Manual

QDStar for the Icom IC-705 · Windows and Linux

Inside QDStar, Help › User manual (F1) opens this page.

What QDStar is

QDStar controls an Icom IC-705 in D-STAR Terminal Mode from a Windows or Linux computer:

• It talks to the radio over WiFi with the Icom network protocol: the control and CI-V streams, without audio. It replaces wfview for D-STAR work.
• It has its own gateway for Terminal Mode over USB, so you do not need DStarRepeater, ircDDBGateway or any other service. It links reflectors over DPlus (REF), DCS (DCS, XLX) and DExtra (XRF).
• It shows who is on the air, with name, location, distance and bearing, and keeps a history of every over.
• It collects the D-PRS positions and weather reports that arrive with the voice, and manages your own D-PRS beacon.

Installation

Download the file for your system from the download section or the releases page.

Windows 10/11 (x64)

• Installer (…-windows-x64-setup.exe): it installs QDStar for your user, with no administrator rights needed. If QDStar is already installed, the installer offers to update, reinstall or uninstall it. Updating keeps your settings, history and reflectors.
• Portable (…-portable.zip): unzip it anywhere and run qdstar.exe.

Windows SmartScreen may warn you the first time, because the program is not signed. Choose More info → Run anyway.

Linux (x86-64 and ARM64)

There are three formats. Pick one and stick to it: they are separate installations.

Not sure which architecture you have? Run uname -m: x86_64 is a PC (amd64 / x86_64 files), aarch64 is ARM64 such as a Raspberry Pi 4/5 with a 64-bit system (arm64 / aarch64 files).

AppImage

1. Download QDStar-x.y.z-x86_64.AppImage (or -aarch64 on ARM64).
2. Make it executable: chmod +x QDStar-*.AppImage, or tick Allow executing file as program in the file's properties.
3. Open it with a double click or from a terminal: ./QDStar-x.y.z-x86_64.AppImage.
4. QDStar asks Install QDStar for this user?. Choose Install: the AppImage is moved to ~/.local/bin/QDStar.AppImage and QDStar appears in the applications menu with its icon. No administrator rights are needed, and the downloaded file is gone from your downloads folder.
5. From then on, start QDStar from the applications menu.

When a new version is out, choose Update now in the notice (see Updates): QDStar downloads it, puts it in place of the installed one and restarts. If you chose Not now, Help › Install for this user… installs it later; Don't ask again leaves the AppImage where it is, and updates then replace that file.

To remove it, use Help › Uninstall QDStar…: it deletes the AppImage, the menu entry and the icon. Your settings, history and reflectors are kept.

If the AppImage does not start, your system may lack FUSE. Install it (sudo apt install fuse3 on Debian and Ubuntu), or run it with ./QDStar-*.AppImage --appimage-extract-and-run.

.deb

Install it with sudo apt install ./qdstar_x.y.z_amd64.deb (or _arm64.deb). apt pulls in the libraries it needs, and QDStar appears in the applications menu and as the qdstar command. To update, install the new .deb the same way; to remove it, sudo apt remove qdstar.

tar.gz

Unpack it wherever you like (tar xzf QDStar-x.y.z-linux-amd64.tar.gz) and run qdstar/qdstar. It adds nothing to the applications menu. To update, unpack the new version over the old folder.

USB access for EXT mode

For EXT mode your user needs access to the radio's USB serial ports: sudo usermod -aG dialout $USER on Debian, Ubuntu and Raspberry Pi OS, or the uucp group on Arch. Log out and back in afterwards.

The ARM64 builds run on Raspberry Pi OS bookworm, Debian 12 or later and Ubuntu 22.04 or later.

Radio setup

Network (both modes)

1. Connect the IC-705 to your WiFi network (SET › WLAN Set) and give it a fixed IP address, or reserve one in your router.
2. In WLAN Set › Remote Settings, set Network Control to ON and create a Network User with a user name and password.

INT mode: internal gateway over WiFi

1. DV GW › Gateway Select: Internal Gateway (WLAN).
2. DV GW › Internal Gateway › Gateway Repeater (Server/IP/Domain): your G3 Terminal Mode server, for example server1.dstar.es.
3. Terminal/AP Call Sign: your call sign with Z in the 8th position (EA7KLX Z).
4. Turn Terminal Mode on (MENU › DV Gateway › Terminal Mode).

EXT mode: QDStar's gateway over USB

1. Connect the radio's USB cable to the computer.
2. DV GW › Gateway Select: External Gateway USB (B).
3. Terminal/AP Call Sign: your call sign with B in the 8th position (EA7KLX B).
4. Turn Terminal Mode on.

First run

The first time, QDStar opens the settings. Enter the radio's IP or host name, the network user and the password you created on the radio, and press Save. QDStar connects and reads your call sign from the radio (MY call sign). You do not need to type it.

QDStar also imports the connection details from wfview if they are there. Only one QDStar runs at a time: opening it again brings the running window to the front.

The main window

The window is narrow and tall so that it fits next to other programs. Its width is fixed, and you can make it taller to see more history.

Status LEDs

Hover over any LED to see what it means.

The reflector screen

The black screen shows, from top to bottom:

• The reflector: name, description, whether it is online, the number of connected nodes and the link state.
• The station on the air, or the last one heard. It shows the call sign, the name and location from radioid.net, and the over's message and duration. When the station sends a D-PRS position, a box shows the distance and bearing from you, with an arrow pointing towards the station (north up). When the last over is yours, the box shows a circle with a cross and MY.
• Last heard on the reflector: the latest stations, from the reflector's dashboard or from your history.
• The footer shows your call sign, your locator (when the radio knows your position), whether you send D-PRS, and the clock.

Mode, reflector and tabs

Below the screen are the INT · WiFi and EXT · USB/PC buttons, with a LED on the active one. A ⚠ sign appears when the radio does not match the chosen mode, for example when the radio is still in INT while you chose EXT. Hover over it to see what to check.

Next come the reflector list with its buttons, and the History, Log, D-PRS and Weather views.

The views: History, Log, D-PRS and Weather

By default the four views sit as tabs under the screen. Each one has a small title bar with two buttons:

• Detach (or a double click on the title bar) moves the view into its own window, which you can move and make as large as you like. The History, for instance, can be much wider than the main window. The same button, or a double click, attaches it back.
• Close (✕) hides the view. The View menu has a tick box for each view to show or hide it.

View › Reset layout brings the four views back as tabs. QDStar remembers the layout between sessions. With no view left in the main window, it shrinks to the screen and its bars, and it grows back when you attach one.

System tray icon

QDStar puts an icon in the system tray. It has a green dot while you receive and a red one while you transmit, and its tooltip shows the mode, the reflector and the station on the air. Click it to show or hide the window. Right-click it for the menu, with Show/Hide QDStar and Quit.

When a station comes on the air and the QDStar window is not in front, a notification shows its call sign, name and reflector. If you turn on Closing the window keeps QDStar running in the tray in the settings, the window's close button only hides it. Quit from the tray menu or from Radio › Quit.

INT and EXT modes

Change mode with the two buttons. Remember to change Gateway Select and the Terminal/AP Call Sign on the radio too (see Radio setup).

In EXT mode, QDStar remembers the reflector you were linked to and links it again the next time it starts.

Linking from the radio (EXT)

With the built-in gateway you can also link and unlink from the radio, as with ircDDBGateway. Put a command in the UR field (the TO of the DR screen) and key up for a second. That over does not go to any reflector: the gateway runs the command and answers with a text message on the radio's screen.

The radio's own menu writes these commands for you: TO › Reflector, then Link to Reflector, Unlink Reflector, Reflector Info or Echo Test. After a command, QDStar puts the UR back to CQCQCQ, so the next over goes to the reflector. It needs the radio connected over WiFi to do that. After an echo test the UR is left as it is, so you can repeat the test. Command overs are not added to the history.

Reflectors

The list joins your own reflectors and the ones from its sources, such as the selection built into QDStar. Manage it in Reflectors › Manage…:

• Type: INT (the TO is written to the radio) or EXT (linked by QDStar's gateway).
• TO / reflector: in INT, the TO the radio sends (/XLX214D). In EXT, the reflector and module (REF001 C, DCS214 D, XLX048 A, XRF988 D).
• Server: INT only. It is the G3 server that leads to that TO. QDStar warns you when it does not match the one in the settings.
• Name and Description: the texts shown on the screen.
• Dashboard and API (optional): the reflector's web page and its xlxd JSON API, used for the node count and the last heard list.

The reflectors that come from a source are read only, and the form says where they come from. Copy to my list makes your own copy, which you can change and which wins over the source's. Fields you leave empty in your copy keep the source's values, so a renamed copy still has the dashboard and API that tell whether you are linked. Export my list… saves your own reflectors as a JSON file, to share them or to publish them as a source for others.

Reflectors › Refresh status asks every reflector for its state straight away.

Reflector sources

Sources… in the reflector manager lists where reflectors come from, besides your own list:

• Built into QDStar: the selection that comes with QDStar, updated with each new version.
• URL: a list published on a web server (https://…/reflectors.json).
• File: a list on your computer or on a shared folder.
• Git repository: a list in a repository on GitHub, GitLab, Gitea or your own server. You can give a branch and the path of the file inside the repository (reflectors.json by default). For a private repository over HTTPS, fill in the user and a password or token. Over SSH (git@…) your own SSH keys are used. Git has to be installed (on Windows, Git for Windows). QDStar only reads the repository, it never writes to it.

Tick or untick a source to use it or not. The sources are fetched when QDStar starts and every 6 hours, or at once with Update all. Each one keeps its last good copy, so the list still works without a connection. When a reflector is in several places, your own copy wins.

Passwords and tokens are kept in the system keyring (KWallet or GNOME Keyring on Linux, the Credential Manager on Windows), never in the log. If there is no keyring, QDStar says so and keeps them in its settings file. Removing a source also forgets its password.

A list is a JSON file with one object per reflector, the same format that Export my list… saves:

[
  {"via": "ext", "to": "XLX214 D", "name": "D-STAR Spain",
   "description": "XLX214 module D", "dashboard": "https://…/dashboard/"},
  {"via": "int", "to": "/XLX214D", "server": "server1.dstar.es", "name": "D-STAR Spain"}
]

History and log

The History tab lists every over, received and transmitted. The columns are time (with the over's duration in brackets), call sign, name, distance, reflector, location and message. Your own overs have the call sign in red; Hide mine, in the view's title bar, hides them. A name or message that arrives after the over has ended is filled in on its row. History › Clear history… deletes it.

An over from the history on the screen

Click a row of the History and the screen shows that over in place of the live activity, in a violet frame labelled HISTORY. You see its date, duration, reflector, call sign, name, location, message, and the distance and bearing. The arrow keys move through the history, and the screen follows. The reflector block and the last heard list stay live.

To go back to the real-time view, press ▶ LIVE (or click anywhere on the screen) or press Esc. It also goes back on its own as soon as a new over starts, received or transmitted, so you never miss one.

The Log tab shows what the application is doing: connections, links, errors. Radio › Log RX/TX CI-V frames adds the raw CI-V traffic, which is useful when reporting a problem.

D-PRS and weather

Received reports

Many stations send their position (D-PRS) with each over. QDStar reads it from the radio and shows the distance and bearing on the screen and in the history.

The D-PRS tab lists every report received: positions, objects, items and weather reports. That includes the ones relayed by other stations, such as the APRS gateways that repeat reports into D-STAR, and the Via column says which station carried each one.

The Weather tab shows a card for each weather station heard, with its temperature, humidity, pressure, rain and wind.

You can hide both tabs in the settings. The position of the station on the air is still shown either way.

Your own position

Radio › D-PRS position… reads and changes the radio's D-PRS settings over CI-V:

• Send my position with every over: turns the D-PRS beacon on or off (GPS TX Mode = D-PRS).
• Position source: the radio's internal GPS, or a manual position.
• Manual position: latitude and longitude in degrees (west negative), with an optional altitude. Use locator fills them in with the centre of a grid square, so you announce an area rather than your exact home.
• Symbol, SSID and Comment of your beacon.

QDStar uses your position, from the GPS or the manual one, to work out the distances. Nothing is written to the radio until you press Save.

Your position on APRS-IS (aprs.fi)

With Send my D-PRS position to APRS-IS turned on in the settings, QDStar also sends your position to the APRS-IS network after every over, so it shows on aprs.fi. It works in INT and EXT, and only while the radio sends its position (GPS TX Mode = D-PRS). It uses the position, symbol, SSID and comment of the radio's own beacon. An unchanged beacon is sent at most once every 5 minutes.

The APRS-IS passcode is worked out from your call sign, so there is nothing to type. Optionally, QDStar can also send the positions of the stations it hears. Positions that come from APRS (objects, weather stations, reports relayed by other stations) are never sent back.

Settings

Open them from Radio › Settings…. They are split into four tabs: Interface, Radio, INT / EXT and APRS-IS. The first time, with no radio set up yet, they open on the Radio tab. Changes apply when you press Save. If you change the language, QDStar uses it from the next start.

Interface

Radio (WiFi)

INT mode (internal gateway, WiFi)

EXT mode (external gateway, USB + PC)

These fields only appear with External ircDDBGateway:

APRS-IS

Updates

QDStar checks GitHub for a new version on start-up and once a day. When one is out, a ⬆ New x.y.z link appears next to the mode buttons, pointing at the right file for your system. You can also check by hand in Help › Check for updates…, and turn the automatic check off in the settings.

With the Linux AppImage, Update now downloads the new version, checks it against the SHA-256 published on GitHub, puts it in place of the one you run and restarts QDStar. There is no file to replace by hand.

Troubleshooting

The Icom LED never turns green

• Check the IP, user and password, and that Network Control is ON on the radio.
• Only one program can hold the radio's network session. Close wfview, RS-BA1 or any other remote control software.

The radio refuses the connection after a crash

Close QDStar before switching the radio off, so it ends the network session cleanly. A session left open can keep the radio's network server busy until the radio is power cycled.

EXT mode: the USB LED is red

Check the cable, and on Linux check that your user is in the dialout (or uucp) group. If the data port is not found, choose it by hand in the settings.

A REF reflector does not link

DPlus needs your call sign registered in the D-STAR trust network. Try a DCS or XLX reflector to confirm everything else works.

EXT mode: the radio does not transmit

If the PTT does nothing and the log shows USB: the radio refuses the stream, the radio's Terminal Mode is stuck. Leave Terminal Mode on the radio and enter it again.

No notifications appear

Check that the desktop's Do Not Disturb mode is off. While it is on, the notifications only go to the desktop's notification history.

⚠ next to the mode buttons

The radio's Terminal Mode does not match the mode chosen in QDStar. Hover over it to see what to change on the radio.

Contributing

• More reflectors: open a pull request adding entries to qdstar/default_reflectors.json.
• New languages: copy qdstar/translations/es.po to your language's code, translate it and open a pull request. The README explains how.
• Bugs and ideas: open an issue on GitHub.

QDStar is free software (GPL-3.0-or-later). The Icom network protocol is reimplemented from wfview. The Terminal Mode, DPlus, DCS and DExtra code is ported from G4KLX's DStarRepeater and ircDDBGateway.