Questions and fixes

afu-remote keys Icom rigs via CI-V. The rig then takes its audio from the source set under DATA OFF MOD, which out of the box is the microphone on the rig. The audio from the USB sound card is discarded, and only a carrier goes out on the frequency.

On the rig, under MENU › SET › Connectors › MOD Input, set DATA OFF MOD and, for FT8 and other data modes, DATA MOD to USB, or to MIC,USB if the hand mic should keep working.

Over the network (IC-705, IC-9700, IC-7610) the station switches this itself when keying and back afterwards, so there's nothing to set there.

Up to version 0.2.47, RTS and DTR were on when the serial port was opened. A rig that transmits on either line then went into transmit, for example an IC-7300 with USB SEND set to RTS or DTR. From 0.2.48 both are off. Quit the program immediately and move to the new version.

afu-remote keys via CAT. So you don't need USB SEND and USB Keying on the rig; leave them OFF (IC-7300: MENU › SET › Connectors › USB SEND / USB Keying). Otherwise, on Linux a pulse can get through for a few milliseconds when the port is opened.

Transmitting is off out of the box. In afu-remote.toml under [tx] set allowed = true and restart the program. Then on the control page under Settings you set which bands and power are allowed, and who may transmit.

If someone else is operating the station right now, you can only transmit once you've taken over.

That's the transmit protection at the station. If no sign of life comes from the browser for 1.5 seconds (Wi-Fi gone, tab in the background, phone locked), it releases the key (deadman_s). A single transmission lasts at most 180 seconds (tot_s). Both are under [tx] in the settings file.

If it cuts out on short overs, the connection is usually too slow or flaky. In direct access on the LAN that happens less often than over the mobile network.

Browsers only release the microphone over https. For direct access set tls = true under [local]. The program creates its own certificate on first start, and the browser warns about it once; confirm the warning for this address. Then open the page with https:// and the port, default 8073.

Via afu.tools the page is always https, so the problem doesn't come up there.

• Network control on (MENU › SET › Network › Network Control).
• A network user with a password (SET › Network › Network User). You enter both as lan_benutzer and lan_passwort under [rig].
• A fixed address on the network, otherwise afu-remote won't find the rig the next time it's switched on.

Under [audio] you then have input = "lan" and output = "lan", no sound card needed. The station switches the audio source for transmitting (DATA OFF MOD, DATA MOD) to the network itself when keying and back afterwards; turn that off with mod_umschalten = false under [rig].

Yes, with the IC-705, IC-9700, IC-7610 and IC-7300: the rig sends its spectrum along via CI-V, and the page shows it in place of the waterfall from the audio. Click into it to tune; span and mode are under Receive. The NF button on the panel brings back the waterfall from the audio (for FT8 or zero-beating in CW), HF brings back the spectrum.

Over the network it's on by itself. Over USB it uses a lot of the serial line, so there you switch it on with scope = true under [rig] (115200 baud).

The rig only allows one program at a time over the network. If the manufacturer's own remote software, another remote control program or a second afu-remote is running against the same rig, quit it. If it still hangs after that, the rig is holding on to the old connection: switch it off and on once.

User and password must be in the settings file exactly as in the rig under Network User. Upper and lower case matter.

Check the address; is network control on at the rig? The rig talks UDP on ports 50001 to 50003; if there's a firewall in between, they have to get through. Over Wi-Fi (IC-705) the connection drops with a weak signal, then the program reports “no longer responding” and reconnects.

The program sets up the connection to afu.tools itself, outbound over https. You don't need to open anything on the router. If the station still shows as offline:

• Is the program still running? Without a service it ends with the terminal you started it from.
• Did the setup say “paired with afu.tools (station key)”? If the station was deleted and created again on the control page, the program needs the new key: on the station's page under Settings › Station › General “Change setup” (or afu-remote setup) and paste the new key there (here's how).
• Can the computer reach the internet? On HAMNET without internet only direct access works.

afu-remote devices lists all serial ports and sound cards, afu-remote probe talks to the rig for 5 seconds and shows what it reports. On Linux the permissions are often missing: sudo usermod -aG dialout,audio $USER, then sign out and back in.

With Icom via USB, baud rate and CI-V address must match the rig (IC-7300, IC-705, IC-9700, IC-7610: 115200 baud; default addresses 0x94, 0xA4, 0xA2, 0x98). Leave “CI-V USB Echo Back” off on the rig.

Yes. With [local] enabled = true the program brings its own control page, at http://Rechner:8073/ (over https with tls = true). Accounts, settings and logs are then kept on the station. The [server] section can be left out.

On Linux and the Raspberry Pi, sudo ./afu-remote-linux-aarch64 dienst (in the folder with the settings file) sets up a systemd service that starts at boot and restarts after a crash. You can then see the program's output with journalctl -u afu-remote -f. On Windows, put a shortcut in shell:startup.

If it runs in the foreground, the output only appears in the terminal you started it from. For troubleshooting it's the most important thing: always include it when you ask a question.

One station per rig: create two stations on the control page, put the program in two folders and run the setup once in each (double-click or afu-remote setup). Everything the station saves sits next to its settings file, so the two don't get in each other's way. For direct access the second one needs a different port, for example port = 8074 under [local].

The service is always called afu-remote. So only one of the two can run as a service; for now you start the second one by hand.

When there's a new one, the control page tells you. It's installed at the push of a button, never by itself: the program downloads the new file, checks it and restarts. Settings, users and logs stay. What's changed is listed under Download the program.