How To – Winlink Mesh

Using the W4UVA Winlink Gateway via CVADN

Two Winlink gateways, WINLINK-GW-W4UVA and WINLINK-GW-KQ9P, are available over the CVADN mesh network. In Winlink Express, select “Telnet Post Office” under “Open Session”:

In the Telnet Post Office session, select “Add server”:

Configure the W4UVA gateway at DNS name “WINLINK-GW-W4UVA.local.mesh” or the KQ9P gateway at “WINLINK-GW-KQ9P.local.mesh”:

You should be able to Start a Winlink session over the CVADN Mesh network.

There may be other Winlink gateways available on the CVADN. Look for aliases of the form “WINLINK-GW-callsign”.

Originating peer-to-peer (P2P) via CVADN

It is also possible to make P2P connections over the CVADN mesh. The AREDN mesh node to which the computer receiving the P2P session is connected must have port 8774 forwarded to the computer’s local mesh IP address (assigned by the mesh node). Winlink Express must be running on the computer receiving the session. (It doesn’t matter which direction messages are flowing, only which computer is initiating the P2P session and which is receiving the session connection, just like over HF, VHF, or UHF.)

It appears to be important that the computer running Winlink Express on your node have a reserved IP address. If you have trouble, give that a try.

To establish a session, select “Telnet P2P” then click “Open Session”:

Select “Add station” to open the dialog window for configuration a station.

In the “Add station” dialog window, put the other station’s callsign in the “Name” field and their Winlink P2P alias in the “IP Address” field. The CVADN convention for Winlink P2P aliases is “YOURCALLSIGN-WINLINKP2P”.

“Save”, then proceed with a P2P session just as you would over HF, VHF, or UHF .

The other station should see:

Receiving incoming P2P connections

The only extra things you need to do to be ready for incoming P2P connections are:

  • create an alias on your node of the form “YOURCALLSIGN-WINLINKP2P”;
  • and ensure that Winlink Express is listening on the correct network connection.

If your node is configured for “n host Direct” addressing (the recommended configuration), you can create an alias on the “Port Forwarding…” page. This allows others to initiate a Winlink Telnet P2P session with your computer without knowing which node it is currently connected to. My alias looks like:

Winlink DNS Alias

If your computer has only one network interface the default should be fine. If you have multiple interfaces – like most laptops – check to see what address is shown when you first open the Telnet P2P session.

Telnet P2P listening

If the IP address doesn’t match the one assigned to you by your mesh node, you can change it in the “Settings” screen:

Telnet P2P Settings