counting the received frames.

As you can see this is very disappointing. Now I understand that the focus of QtSoundModem is more in the HF area. With a difference of 4 frames, the difference between Direwolf and QtSoundModem is minimal. In fact, too few frames were received in the 24 hours to make a good comparison. Is my opinion.

The next test we will try on 144.800Mhz the local Aprs frequency.

Direwolf Vs QtSoundModem (part 1)

Posted onAuthorPD9Q3 Comments

This is about RX and not TX.

This has caused some headaches. I want to use one trx and one antenna for this test. (Icom 7300 and a Hyendfed)Now the problem is that Direwolf and QtSoundModem both use the sound card. Now you can’t both use the same sound card at the same time. So we will have to use two virtual sound cards and route the audio to these sound cards.  For this I use “pactl” with this I can manipulate the PulseAudio server.

pactl load-module module-virtual-sink sink_name=direwolf
And
pactl load-module module-virtual-sink sink_name=qtsoundmodem

Actually we are making a virtual audio card for Direwolf and QtSoundModem. Now we need to route the Audio from the input to the virtual audio card. This is possible with PavuControl.

Setup Direwolf

ADEVICE pulse
ACHANNELS 1
CHANNEL 0
MYCALL N0CALL
MODEM 300 1000 1200
AGWPORT 8008
KISSPORT 8009

Uhmmmmm port 8001.  I don’t understand that yet, in the config it really is port 8009.

Setup QtSoundModem

 

Now I haven’t fully read up on PulseAudio and pactl and the virtual cable/cards. Perhaps my wording and references are not quite correct.

Now I have the opportunity to test…..

Direwolf 1.7 Dev branch support IL2P

Posted onAuthorPD9Q1 Comment

Yes I know i`m a few steps behind, but great news. Direwolf is also support IL2P.

### New Features: ###

- Improved Layer 2 Protocol [(IL2P)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FX.25_Forward_Error_Correction).  Use "-I 1" on command line to enable transmit for first channel.  Compatible with Nino TNC for 1200 and 9600 bps.

- Limited support for CM109/CM119 GPIO PTT on Windows.

- Dire Wolf now advertises itself using DNS Service Discovery. This allows suitable APRS / Packet Radio applications to find a network KISS TNC without knowing the IP address or TCP port. Thanks to Hessu for providing this.  Currently available only for Linux and Mac OSX.  [Read all about it here.](https://github.com/hessu/aprs-specs/blob/master/TCP-KISS-DNS-SD.md)

- The transmit calibration tone (-x) command line option now accepts a radio channel number and/or a single letter mode:  a = alternate tones, m = mark tone, s = space tone, p = PTT only no sound.

- The BEACON configuration now recognizes the SOURCE= option.  This replaces the AX.25 source address rather than using the MYCALL value for the channel.  This is useful for sending more than 5 analog telemetry channels.  Use two, or more, source addresses with up to 5 analog channels each.

- For more flexibility, the FX.25 transmit property can now be set individually by channel, rather than having a global setting for all channels.  The -X on the command line applies only to channel 0.  For other channels you need to add a new line to the configuration file.

    > After:   "CHANNEL 1"   (or other channel)
    >
    > Add:     "FX25TX 1" (or 16 or 32 or 64)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improved_Layer_2_Protocol

IL2P (Improved Layer 2 Protocol) is a data link layer protocol originally derived from layer 2 of the X.25 protocol suite and designed for use by amateur radio operators. It is used exclusively on amateur packet radio networks.

IL2P occupies the data link layer, the second layer of the OSI model. It is responsible for establishing link-layer connections, transferring data encapsulated in frames between nodes, and detecting errors introduced by the communications channel.

The Improved Layer 2 Protocol (IL2P) was created by Nino Carrillo, KK4HEJ, based on AX.25 and implements Reed Solomon Forward Error Correction for greater accuracy and throughput than either AX.25 or FX.25. Specifically, in order to achieve greater stability on links exceeding speeds of 1200 baud.

IL2P can be used with a variety of modulation methods including AFSK and GFSK. The direwolf software TNC contains the first open source implementation of the protocol.

So now let`s get the “Dev” branch and start playing with IL2P.

git clone https://github.com/wb2osz/direwolf.git
cd direwolf
git branch -r
git checkout dev
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make update-data
make -j4
sudo make install
make install-conf

Aprs Weather Beacon

Posted onAuthorPD9Q2 Comments

Today I’ve been messing around with an APRS weather beacon. Now Direwolf and Linbpq and Jnos can send an aprs weather beacon. It turns out that this is quite precise, with the format of the beacon.

#!/bin/bash
# The weather beacon have to look like this....
# @220424z5057.81N/00729.37E_094/002g005t043r000p006P006h89b09783
# !5133.52N/00348.15E_073/013g...t048h85b10040wWXD
#
# Jun 01 2003 08:07
# 272/000g006t069r010p030P020h61b10150
# ***********************************************************
# 272 - wind direction - 272 degrees
# 010 - wind speed - 10 mph
# g015 - wind gust - 15 mph
# t069 - temperature - 69 degrees F
# r010 - rain in last hour in hundredths of an inch - 0.1 inches
# p030 - rain in last 24 hours in hundredths of an inch - 0.3 inches
# P020 - rain since midnight in hundredths of an inch - 0.2 inches
# h61 - humidity 61% (00 = 100%)
# b10153 - barometric pressure in tenths of a MILLIBAR - 1015.3 MILLIBARS

My weather station uploads its data to wunderground.com. Now wunderground has the option to read this again with an api key.

https://api.weather.com/v2/pws/observations/current?stationId=IKORTG9&format=json&units=m&apiKey=yourApiKey

You can read here how and what.

After a lot of messing around with a bash script, I am able to create the correct format.

TEMP=-4.9°C Temperature degrees Celsius
WPK=29.4km/h Wind speed in Kilometers per hour
WGK=39km/h Wind guts in Kilometers per hour
GRD=58° Wind direction in degrees
RAIN=0mm Rain in the last hour in mm
RAIN24=0.42065mm Rain in the last 24 hour in mm
RAIN12=0.214mm Rain in the last 12 hour in mm
HUM=74% Humidity in procent
Bar=1004mb Barometric pressure in millibars
FAH=023F Temperature degrees Fahrenheit
WPM=018mph Wind speed in miles per hour
WGM=024mph Wind guts in miles per hour
RNI=000inch Rain in the last hour in inches
RNI=001inch Rain in the last 24 hour in inches
RNI=000inch Rain in the last 12 hour in inches

The file I need to broadcast an APRS Weahter Beacon looks like this.

pd9q@pancake:~/linbpq/wx-project $ cat ~/linbpq/current.txt
Feb 09 2021 13:00
086/004g008t028r000p000P000h75b10007

The config file for Linbpq looks like this, this is in the aprs section of bpq32.cfg

WXCall=PD9Q-7
WXFileName=/home/pd9q/linbpq/current.txt
WXComment=/Weather Station JO11VN
WXPortList=1,5,IS        ; comma separated list 
WXInterval=10            ; mins

For Jnos in the autoexec.nos in the aprs section

aprs wx call PD9Q-7
aprs wx stat "Weather Station JO11VN"
aprs wx pos "5133.52N/00348.15E_METEO
aprs wx data "/home/pd9q/jnos/wx/current.txt"
aprs bc rftimer 10

For direwolf in the file direwolf.conf

PBEACON LAT=51^33.52N LONG=03^48.15E SYMBOL=”weather station” COMMENTCMD=”tail -1 /home/pd9q/linbpq/current.txt”

Direwolf Aprs packet look like this.

PD9Q-7>APDW15:!5133.52N/00348.15E_069/005g006t028r000p000P000h75b10007

BPQ32 Aprs packet look like this.

PD9Q-7>APBPQ1,WIDE1-1:@091338z5133.52N/00348.15E_069/005g006t028r000p000P00
0h75b10007/Weather Station JO11VN

Learned a lot.

Direwolf 1.6 Official release

Posted onAuthorPD9Q4 Comments

Today is the Official release of Direwolf 1.6 (29 Oct 2020)

I’ve been running the “Dev” version of Direwolf for a while. 1.6D. But now I read this morning that John WB2OSZ has made version 1.6 official after 2 years. Version 1.5 was released on 8 Oct 2018

I read in the mail that there is almost no difference with the “Dev” branch. So I don’t really see any need to install the official release.

https://github.com/wb2osz/direwolf/releases

 

New Build Procedure:
--------------------

* Rather than trying to keep a bunch of different platform specific Makefiles in sync, "cmake" is now used for greater portability and easier maintenance.

* README.md has a quick summary of the process. More details in the *User Guide*.

New Features:
-------------

* "-X" option enables FX.25 transmission. FX.25 reception is always enabled so you don't need to do anything special. "What is FX.25?" you might ask. It is forward error correction (FEC) added in a way that is completely compatible with an ordinary AX.25 frame. See new document *AX25_plus_FEC_equals_FX25.pdf* for details.

* Receive AIS location data from ships. Enable by using "-B AIS" command line option or "MODEM AIS" in the configuration file. AIS NMEA sentences are encapsulated in APRS user-defined data with a "{DA" prefix. This uses 9600 bps so you need to use wide band audio, not what comes out of the speaker. There is also a "-A" option to generate APRS Object Reports.

* Receive Emergency Alert System (EAS) Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME). Enable by using "-B EAS" command line option or "MODEM EAS" in the configuration file. EAS SAME messages are encapsulated in APRS user-defined data with a "{DE" prefix. This uses low speed AFSK so speaker output is fine.

* "-t" option now accepts more values to accommodate inconsistent handling of text color control codes by different terminal emulators. The default, 1, should work with most modern terminal types. If the colors are not right, try "-t 9" to see the result of the different choices and pick the best one. If none of them look right, file a bug report and specify: operating system version (e.g. Raspbian Buster), terminal emulator type and version (e.g. LXTerminal 0.3.2). Include a screen capture.

* "-g" option to force G3RUH mode for lower speeds where a different modem type may be the default.

* 2400 bps compatibility with MFJ-2400. See *2400-4800-PSK-for-APRS-Packet-Radio.pdf* for details

* "atest -h" will display the frame in hexadecimal for closer inspection.

* Add support for Multi-GNSS NMEA sentences.

Install/compile instructions

### Linux - Using git clone (recommended) ###

***Note that this has changed for version 1.6.  There are now a couple extra steps.***


First you will need to install some software development packages using different commands depending on your flavor of Linux.
In most cases, the first few  will already be there and the package installer will tell you that installation is not necessary.

On Debian / Ubuntu / Raspbian / Raspberry Pi OS:

    sudo apt-get install git
    sudo apt-get install gcc
    sudo apt-get install g++
    sudo apt-get install make
    sudo apt-get install cmake
    sudo apt-get install libasound2-dev
    sudo apt-get install libudev-dev

Or on Red Hat / Fedora / CentOS:

	sudo yum install git
	sudo yum install gcc
	sudo yum install gcc-c++
	sudo yum install make
    sudo yum install alsa-lib-devel
    sudo yum install libudev-devel

CentOS 6 & 7 currently have cmake 2.8 but we need 3.1 or later.
First you need to enable the EPEL repository.  Add a symlink if you don't already have the older version and want to type cmake rather than cmake3.

    sudo yum install epel-release
	sudo rpm -e cmake
	sudo yum install cmake3
	sudo ln -s /usr/bin/cmake3 /usr/bin/cmake

Then on any flavor of Linux:

	cd ~
	git clone https://www.github.com/wb2osz/direwolf
	cd direwolf
    git checkout dev
	mkdir build && cd build
	cmake ..
	make -j4
	sudo make install
	make install-conf

This gives you the latest development version.  Leave out the "git checkout dev" to get the most recent stable release.

For more details see the **User Guide** in the [**doc** directory](https://github.com/wb2osz/direwolf/tree/master/doc).  Special considerations for the Raspberry Pi are found in **Raspberry-Pi-APRS.pdf**

Direwolf <> Symek Tnc3s

Posted onAuthorPD9QLeave a comment

144.800Mhz @ 1200Baud (Two tests one on 03-23 and one on 03-24 (rx only))

The first test I did was of course not entirely fair, different antennas were used and different transmitters/receivers. Now I made a setup with the same antenna and the same receiver, so with the same audio input.
First the setup, as a computer(if I haven’t lost it.some where) I use a Raspberry PI 2B+, as a sound card I use an Fe-Pi Audio Z V2. As a receiver I use a Realistic pro 2006. It is an old receiver but still works 100%. The antenna is a x50 from Diamond. Of course the Tnc3s from Symek, and Direwolf from John WB2OSZ. I use Kissutil from WB2OSZ, this allows me to connect to Direwolf and the Tnc3s as well as save the received Frames. This makes comparing easy/easier.

Now I have made two start files, one for Direwolf and one for the Tnc3s. I start these in different terminals. I do this manually, so there is a slight delay in starting up.

/home/aprs/direwolf.sh

#!/bin/bash
# Start kissutil on Direwolf kiss port 8001
# Let it run for 30 minutes and kill the process
# Start options "timeout -s 9 1800 ./direwolf.sh"
#
# Kissutil for Direwolf save to /home/aprs/rec-direwolf
/usr/local/bin/kissutil-direwolf -o /home/aprs/rec-direwolf
#

/home/aprs/tnc3s.sh

#!/bin/bash
# Start kissutil on the /dev/ttyUSB0 for the Symek Tnc3s
# Let it run for 30 minutes and kill the process
# Start options "timeout -s 9 1800 ./tnc3s.sh"
#
# Kissutil for the Tnc3s save to /home/aprs/rc-tnc3s
/usr/local/bin/kissutil-tnc3s -p /dev/ttyUSB0 -s 38400 -o /home/aprs/rec-tnc3s
#

I start the scripts with the option “timeout” now I can specify the time how long the script runs.
Example. “timeout -s 9 1800 ./tnc3s.sh”
In this comparison, both scripts run for 30 minutes. 1800 Second. Now it is time for the comparison.

With the command “ls -A | wc -l” the number of files in the directory are counted. (Frames received.)

03-23-2020

03-24-2020

Here you can see the difference between the received frames of the Tnc3s and Direwolf. There is a difference of 73 and 125 missed frames from the Tnc3s. I tried something with the reception levels of the Tnc3s. It is To soft – Ok – To hard, there is little difference between To soft and Ok and To hard.

I did some tests with the amount of calls received. Just for fun.

Direwolf <> Kpc9612

Posted onAuthorPD9Q6 Comments

Today I made a comparison between Direwolf and a KPC9612. Now I have to say that it is difficult to compare. As the first set I use a KPC9612 and a Yaesu 7900 with an x30 as antenna and as software PinPoint Aprs Client for Windows. As the second set I use a Realistic pro 2006 scanner with an x50 as antenna and Direwolf. These antennas are at the same height.

Now I am very impressed with Direwolf, it seems that my KPC9612 is completely deaf. I clearly hear the packet signal but there is no decode. Unfortunately I don’t have two the same sets and two the same antennas to make the comparison better. But it is very clear here that Direwolf wins big.

Below you can see the difference between the setups. The Communication monitor is from PinPoint Aprs Client, the rest is from direwolf and some aprs parsing.

 

Okay, I know the comparison isn’t entirely fair. But for me Direwolf is the big winner.

Direwolf 1.6 D (Mar 1 2020) FX.25

Posted onAuthorPD9QLeave a comment

I did some testing with a friend of mine PD2NLX. We have tested the (new) FX.25 protocol (32 and 16 Bytes) This is AX25 with forward error correction. Now the distance between us is quite short, about 5 kilometers. We have discovered that the 16 bytes check at a short distance works better.

First I have installed the “dev” release of Direwolf.

git clone https://github.com/wb2osz/direwolf.git
cd direwolf
git branch -r
git checkout dev
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make -j4
sudo make install
make install-conf

My direwolf.start file look like this

#Start direwolf with -X (16, 32, 64) option to enable FX.25 tx. Number (16, 32, 64) means bytes to check
direwolf -X 16 -d x -t 0 -c /home/pd9q/jnos/direwolf.conf -l /home/pd9q/jnos/logs/direwolf >/dev/tty3

I have add the start option “-d x” Let’s take a look at what that looks like.

FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x05 with 6 bit errors.  Expecting 223 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x05 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 223 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x05 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 223 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete, fixed 13 errors in byte positions: 11 19 65 73 74 92 116 117
132 138 143 144 192

FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x06 with 1 bit errors.  Expecting 128 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x06 with 1 bit errors.  Expecting 128 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x06 with 1 bit errors.  Expecting 128 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x06 with 1 bit errors.  Expecting 128 data & 32 check bytes.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete, fixed  1 errors in byte positions: 97

FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x04 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 32 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x04 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 32 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x04 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 32 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x04 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 32 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: FEC complete, fixed  1 errors in byte positions: 248
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.

FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x01 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 239 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x01 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 239 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x01 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 239 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: Matched correlation tag 0x01 with 0 bit errors.  Expecting 239 data & 16 check bytes.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.
FX.25: FEC complete with no errors.

It has, of course, been developed to work over large distances and thus achieve a reasonably reliable connection. But it works surprisingly well.