Script for repeater check in via DTMF

1

Hello group,

We have 14+ repeaters linked by RF to a UHF repeater, we have our ASL node listing to the hub repeater, would like to program each repeater to send a DTMF code out each night and for the ASL node to decode it and make a status page to see if the repeaters checked in over night. is there anything out that would do that, or even possible.

Thanks
WV8CH 518581

2

Sure. Add a unique DTMF string for each remote repeater that logs it’s “check-in” to a log file to /etc/asterisk/rpt.conf. Something like this:

[functions]
80001 = cmd,echo "$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S') Alpha checked in!" >> /var/log/asterisk/rptcheckin.log
80002 = cmd,echo "$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S') Bravo checked in!" >> /var/log/asterisk/rptcheckin.log
80003 = cmd,echo "$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S') Charlie checked in!" >> /var/log/asterisk/rptcheckin.log
80004 = cmd,echo "$(date '+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S') Delta checked in!" >> /var/log/asterisk/rptcheckin.log
; JUST AN EXAMPLE - COME UP WITH YOUR OWN DTMF CODES
; Copying/pasting this will probably clash with existing DTMFs in your rpt.conf file

If you program your remote repeaters to execute the DTMFs 10 mins apart, you’d end up with a log file at /var/log/asterisk/rptcheckin.log that looks something like this…

2025-01-10 00:00:00 Alpha checked in!
2025-01-10 00:10:00 Bravo checked in!
2025-01-10 00:20:00 Charlie checked in!
2025-01-10 00:30:00 Delta checked in!

Customize as necessary to get the log formatted how you want, then parse/display the log contents on your webpage.

3

thanks, now to start building micros on the repeaters for this. 73 thanks again

4

In my opinion, there are other methods that may be more appealing.

One is to use IAX TEXT.
And the other is to just use a connect log and email that from the system via cron/scheduler.

5

The post says they are trying to do this with RF linked machines, not IAX/app_rpt linked machines.

6

Yep, went right over my head.
I might try a ctcss signaling and ‘tone macro’ as an option. Written to a log and emailed.
DTMF can be disruptive and unreliable when you don’t know what other audio may get mixed with it at random times. I had a similar effort and experience in 2012…