spyserver

SpyServer is a program that allows accessing Airspy or RTL-SDR dongle remotely through the internet or local network connection. r2cloud can connect to SpyServer like any other device to perform satellite observations.

Install

Follow the official guide on how to install and configure SpyServer: https://airspy.com/quickstart/

(Optional) Configure access to AirSpy device

By default only root can access AirSpy device. To make it available for non-root users:

1. Create a file:

sudo vi /etc/udev/rules.d/airspy.rules

2. Add the following:

SUBSYSTEM=="usb", ATTRS{idVendor}=="1d50", ATTRS{idProduct}=="60a1", GROUP="plugdev", MODE="0666", SYMLINK+="airspy"

(Optional) Create systemd service

Systemd can automatically start on boot and restart SpyServer on any failures. This can increase stability of the system. To add a SpyServer systemd service:

1. Create a file:

sudo vi /etc/systemd/system/spyserver.service

2. Add the following lines:

[Unit]
Description=spyserver Service

[Service]
WorkingDirectory=/etc/spyserver
ExecStart=/usr/bin/spyserver /etc/spyserver/spyserver.config
Restart=always

[Install]
Alias=spyservice.service
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Make sure SpyServer installed into /usr/bin/ and configuration available at /etc/spyserver/spyserver.config.

3. Enable the service

sudo systemctl enable spyserver

4. Start

sudo systemctl restart spyserver

Configure

Configure r2cloud at: ~/.r2cloud and add/change the following lines:

spyserver.devices=0
spyserver.timeout=10000
spyserver.device.0.host=localhost
spyserver.device.0.port=5555
spyserver.device.0.gain=20

Pay attention to the "gain" parameter. r2cloud supports both RTL-SDR and AirSpy via SpyServer. They support different gain settings.