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Armenian Mesh Channels & Encryption

Meshtastic nodes support up to 8 simultaneous channels (1 Primary channel and up to 7 Secondary channels).

1. Primary Public Channel (MediumFast)​

This is the main community channel for public announcements, node discovery, and general chat:

  • Channel Name: MediumFast
  • Pre-Shared Key (PSK): AQ== (default public key)
  • Role: PRIMARY
  • Modem Preset: MediumFast
  • Uplink Enabled: YES
  • Downlink Enabled: NO (Keep disabled on client nodes to prevent internet traffic from flooding the RF mesh)
note

The AQ== key indicates an unencrypted/open channel. Any node configured for EU_868 with MediumFast will automatically participate in this channel upon booting.

2. Emergency & Alpine Search-and-Rescue Channel​

Dedicated secondary channel for emergency alerts, mountain rescue coordination, and distress beacons:

  • Channel Name: Emergency-AM
  • PSK: AQ== (public)
  • Role: SECONDARY
  • Intended Use: Backcountry distress calls, severe weather alerts, and volunteer coordination.

3. Private Encrypted Channels​

For families, private groups, or organization comms:

  1. In the Meshtastic app, add a new Secondary Channel.
  2. Give it a unique name (e.g. RescueTeam or Family).
  3. Tap Generate Key to produce a secure, cryptographically random AES-256 key.
  4. Share the channel configuration with trusted members via QR code or channel URL.

How Private Channels Function on the Mesh​

When you broadcast on your private channel, all nodes in the mesh (including public repeaters on Mount Aragats or in Yerevan) will relay the packets across the network, but cannot decrypt the content. Only devices possessing your unique AES-256 key can read your messages.

4. MQTT & Live Dashboard Gateways (The Pragmatic Approach)​

To power the community live map and mesh health metrics without burdening users with running dedicated servers at home (like PotatoMesh or custom Docker containers), Armenia adopts a pragmatic hybrid model:

A. General Users: Native App / Node MQTT​

If you have a home node (CLIENT_BASE or stationary CLIENT) connected to home Wi-Fi:

  • Module: In the Meshtastic app, go to Settings → Module Config → MQTT.
  • MQTT Enabled: ON
  • Server Address: mqtt.msh.am
  • Uplink Enabled: YES (Sends received RF packets to the community dashboard)
  • Downlink Enabled: ❌ NO (CRITICAL: Do not enable downlink. Enabling downlink injects internet traffic back into the 868 MHz RF airwaves, creating packet collisions for everyone!)
  • Topic Root: msh/AM
Privacy & ignore_mqtt

If you do not want your personal node or coordinates to appear on the public live dashboard, simply enable Ignore MQTT (lora.ignore_mqtt = true) in your node's LoRa settings. Other nodes running native MQTT will respect this flag and will not uplink your packets to the server.

B. Core Admins: Backbone Serial Ingestors​

For core community organizers and backbone mountain repeater sites:

  • 1–2 dedicated nodes run connected via USB Serial to a server running an ingestor (such as PotatoMesh or a custom daemon).
  • This provides ground-truth RF diagnostic metrics (exact RSSI, SNR, noise floor, and secondary channel archives) without requiring casual users to manage any extra software.