Additional Information

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Networking over internet

When, for instance, activating a special event callsign it is possible to network multiple DXLog.net stations over the internet.

Please be aware that a geographically distributed station is, with only a few exceptions, against the rules in contests

VLAN

The most secure way to do this is to rely on a VLAN (virtual LAN) software. There are several available such as:

LogMeIn Hamachi https://www.vpn.net/
FreeLan http://www.freelan.org/
Player.me https://player.me/
ZeroTier https://www.zerotier.com/
OpenVPN https://openvpn.net/

Each VLAN solutions have their own particular set up which is covered in their respective documentations.
With a VLAN solution, all DXLog.net configurations are the same as when operating in a regular LAN.

Port forwarding

If you are less worried about competitors or government agencies listening in on your contest data,
it is possible to route the traffic directly over the internet using port forwarding at the server.

Important security notice: This solution is not without risk. It offers no security or authentication.
Any DXLog.net station running the same contest configuration, knowing the URL or IP address and IP port of the
server can connect to the server station. There are no means to disconnect a station by force.

With a port forwarding solution, the following must be observed:

  • Only one of the stations should be configured as the server.
  • "Connect as client" should not be checked and "UDP network broadcast" should only be enabled if it is
used to communicate with another client on the same LAN.
  • The PC acting as server must have a fixed LAN IP address. This is done either by manually configuring the
PC to use a fixed LAN IP address, or by setting up the router in the server's LAN to to always allocate
the same IP address to it.
  • The internet connection used by the server PC must either have a fixed public IP
address or use dynamic DNS. Otherwise clients will not be able to reliable connect over the internet.
  • The server's IP port (default 9888) must be forwarded to the internet by configuring the router
connecting the server to internet. Only TCP traffic should be forwarded. DXLog.net UDP traffic
is broadcast and should only be used locally.


Serverconfig.png
Example configuration for server for networking over internet



Portforwarding.png
Example of port forwarding UI in router



  • All other PC in the multi-station set up should be set up as clients.
  • Over the internet, "Server IP" is either the public IP address of the server's internet
connection (e.g. 5.150.248.52) or the dynamic DNS address (e.g. hq.sm7iun.se). Clients connecting
over the internet does not have to enable UDP networking and should not enable a server.
  • A client may connect via UDP if it is on the same LAN as the server or a "master client".
A "master client" is a client that connects to the server using the "connect as client" option in
the networking set up panel. A "master client" can act as a UDP gateway which means that if
several computers on a LAN are part of the same multi station set up but the server is located
elsewhere, only one computer in that LAN needs to connect as a client and the rest can use UDP.


Clientconfig.png
Example configuration of client for networking over internet



  • In a multi-station setting it is recommended to enable Options->Networking->Don't allow QSO logging if operator isn't logged
  • Make sure Options->Enable network is checked.

COM port keying with Microham

The Microham USB device router is a powerful software. It offers two virtual, CAT-aware, COM ports for one radio.

However, if they are not both set to the speed of the radio or closed, the ports will stop working.

DXLog currently does not allow setting the speed of port used only for keying. And virtual serial port does not have a setting for speed in Windows' device manager.

To make sure a port used for only keying is opened at the right speed do the following:

Open the interface configuration panel.

  • Select the wanted port and check the enable box.
  • Select it as Radio 1 and click Setup.
  • Select a random radio model and set the correct speed.
  • Set the wanted keying (e.g. CW = DTR, PTT = RTS, Foot switch, Active with Radio 1, etc.)
  • Press OK
  • Change from "Radio 1" to "-". Do not click Setup.
  • Press OK