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Connect to the Reticulum Network

Clients​

No radio needed to get started: each of these can join the network over the internet through a public TCP hub. The public hubs are generally linked together, so any of them should put you on the wider network; MichMesh runs one at RNS.MichMesh.net, port 7822. Once you're on, say hi in the group chat.

Web Client (Fastest Way to Try It)​

The Reticulum web client runs in your browser, so there's nothing to install except a small bridge program. Browsers can't open TCP connections themselves; the bridge passes traffic between the page and a Reticulum hub.

  1. On a computer, open the web client in any browser. On a phone, use the mobile app instead.
  2. Click Connect via TCP → Download the bridge. It's available for Windows, Linux, and macOS on Apple Silicon.
  3. Run the bridge and leave it running. On Linux and macOS, chmod +x it first. Windows may warn that the file is unrecognized, since it isn't code-signed.
  4. Back in the browser, click Connect (WebSocket). The hub field comes filled in with a public hub, so you can connect as-is. If it won't connect, or you'd rather use MichMesh's, enter RNS.MichMesh.net port 7822.
  5. Set your display name and click Send Announce so others can reach you. Other nodes show up in your contacts as their announces arrive.
  6. Click Export Identity to back up your keys. Your identity lives in this browser, so clearing its site data deletes it.

Have an RNode? In Chrome, Edge or Brave the web client can also talk to it directly over Bluetooth or USB, with no bridge and no internet. The web client's TCP bridge guide covers running the bridge against your own rnsd.

Reticulum Mobile App (Android/iOS)​

The Reticulum Mobile App is a native messaging client for Android and iOS. It connects over TCP, or to an RNode over Bluetooth or USB, and also browses NomadNet pages.

  1. Install it:
  2. Go to Settings → Connection and, under TCP, tap Connect TCP. Host and Port come filled in with a public hub the app picked, so you can connect as-is. If it won't connect, or you'd rather use MichMesh's, set Host to RNS.MichMesh.net and Port to 7822.
  3. On Android, tap Disable battery optimization in the same section. Otherwise the phone may stop the app in the background and you'll miss messages.
  4. Set your Display name and tap Send announce.

People and services appear in the Nodes tab as their announces arrive, and conversations live in Messages.

MeshChat (Windows/macOS/Linux)​

MeshChat is a desktop app with a web-style interface for messaging and browsing NomadNet. Install it from the releases page, then connect it to a hub:

  1. Click Interfaces on the left, then Add Interface.
  2. Fill in:
    • Name: MichMesh
    • Type: TCP Client Interface
    • Target Host: RNS.MichMesh.net, or any other public hub
    • Target Port: 7822
  3. Click Add Interface, then restart the app.

Once it restarts, announces show up under Messages and Nomad Network. Click one to send a message or browse a node.

Optional: under Settings, Enable Transport Mode lets other Reticulum devices on your home network reach the mesh through this computer.

Sideband (Android/Linux/macOS/Windows)​

Sideband is an LXMF messaging app with maps and telemetry sharing. Skip this if you're on the same home network as a Reticulum node that has transport enabled; Sideband finds it on its own.

On Android:

  1. Open the menu and tap Connectivity.
  2. Turn on Connect via TCP.
  3. Set TCP Host to RNS.MichMesh.net (or any other public hub) and TCP Port to 7822.
  4. Close the screen and restart Sideband.

On a computer: Sideband uses a Reticulum config file instead. Its Connectivity screen shows where the file is. Add the [[MichMesh TCP]] interface from the sample config below to it, then restart Sideband.

Announces from other nodes should start appearing in the announce stream.

NomadNet (Terminal)​

NomadNet is a text-based client for messaging, browsing and hosting pages, and it has an RRC client for Relay Chat. Install it into the same Python environment as Reticulum (see Install Reticulum below):

pip install nomadnet
nomadnet

NomadNet connects through your Reticulum config: if rnsd is running, it uses that; otherwise it reads ~/.reticulum/config. Either way, add the sample config's TCP interface to reach the mesh.

Host Your Own Node​

Running rnsd on an always-on machine, like a Raspberry Pi or home server, gives every Reticulum app on that machine one shared connection. With transport enabled, it also connects the other devices on your home network.

Install Reticulum​

  1. Create a Python virtual environment for Reticulum, and activate it. On Debian and Raspberry Pi OS you may need sudo apt install python3-venv first. 
    python3 -m venv ~/reticulum
    . ~/reticulum/bin/activate
  2. Install Reticulum (rns) and LXMF (lxmf, which provides the lxmd daemon): 
    pip install --upgrade rns lxmf
  3. Run rnsd once to generate the default config files, then stop it with Ctrl-C.

Start on Boot​

Create /etc/systemd/system/rnsd.service with sudo and your favorite text editor. Use this as a template, replacing YOURUSERNAME with the user you installed Reticulum as:

[Unit]
Description=Reticulum Network Service Daemon
After=multi-user.target

[Service]
Type=simple
Restart=always
RestartSec=3
User=YOURUSERNAME
ExecStart=/home/YOURUSERNAME/reticulum/bin/rnsd

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Run sudo systemctl start rnsd. If that works, sudo systemctl enable rnsd starts it on every boot.

Sample Interface Configuration​

Reticulum needs something to connect to. This config, in ~/.reticulum/config, connects your node to two things:

  • Default Interface finds other Reticulum devices on your local network automatically.
  • MichMesh TCP connects to MichMesh's hub, and through it the wider mesh.

With enable_transport on, your node also relays between them, so devices on your home network can reach the mesh through it.

[reticulum]
  enable_transport = True
  share_instance = Yes
  shared_instance_port = 37428
  instance_control_port = 37429
  panic_on_interface_error = No

[logging]
  loglevel = 4

[interfaces]
  [[Default Interface]]
    type = AutoInterface
    enabled = Yes

  [[MichMesh TCP]]
    type = TCPClientInterface
    enabled = Yes
    target_host = rns.michmesh.net
    target_port = 7822

Any public hub works in place of MichMesh's. Restart rnsd after any change to the config: sudo systemctl restart rnsd. To add radios, see RNode and Other Interfaces.

Vocabulary​

TermMeaning
NodeA participant in the Reticulum network
RNSShort for Reticulum Network Stack
LXMFThe messaging protocol built on Reticulum that most chat apps use
AnnounceA broadcast that tells the network how to reach you
Transport ModeLets a node route and forward other nodes' traffic
Propagation NodeA node that holds encrypted messages for people who are offline, and delivers them when they reconnect