Optional gateway prototype

Try messaging through a LoRa gateway

Connect Lamplighter to external Meshtastic USB radios through a computer at each end.

Before you start: A build with Connect LoRa gateway, the gateway helper ZIP linked below, and a computer/browser plus a compatible Meshtastic USB radio at each end. The helper needs Python 3.12 and separately installed dependencies; it includes its browser page. Internet is needed to install the dependencies initially.

Step by step

Download and check the helper.
Download the gateway ZIP and its SHA-256 checksum below. Compare the ZIP checksum, extract the complete folder, and run python3 verify.py (or py -3.12 verify.py on Windows) to check its included files. Follow README.md to create the Python environment and install the pinned dependencies. Keep the folder together.
Prepare both gateway computers and radios.
Follow the helper’s README to install its dependencies and select the correct USB device and the other gateway’s radio node. Configure the radios for the appropriate local region and matching channel settings. The prototype uses computer USB gateways; it does not directly pair a phone with a LoRa accessory.
Create a local invitation.
Keep the reader and its gateway computer on the same Wi-Fi or hotspot. Start the helper and open its local gateway page on that computer. Choose Create invitation. Do not expose the helper’s local control server to the network.
Pair the reader with its gateway.
In Lamplighter, open Contacts & messages → Connect → Connect LoRa gateway. Scan or paste the invitation. Put the reader’s reply into the gateway’s Reader’s reply field and choose Use reply. Compare the confirmation codes, then choose Codes match · connect on both screens only if they match.
Repeat at the other end and test a short message.
Pair the second reader to its own gateway. Keep both apps and gateway pages open. Verify the contact, send a short private message, and wait for the recipient’s delivery receipt. A gateway accepting a packet only means it queued it locally; radio exchanges can take several minutes.
Stop the connection when finished.
Choose Stop connections, lock the reader, or close the gateway page. Stop the helper process when finished. A packet already handed to the radio cannot be recalled, and the radio’s firmware may continue its own traffic after the app closes.

What to keep in mind

The gateway download remains version 1.11.93. Rebuilding it from the 1.11.95 app source produced exactly the same ZIP; a new filename would not change its contents. The physical test versions and limits below still apply.

Nearby desk tests passed private messages and authenticated receipts in both directions through two MuziWorks H1 radios. A Samsung A14 also exchanged messages and receipts over Bluetooth to a Linux Chromium relay, through both radios, and onward to a separate reader. That mixed route used Android 1.11.90 and PWA 1.11.91 and required experimental Web Bluetooth on Linux. A separate lost-control-packet test recovered after about seven and a half minutes with the normal slow-radio retry schedule.

On the same radios, a group invitation required acceptance before a group message arrived. A courier kept a sealed private message through a process restart and 30 actual minutes locked, then delivered it when the recipient connected later; the sender received confirmation only after the sealed receipt returned. A 426-byte synthetic library resource resumed from its encrypted checkpoint after hiding and restarting. A second offer required fresh acceptance and completed without storing a second copy.

These are nearby tests, not field-range, multi-repeater, battery-life, or multiweek endurance qualification. They do not establish compatibility with stock Bitchat or ordinary Meshtastic text clients, direct phone-to-radio accessories, or iPhone radio operation. Windows and Mac helper runtime and USB drivers still await qualification. Group messaging was live; group store-and-forward delivery is not implemented. Physical courier carriage of library resources has not been qualified.

Share library offers an explicit Allow slow LoRa delivery choice. Resources travel as encrypted chunks and need a return path for confirmed progress. Whole Bibles can take days or months, so use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth when possible. Installers and public plaintext chat do not use this radio path. Keep the slow-radio option off for ordinary nearby library transfers.

Long-term courier delivery requires updated Lamplighter contacts and an explicit trusted-courier choice. Sealed messages can be carried for up to 30 days, with bounded copies and queues. The 30-minute physical check and receipt, expiry, and retry software checks do not establish multiweek retention, physical long-distance delivery, or continuous background operation.

The local reader-to-gateway connection uses authenticated WebRTC. Message content stays encrypted inside the radio framing, but discovery names, public keys, radio identifiers, packet sizes, and timing are metadata. Encryption does not guarantee safety, privacy, radio silence, or delivery. Both endpoints need this gateway; ordinary Meshtastic text clients and upstream Bitchat clients do not provide this prototype path.

All Lamplighter how-tos · Downloads and installation

Try messaging through a LoRa gateway

Step by step

Download and check the helper.

Prepare both gateway computers and radios.

Create a local invitation.

Pair the reader with its gateway.

Repeat at the other end and test a short message.

Stop the connection when finished.