K7GApacket

MAPS AND INFO GENEROUSLY SUPPLIED BY FRANK WOLFE, NM7R (DEC DISTRICT 3)

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                OBSERVATIONS BY FRANK, NM7R: PACKET SYSTEM IN OREGON

Dick had a question about the way AST and JAY work. In answering him, it occurred to me that others might not be completely up to speed on this aspect of
packet in the Pacific Northwest.

The following information would be very hard to put on a map or ”cheat sheet”, so consider it background and general orientation.

In our neck of the woods, our packet network is primarily on 2-meters at 1200 baud. There are advantages to this scheme. First is cost. All we are buying is
single TNCs and radios. Another advantage is the linking is ad hoc. If a node goes down, we can usually find a path around it. This is a big advantage of this style,
what I'd call a "simple", packet network.

The Oregon Packet scheme is "different" than what we have up here, north of the Columbia. It goes back to the 1980's, and Hank, W0RLI. Hank is still around,
and still active in packet radio. His plan was to have "One Network". He fostered, Elmer-ed, and cajoled sysops all over Oregon to use unique local 2-meter
frequencies, so each area had a Local Area Node as the focus. Then he built up an extensive network of 220 and 430/440 (9600 baud) backbone links that tied it
all together. Most of this still exists, although many of the nodes no longer seem to have functioning 2-meter ports. There are mailboxes on the Net, which
forward messages, a very high level of functionality for such a network. This all came about before there was an Internet.

When Jay set up the Astoria nodes, many years ago, he followed the scheme as recommended by Hank. So, one node on Wikiup was set up on 144.96 and the
other, originally on the water tower on Skyline Drive in west Astoria, now at the water tank at the same location, was set up on 144.93. The 30 kHz channel
spacing (vs. the 20 kHz popular for the last decade or more) hints at the system's antiquity.

One of the nodes in the system is HCKNSN, at Hickinson, OR, near Brush Prairie. There is a 433/438 link between it and JAY. AST is also linked to HCKNSN by
a parallel link on the same UHF link frequencies. So, although JAY and AST are on different 2-meter frequencies, and there is no direct link between them, they
are both tied to HCKNSN, and so can talk to each other that way.

HCKNSN has a 2-meter port, aimed at CEDAR. From CEDAR, there are high-speed backbone connections to a number of other nodes. PARET and DMASCS are
nodes owned by w0rli, and are also connection hubs for the backbone system. See Hank’s web page at:
http://www.w0rli.net

So, to make the link into the Oregon network, you can use 144.93 and call AST or ASTMB. You are aiming at a station on Skyline Drive, at the water tank.
When you drive to Astoria on the Megler bridge, as you come down off the high span, and before you start to turn, the water tank is behind the trees, up and to
the right about 30 degrees. The antenna is a mobile whip on the west end of the building roof. The UHF link antenna is a whip on the east end of the roof.

Or, you can use 144.96 and call JAY (or via SHEP, which is the digipeater callsign), aiming at a station on Wikiup, co-located with the 146.66 repeater, with a
gain vertical. Wikiup is 3000 feet and 15 miles east of Astoria. It's the first ridge, with Knappa on one side and the Big Creek drainage on the other. If you
wanted to, you could digipeat through the 144.96 digi at my place in Nahcotta, nm7r-9. It uses a 4-element yagi pointed ESE at Wikiup.

The third choice is to use 145.63, the Pacific County frequency, and digi via nm7r-10, the dual-frequency "bridge" at Nahcotta. This will pass your packets
through to 144.96, and the return signals back to 145.63. The radio on 145.63 has a gain vertical at about 90 feet above sea level.

Also on 145.63, you can use nm7r-8 to digi in-frequency to Geoff's RMS node in Cathlamet, "c k7ga-10 v nm7r-8". My place happens to line up pretty well with
the Naselle Valley. The signal funnels down the valley, over Deep River, out over and up the Columbia to Cathlamet. It's one of the reasons I decided to put the
digi up in the first place. It should serve Naselle and give us access to K7GA-10.

I just couldn't figure out how to put all that on a map. If you connect to JAY, and use the "nodes" command, you will get an idea of just how complex things are to
the south of us...

To make an onward connection from JAY generally requires specifying a port number. JAY has two ports. Port 1 is the 144.96 local 2-meter frequency. Port 2 is
the 430 backbone to HCKNSN. On AST (which is the same machine as ASTMB) there is a similar arrangement, except that port one, the 144.93 side, is called
“ax1”, and port 2, the backbone side, is called “ax2”. You can get a listing of ports with the “Ports” command at any node. If you get something that doesn’t make
sense to you, it may mean that it has no other radio ports.

To go anywhere on the Oregon Net from either JAY or AST, you must first connect to HCKNSN, and then to CEDAR. This gets you into the Portland Metro area,
and near the hubs. Connect to DMASCS, and then to RLIRMS, also called w0rli-2. This is a Winlink RMS station in the south Portland area.

From CEDAR or DMASCS you can connect over the backbone to LYONS, and then locally to W7AEP-10 in Albany, OR. This is one of the few RMS stations that is
set up on the local port frequency from its Local Area Node.

The Oregon Packet Net has a lot of advantages where speed is concerned. The weak point may be if one of the permanent links goes down. There isn’t much
provision for a ‘work around’, possibly removing this alternative.

It was recently discovered that there is a good RMS PACKET NODE near Portland.. Ken K7IQI, who is CEDAR, has an RMS port to WINLINK on 145.63 that is
easily reached from the NICOLI NODE - it's alias is IQICMS (K7IQI-2).

Packet Notes, Updated December 18, 2009 de nm7r
History
Packet radio blossomed in the 1980’s. It was part of the first wave of personal computing, BEFORE the Internet. At the time, many computer enthusiasts
would set up Bulletin Boards accessible using a phone line and modem. Packet radio was an extension of this into the Ham radio world. At one time a robust
packet network existed in what is now WWA RACES District Three. This was eroded over time, partly due to apathy and some resources being siphoned off
to support APRS. The packet network that exists today is little different from that era, in many respects. However, there are some new twists. From an
Emergency Communications (EmCom) standpoint, interconnection with Internet email is a huge asset. The Winlink2000 (WL2K) network brings with it a
generous amount of connectivity and a reliable infrastructure. From an EmCom standpoint, getting a message to a WL2K station is almost a guarantee of
delivery, at least to a recipient with active email service. Camp Murray staff have mentioned that email may be their preferred way of receiving messages
in a disaster, and the WA State ECC will “always” have Internet connectivity.

Exploring EmCom Alternatives in Western Washington

One problem we frequently experience out at the coast during major storms is Internet outages. In the winter of 2007, we lost all long distance phone and
Internet service in Pacific County. So my first goal was to find and check out as many WL2K Remote Message Server (RMS) stations as possible, for use
during a disaster. In this arena, “more is better”. First, because we don’t know what stations will be left standing and operational after an “event”, with
station equipment, antennas, power and Internet all intact. Second, while the nodes and digipeaters (digis) in our network are generally capable of supporting
multiple simultaneous connections, many BBS stations cannot support multiple simultaneous connections. These one-customer-at-a-time stations can be
bottlenecks for our traffic. RMS stations generally can handle multiple simultaneous connections, increasing our chances of connecting with one that can take
our traffic in a timely manner. (See accompanying Maps) Having an RMS station in your local area is fun and convenient. But for Emcom work, having a number
of distant RMS stations available is what is called for. If you have local Internet service, you would just send an email. It is when you don’t have Internet
that the RMS stations become most valuable, and in this case you need one that still has connectivity. HF Pactor is a great solution to this problem, but
beyond the scope of this essay. In addition to the RMS stations available on our 145.63 “Western Washington EOC” frequency, there are several available
on 145.01, the common Puget Sound frequency, through the Capitol Peak Packet (CPP) bridge (via n7ujk-10): KC7HXC-10; KB2SKP-10 and K7EK-4 can all be
accessed from the SEA node on 145.01. K7EK-4 is the RMS that goes by the alias “TELPAC”. KB2SKP-10 is in Kitsap County, and is accessible from SEA,
but not from CPP directly. Chris (sysop) says he cannot work any of the Capitol Peak repeaters from his place on Hood Canal, but his station is battery and
generator backed up and he almost never looses Internet due to weather. He also says his station can support multiple simultaneous connections (he has
watched 3 at one time). The Capitol Peak Packet (CPP) bridge is a digipeater, not a node. You do not connect TO it, but THROUGH it using the “via”
command. There are two frequencies and three call signs associated with the bridge. N7UJK-8 is the call for digipeating on 145.63, N7UJK-9 will digi on
145.01, and N7UJK-10 will pass packets through from one frequency to the other, in either direction. So, from the 145.63 side, it is possible to work into
Puget Sound using “c sea v n7ujk-10”. When connecting through to the 145.01 side, SEA node is a suitable target, while when coming the other way, through
to the 145.63 side, MINOT is a good target. CPP is at 2800-feet overlooking Olympia and south Puget Sound. It gets into Camp Murray very well. Kitsap
EmCom packet is on 223.58 (6 stations). The Kitsap EOC station is KD7WDG, and there is a node at KD7WDG-7 with two ports: 145.01 and 223.58.
There is also a node at the Red Cross office, K7ORY-12 that has two ports: 223.58 and 145.63. It is possible to connect with K7ORY-12 from ELYSSA.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to get from KD7WDG-7 directly to KB2SKP-10 on 145.01 due to low antennas and high intervening terrain, but the
connection can be made using SEA. This could provide a path between 145.63 and 145.01 (to SEA) in the event of a CPP failure. In the Kitsap system, when
connected to a node, to connect onward on the same frequency use “C <call>”, or to connect on the ‘other’ frequency (cross over) use “X <call>”. In the case
of a widespread disaster, finding an RMS station that is still operational, including Internet service, may take some hunting. With our focus on Western
Washington, and access to stations in Cathlamet, Centralia and several suburbs of the Puget Sound area, the chances are reasonably good. An alternative is
to connect directly to W7EMD, the Camp Murray packet mailbox, on 145.63.

Exploring EmCom Alternatives elsewhere

But, the prudent planner doesn’t overlook alternative resources, and we should not ignore looking south. So, I have installed a cross-frequency bridge for
South Pacific County, allowing us to move packet signals over to the Oregon system. In the Astoria area are three RMS stations: W7BU-10 (144.96
/Warrenton PD); N7AST-10 (144.93/Clatsop EOC); KD7IBA-10 (145.01/Warrenton). The bridge system crosses over to 144.96. Similar to the operation
of CPP, the South Pacific County bridge uses NM7R-8 to digi on “our” side (145.63), NM7R-9 to digi on “the far side” (144.96) and NM7R-10 to cross over,
in either direction. This allows us to connect to “JAY” node (c jay v nm7r-10). The JAY node has two “ports”, one (1) on 144.96 and the other (2) a UHF
backbone to Portland. You should specify the port for a connection. This is done after the “C” and before the callsign, with a space on either side. For
example, we can connect to the local Warrenton RMS with (c 1 w7bu-10). Another way to connect to this RMS is through a digi at the site of the 146.74
repeater, above Arch Cape, W7BU-5. The command would be (c w7bu-10 v nm7r-10, w7bu-5). The digi alias for the JAY node is “SHEP”. You can also
reach the RMS with (c w7bu-10 v nm7r-10, shep). To reach the RMS station at the Clatsop EOC, you would first connect to the AST node. Although it is
on a different frequency (144.93), from JAY you can connect to it through the backbone with (c ast). From AST, you connect on port 2 (ax2) with the
command (c ax2 n7ast-10). Many of the stations on the Oregon net have multiple ports. The PORTS command (p) will list them if they exist. The numbering
scheme varies from station to station (a function of software version) and you must use the correct indicator for the port you want to use. The KD7IBA-10
node is at Nate’s (sysop) house in Warrenton. He uses it as a “private” RMS, but will switch it to 144.93 or 144.96 if one of the other two nodes goes
down. If one of them doesn’t respond, try this one on the open frequency.

Portland

The Internet service for north Pacific County comes in over fiber optic cable along Hwy 6, and is notoriously vulnerable to slide damage. Similarly, the south
County Internet comes from Clatsop County, and is tied to the Switch in Vancouver, WA, by a “loop” that follows Hwy 30 and Hwy 26 for redundancy. We
learned in the winter of 2007 that this doesn’t insure continued connectivity. So, again, looking for alternative resources, and recognizing a large and mature
packet infrastructure in the Portland area, I began to look for connections in that direction. The closer we can get to the Interstate 5 corridor, the more
likely we are to find a functioning station. Hank, W0RLI, (http://www.w0rli.net) is an institution in Packet radio. Most of the nodes in Oregon run his
firmware, and he has developed quite a network. The basis of the packet system is moving traffic, automatically, between BBS stations. It is possible to
connect to RMS stations. So far the first example I have collected is: connect to JAY; connect to DMASCS, connect to W7GC-11. This is an RMS that
supports the Mount Hebo operation near Tillamook. Since this is on the coast, and vulnerable to winter storm damage, I will be looking for more. One item to
note is that a cornerstone of the W0RLI world is message forwarding. If the network is intact, you should be able to leave a message at any participating
BBS (this includes ASTMB on 144.93) and have it forwarded through the network to the addressee’s “home” BBS. The mailboxes in the Oregon network,
predominantly forward traffic automatically. Once you declare a “home” mailbox, messages properly addressed to you will find their way to this home
mailbox. The closest such mailbox is ASTMB in Astoria, on 144.93. From the JAY node, send “c astmb” to be connected to the mailbox. For National Traffic
System (NTS) messages, the command is “ST” (rather than the usual “s” or “sp”), followed by “NTS”, the State and Zip of the recipient. The command looks
like: “ST NTS WA 98637”. The subject is “QTC”. The message is sent in NTS format with Number, Precedence, Handling, Station of Origin and Check in
the first line. Follow this with the recipient’s name and address, and a blank line. The body of the message is next, and finally, the Signature. End with a
“/EX” on a line by itself to close the message. These messages will be autoforwarded to the NTS for handling. This might be a possible way to handle
Welfare messages.

Telnet

In my discussions with other Packeteers, I picked up a tip from N7HAE that at least one Portland station is accessible from Telnet. Telnet is the remnant of
ARPAnet, the original Internet. It is the foundation upon which the Internet is built, and operates very much like the packet network, only faster. To use
Telnet, you need Telnet Client software (available on the Internet for free download in a number of places). If you use a Mac, open your Terminal program
(in the Utilities that came with the computer) and type “Telnet” and return. Telnet is command-line and text-only, like packet. Telnet is the model upon
which packet was originally designed. I remember using Telnet to connect between nodes when I was using HF Packet about 15-20 years ago. Apparently, a
lot of packet nodes still have a Telnet connection. There is a backdoor into the packet network from Telnet. In Telnet, the command on my terminal is: “open
dmascs.w0rli.net 23”. The “23” is the port number and may not be necessary, or may have to have a colon before it instead of a space in your case. This
should give you a connection and ask for a Login. Use your callsign. It then asks for a Password. Just hit a “return” (no password). You are now connected to
one port of the DMASCS packet node in Portland. The packet station will act on all packet commands entered over Telnet as if they came in over the air.
The command set is a little different than what we are used to here in Pacific County, because all of these TNCs are running “SNOS” custom software.
Type “i” and return and you should see the information block for the DMASCS station, near Portland, OR. To connect to the JAY node, type “c #AST6”. From
this computer connection, anywhere in the world, over the Internet, it is possible to connect to one of our packet mailboxes and leave messages, read
messages or kill messages, just as you would locally over the air. I used this to connect to Michael’s mailbox and leave him a message. I used Telnet from my
computer on the Internet to connect to DMASCS in Portland as detailed above. Then I sent “c #AST6”, and got a message saying I was connected to “JAY”
on Wikiup. Then I sent “c 1 n7bbq-1 v nm7r-10”. I received Michael’s mailbox sign on. I used “sp n7bbq” to send him a message, and “b” to break all the
connections, all the way back to my computer. It is interesting to note that a similar scheme could be used, for those outside our immediate area, to leave
mail for us, or pick up mail addressed to them. They could even connect to one of our keyboard stations for a one-on-one contact. They would only need a
local Internet connection for their computer, and could connect to our local packet BBS’s even though our Internet was down. For an EmCom participant who
found himself out of the area, this could be a possible route in.

More Experimentation

“k7iqi.dynalias.net” is the Telnet log-on for CEDAR. The command would be: “open k7iqi.dynalias.net 23”. A new RMS has showed up: “RLIRMS:W0RLI-2”
(2/15/09). From JAY connect to DMASCS, and then to RLIRMS or W0RLI-2. The speed is very fast. I suspect most of the path is in the 9600-baud
backbone. Very nice addition, and being in SNOS, the call sign doesn’t have an SSID when it arrives at Winlink. I had emailed Hank (W0RLI) about the lack
of connectivity between the packet network and the RMS stations. This is apparently his response, to install an RMS of his own, right at a Network hub
station. (6/15/09: the “RLIRMS:W0RLI-2” RMS has disappeared. Another RMS; From DMASCS or PARET it is possible to connect to LYONS in Linn
County (Albany, OR). From LYONS connect to W7AEP-10 on port 1. “c 1 w7aep-10”

Geoff Morse has just put his RMS on the air from Cathlamet. K7GA-10 (145.63) is accessible from the NICOLI Node with a solid signal. As far as we can
tell, his Internet feed is from Longview, making it a different route from our present local feeds. This is a good omen for EmCom use.

Geoff has also become the new proud owner of the 6-meter (temporarily being upgraded and off the air) and 444.500 repeaters, and NICOLI node (145.63)
on Nicolai. This hits Wahkiakum County like a sledgehammer, but is compatible with our network, providing a very nice alternative path from south Pacific
County to the north. The NICOLI Node will reach ELYSSA Node in the Olympic Mountains, overlooking much of Puget Sound directly (ELYSSA will get you in
to RMS KD7X-10).

With the addition of the NICOLI node on Nicolai Mountain, it is time to explore once again. Nicolai is about 5 miles SW of Westport, Oregon. At 3000 feet,
it is the highest point, and the southern end of a ridge that Highway 30 climbs over at Bradley Lookout. The site overlooks Longview/Kelso, Vernonia, Mist,
Elsie and parts of the Portland area. Connecting to the NICOLI node from most of Pacific County is easy. Most stations will be able to connect direct, and
those who cannot, can work through HOLYX. Once at NICOLI, I had no trouble connecting to: HOLYX, SMTN, ELYSSA or through N7UJK-10. I was not
able to reach MINOT, but was able to connect from MINOT to NICOLI on a subsequent attempt, so that may have been a fluke. Looking the other way,
towards Oregon, I was able to connect (on 145.63) to CEDAR, although the path was not all that great (multiple retries). I also connected with FG1 (K7KEV-
1), a node in Forest Grove, with an associated mailbox FG1MB. Both CEDAR and FB1 allow connections to the Oregon Backbone system, improving the
reliability of that resource. I was able to connect back, from FG1, via NICOLI, to SEA via N7UJK-10. I was also able to connect from FG1 to JAY,
through the backbone, and then to HOLYX. The RMS Node IQICMS (K7IQI-2, also owner of CEDAR) is on 145.63 and directly linkable from NICOLI.

Structure

The strength that Packet Radio brings to the table is multiple connectivity. While our voice repeaters provide range extension, and some of them are linked
to emphasize this. Few such systems allow for alternative connection paths if one link fails, and none of them allow several users to simultaneously use
different paths through them. If one packet asset (node, digi) goes down, it is usually possible to connect around the missing station. Of course, this requires
that all the assets either be on the same frequency or have some other way to connect.

This leads to the two philosophical branches in the road of packet network architecture. One scheme has all stations on a single frequency, like ours. The
strength is that it maximized the opportunity to work around failures. The weakness is that with all traffic being passed on a single frequency, the
throughput can slow down. When a packet station is ready to send a packet, it waits until the frequency is clear. The more stations it “hears” the longer it
takes before it can transmit, and the slower the traffic flow. The alternative is a “backbone” system. This uses local 1200-baud 2-meter nodes, each on a
different frequency, connected by high-speed backbone trunks. This is the Oregon system architecture. It passes traffic much faster; first because the
local node is only “hearing” traffic over a limited area, so there are fewer collisions. Secondly, the signals move between nodes at higher speed, typically
9600-baud. Thus a single backbone circuit can simultaneously handle the traffic from multiple local nodes and maintain a fast throughput. The weakness is the
presence of multiple potential “single point failures”. If any of the backbone links go down, there is no “Plan B”. Since the local nodes are on different
frequencies, they rely on the backbone to communicate. The Western Washington EOC Network is set up to be as failure-resistant as possible. The price is
limited capacity. The theory is that, when it hits the fan, having a slow but reliable and failure resistant network is the best bargain.