¶ IPSC3
IPSC3 is the next-generation DMR core platform being developed initially for VKDMR. It also serves as a modern replacement path for networks running IPSC2, addressing long-standing problems such as user confusion, talkgroup drag-back, and unexpected hotspot talkgroup hopping.
IPSC3 routes DMR voice and data between Motorola IPSC repeaters, MMDVM and Homebrew repeaters, Hytera repeaters, personal hotspots, MMDVM trunks, OpenBridge trunks, and bMaster+ style trunk links while keeping the RF user experience predictable. It detects simplex and duplex hotspots and adjusts routing behaviour so static call channel traffic can be muted while a user-selected dynamic talkgroup is active.
The platform also provides scan-mode routing, where activity from the network can be translated to a special scan talkgroup with dwell behaviour so users can listen and reply without manually chasing the active talkgroup.
IPSC3 now also includes private-call roaming, SMS/TMS handling, APRS/GPS services, a cellular POC gateway and Android radio client, a master server discovery API, downloadable dashboard clients, and operator tools for managing supported Motorola data services.
The project is being developed by Matt Perkins, VK2FLY, with live testing on the Australian VKDMR network. The live dashboard is available at https://ipsc3.vkdmr.com.
¶ What IPSC3 Provides
- Motorola IPSC repeater support with per-repeater authentication and bridge target handling.
- MMDVM/Homebrew repeater support through manually provisioned repeater peers.
- MMDVM duplex and simplex hotspot support with active detection and adjusted routing behaviour.
- Hytera repeater listener and voice routing work for IP connect style deployments.
- MMDVM trunk and OpenBridge trunk support, including trunk-to-trunk routing controls.
- bMaster+ trunk support using observed IPSC2-style control keepalives and Motorola/IPSC media handling.
- Bidirectional YSF reflector trunk support for V/D Mode 2 voice, with per-reflector local talkgroup mapping and individual caller identity.
- Per-trunk talkgroup mappings for local-to-trunk talkgroup and timeslot translation.
- Per-talkgroup trunk allowlists so selected talkgroups can be restricted to selected trunks.
- Listen-only talkgroups with voice busy feedback to local RF callers.
- Dynamic talkgroup camp-on behaviour with configurable timeout handling.
- Scan mode on TG777 / TS1 for following active talkgroups and replying through the scan talkgroup.
- Private person-to-person call routing using live roaming data.
- Roaming support from last-heard activity, Motorola ARS, GPS/data beacons, and supported trunk sources.
- SMS routing using roaming data, including operator/admin SMS send actions from the roaming dashboard.
- SMS AI chatbot that answers dynamic questions about the network, CMS content, callsigns, and radios currently registered to it.
- Parrot support on TG9990 for group and private calls, including NATO phonetic caller callsign playback and decoded-audio level reports retained against the call.
- Location services including APRS over DMR, AnyTone GPS, TYT short NMEA GPS, OpenGD77 GPS-TA, Motorola LRRP GPS, APRS-IS forwarding, GPS history, and dashboard maps.
- Motorola ARS presence handling, radio-check probing, LRRP polling, BMS discovery, call alert, SMS, and guarded radio enable/disable operator actions.
- Experimental Radio IP gateway mappings for selected Motorola private-data IPv4 UDP, TCP and ICMP traffic.
- Separate IPSC3-POC daemon for cellular push-to-talk clients, with JSON control, NAT-safe UDP/RTP PCMU audio, DMR group-audio bridging, scan, parrot, roaming, GPS, and dashboard integration.
- Retevis L71 Android POC radio client with physical PTT/key operation, server and talkgroup selection, caller display, GPS, indoor-location fallback, status LEDs, and Windows/ADB provisioning.
- IPSC2 migration proxy support for temporarily forwarding selected Motorola IPSC repeaters to IPSC3 without immediately changing repeater programming.
- MMDVM hotspot options such as
ScanExclude,ScanInclude, cautiousTalkerAliasinjection, and scopedDashboardTokenself-service controls. - Web, terminal, and Qt dashboard clients with server selection through the master IPSC3 API.
- Modern Next.js dashboard with repeater, hotspot, trunk, talkgroup, roaming, last-heard, stats, GPS map, downloads, and CMS pages.
- Integrated CMS so local groups can build an encompassing website around their IPSC3 network.
- Master IPSC3 discovery API used by clients and installer scripts to find available IPSC3 servers.
- DVRef integration from the master API so IPSC3 server and talkgroup information can be published for external discovery.
- Runtime packet pressure monitoring for fanout timing, packet-loop timing, UDP receive queues, kernel UDP counters, and worker queue drops.
- Binary-only Ubuntu deployment and upgrade packaging for additional IPSC3 server instances.
- Public APIs for amateurs and developers building applications that integrate with IPSC3.
¶ Radio Data and Location Support
IPSC3 treats radio data as a first-class part of the network rather than as an afterthought. Supported data paths are decoded outside the live voice path and are used for roaming, GPS display, APRS-IS forwarding, operator tools, and SMS services.
| Mechanism | Current IPSC3 Use |
|---|---|
| Motorola ARS | Marks Motorola radios as present, maintains roaming, supports keepalive probing, and can trigger LRRP polling. |
| Motorola LRRP | Polls ARS-present Motorola radios for GPS position and forwards valid fixes to maps and APRS-IS. |
| Motorola SMS/TMS | Receives and ACKs text messages, supports dashboard SMS send, and feeds the SMS AI assistant. |
| AnyTone APRS/GPS | Decodes private-data GPS reports to the IPSC3 data radio ID and stores valid fixes. |
| TYT short NMEA GPS | Detects and decodes TYT-style compact GPS payloads from supported radios. |
| OpenGD77 / GPS-TA | Detects in-band Talker Alias GPS where available and marks those radios as OPEN in roaming views. |
¶ Dashboard and Client Tools
- The live web dashboard provides public operational views and operator/admin control screens.
- The roaming page shows radio ID, callsign, name, current endpoint, ARS/GPS badges, and last seen time.
- The map page shows GPS tracks, latest positions, repeaters, hotspots, and repeater coverage radius overlays.
- The map can display GPS users, repeaters, and hotspots separately, and can follow live activity to the best known endpoint or GPS position.
- The stats page separates normal airtime from DMR GPS/data activity and tracks hotspot software registrations such as Pi-Star, WPSD, and OpenSPOT.
- The admin detail stats page tracks viewer counts, CMS/dashboard dwell time, runtime packet pressure, UDP receive queues, and worker drops.
- The downloads page publishes IPSC3view, IPSC3qt, and Pi-Star/WPSD host installer helpers.
- IPSC3view is a terminal dashboard client for shell users.
- IPSC3qt is a PySide6 desktop client for Windows, macOS, and Linux with map support.
- Both clients can query the master IPSC3 API, list available servers, and remember the selected IPSC3 server locally.
- The IPSC3 POC Android client uses the same master directory to select a live POC server and receives its complete talkgroup catalogue after login.
¶ What We Are Working On
- Continuing to harden Motorola data services including LRRP, ARS, SMS/TMS, BMS, and safe operator commands.
- SMS message store and forward for when destination radios are not currently detected on the network.
- More GPS compatibility across different radio types and data formats.
- Growing the number of IPSC3-connected nodes.
- Buffered endpoint workers and better multicore behaviour for high fan-out talkgroups.
- More complete Hytera, OpenBridge, bMaster+, and YSF field interoperability testing.
- Further separation between live voice routing, dashboard projection, and slow external services.
- More public documentation for APIs, data protocols, and operating practices.
¶ Contact and Discussion
To contact the IPSC3 developers, request features, report issues, or ask questions about the project, join the IPSC3 Discord: https://discord.gg/9TxfTetZV.
¶ Wiki Index
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Clients | Desktop and terminal dashboard clients plus the IPSC3 POC radio client. |
| IPSC3view | Terminal dashboard client, auto-update behaviour, and public API use. |
| IPSC3qt | Qt desktop dashboard client, map display, dependency bootstrap, and update flow. |
| IPSC3 POC Client | Retevis L71 Android POC radio, controls, audio, GPS, server selection, and provisioning. |
| Project | Project-level documentation index. |
| Feature Set | Current routing, hotspot, data, dashboard, client, and signalling feature overview. |
| Runtime Architecture | Daemon, dashboard, API, background worker, runtime pressure, and operational architecture. |
| Log and Database Retention | Bounded operational logging and history retention kept outside the live radio path. |
| Versions and Releases | Current server, dashboard, IPSC3view, and IPSC3qt versions and release notes. |
| Project Roadmap | Public roadmap and stability direction. |
| Transport Refactor Roadmap | Buffering, endpoint workers, stream state, jitter handling, and multicore direction. |
| IPSC3-POC Gateway | Cellular push-to-talk server architecture, DMR media gateway, scan, parrot, roaming, and location integration. |
| Master IPSC Server Directory API | Server discovery API for IPSC3 clients, installer helpers, talkgroups, and special services. |
| Legal and Use Notice | Non-commercial amateur radio use notice and third-party rights statement. |
| API Documentation | Public IPSC3 APIs for discovery, dashboard clients, POC clients, and external integrations. |
| IPSC3view API | Public dashboard snapshot API used by IPSC3view, IPSC3qt, and compatible clients. |
| IPSC3-POC Protocol | JSON control plane and UDP/RTP PCMU audio protocol for POC client implementations. |
| DMR Documentation | DMR setup, data protocols, GPS, talkgroup routing, and radio-facing documentation. |
| MMDVM Hotspot Configuration | Pi-Star/WPSD guidance and IPSC3 options such as ScanExclude, ScanInclude, TalkerAlias, and DashboardToken hotspot self-service. |
| GPS Setup | AnyTone and Motorola CPS settings for IPSC3 GPS/data services. |
| Talkgroup and Routing Behaviour | Static, dynamic, scan, listen-only, trunk mapping, allowlist, private-call, and roaming behaviour. |
| DMR Data Protocol Descriptions | Protocol descriptions for DMR data mechanisms compatible with IPSC3. |
| APRS Over DMR | DMR private-data APRS/GPS payload format implemented by IPSC3. |
| bMaster+ Trunk Notes | Observed bMaster+ keepalive, media path, dashboard, and reflector behaviour. |
| Motorola ARS | Automatic Registration Service presence, keepalive probing, and roaming integration. |
| Motorola LRRP GPS | LRRP polling, response decoding, waiting/fix status, and APRS-IS forwarding. |
| Motorola SMS/TMS | Text message transport, ACK handling, MMDVM wrapping, SMS send, and AI SMS use. |
| Motorola Short Commands | Call alert, guarded radio disable/re-enable, and operator control guardrails. |
| DMR Voice Prompts | Shared AMBE prompt timing, endpoint framing, and clipping prevention. |
| Parrot Audio Level Reports | Spoken peak/RMS feedback and retained Last Heard measurements for Parrot calls. |
| Radio IP Gateway | Experimental Motorola private-data IPv4 UDP, TCP, and ICMP gateway mappings. |
¶ High-Level Architecture
| Layer | Role |
|---|---|
| DMR Radios | User equipment sending voice, private calls, SMS, GPS, and signalling. |
| Repeaters and Hotspots | Motorola IPSC, MMDVM/Homebrew, Hytera, simplex hotspots, duplex hotspots, and non-standard repeater peers. |
| IPSC3 Core | Routing, roaming, talkgroup policy, scan mode, private calls, SMS, data handling, ARS/LRRP, and APRS workers. |
| IPSC3-POC | Separate cellular POC daemon using persistent JSON control, UDP/RTP PCMU audio, and bounded PCMU/AMBE workers so cellular jitter and codec work stay outside the core DMR voice path. |
| Network Trunks | MMDVM and OpenBridge links to approved external networks with optional talkgroup mappings and allowlists. |
| Master API | Discovery service listing available IPSC3 servers, connection targets, talkgroups, and special network functions. |
| Dashboards | Web, terminal, and Qt clients showing live network state. |
¶ Operational Dashboard
The live IPSC3 dashboard is available at https://ipsc3.vkdmr.com.
The dashboard shows live network status, active talkgroups, repeater and hotspot connections, roaming radios, GPS positions, and downloadable client tools. It also hosts local CMS pages so an IPSC3 network can publish operational information, setup guides, and network documentation from the same site.