Set up your node, step by step

About 20 minutes, most of it waiting. The Pi never needs a screen, keyboard, or mouse. If anything doesn't match what you see, stop and check the fixes at the bottom before improvising.

1BEFORE YOU START · 2 MIN

Lay out the pieces

  • Raspberry Pi and its power supply (don't plug in yet)
  • MicroSD card, 16 GB or bigger, and a way to plug it into your computer
  • RTL-SDR dongle with the antenna connected to it
  • Your computer, on the same WiFi the Pi will use
  • Your WiFi name and password, exactly as written — capitals matter
  • Your claim code from DockTalk, like DT-XXXX-XXXX
Pi Zero 2 W only: it can't see 5 GHz WiFi. Use your network's 2.4 GHz name. If your router shows one name for both, that's fine.
Bringing your own gear? Any VHF antenna that covers 156 MHz works (hams: your 2m vertical is perfect — there's a page for you), and the install command runs on any Debian or Ubuntu machine, not just a Pi. Already have a box up and running? Skip straight to step 5.
2FLASH THE CARD · 10 MIN

Put the operating system on the SD card

  1. Download and open Raspberry Pi Imager (free, official).
  2. Plug the SD card into your computer.
  3. CHOOSE DEVICE → your Pi model.
  4. CHOOSE OS → Raspberry Pi OS (other) → Raspberry Pi OS Lite (64-bit). Lite is correct — the node has no screen.
  5. CHOOSE STORAGE → your SD card.
  6. Click NEXT, then EDIT SETTINGS when it offers. This part matters:
    • Hostname: docktalk
    • Username: pi  ·  Password: invent your own and write it down. (Every node uses the username pi; your password is yours alone, and logging in only works from inside your home WiFi anyway.)
    • Configure wireless LAN: your WiFi name and password, country US
    • If it offers Raspberry Pi Connect, say No — that's a remote-access service the node must not run. Part of the deal is that nothing can reach into this box, including Raspberry Pi's own cloud.
    • SERVICES tab → Enable SSH → Use password authentication
  7. SAVE → YES → YES to erase the card. Writing and verifying takes about 5 minutes. When it says it's done, take the card out.
3ASSEMBLE · 2 MIN

Plug it together, power last

  1. SD card into the slot on the underside of the Pi.
  2. RTL-SDR dongle into any USB port. On a Pi 4/5, prefer a black USB port (the blue ones can add radio noise).
  3. Antenna by a window facing the water, as high as its cable allows.
  4. Power in last. A green light flickers — it's booting. Wait 3 minutes the first time; it's setting itself up and joining your WiFi.
SDR PI DOCKTALK ANTENNA 23 FT CABLE ADAPTER DONGLE RASPBERRY PI WIFI OUR SERVERS THE APP

End to end: from the airwaves to your phone. This is everything you just plugged together, and where it goes next.

4CONNECT · 2 MIN

Reach the Pi from your computer

Open Terminal (Mac: ⌘-space, type "terminal". Windows: open "PowerShell"). Type this and press return — it assumes you used the username pi and hostname docktalk from step 2 (if you chose your own, the pattern is ssh username@hostname.local):

ssh pi@docktalk.local
  • First time it asks "Are you sure you want to continue connecting?" — type yes, return.
  • Then it asks for the password from step 2. Nothing appears while you type — that's normal. Type it and press return.

You're in when the line ends with:

pi@docktalk:~ $
5INSTALL · 5 MIN

Paste your install command

Paste the exact command we sent you — it contains your claim code — and press return:

curl -fsSL https://docktalk.app/install | sudo bash -s -- --claim DT-XXXX-XXXX --docker
  • If it asks for a password, it's the same one again.
  • Then leave it alone for about 5 minutes. It claims your node, downloads the prebuilt receiver package, and starts it.
  • It ends with VERIFIED and your node's name. That's the moment your harbor is live.
Safe to re-run. If it stops with an error, read the last few lines — it says what's wrong in plain English (usually the dongle isn't plugged in). Fix that, press the up arrow to get the command back, and run it again. Your claim code is not wasted by a failed run.
6CONFIRM · 1 MIN

See it live

  • Open the network leaderboard — your node is on it, online, with channels counting up within a couple of minutes.
  • Close the terminal. The node runs on its own from here: it survives power cuts, reconnects to WiFi by itself, and needs nothing from you.
  • The off switch is the power plug. Unplug any time; plug back in and it resumes.
!WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG

Fixes, by symptom

You seeDo this
Could not resolve hostname docktalk.local The Pi isn't on WiFi yet. Wait 2 more minutes and retry. Still nothing: the WiFi name or password in step 2 was off by a character — redo step 2 (it's quick the second time) and reboot the Pi with the fresh card.
Connection refused Either the Pi is still booting (wait 2 minutes, retry) or the name is pointing at the wrong machine. Bypass the name: find the Pi in your router's device list (or phone app) and connect by its address, like ssh pi@192.168.1.42.
Permission denied when typing the password Wrong password. If you've lost it, redo step 2 with a new one — and write it down this time.
REMOTE HOST IDENTIFICATION HAS CHANGED Your computer remembers an older Pi by the same name. Run ssh-keygen -R docktalk.local, then connect again.
Installer: no RTL-SDR dongle found The dongle isn't seated. Push it in firmly (try another port), then re-run the install command.
Installer: claim code already used by another machine The code was redeemed on different hardware. If that was you (replaced a dead Pi, changed the hostname), email us — takes a minute to reissue.
VERIFIED printed, but the leaderboard shows offline Give it 2 minutes and refresh. Still offline: unplug the Pi, plug it back in, wait 3 minutes.
Anything else hello@docktalk.app with your node name and the last lines from the terminal. You never owe us debugging time.

Later on