IRLP

IRLP - What is it?

IRLP (Internet Radio Linking Project) was created in 1997 by Dave Cameron VE7LTD with the aim of providing links, via the internet, between amateur radio installations. The key philosophy behind the project was and remains for it to provide these links so that amateurs with inexpensive transceivers, or licence classes with low power limits, had access to a worldwide network.

Hardware requirements

A stand alone Pentium PC, with at processor speed of at least 200MHz, at least 128MB of RAM, and hard drive capacity of at least 2GB. This is called the node computer.

A parallel port running LPT1

Soundcard

Ethernet port

Internet connection

Interface board. These are not construction projects, but are available from [the IRLP website.]

The alternative to this arrangement is an "embedded node" in which the IRLP system and the OS are programmed into the flash memeory of a computer with no hard drive. These computers do not hhave a fan and vome pre-loaded with all the node information as well as EchoIRLP. This allows IRLP and Echolink systems to run on the same node.

Operating System

IRLP runs on CentOS, which is based on Redhat EL. No Windows or Mac versions are available.

Some knowledge of command line instructions is advantageous, as there is not a GUI at time of writing.

RF Hardware

A radio or repeater that has COS (carrier operated squelch) capability. There are a number of radios that are suitable for this purpose. Information on some of these and how to connect them to the node computer can be found on the IRLP website.

Getting Help

An active user group can be found in Yahoo Groups here.