K9ZW Upgrades to FlexRadio Systems SmartSDR version 3.0 with multiFlex
This week FRS released SmartSDR v3.0 adding multiFlex to the Flex-6000 working environment.
I’ve updated all four K9ZW radios. Actually the Two Flex-6700s were updated as part of the FRS Alpha Testing program, where invited testers were allowed to buy their upgrades early in the process as part of the QA (Quality Assurance) and testing process.
Just in case you missed the FlexRadio official announcements, the new SmartSDR Version 3.0.19 was released this week.
SmartSDR v3 adds multiFlex, the capability to split your Flex-6000 into distinct virtual radios.
A bit of background – a Flex-6000 as hardware is a radio server. While it does have some physical interconnects like antennas and power, an operator never directly controls a Flex-6000. Rather their software operates independently on a computer that then reaches out to control the Flex-6000.
SmartSDR prerelease v0 and initial release v1 need the radio server and the operating computer to appear on the same subnet. This requires both to be on the same LAN or use of a VPN.
SmartSDR v2 added SmartLink which brokers suitable WAN connections to allow easy access from your controlling computer to your radio server over the internet.
The new SmartSDR v3 adds multiFlex which allows a share of your radio server between coordinated multiple SmartLink or local connections.
Soon FlexRadio will be releasing SmartSDR version 3.0 which brings multiFlex to the table.
The game changer is multiFlex allows a radio to be shared between instances. Out the gate two users can locally or remotely operate the same radio.
Management of the suddenly complex situation is the multiFlex part of the equation. If you’re a techie the Flex-6000 acts as a radio server dishing out data in VITA-49 packets with Flex extensions much along the way serious communications gear interact. Think avionics or military type scenarios, where gear simply has to work with other manufacturers gear in mission critical situations.
Well maybe not quite that dramatic, but seriously clever and techie.
At the level I am going to discuss my plans you might be better off envisioning each Flex-6000 as a media server and each actual user instance as just another TV on a big home media system. Perhaps like your dish setup.
What to do if your SmartSDR DAX Drivers Puke or Get Scrambled?
Windows Updates have been playing havoc with SmartSDR for several years.
Certain Updates (1803, 1811) have jinxed a large percentage of users machines, but other seemingly routine updates can make things act funny too. Some cases you can fix this stuff yourself. DAX drivers are the usual victim of these Windows Updates.
There are some ways to do your own first aid to fix the DAX problems, but they are not just a double-click on a fix-it-program.
Created another Page for this bog at Flex-6000 Software where I will be listing what software I am using with my Flex Radios, the current version, and how to get your own copy.
I won’t be listing anything that isn’t General Release, so you will see the latest SmartSDR products rather than any Alpha Team versions I may be testing for FlexRadio.
Hope you find this a useful reference.
73
Steve
K9ZW
I’m often asked what is the external differences between current Maestro production and the earlier series?
Making the switch over between versions less clear cut are several field reports of Maestro units produced in the transition from what I’ve heard references as Maestro-A (the Early Production units) and Maestro-B (the current production units has of 2018).
Easiest external indicator is the location of the On/Off switch.
Maestro-A (Early Production) has the switch on the top, to the far left:
Early Production Maestro-A Top On/Off Switch Location
Maestro-B (Later Production) has the switch on the Left Side of the unit:
Early Production Maestro-B Left Side On/Off Switch Location
Internal differences haven’t been spelled out more than the improved resolution of the Maestro-B screen and assurances that the Dell OEM module of the Maestro-A was replaced by a better new OEM component. (The original Dell module had product nuances that Dell may have considered “features” in their own use as a tablet, but were not the way FlexRadio users (or FlexRadio itself) expected the module to perform when used as an OEM component in a complex product.)
73
Steve
K9ZW
