Hi, I am looking at options for using D-RATS to send e-mail for ARES and other functions.

Current set-up:
ID-5100 in the car
IS-5100 at home?
Zumspot duplex at home connected to the internet
Several computers hooked up the the Internet

Is there a way I can use my base radio to send winlink e-mail through the Zumspot??

I need to send some Winlink e-mails during a test for the hospital radios in our area, The Hospital I am assigned to does not have a radio YET (New hospital, just opened. They ARE committed to installing a radio), so I will be setting up in the parking lots for the area test.

I currently don't have a signal-link or anything like that to send packet radio.

There are at least 3 D-Star repeaters in the area, 2 are a little more "home grown" the 3rd is a professional quality set-up. All 3 are normally linked to 19b (basically our state wide repeater network).

If I can avoid using those repeaters, I would prefer that option. If not, I'll ask the guy with the home grown repeaters if I can link to a ratflector for 4 hours. Oh yeah, the test is over 4 hours, hence not wanting to tie up a repeater.

So basically, I want to talk from my car, to my home rig, and through the home rig, connect to the internet via the hotspot or a computer.(Edited)? Can I just use the wi-fi on the computer hooked up to the base rig and set that up as my own ratflector?

Put another way, which options are possible and/or preferred to send a winlink e-mail from my car for up to 4 hours.

1) Car to local repeater, connected to a ratflector (is this possible?)
2) Car to home radio, then to Zumspot (like a crossband repeater?)
3) Car to home radio, then to my own ratflector running on a laptop (It would be a temporary setup, so I'm not worried about IP changes)
4) Suck it up and get another hotspot to take with you in the car!
5) Other

Sorry, VERY new to this and got thrown in the deep end for this ARES test. My ARES group doesn't use D-Star (yet) but is big on Winlink. If I can figure this out, I might be able to push for more D-Star/D-Rats use.

Thanks! 73!
NO9X?
John

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First thought is … if you can reach you home base station from you vehicle in the parking lot:

That was one of my thoughts, I just wonder if running too high of power on the base 5100 could hurt the pi.
I KNOW I can hit the radio at home from the hospital, just not sure the level of power needed to hit the radio in the car from the base....i THINK 5w would work....will need to test.

?

I'm learning more here as I go. I am assuming I can just run a ratflector from my home computer, and hook it up the 5100 to take rf traffic in? Could that be a better option??

That, and now i'm unsure how to connect to a ratflector with the pi. I thought that there were ratflectors that you could just connect to like a reflector.... like say 19-D. and now think I was wrong.

I MAY be getting an older 880 that I might just set up as a permanent radio to get into a ratflector I set up at home.

Side note: Our terminology is very confusing LOL.

Update: If I have D-Rats running on my computer (assuming I have figured out how to make it a ratflector), and I have the base radio also connected, can I send a winlink e-mail from my car at all? I read one file where it said you can't send mail as you aren't connected to the internet.
If not, it doesn't sound like anything would work short of setting up a TNC or something to run winlink from.

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Winlink is an email client that does NOT rely on the public internet.?

Yes, The setup is correct. NO radio on location yet, so I will be doing everything from my mobile radio.

While I can conceivably just go into the hospital and use their wi-fi to send a winlink message, for my own purposes, I'd like to use D-Rats. Reason being, I can often hit other states (Michigan and Illinois somewhat reliably) with my Radio at home. If I can use RF to reach my home, and pass messages that way (send via _____? ) and another state has internet communications, I could send e-mails that way. Even if I had a different operator at home that I could send to and they could forward, I could get the message out. Hell, if another part of the state has internet comms and I could reach their station, I could send e-mail that way. If nothing else, maybe I can get them to buy an Icom 5100 and/or 7100 instead of them getting a TYT or something LOL!

I currently don't have a signal link, so sending via HF is not an option.

This isn't a SET or even really a drill. just a capability test. Other tests the state has done recently found equipment in poor repair and radios that haven't been programmed with newer frequencies being used.

I just know my ARES group loves winlink e-mail, and I'd LIKE to be able to send via radio...as a learning experience for me, and eventually be able to link to a ratflector via reflector. If I can figure THAT out, The antenna at the hospital (when they get it up) SHOULD be higher than mine at home, and would be even more capable on it's own.

I plan on testing the station ahead of time so I don't have too many surprises, but I need to figure out how to send an e-mail from my mobile to home first. (small steps LOL!)?

I read the whole D-Rats reflector guide, but it was confusing as it referred to running on "the repeater". If I just run it at home on my wi-fi, connect to my radio, (and know the IP address) is there anything I need to do other than allow contacts from network and serial?

Sparks KK4IB:
It is my understanding (and I could be wrong) that D-Rats does not communicate directly with winlink via RF.?

I don't have a signal link or similar device, so I want to use D-Rats to send winlink e-mails.?

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Winlink does not have D-RATS in the session dropdown mode selector.

Right. I know there is a setting for using Winlink, I have sent Winlink e-mails, I just want to try to send from my mobile to my base radio, then to Winlink via telnet in DRats.

thanks!

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So if my base is connected to the internet, and base radio, running the repeater software, it won’t pass the message to winlink from my mobile?
disappointing.
Thanks!
73

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I'm pretty familiar with both D-Rats and WinLink. How do you get D-Rats to send WinLink over the air? I don't believe you can. As far as I know, D-Rats is telnet WinLink only. Which is, basically, just regular internet email.

well, it really DOES require the public internet. That's why MARS booted it. Yes, there is an "RF Only" mode, but if you've ever tried it you'll know why nobody will EVER use it, especially in an emergency. It's basically a semi-automatic ARES NTS system. But even then, somebody needs the public internet at some point. THAT is the entire point of WinLink...internet email on the receiving end. Practically, if the RMS you are hitting does not have internet access (local VHF node or more remote HF node) you're message is going nowhere fast.?

You can accomplish basically the same function as WinLink using D-Rats by setting up a mail server (another D-Rats instance) at a repeater site. The only thing it doesn't do (at least we can't make it work) is reliably send mail attachments. They seem to go through but you can't open them. Station-Station email attachments are fine.?

I think they are talking about Telnet WinLink. There is no bridge from DStar to WinLink over RF I know of. WinLink uses somewhat unique encoding and protocols over RF.?

Skip WInLink and set up a D-Rats mail server at your repeater. Does not HAVE to be at the repeater, but that is ideal. This gives you DStar (D-Rats) RF to internet email on a basic level. Basic meaning short messages, attachments seem to be flaky. Forms work. We set this up. Not hard at all. Set up a different POP/SMTP mail account for your mail server and it forwards mail via internet. It does look a little weird to the recipient (your callsign followed by the pop account it used). You can reply to this also (the recipient can). Goes back to the pop account in D-Rats, then D-Rats looks for your active callsign and sends the reply by RF to you....or waits until you come back active in D-Rats.?