OP25 Updating question

[W4KRR]

I was trying to update OP25 Boatbod version, and I received this error message (see attached file)

How should I proceed to avoid any issues?

 

[jets1961]

I think it's telling you to back up files (not 100% sure) but if you do the same command as ./git pull I think it will run. So back up you config file as it will be overwritten. I'm not a Linux pro but that is may take.

 

[wgbecks]

I was trying to update OP25 Boatbod version, and I received this error message (see attached file)

How should I proceed to avoid any issues?

The update is attempting to load a new (example) config.json. Suggest that you rename the existing config.json to something like
w4krr.json to allow the update to procede as well as to preserve your original configuration.

 

[W4KRR]

The update is attempting to load a new (example) config.json. Suggest that you rename the existing config.json to something like
w4krr.json to allow the update to procede as well as to preserve your original configuration.

Okay, thanks.

 

[boatbod]

WK4RR you have locally edited a version controlled file (cfg.json) so git is trying to save you from losing those changes, but in doing so it also refuses to pull down the updates. Best thing you can do is save a copy of the modified file and then revert it to the original.

cd ~/op25/op25/gr-op25_repeater/apps
git status

Make sure that it's only cfg.json which has been modified

To clean things up:

cp cfg.json local-cfg.json
git checkout .
git pull

 

[W4KRR]

I have noticed that the Smart Colors that I have set up for the web GUI don't always appear. I edited the appropriate lines in the .json file. Sometimes they work fine, other times they're all white. Any reason for this? Yes, I have "Enable Smart Colors" checked in the settings.

 

[Outerdog]

I have noticed that the Smart Colors that I have set up for the web GUI don't always appear. I edited the appropriate lines in the .json file. Sometimes they work fine, other times they're all white. Any reason for this? Yes, I have "Enable Smart Colors" checked in the settings.

I've noted this as well and I've looked at it a little bit, but since a simple page refresh seems to solve it, I haven't spent much time on it. It's hard to duplicate reliably...

 

[boatbod]

I've not had this happen on my system, but the first thing I would recommend looking at is the browser's javascript console to see if there are any errors being reported.

 

[W4KRR]

I just installed Boatbod version with the web UI on an old Panasonic CF-53. I see that the Call History and plots are below the main window instead of next to it as on my other machines. Can this be changed? Is this due to screen resolution?

 

[wgbecks]

I just installed Boatbod version with the web UI on an old Panasonic CF-53. I see that the Call History and plots are below the main window instead of next to it as on my other machines. Can this be changed? Is this due to screen resolution?

Screen resolution. Try a reduced zoom level in your browser.

 

[W4KRR]

Screen resolution. Try a reduced zoom level in your browser.

That was simple. Thanks!

 

[W4KRR]

RTL devices work fine. I'm trying to utilize Airspy. When I run the script, I get this:

json.decoder.JSONDecodeError: Expecting ',' delimiter: line 37 column 13 (char 1191)

I used the P25 Airspy Example json file, but there is something wrong in it. I have attached the .json file.

 

[boatbod]

There is an extra comma that needs to be deleted.
I have pushed a change to the repo.

 

[W4KRR]

There is an extra comma that needs to be deleted.
I have pushed a change to the repo.

I am noticing that after the program has been running for a while, the audio stops. The program still seems to be running, and the constellation shows a strong signal. A restart fixes it. So what might cause this?

 

[boatbod]

I am noticing that after the program has been running for a while, the audio stops. The program still seems to be running, and the constellation shows a strong signal. A restart fixes it. So what might cause this?

The two most common reasons for this are:
i. SDR hardware issue causing communication interruption with the kernel and user application. Commonly this is either due to physical connector wobble, device failure, or a weak power supply (this latter issues is mainly with RPi)
ii. A bug causing a python Traceback

Usually clues can be found in the log file (stderr.2). If it's a software bug you should be able to search the log for "raceback", which if found, will help me pinpoint the problem and ultimately provide a fix. If it's a hardware issue you may see underruns or other messages about hardware issues. Sometimes the "dmesg" command can be used to correlate loss of USB connectivity to the same time period when the app stopped receiving.

 

[W4KRR]

I may have fixed the issue. Based on a suggestion from GPT Chat, under the "audio" section of the .json file, I changed
"device name" from "default" to "plughw:0,0" Audio hasn't dropped out since.

I also changed from an Airspy Mini (6000000 rate) to an Airspy R2 )10000000 rate). This may be more due to bandwidth issues than audio.
I thought the stderr was only generated when the program failed to launch.

 

[boatbod]

I may have fixed the issue. Based on a suggestion from GPT Chat, under the "audio" section of the .json file, I changed
"device name" from "default" to "plughw:0,0" Audio hasn't dropped out since.

I also changed from an Airspy Mini (6000000 rate) to an Airspy R2 )10000000 rate). This may be more due to bandwidth issues than audio.
I thought the stderr was only generated when the program failed to launch.

For a single channel receive, op25 only needs 1Mhz sdr bandwidth to operate properly. While you certainly can use an Airspy R2 at 10Mhz, it's not necessary unless you want to capture multiple channels simultaneously, and depending on your computer hardware, running at high sample rates may just unnecessarily eat up cpu cycles.

Logs can be generated any time, and the level of detail is controlled by the -v command line parameter (from 0 through 11). It's normal to redirect the app's stderr output to a file using the "2> stderr.2" sequence at the end of your command line.

 

[W4KRR]

Can OP25 be set up with two dongles, one for voice and one for the control channel? Is it even necessary?

Palm Beach county, Florida public safety trunking system has frequencies from 851.xxx to 860.xxx which is a wide swath. Whenever the program gets directed to an 859.xxx or 860.000 frequency, it gets stuck.

I used Chatgpt and Google Gemini, and they couldn't come up with a satisfactory .json file that would use two dongles in such a manner. The control channel always ended up being used for voice grants, and then getting stuck. Maybe two dongles is just for tracking two trunking systems at the same time ?

 

[boatbod]

Can OP25 be set up with two dongles, one for voice and one for the control channel? Is it even necessary?

Palm Beach county, Florida public safety trunking system has frequencies from 851.xxx to 860.xxx which is a wide swath. Whenever the program gets directed to an 859.xxx or 860.000 frequency, it gets stuck.

I used Chatgpt and Google Gemini, and they couldn't come up with a satisfactory .json file that would use two dongles in such a manner. The control channel always ended up being used for voice grants, and then getting stuck. Maybe two dongles is just for tracking two trunking systems at the same time ?

Yes, op25 can be set up with two (or more) dongles, and yes, there are ways that you could force one dongle to always track the control channel, but no, it is not necessary. P25 system bandwidth is irrelevant to op25 when using low end dongles such as the cheap RTL devices because each dongle gets dynamically tuned to the specific channel currently being monitored. You therefore only need as many dongles as you want concurrent receivers; i.e. however many simultaneous voice streams.

Your note that op25 repeatedly "gets stuck" is definitely of concern to me. Does the TSBK counter in the terminal screen stop incrementing? Are you seeing any evidence of a Python "Traceback" appearing in the stderr.2 log file? I would be most interested in debugging this further, especially if you can capture it in the log.

Last questions:- are you sure you are running the latest op25 code? I pushed a bugfix for a Traceback late last week.

 

[W4KRR]

Yes, the TSBK counter continues to increment. The only visual indication is that the program will tune to a talkgroup, and then will fail to move on, it doesn't appear that it is returning to the control channel. The last talkgroup and alias will just remain.

I'm not sure if I have the latest build or not. Last time I tried to update, it "failed" possibly because I modified some file.

I'm using a single Airspy Mini.

I have attached the stderr.2 file.