Updated 12 Nov 2026
Ham radio chat and mail for the shack: HF/VHF store-and-forward chat, gateways and radio email.
Latest changes: v1.0.17 is the final release of the v1.0.17 series: everything from v1.0.17-rc1 to rc3, plus the email progress bars and clickable new-mail…
Developer's own installer / download page →
v1.0.18-rc3 is a release candidate. Get it with wcr update --rc.
Find radio on Linux and Raspberry Pi (#331)
- Find radio (desktop app), wcr tnc find and the radio step of wcr setup now work on Linux, including a Raspberry Pi over SSH, for the VR-N76, VR-N7600, UV-PRO and GA-5WB. A radio that is already paired is picked straight away. Otherwise it searches for about 8 s, pairs (it answers PIN 0000 and yes/no prompts) and trusts the radio, so it reconnects by itself.
- It uses BlueZ's bluetoothctl, which Raspberry Pi OS already has. When something blocks it, the message names the fix: install bluez, sudo rfkill unblock bluetooth, add your user to the bluetooth group, or start the Bluetooth service. With no Bluetooth adapter it gives up after 10 s instead of waiting forever.
- Raspberry Pi 3: Bluetooth shares its antenna with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, so use Ethernet if you can and keep the radio within a few metres.
v1.0.16 · 6 Nov 2026
v1.0.15 · 4 Nov 2026
Every file is scanned (ClamAV + VirusTotal) before it appears here. Check the SHA-256 after downloading. No account needed.
v1.0.17 is the final release of the v1.0.17 series: everything from v1.0.17-rc1 to rc3, plus the email progress bars and clickable new-mail alert (#316). Run wcr update to get it. On rc3 or later, press Update on the web page or in the desktop app.
Email: DOS-style progress bars and a clickable new-mail alert (#316)
- Desktop app: the Sending email and Getting email windows show a text bar, such as [████████░░░░░░░░░░░░] 40%, the same look as file transfers.
- Pi web page: a Radio+ Get shows a bar above the inbox while chunks arrive; outbox mail on the air shows a bar of the chunks the gateway has, such as 4/6.
- Desktop app: when mail arrives, an alert at the top right says "New mail from X: subject" with Open. Click it to go straight to that email. It goes away once the mail is read, or with x. The system notification names the sender and subject.
- The Get window has Open once the mail is fetched; so does the Pi page's "Fetched" line.
File transfers: progress bars, Desktop saving, clickable path (#312, rc3)
- Both sides show a progress bar, such as [█████████░░░░░░░░░░░] 9/15, in the desktop app and on the Pi web page.
- Received files are saved in a WeeChat Radio/CALL folder on the Desktop; a machine with no Desktop (such as a headless Pi) saves them in files/CALL beside the station's data. [store] files_dir picks another folder.
- The saved path is a link: the desktop app opens its folder, the Pi page downloads the file.
Small files in direct messages, VHF/UHF only (#308, rc2)
- /file CALL path (or /file path in a direct chat) sends a file of up to 4 KB to one station, only on vhf-fm or afsk-1200, only over the radio. [ok] on the file line means the other station has the whole file.
- Desktop app: drag a file onto the window in a direct chat; files opens the received files folder. Pi web page: File button in a direct chat.
Desktop app: direct messages notify you and get their own chats (#303, rc1) - A direct message opens a direct chat with its sender (it used to land in a hidden channel). New direct row with "N new" counts; system notifications for each incoming direct message.
/report sends on Enter (#304, rc1)
- Picking /report sends straight away. In a direct chat, a bare /report asks that station for a signal report.
Radio+ Auto mail gateway (#313, rc3) - MAIL GW turns green as soon as a gateway acks your mail or answers Check mail. After "No mail gateway heard", the station asks again by itself.
Pi web app (#307, rc2) and polish (#311, rc3) - Leave group and Delete chat on the open conversation. Tidier desktop app and Pi page.
Full Changelog: https://github.com/thaum-labs/weechat-radio/compare/v1.0.16...v1.0.17
wcr is open-source station software for licensed amateur radio operators. It talks to
WeeChat like an IRC server and to modem73
like a TNC, so you can send typed chat over HF/VHF/UHF, over the internet, or both. Messages
store-and-forward on the air; a station can act as a gateway; email can ride through a heard gateway.
wcr gui), a terminal UI (wcr tui), or WeeChatSupported radio paths include Digirig/AIOC handhelds, VOX audio leads, CAT HF rigs, VR-N76 / UV-PRO over Bluetooth, and KISS TNCs. Check your band plan before you transmit.
You do not need WeeChat: the desktop app or TUI is enough. Internet-only mode works without a radio.
WeeChat is a trademark of Sébastien Helleu. This project is independent.