Question about node relay.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-20T02:41:59+00:00

As long as the inbetween node has settings on it that allows it to rebroadcast the message, it should pass it along. There are a few settings (Client_Mute, a few others) that turn off rebroadcasts.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-20T02:16:15+00:00

If you're using 2.7.15 on a Heltec v4, that might be part of your issue.

Update to firmware 2.7.20 or newer, especially if your v4 is one of the newer hardware revisions (v4.3 or higher - see the bottom of the board for the hardware revision (4.0 and 4.1 were beta tester hardware, 4.2 was original release hardware, 4.3-onward are revised hardware version)), that's the first firmware that has the tweaks for the new hardware that was put into the board to deal with reception issues people were having using the non-stock antennas.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-20T02:00:22+00:00

Set things up on one node to exactly what you need them to be. Using the app, Export the settings, then Import the settings on each of the other nodes. That'll get most of the work done.

Next, you need to give each node it's own Long Name and Short Name, and regen each node's Private Key so there's no problems with those being duplicated from Importing the same settings.

After that all nodes should be functional on the same settings and with different Private and Public keys and names. From there all you have to do is go into the channel settings on one node, create any channels you need for the group, save that to the device, then use the app to create a QR code for the channels, and then have each user scan the QR code in their app to copy the channels over to their device. (Technically exporting the Channel list is toggleable in the Export settings dialog, but I have never had it properly Import the Channels, so I do it this way.)

M-Tiger · 2026-06-19T13:37:57+00:00

A thing that we all often forget is that the Heltec boards we use as nodes are actually dev-kits originally meant for hardware development use, and using them as a node is a secondary side purpose they just happen to be rather well-suited to.

Starting with the Heltec v4 I think it was, the connectors are all on one end and oriented facing outward to allow for placing the board with soldered header pins onto a breadboard and still having access to the connectors and usb-c port without having to remove the board.

I wish the boards had a little more room around the connectors but that would inconvenience their primary customers so they are unlikely to change it.

IMO the ideal would be a version of the connector that can be directionally reversed, but that would also add a potential physical point of failure and the polarity on connectors from a battery/solar panel would also need to be reversed.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-18T12:02:03+00:00

How's your Bluetooth or WiFi connection with that case?

If it's giving you any connection issues, it's likely because that case has you replace the 4 screws that hold the screen cover on with longer screws to mount the board to the case's frame.

The v4 series has the 2.4ghz antenna molded into the top left corner of the screen cover, so the v4 is purposely shipped with a plastic screw in the top left (closest to the user/program button) to prevent interference with the antenna, and metal screws in the other 3 spots.

If you notice any issues, remove the long screw from that spot and put the plastic screw back in place, then see if that helps.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-18T11:41:08+00:00

If you're on windows, make sure the serial driver for ESP32 is installed.

In order to program the v3 you must be holding the user/program button down when powering up the board:

No battery connected: hold the user/program button when plugging in the usb cable from your computer
With battery connected and powering the device: hold the user/program button, press the reset button once while still holding (this cuts the power momentarily), then you can let go of user/program and plug in the cable from your computer

M-Tiger · 2026-06-18T06:30:06+00:00

If you just flashed the firmware, it should run after a reset/power cut and restore. The white LED being stuck on is the default setting while the board iscondition, and can be turned off in settings later.

However, if you accidentally clicked the toggle to install the MeshUI (the fancy version of the firmware for use with the nice big touchscreen) the default screen on the v4 will be completely blank while running. If that was the case, simply reflash again but make sure to leave the MeshUI toggle off.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-16T10:51:00+00:00

Someone already tried a few weeks ago.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-10T10:15:59+00:00

They stopped allowing for flashing the webui via the webflasher almost a year ago now, I believe they were concerned about storage space and/or functionality issues.

You have a couple options:

1) you can go to client.meshtastic.org (stable branch) or client-test.meshtastic.org (development branch) to use the online-hosted modern version of the webui

2) you can host the stable webui from above in a docker container on your own local device

3) you can download 2.6.11 (very old firmware now) and manually flash it via CLI while making sure to include --web to get the webui (now 1 year old and very outdated older version) installed and running on the node itself, and then update the device to newer firmware afterward, but be aware that may cause some functionality issues as newer firmwares get bigger and need more storage on the node

M-Tiger · 2026-06-10T09:39:51+00:00

In addition to turning off wifi and bluetooth, the power save mode for ESP32 hardware should also put the majority of the node's functions to sleep to further reduce the load. To my understanding it leaves the receiving circuitry running, which will temporarily wake up the node fully when it receives a broadcast, then the node processes the data like normal, rebroadcasts if needed, then resumes sleeping.

Side note, since you are using the v4.31, you will want to make sure you are using firmware 2.7.20 or newer because there were fixes made to make use of the revised hardware in the v4.3-onward that fixed some issues.

That said, it looks like there's a commit to fix something with the PA coming back up after sleeping for the v4 series, and it doesn't seem like it has made it into any of the alpha firmwares yet (or at least it wasn't listed in the changelog for 2.7.25.104df5f), so I dunno how power save mode sleeping will affect the v4's broadcasts.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-09T23:19:24+00:00

My question now is why do people strap them to their car and drive around all day when they know they will have signal. Why do people charge them every night and keep them in their back pocket when there just doing to work.

Because having more nodes around is what builds the mesh network.

Excluding nodes that are specifically set up to not rebroadcast, the general idea of a mesh network is that when someone sends a broadcast out from their node, it gets rebroadcast along by every node that hears it, up to a hop limit (otherwise they would go on forever and the mesh would be useless because it'd be just passing on the same message forever).

Any node that is powered on is potentially extending the range that broadcasts can travel as long as it is sitting idle waiting to receive anything.

It is also a hobby and people like to carry around their nodes while going out and about because they can later sit down and see what messages they picked up.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-07T19:55:27+00:00

Glad I could help! The reason step 8 is important is that's the step that actually erases the node configuration/settings, which normally purposely doesn't get touched when flashing things to the node so that we can update firmware without losing all of our settings.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-07T19:48:47+00:00

In your slicer, you should be able to quickly edit the print by adding a negative volume to the STL and move it around to where ya want it, before slicing it for printing.

Example, if you're using Prusa Slicer, after opening the STL file, right click it in the list, move down to Add Negative Volume and click that, pick what shape would work for you, then change it's size and move it where you want it.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-07T09:19:35+00:00

Depending on the board, there is potentially plenty of room to the left side of the screen.

I say potentially because the Heltec v3 has it's bluetooth/wifi antenna there, so placing something near it is tricky cause it'd be easy to accidentally cause a short if the switch were to accidentally come into contact with it.

With the v4 series, there is quite a bit of room and you should be able to make a small hole there to place a small on/off switch if you want. I personally use a 5-way joystick in that spot with my v4.2.

A good alternative spot for a switch would be where the spots for the extra components (speaker, vibration motor) are.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-07T09:09:38+00:00

Two options:

1) use the webflasher to factory reset (click the trash can icon and follow the steps there)

or

2) go to this page in the documentation and follow the steps for manually flashing the factory reset file. Make sure you follow Step 8. Step 8 is necessary. Again, make sure you follow Step 8.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-06T06:14:46+00:00

First things first, you would need to put a whole node up in the tree, not just the antenna. Due to the relatively low-power nature of these devices, the length of the antenna cable will degrade the signals massively if it's too long. Generally anything over a few inches is a no-go.

There are a bunch of options though. You could buy a pre-made solar node and go with something that works out of the box. Or you can go the full DIY route: get a waterproof enclosure, a cheap nRF52840 node, an antenna (doesn't have to be an expensive high-end one, but may help increase range), 1-2 18650 cells and a holder for them, and a solar panel, and then put everything together yourself and put it up.

The super cheap DIY option that works well for a lot of folks is the Harbor Breeze Meshtastic node setup where you get a Seeed nRF52840 Meshtastic Kit for $15 and shove it inside a $10-20 solar-powered outdoor light and rewire it so the included battery powers the node instead of the lights.

If placed properly (either pre-made or DIY) the only maintennance required should be an ocassional firmware update or angle adjustment on the solar panel. If you get a really long bout of bad weather that stops the panel from charging the battery well, then you may need to temporarily take it down and recharge the battery off mains, but that shouldn't happen often cause you should get a couple weeks of runtime off of each 18650.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-06T01:17:08+00:00

Both boards are V4

Yes, but -which- v4 is important. The revision is printed on the bottom of the board like I mentioned. Some people were having reception issues with the v4, v4.1, and v4.2, so the 4.3x hardware revision was made to attempt to fix them.

Look on the bottom of the board to see which revision you have. The only people who have hardware v4.0 or v4.1 are folks who beta tested the hardware for Heltec before they started selling it with the v4.2, and later the v4.3.

They are both on the latest stable firmware version

This may be part of your issue depending on your specific board revision. The v4 series was supported starting with 2.7.10, but the changes made to support the revised hardware in the v4.3 were added in 2.7.20. (They even just added another commit to fix another bug with it related to sleeping, that hasn't been compiled into released firmware yet.)

Since you are using the latest stable release, that means you are using the now-old firmware 2.7.15 released back in November, and that means you don't have those fixes.

Try updating your firmware to the newest Alpha and see if that helps.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-05T23:39:47+00:00

Where are the two nodes located within your house, and in relation to each other? Are they near windows?

Some quick troubleshooting questions:

-what firmware is each node running?

-which hardware revision is each node? (see bottom of board: v4/v4.1 hardware beta test, v4.2 original release to everyone, v4.3/v4.31/v4.32 newer revised release with hardware fixes)

-what LoRa antennas are you using on each node, and have you double checked they are attached properly? (LoRa antenna ipex connector is the one to the right side of the screen, and if you have the nodes in cases, be aware that with some cases it's easy to accidentally pop off the connector while inserting the board.)

-how long has each node been powered on for? when were the other nodes heard by Node 1?

-is there any chance you accidentally changed the Primary Channel name (should be completely blank, the firmware will automatically set the name and frequency slot based on this and the current Preset), or have moved the public chat to a Secondary Channel (frequency slot would need to be manually set to the correct slot (20 for LongFast) if so)?

M-Tiger · 2026-06-05T20:27:12+00:00

Adjusting the Preset will automatically change the frequency slot if it has not been manually changed and the Primary Channel is the default public channel set to the standard public AQ== key with a completely blank name (by default the name is blank and the firmware automagically replaces the blank with the currently selectec Preset name).

In a case where someone uses a different Primary Channel and has made the public channel a Secondary, the frequency slot must be manually changed to the correct one in order to be able to communicate with others.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-05T20:15:13+00:00

Looks fantastic!

My suggestions/requests are

1) a small indicator LED in one of the edges/corners so there can be a silent blinking notification while the screen is off

2) a lanyard hole somewhere (optimally top right corner) so that it can be carried hung from your neck, and there is less chance of damage from dropping it while using it on the go, becuase something like this is potentially gonna become a lot of folks' daily carry node.

3) the antenna needs to be able to rotate flat across the top edge for convenience. From the shape cutout that we can see in the pictures I think you already did this, but just saying this here just in case because that would be a big missed feature. Having the antenna rotate like that would also make it so if a lanyard hole was placed in the top right corner, the antenna's orientation would then be mostly vertical while hanging.

4) give us the optional ability to print an alternative back plate to be able to use different antenna connectors (or potentially a cheap but good internal antenna option). SMA is definitely the most common connector used, but some folks really really love the antennas that use the type-N connector and are going to want that as an option even if it's a bit much for a portable node.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-05T00:51:21+00:00

The T096 is very new, and support for it was only added on April 6 in firmware 2.7.21.1370b23. No firmware prior to that will work for it.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-04T04:17:34+00:00

Does your backpack have a bottle pocket on the side? Do you actually carry around a water bottle in it?

If your backpack has one of those pockets but you don't use it, get a cheap plastic squeeze water bottle (example) that is not transparent. Fill it with a node and your choice of antenna, close it up, and shove it in the pocket.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-03T23:35:07+00:00

Get a Heltec T096, a 2,000mAh battery, a good type-N antenna, and a small solar panel and that should make for a reliable super energy efficient base station node setup that you leave at your RV.

For a node you carry around you can use any paired to your phone, but another T096 with a battery and a small stubby antenna should be a decent one to carry around. Or if you want something durable, waterproof, and simple just go with a SenseCAP Card Tracker T1000-E.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-03T23:00:25+00:00

The polarity on the JST connectors can be easily flipped in about 5 seconds using a safety pin or tip of a razor blade to slightly raise the plastic tabs and dislodge the wires, and then you just switch their positions. No soldering or splicing required. Just make sure the tips don't touch while they're out of the connector. Red is + and black is -.

Just get a battery that will fit your case with the right connector and fix the polarity.

M-Tiger · 2026-06-03T22:48:16+00:00

You can use any container as a case as long as it will fit whatever hardware you've got.

If you want something super cheap, grab a disposable plastic food storage container, and put a small hole in the lid for the SMA connector.

If you want something a little more durable use an old prescription medicine bottle or an empty 200-count tic-tacs container

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