Using the Raspberry Pi 2
for the PSKmail server and client















 The Raspberry Pi 2  is the ideal hardware for the PSKmail server and client.
Technical specs:
  • Broadcom BCM2836 Arm7 Quad Core Processor powered Single Board Computer running at 900MHz
  • 1GB RAM
  • 40pin extended GPIO
  • 4 x USB 2 ports
  • 4 pole Stereo output and Composite video port
  • Full size HDMI
  • CSI camera port for connecting the Raspberry Pi camera
  • DSI display port for connecting the Raspberry Pi touch screen display
  • Micro SD port for loading your operating system and storing data
  • Micro USB power source
  • 5V 1.5A supply (7.5 Watts) makes it ideal for 24/7 use.
There is now a Raspbian image available which already incorporates all necessary software for server and client. Installation can't get any easier....

Server software:
  • Fldigi 3.21.83
  • Perl interpreter
  • PSKmail server 2.3.6
  • Hamlib library for control of most transceivers
  • Grig program for rig control via hamlib
  • vncserver for headless operation (you don't need extra mouse/keyboard/monitor to run the server).

Client software:
  • Fldigi 3.21.83
  • java runtime interpreter
  • PSKmail client 1.8.3
  • Hamlib library for control of most transceivers
  • Grig program for rig control via hamlib
General goodies:
  • UTC clock
  • Web browser (epiphany)
Where can you download the raspi-pskmail.img file:

http://www.pskmail.org/downloads/raspi-image-100415.img.gz

How  to install the image to the micro-sd card:

You need a micro-sd card of 8 GB (min.) class 10.
A class 4 card will fail in short time.

With the image file of the distribution of your choice, you need to use an image writing tool to install it on your SD card.

See the guide for your system:

First unzip the image (1.3 GB -> 7.9 GB). Then write the image to the card.
After you wrote the image to the card, you may want to resize the image on the card to cover the complete 8 GB, so you have room for data.
On Linux, I use gparted for that:

Manually resizing the SD card using a GUI on Linux

If you are using a PC with a linux distribution to resize the partitions, you can run GParted to resize the partitions using a GUI. This method is tested on Ubuntu 10.10 using the Gnome desktop. Versions of GParted differ slightly in their GUIs.

GParted can be installed using:

  • sudo apt-get install gparted

Note: I had to physically remove and re-insert the SD card from the card reader after writing the image before the partitions were recognised properly and the following could be done.

  • Start GParted (on my system it is [System]->[Administration]->[GParted Partition editor]).
  • Select the drive corresponding to your SD card (was /dev/sdh/ on my system). You now see the partitions mentioned above (with some tiny unallocated areas in between and a large one after).
  • Select the swap partition by clicking on it.
  • If the Resize/Move toolbar icon or [Resize/Move] menu option is disabled, go to Partition / Unmount.
  • Select the menu option [Partition]->[Resize/Move] and drag the partition to the right (click/drag in the middle).
  • Select the ext4 partition.
  • If the Resize/Move toolbar icon or [Resize/Move] menu option is disabled, go to Partition / Unmount.
  • Resize the partition by dragging the right edge of the partition all the way to the right (click/drag the right edge).
  • When you are satisfied with the changes, click on the green check mark, "Return" arrow, or other "apply" control to execute these changes.

You're done!

What if you don't have a linux machine?

Bad luck (...just kidding...).
There are 2 options:

How to start the vnc server after installation:

  • Connect to the pi using SSH using a terminal (putty on windows):
    'ssh pi@x.x.x.x' (using the wlan ipaddress of the pi),
    password is 'raspi'.
  • Enter 'vncserver :10' (this will start a vncserver on display :10).

How to connect to the pi from another machine:

Using any vnc viewer, connect to: x.x.x.x:10 using the wlan ip address of the pi.
Password for the vncserver is 'raspberry'.
The remote desktop of the pi starts on your machine, you don't need a mouse, keyboard and monitor on the raspi anymore.

Before starting the server for the first time:

Click on the 'config' icon on the desktop, it will start a geany editor with the server config file (pskmailrc.pl in the .pskmail directory).
Change the following entries:

  • $Servercall
  • $smtpauthlevel (2)
  • $relay (your smtp server)
  • $smtptlsuser (smtp userid)
  • $smtptlspass (smtp password)
  • $smtptlsport (smtp port number, probably 587 for TLS)
  • $latitude
  • $longitude
  • $serverstatus (statusmessage on APRS)
  • $Aprs_beacon
  • $Use_rigctld (1)
  • $rigtype (hamlib type designation)
  • $rigrate (baud rate)
  • $rigdevice (USB port the radio is connected to)
  • $gpsportinfo (USB port the gps module is connected for the client)

In case you want to use the client only, you only need to set:

  • $Use_rigctld (1)
  • $gpsportinfo (USB port the gps module is connected for the client)

You are now ready to go...

Starting fldigi:

Click the fldigi icon on the desktop.

Starting the client:
Wait until fldigi is running, and Click the client icon on the desktop.

Starting the server:
Wait until fldigi is running, and Click the server icon on the desktop.

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last change 100415