EUMETCast served three ways

David Taylor

SatSignal Software

Basics of EUMETCast

• It’s a network link between EUMETSAT in Darmstadt and your home.

• Packets of data are sent out from EUMETSAT (actually from Usingen).

• They look like digital TV signals but have more robust protection.

• Your job is to capture them.

Usingen ground station

Usingen older antennas

Packets to files

• Need to convert DVB (digital video broadcast) packets into data packets, like those sent over your Wi-Fi or LAN.

• Packets are broadcast to your network, so you need a “network card” to receive them.

• The TelliCast software converts the packets to files, and needs to know your “network card” address.

1 - Served with a SkyStar card

• PCI card inside your PC

• Software installation adds device driver named SkyNET.sys

• Appears as a new network card

• IP address: 192.168.238.238

• You set this yourself in Control Panel

• DHCP is not used

2 - Served with a DVB World box

• USB box outside your PC

• Software installation adds device driver named DVBNet.sys

• Appears as a new network card

• IP address: 192.168.238.238

• You set this yourself in Control Panel

• DHCP is not used

3 - Served with an IP receiver

• New network card inside your PC• Or motherboard port if you use Wi-Fi for

your “house network”• Software installation adds device driver –

Windows usually does this automatically.• IP address: 192.168.10.103• You set this yourself in Control Panel• DHCP is not used

PC changes for IP receiver

• TelliCast software – unchanged

• SatSignal processing software –unchanged

• Recv-channels.ini – unchanged

• Update recv.ini:– [parameters]– # interface_address=192.168.238.238– interface_address=192.168.10.103

Later DVB S2 changes

• Re-point your dish when the new service is available.

• Adjust for new service parameters.

• Maybe you will need a bigger dish?

Which receiver?

• Ayecka SR 1– dual receivers– two LAN ports for Management & Traffic – USB serial port for initial setup.

• Novra S300E– single 100 Mb/s LAN port– single receiver.

See: http://www.satsignal.eu/wxsat/dvb-s2/

Ayecka SR 1

(edited from EUMETSAT guide)

Novra S300E

(from EUMETSAT guide)

IP Receiver settings

• For the Ayecka SR 1 receiver, EUMETSAT provide a file which can be used to configure automatically.– Requires the USB serial connection enabled

• Manual configuration possible.– over a USB serial connection– over a telnet session to the management port

What can possibly go wrong!

• Dish issues

• Network issues

LNBs too far apart

LNB fallen off

LNB pointing in the wrong direction

Wrong IP address

• Tempting to use the address of the IP receiver when editing recv.ini.

• Not right! You need the address of the network card in the PC.

• Not the address of the sender

• But the address of the receiving card

Not using a separate network

• The full EUMETCast stream which comes out of the IP Receiver will saturate a Wi-Fi or 100 Mb/s network.

• So use a separate LAN

• Not complicated – simply connect a network lead between the IP Receiver and a port on your PC.

Using poor cables or 100 Mb/s network

• Using 100 Mb/s switch and random cables, found some odd missed packet events in early tests, but most packets recovered.

• Not seen since using 1 Gb/s switch and 1 Gb/s LAN cards.

• Should check cables are “gigabit” certified.

Need to wake network card?

• On one PC, found the need to PING the remote receiver before starting TelliCast.

• Perhaps the LAN port sleeps even though UDP packets are present?

• Solved with a simple .CMD file– PING <LAN adapter>– Wait a little– PING <SR 1 receiver>– Wait a little– Start tc-recv.exe

What can go right?

• Add a £20 5-port Gigabit switch and you can feed up to four PCs with EUMETCast data – e.g. to spread the processing load.– Each PC needs TelliCast software & and eToken

• Generally, receiver performance is better than we have been used to.– More modern design– Professional, not consumer-level design.

• Ayecka receiver provides limited SNMP, allowing performance monitoring and logging.

Conclusions

• Update receiver hardware

• Change one line in recv.ini

• Dish re-pointed when S2 starts

.. and you are up and running!

.. all being well!

Acknowledgements

• To Ayecka, Novra and GEO for procuring test receivers.

• To EUMETSAT for providing User Guides

• To David Simmons, Alan Banks and others for their testing and for discovering some of the issues and asking helpful questions!

Questions?