Connect your receiver
Already feeding another network? Add TailNav in a few minutes. Nothing you feed today changes.
What are you running?
Any Raspberry Pi or Linux computer running readsb or dump1090 (including most "feeder images").
- Open a terminal on the receiver. From another computer:
ssh pi@<receiver-ip>(or your username). - Install the TailNav feed client with your key:
- Check it's working on Check my feed. Your station appears within a minute.
PiAware already runs dump1090-fa with Beast output on port 30005, which is all TailNav needs.
- Open a terminal on the PiAware.
ssh pi@piaware.local(or its IP address). - Install the feed client:
- Check it's working on Check my feed. Your FlightAware feed carries on as before.
The Flightradar24 Pi24 image runs dump1090 for FR24. Make sure its network output is switched on first.
- Turn on network output. Open
http://<receiver-ip>:8754/settings.html, make sure Process arguments contains--net, then save and restart. - Open a terminal on the receiver.
ssh pi@<receiver-ip> - Install the feed client:
- Check it's working on Check my feed. Your FR24 feed and rewards are unaffected.
adsb.im sets everything up through its web page, with no command line.
- Open the adsb.im web page for your receiver and go to Setup → Expert.
- Add this to "additional Ultrafeeder arguments" (separate it from any existing entries with a semicolon), then apply:
- Check it's working on Check my feed.
For the sdr-enthusiasts Ultrafeeder container (docker-compose).
- Add this entry to
ULTRAFEEDER_CONFIGin your compose file, separated from other entries by a semicolon: - Restart the container:
docker compose up -d
- Check it's working on Check my feed.
Update
Gets the latest feed client and keeps your key.
Uninstall
Removes the feed client. Your decoder and other feeds are left as they are.
Troubleshooting
"Can't reach your decoder on 127.0.0.1:30005"
Your decoder isn't sharing Beast data on port 30005. On PiAware and most images it's on by default. On Pi24, add --net to Process arguments (see above). If your decoder runs on another computer, install with TAILNAV_SOURCE=192.168.1.20:30005 in front of bash.
Check my feed says nothing is connected
Run the status command on the receiver: curl -fsSL https://tailnav.com/feed.sh | sudo bash -s -- status. Make sure you're checking from the same internet connection as the receiver (not mobile data). Outgoing connections on port 30004 must be allowed by your router or firewall.
"Connection with an unknown key"
The key on your receiver doesn't match a station. Copy it again from your account and re-run the install command. Keys look like 1b2c3d4e-....
My station is online but earning no TailTokens
Open your station on your account to see which check failed. TailTokens need about an hour of data. Raw signals or range failing usually means a setting on the decoder is filtering messages, or the station's location is wrong.
My station is "under review"
It failed a check that suggests copied or replayed data. If you think this is a mistake, ask on our Discord and we'll look at it.
MLAT shows "not synced"
MLAT needs other TailNav receivers within about 150 km hearing the same aircraft. It syncs automatically once neighbours are online. Check the coverage map.
Need help? Ask on our Discord.