ConDV is free Hotspot software from DUTCH*Star, maker of DV Modems, the DUTCH*Star firmware that runs them, and many free software programs.  It was written by Fred van Kempen, KA4YBR. It's easy to install and has wide-ranging functionality, including linking support for DPlus (REF) reflectors, DExtra (XRF) reflectors and DCS reflectors.  It allows you to configure an ircDDB gateway, supports DTMF commands, provides optional audio announcements, and has an easy to use command line user interface.  It runs under Linux on ARM processors like the Raspberry Pi or BeagleBone Black.  There is also a version for Windows.  This page is about the Pi version.

To speed the installation process, this page assumes your Pi will use the excellent "westerndstar" image produced by Brian GW6WTK.  It is easy to download this image file and write it to your Pi's SD card, then boot up and configure your own callsign, etc. 

The westerndstar image actually has ConDV already installed on it, though the Pi boots up running Brian's very nice "WesternDStar Widget".  The Widget is aimed at managing the G4KLX programs, which ConDV does not need, but you will be able to switch easily between G4KLX or ConDV.

LCD Support (Optional, if you have one)
ConDV makes nice use of an LCD if you have one for your Pi, showing the callsign and user text of the person you are listening to.  However, an LCD is not needed to be able to use ConDV on a Pi.  ConDV can be configured to work with various LCDs, but to get started, it's recommended to get one of the following:

Adafruit Blue&White 16x2 LCD+Keypad Kit for Raspberry Pi

From MCM Electronics

From Adafruit

Adafruit RGB Negative 16x2 LCD+Keypad Kit for Raspberry Pi

From Adafruit

Built LCD, monochrome screen with RGB status LED

From MoenComm

Load image file
Click here for how to download the westerndstar image created by Brian, GW6WTK.

That page will also have you install several very useful tools to make configuration and operation easier:

• A VNC Client (TightVNC), so you can log onto your Pi's desktop from another pc
• WinSCP, so you can easily navigate the Pi's folders and manage files from another pc
• An SSH Client (PuTTY) to be able to log onto the Pi using a terminal (command liane) interface from another pc

Configure ConDV

• Right-click here and select Save As (or equivalent for your browser) to download hotspot.conf.  Save it on your pc where you can find it.

• Use WinSCP to upload this sample file to /dstar/etc/condv.d

• With WinSCP, right click hotspot.conf and select Edit:

  • At a minimum, change MYCALL to use your own callsign, and DEVICE should point to the PORT section at the bottom of the file that describes your modem.  Note: If you want to link to DPlus reflectors (those named REFxxxn), then the combination of the two must be a registered terminal The normal convention is to use initial or module letter B if on 70cm, or C if on 2 meters.  Check the D-Star Info Query to be sure your terminals are set up.
  • If you will not be using an LCD screen, in the LCD section, change Enabled to False.  Mode=2 for Adafruit LCDs.  Mode=3 for the LCD from MoenComm.
  • Review the other sections. If you want to enable the ircDDB Gateway and have a password, fill that in, otherwise set Enable to False.  Note: If you have not registered the Hotspot/Repeater's callsign with ircddb.net and received a password, the freestar server is known to work without a password.
  • If PROTOCOL DPlus is enabled, fill in the AuthCall callsign that is registered with an ICOM US Trust gateway.
  • In the sample file, module_b describes a NODE device, that is, a GMSK Modem.
  • Save.

Create Launch script and configure

• Right-click here  and select Save As (or equivalent for your browser) to download file cdv.  Save it to your pc where you can find it.
• Use WinSCP to upload the cdv file to /usr/local/bin/
• Right-click the file, select Properties and change Permissions to 0755
• Right-click here and select Save As to download file autostart.  Save it to your pc.
• Use WinSCP to upload the autostart file to /home/pi/.config/lxsession/LXDE-pi/ (replace existing file)
• See notes below about host files and ircDDB configuration
• You have finished installing ConDV!

Ongoing Operations -- Boot Pi to launch G4KLX, or boot to launch ConDV

To boot to G4KLX
• Log on using your VNC client like TightVNC
• Bring up WD’s Widget
• Make sure the Startup Options for both Modem 1 and Gateway are set to GUI
• SAVE
• RSTRT

To boot to ConDV
• Log on using VNC Client
• Bring up WD’s Widget
• On Startup Options for both Modem 1 and Gateway, set both to None
• SAVE
• RSTRT

Using ConDV (first make above Widget change and restart Pi)

• You can control linking normally from your radio, e.g. use a memory with URCall=REF001CL
• You can issue the I (Info) command, and the status will be in the text message of the reply transmission. ConDV does not support voice announcements.
• For an Echo test, just link to the E module of any REF reflector and that will provide an excellent Echo facility for testing
• If you want to control ConDV from your PC, then just log onto the Desktop using your VNC Client. You will see a terminal window already open, and ConDV will be running in it.
• To get help with supported commands, press ? key

• Mostly you will use L and U to link to reflectors and unlink from them. To link to REF001C, enter L, then enter REF001_C (note the underscore so C goes in position 8)
• This also works for DCS and XRF reflectors, e.g. L, then DCS006_B
• Don't close the Terminal window, but you can close the VNC session and ConDV will continue to run. And of course, there is no need to use the command line interface, since full control using your radio is possible.

The following commands are supported:

ESC abort
? help
B send APRS beacon
C list connection(s)
f find callsign
I send RF beacon message
L link to (new) gateway
R re-connect to gateway
U unlink from gateway
Z unlink client conn

To quit the program, just hit the Escape key.

Linking by using RF commands from your D-Star radio

• These are the same commands you can use with an ICOM repeater that has DPlus installed
• Check out http://www.k6jm.com/dstarlinking.htm .
• The one difference is that for your Hotspot, unless you checked the Check for valid RPT1 and RPT2 checkboxes (on WinDV's RF Access tab), you do not need to program the values for RPT1 and RPT2

More Features

We've covered the most important features, but as you get familiar with ConDV, you may want to explore other useful features:

• Hosts files - ConDV comes with three hosts files that contain lists of REF reflectors, XRF reflectors and DCS reflectors. If you are unable to link to a given reflector, you may need to  update one of these files.  You have several choices:
  • Easiest: Use the host files already on your image put there for G4KLX programs.  A script called "symhosts" will create Linux symlinks so ConDV will use the G4KLX host files:
    • Right-click here  and select Save As (or equivalent for your browser) to download file symhosts.  Save it to your pc where you can find it.
    • Use WinSCP to upload the symhosts file to /usr/local/bin/
    • Right-click the file, select Properties and change Permissions to 0755
    • In a terminal window, enter symhosts.  This does not need to be done again unless you erase the linked filenames from /dstar/etc.
  • Or, you can copy G4KLX hosts files to where ConDV expects them to be:
    • ConDV hosts files are located in /dstar/etc and are named dphosts.txt, dxhosts.txt and dcshosts.txt
    • G4KLX hosts files are located in /usr/local/etc and are named DPlus_Hosts.txt, DExtra_Hosts.txt and DCS_Hosts.txt
    • Just use WinSCP to copy the G4KLX files to /dstar/etc, rename or delete the existing ConDV files  and rename theG4KLX files to the ConDV-expected names (e.g. DPlus_Hosts.txt becomes dphosts.txt, etc.)
  • Or, you can manually edit the hosts files in /dstar/etc with updated information 
• ircDDB - This service helps ICOM callsign routing work better.  When configuring /dstar/etc/condv.d/hotspot.conf, you can enable ircddb.  Note that some of the provided server options do not require registering your Hotspot's callsign to get a password, and some do.  See our FAQ at http://www.gmskdvnode.info/#Callsign_Routing for more information.

That's it!  Enjoy your ConDV hotspot on your Raspberry Pi.

D-Star® is a registered trademark used for communication equipment (repeaters and transceivers) for amateur radio communications, and owned by Icom Incorporated.