Unable to access dashboard for several weeks

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W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Unable to access dashboard for several weeks

Post by W5PB »

Hello everyone, this is my first post. I've tried searching for answers here and on the Facebook forums, and have found no help. My setup is - ZUMspot with display, Pi-Star v. 3.4.17, using a wi-fi connection to connect to the internet. Radio is a Kenwood TH-D74A. I am using only DStar, and no other digital modes. I don't have access to other radios or DV systems.

For several weeks I have not been able to connect to the Dashboard consistently. I can often connect for a day, or a few hours, and am then unable to connect at all, and the connection just times out. It has been weeks since I've been able to log into the dashboard. I have tried using a win10 laptop, android phone, and iPad. I have tried rebooting those devices. I have tried rebooting the router. I have confirmed that all are on the same wifi network. I have confirmed that I have the correct IP address. The ZUM spot is sitting only a few inches away from my internet router (it used to be in a different part of the room). The hotspot does not display any unusual warning lights, and receives the signal from my radio.

Until today, this was a minor annoyance as I was able to link to and use DStar reflectors with no problem. However, even though the radio connects to the ZUMSpot, I am no longer able to connect to different reflectors, rendering the whole setup useless.

This is extremely frustrating and I would appreciate any help. When I checked the pi-star group on Facebook, the only suggestions I received were to try all the steps I have outlined above.
Last edited by W5PB on Tue May 26, 2020 5:17 am, edited 1 time in total.
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KE0FHS
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Location: Colorado, USA
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Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by KE0FHS »

Some more info would be helpful. If you can connect to the dashboard, some things you should look at to begin your troubleshooting:
1. What model of Raspberry Pi are using?
2. On the Admin page, what do you see lit up green? Especially:
- MMDVMHost
- ircDDBGateway
- Modes Enabled
- Network Status
- Dashboard version: the date at the top right, after the Pi-Star version number
- Tx and Rx frequency
- Firmware version (FW) in the Radio Info section
3. Again on the Admin page, click the Live Logs link. Run the hotspot as you would normally try to, and see what the logs say.
4. On the Configuration page, which Radio/Modem Type is selected?

Some things to try:
- Run an Update
- On the Configuration page, click an Apply Changes button, even if you haven't made any changes.
- Try moving the radio; in some cases, being too close to the hotspot can desense the hotspot's receiver.
- Try expanding the filesystem, just in case you're running out of space. See: https://amateurradionotes.com/pi-star-n ... expandroot.
- If your hotspot is losing connectivity after running for awhile, one thing to check is whether WiFi Power Save is on:

Code: Select all

iw wlan0 get power_save
If it is on, see the post in the Pi-Star User Forum by Albert, AF4FA, for some helpful suggestions:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1726#p7603
- Try using a different power supply (steady 2.5A output is key).
73, Toshen, KE0FHS
Playing with Pi-Star (unofficial notes about setting up and using Pi-Star):
https://amateurradionotes.com/pi-star.htm
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

Those are several good suggestions, thanks. I may have to wait until tomorrow to try some of these.

The RPi Im using is a Pi Zero.

I was able to briefly get into the dash board a while ago after rebooting the router again, but I know that is temporary. I tried an update from the admin page, and it appeared to update, but it did not help the problem. If I'm lucky and can get back into the dashboard I'll poke around some more.
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

Well it is playing nice for now, so here are some answers to your suggestions:

On Admin Page>Service Status: MMDVMHost, ircDDBGateway, and Pistar-Watchdog are lit up green.
Modes Enabled: D-Star is green
Network Status: D-Star Net
Dashboard Version: 20190905
Radio Info: Listening is lit up green
TX/RX Freq: 446.150
FW ZUMspot:v1.4.16
Radio/Modem Type: ZUMspot Raspberry Pi Hat (GPIO)

Since it seems to be working, I took screen shots of the Dashboard, Admin and Configuration screens just as a reference

I will take some logs tomorrow along with trying your suggestions on expanding the filesystem and checking if wi-fi power save is on.
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

KE0FHS wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 7:49 pm
- If your hotspot is losing connectivity after running for awhile, one thing to check is whether WiFi Power Save is on:

Code: Select all

iw wlan0 get power_save
If it is on, see the post in the Pi-Star User Forum by Albert, AF4FA, for some helpful suggestions:
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1726#p7603
Just looked into this. Wi Fi Power Save is on. However, in looking at the link, I follow the instructions, and when I get to this step:
* scroll down to the section wlan0 (iface wlan0) after the line
* wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
I do not see that section anywhere. I used Putty to log into the pi via ssh, but as I am not terribly familiar with doing this, I didn't want to go too far.
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KE0FHS
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Location: Colorado, USA
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Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by KE0FHS »

I've never had that issue myself, but here's what mine looks like (power save is off):

Code: Select all

allow-hotplug wlan0
iface wlan0 inet manual
      wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
      wireless-power off

allow-hotplug wlan1
iface wlan1 inet manual
      wpa-conf /etc/wpa_supplicant/wpa_supplicant.conf
      wireless-power off
There's also one more section (iface wlan0_ap inet static) with IP addresses (address, netmask, network, broadcast) followed by the same wireless-power off line.
73, Toshen, KE0FHS
Playing with Pi-Star (unofficial notes about setting up and using Pi-Star):
https://amateurradionotes.com/pi-star.htm
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

Looks like I just didnt have the Putty window opened all the way. I was able to modify so that power save is turned off. Will see if this fixes it!
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

It appears turning off wifi power save did not solve the problem. I am able to connect to DStar reflectors just fine, but for some reason I am unable to connect to the dashboard via a web browser or SSH.

Is it possible there is an issue with my internet router? I am able to log in to the router but I have no idea what to look for in the settings.
AF6VN
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Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 1:15 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by AF6VN »

W5PB wrote: Fri Oct 04, 2019 2:09 am It appears turning off wifi power save did not solve the problem. I am able to connect to DStar reflectors just fine, but for some reason I am unable to connect to the dashboard via a web browser or SSH.

Is it possible there is an issue with my internet router? I am able to log in to the router but I have no idea what to look for in the settings.
Since earlier posts mention using PuTTY I'm going to assume you mean with the unit cabled to the router, but when not cabled and using WiFi you do not have access.

Not knowing your router I can't suggest any specifics. First thing to check is the WiFi allocation table to see what IP # (and maybe what hostname) are there. From my uVerse modem

Code: Select all

Wi-Fi Client Connection Statistics  
MAC Address 	Authentication State 	IP Address 	Radio Channel 	Access Point 	Transmit Packets 	Receive Packets 	Transmit Bytes 	Receive Bytes 	Trans Errors 	Signal Strength 	Disassoc Count 	Deauth Count
18:16:c9:48:28:d9 	Connected 	192.168.1.65 	11 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	1269649 	2512341 	1059361776 	607346072 	6 	-36 dBm  	2 	0
b8:27:eb:4b:0b:d5 	Connected 	192.168.1.79 	11 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	2165359 	483951 	1142909071 	70749995 	0 	-58 dBm  	3 	0
8c:45:00:6d:1a:4c 	Connected 	192.168.1.70 	11 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	16445 	33297 	886292713 	4329331 	24 	-47 dBm  	7 	0
b8:27:eb:ae:8d:65 	Disconnected 	192.168.1.76 	N/A 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	N/A 	9 	0
64:c6:67:05:31:d3 	Disconnected 	192.168.1.74 	N/A 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	N/A 	16 	0
58:67:1a:ac:e1:56 	Disconnected 	192.168.1.73 	N/A 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	N/A 	2 	
b8:27:eb:ec:a7:7a 	Disconnected 	192.168.1.87 	N/A 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	N/A 	10 	0
b8:27:eb:9b:e4:be 	Connected 	192.168.1.253 	11 	2.4 GHz Radio ATTHWEwm7i 	8 	9870 	872751652 	375979 	0 	-27 dBm  	0 	0
Not the most helpful as that table shows MAC vs IP address, I have to go to the page where one can assign fixed IP to get

Code: Select all

IP Allocation
IPv4 Address / Name 	MAC Address 	Status 	Allocation 	Action
192.168.1.68 / EPSONF4EF32 	00:26:ab:f4:ef:32 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.65 / DIRECTV-HR54-C94828D7 	18:16:c9:48:28:d9 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.73 / nook-6c4f6fd5-b1 	58:67:1a:ac:e1:56 	off 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.74 / unknown64c6670531d3 	64:c6:67:05:31:d3 	off 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.70 / Galaxy-S9 	8c:45:00:6d:1a:4c 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.79 / pi-star-3b 	b8:27:eb:4b:0b:d5 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.253 / microdiversity 	b8:27:eb:9b:e4:be 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.76 / rpi3bplus-2 	b8:27:eb:ae:8d:65 	off 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.252 / microdiversity 	b8:27:eb:ce:b1:eb 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.87 / rpi4b2gb 	b8:27:eb:ec:a7:7a 	off 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.80 / rpi3bplus-2 	b8:27:eb:fb:d8:30 	off 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.66 / ElusiveUnicorn 	b8:ca:3a:79:0c:36 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
192.168.1.84 / HP7C548D 	c4:65:16:7c:54:8d 	on 	DHCP Allocation 	
which does repeat the IP vs MAC -- but lists everything, WiFi and cable (looks like I need to turn off the server WiFi). Note the confusion that host name "microdiversity" (and rpi3bplus-2) show up twice -- my router is listing both a cabled connection and a WiFi connection; you need the WiFi status table to figure out which is which.

The other item to look for is any settings that control whether WiFi connections are "internet only" or "local & internet" (On my router, "internet only" would be the "Guest WiFi" SSID -- which I've turned off). Internet only connections will be nodes that can not be reached from other nodes on the router.

--
AF6VN
Dennis L Bieber
W5PB
Posts: 23
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 1:02 am

Re: Unable to access dashboard for several weeks, or connect to DStar Reflectors

Post by W5PB »

Thanks for responding, I appreciate the suggestions!

My use of Putty to go in via SSH was done entirely via wifi.

A check of my wifi connections reveals that pi-star is connected, even when I am unable to connect to the dashboard. I have not seen any settings to allow internet only connections. Router is an Ubee DDW36C that came with my Comcast internet package.

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