Open hardware
Firmware
Every LoTek node runs the same open firmware, upgraded over the mesh in staged rollouts. 3,626 of 3,690 nodes are running the current release, 4.6.2.
How updates work
A release goes first to a few nodes in two volunteer networks, then to every network one hub’s area at a time. A node that fails to rejoin the mesh after upgrading rolls itself back. Offline nodes catch up when they return.
Release history
Fixes a channel-change stall on Gantry H5 hubs during radar avoidance, and reduces poll traffic on large networks.
Fixes from the Ashland Park installation, chiefly faster rejoining after a hub restarts.
Support for large same-weekend installations: nodes can be provisioned in batches and join in any order.
Maintenance release: fixes for older R4 radios and a slow memory leak on long-running hubs.
Rain fade fallback for 60 GHz links and battery reporting from Cellar modules.
Released early, for the spring of 2020: remote provisioning, so a new node can be configured before it reaches the roof.
24 GHz and 60 GHz backbone support for the Span P3 and Gantry H3.
Signed updates, staged rollouts and automatic rollback when an upgraded node fails to rejoin the mesh.
Hub support for the Gantry H2 and per-link quality reporting.
Moved routing from OLSR to Babel, which copes far better with links that change through the day. Dropped the welcome page.
Remote upgrades over the mesh, so stewards no longer climb a roof to update a node.
First release, for reflashed consumer routers: OLSR mesh routing, a captive welcome page and nothing else.