Echo Link: Communication for radio amateurs
Michael Renner <michael.renner@gmx.de>
Version 1.0, 28. September 2003

This document aims to describe how to execute EchoLink, a windows software
for radio amateurs under Linux.


______________________________________________________________________

Table of Contents


1. Introduction


2. Hardware requirements

2.1 Network
2.2 Audio


3. Software requirements

3.1 Windows
3.2 Wine
3.2.1 Configuring Wine if you have a Windows partition
3.2.2 Configuring Wine if you don't have a Windows partition


4. Installing Echo Link

4.1 If you have Windows installed
4.2 If you haven't installed Windows


5. Using EchoLink

5.1 starting in the shell
5.2 starting using an alias
5.3 crearting an entry in the KDE start menu

6. Linux just as firewall or router

7. Open Source alternatives to EchoLink

7.1 echoLinux instead of EchoLink
7.2 KEchoLink instead of EchoLink
7.3 The Internet Radio Linking Project

8. Download ressources

9. Contact

9.1 Who wrote EchoLink?
9.2 Who is responsible for this HowTo?

______________________________________________________________________

1. Introduction

EchoLink [1] is software which allows Amateur Radio stations to communicate with
one another over the Internet, using voice-over-IP (VoIP) technology. The
program allows worldwide connections to be made between stations, from computer
to station, or from computer to computer.

EchoLink is only availabe for Windows, but many radio
amateurs prefer Linux; we therefore describe how to run the Windows version
of Echolink under Linux.



2. Hardware requirements

2.1 Network

First of all, you need a network connection to reach the EchoLink sever and to
connect to your communication partners. Remember that EchoLink uses a TCP/IP connection
for communication, not a two way radio! It does not matter if the network connection is
an ADSL, a modem- or an ISDN connection, as long as it is fast enought to
transport your digitised data.

2.2 Audio

To digitise your voice and to hear what the radio amateur at the other side
has to say, you need a soundcard supported by your linux system.
It does not matter if you use the kernel modules, the alsa driver or anything
else (like oss). It is likewise irrelevant whether your card is supported in duplex mode or not,
because EchoLink only use simplex mode, like in a real ham conversation on HF or VHF.
Of course, you need a microphone and a loudspeaker.



3. Software requirements

3.1 Windows

It is not nessesary to have a 'real' Windows installation on you linux box, but
if you have this it makes thinks a little bit easier!

3.2 Wine

Wine [2] is an Open Source implementation of the Windows API on top of X and Unix.
Install and setup Wine if not already done.
If you use one of the rpm based distributions go to

http://rpmfind.net

and search for the Wine packages suitable to your distribution.
If you use Debian be happy and install Wine from the network:

# apt-get install libwine wine winesetuptk

3.2.1 Configure Wine if you have a Windows partition

Mount your windows partition read-only, e.g. with this entry in the /etc/fstab:

/dev/hda2 /mnt/C ntfs ro,umask=002,gid=100 0 0

Configure Wine to use this directroy as drive C:\ by making an entry in the
~/.wine/config file

[Drive C]
"Type" = "hd"
"Path" = "/mnt/C"
"Label" = "/mnt/C"
"FS" = "win95

It is a good idea to have a second writable drive, since you can
use it to store configuration values and applications. We call this drive 'D:\'.
You can generate a directory DOS in your HOME and configure Wine to use this
as drive 'D:\' with an entry in the config file:

[Drive D]
"Type" = "hd"
"Path" = "/home/renner/DOS"
"Label" = "DOS"
"FS" = "win95"

Use the graphical configuration application winesetuptk to make configuration eassier.

3.2.2 Configure Wine if you haven't have a Windows partition

If you don't have a Windows partition it is highly recommended to use
winesetup, which generates a fake Windows infrastructure.
Choose the winesetup option 'install fake windows'. This
creates the directory .wine/fake_windows in your HOME. The directory will be
used as drive C:\
You need to copy an original WINSPOOL.DRV from a 'real'
Windows system to your Windows/System/winspool.drv and modify your .wine/config file
to replace the entry

"winspool.drv" = "builtin, native"

in the section '[DllOverrides]' with

"winspool.drv" = "nativ"

to use this file instead of the built in functions.



4. Installing Echo Link

Download EchoLink and execute the binarie file.

4.1 If you have Windows installed

If you have a Windows partition and want to use this application with
Windows as well as under Linux, it is a good idea to install it under Windows and execute
the same binary file under both operation systems. You save a litte bit space on your
hard disk; more importantly, maintainance of your installation
is not doubled! Just start the installation programme and install echolink
to 'C:\Programme\K1RFD\EchoLink\', configure your
call and name, and then choose a password. When the installation is complete,
boot your Linux and continue with point 5.


4.2 If you haven't installed windows

Download the installation binary and execute it with wine:

$ wine EchoLinkSetup_1_6_848.exe

Wine will come up after a while (this first start may take some time, because
many fonts have to be rendered). Then follow the installation instructions,
choose 'C:\Programme\K1RFD\EchoLink\' as installation target, and so on.



5. Using EchoLink

5.1 starting in the shell

Run the application by running EchoLink in the Wine environment

$ wine C:\Programme/K1RFD/EchoLink/EchoLink.exe

or

$ wine /mnt/C/Programme/K1RFD/EchoLink/EchoLink.exe

if you prefer this notation.

EchoLink should start and connect to the EchoLink server by itself if your network is up.
As soon as you see the stations in the right frame, you can connect to
other stations and they to you. In the lower right
corner of the EchoLink window is a small text field for text (chat) conversation.
To copy and paste text between your
Linux desktop and the EchoLink window, use 'crtl v' to insert text
into your text line, and 'ctrl c' to copy text from the chat window.

5.2 starting using an alias

If you want, you can define an alias in your ~/.bashrc or,
if you prefer the csh, in your ~/.cshrc:

alias echolink='wine C:\Programme\K1RFD/EchoLink\EchoLink.exe'

5.3 crearting an entry in the KDE start menu

As a KDE user you may want to have an entry in your menu to start
EchoLink direct. Therefore start the Menu Editor under 'Settings/Menu Editor'.
Mark the 'Internet' entry and klick to the 'New Item' button. You have to complete
at least four fields.
Name -> EchoLink
Comment -> EchoLink DD0UL
Command -> wine C:\Programme\K1RFD/EchoLink\EchoLink.exe
Type -> Application

You can, if you want, choose an other icon, but it is not required.
If you have installed the EchoLink application into an other directory
you have to specify your path of course. You have also to write your own
call into the comment line, not mine ;-)
Press the 'Apply' botton when you have made your entries. After that you find
EchoLink in the internet section of the KDE startmenu.



6. Linux just as firewall or router

If you use Linux at your firewall or router you have to
forward two UDP ports to the maschine where EchoLink should run.
Assume you have only one IP-Address to the internet side and NAT is
already configured just forward the ports 5198 and 5199 to the maschine
with EchoLink (no matter if this maschine runs with Windows or with Linux).

You can do this by adding some commands to your firewall start script. In the
following example are some variables used:

ECHOIP: the IP-Address of the internal maschine with EchoLink installed
IPT: your iptables binary, e.g. /sbin/iptables
INT: internet interface, e.g. ppp0

# EchoLink to lyra
ECHOIP="192.168.2.92"
$IPT -t nat -A PREROUTING -p udp --dport 5198 -i $INT -j DNAT --to-destination $ECHOIP
$IPT -t nat -A PREROUTING -p udp --dport 5199 -i $INT -j DNAT --to-destination $ECHOIP

After a reload of the firewall rules every access from outside to the ports 5198 and 5199
are forwarded to the named destination maschine.
Please note that only one maschine in your private (NAT) network can use EchoLink!



7. Open Source alternatives to EchoLink

There are less Open Source applications out there using the ilink/echolink protocoll
to be compatibe with EchoLink and the EchoLink login server.
This may be a result of the 'closed source' policy of the EchoLink developers.

7.1 echoLinux instead of EchoLink

echoLinux [4] is an Open Source application for the console. You can download and compile
it without problems. Due echoLinux only supports a subset of the functions EchoLink has
it's usage is restricted to the main features.
Because the GUI for echoLinux (echogui) bases on xforms you must be a real enthusiastic
to use it.

7.2 KEchoLink instead of EchoLink

There is an other project try to create a more handy EchoLink compatible application
including a GUI: KEchoLink [5]. It is a KDE application depending on Qt.
There are no files published now.

7.3 The Internet Radio Linking Project

The aim of the Internet Radio Linking Project (IRLP) is to provide a simple and easy system
to link radio systems together using the Internet as the communications backbone.
Although it runs under Linux it requires additional hardware. And it is not interoperabe
with EchoLink and it's servers.



8. Download ressources

[1] EchoLink: http://www.synergenics.com/el
[2] wine: http://www.winehq.org
[3] EchoLink Linux Howto: http://hyaden.dyndns.org/HOWTO/
[4] CQiNet: http://cqinet.sourceforge.net/
[5] KEchoLink: http://sourceforge.net/projects/kecholink/
http://kecholink.sourceforge.net/
[6] The Internet Radio Linking Project: http://www.irlp.net/



9. Contact

9.1 Who wrote EchoLink?
EchoLink war written by Jonathan Taylor K1RFD <k1rfd@kirfd.com>

9.2 Who is responsible for this HowTo?
Michael Renner is the author of this HowTo [3]. You can contact me by email: michael.renner@gmx.de