AllStarLink Guide: Nodes, Hubs and Linked Repeaters

Anyone who has used a local FM repeater has probably heard a voice from far away that did not arrive by radio. Behind many of those conversations sits AllStarLink, a worldwide network that links repeaters, remote bases and small hotspots over the internet. It is run as a non-profit service, it is built on open-source telephony software and a single node can be a Raspberry Pi in a spare room. This guide explains how the system is organised, what you need to run your own node, how to control a node with DTMF tones and which rules and etiquette to keep in mind.

Everything here comes from the official AllStarLink website and manual, which are linked in the text. The network changes its policies from time to time, so use this article as an overview and check the manual before you build.

What AllStarLink Is

The AllStarLink website describes the system as a network of amateur radio repeaters, remote base stations and hotspots that can reach each other by voice over IP. It runs on a dedicated computer that you host at home, at a radio site or in a data centre, and it is based on the open-source Asterisk telephone exchange with an application called app_rpt. App_rpt turns Asterisk into a controller for one or more radios and lets it link those radios to other systems of the same kind anywhere in the world. Connections from EchoLink, other VoIP clients and even telephone calls are supported.

The scale is considerable. In an August 2025 letter, the board said that about four years earlier roughly 2,000 nodes were logged in at any moment, while the network now sees more than 10,000, and that network availability is above 99.99 percent. The same letter explains that the service is run by volunteers, that it asks users for voluntary donations and that a new generation of the software, ASL3, had been released with the help of a grant.

Nodes, Servers, Hubs and Node Numbers

The manual’s basics chapter defines four terms that explain almost everything else.

• Node. Software running on a computer that connects to the AllStarLink network. A node usually has an RF interface to a radio and an internet connection, and the radio can be anything from a repeater to a low-power transceiver built into the node.
• Node number. A unique number assigned to each node. It works like a telephone number: when you dial it you connect to that node, and many nodes can be linked at once so that everyone hears the conversation.
• Server. A Linux computer that runs the software. One server can host several nodes, up to the limits of its hardware.
• Hub. Simply a node that is advertised as a meeting point. A hub may have no radio at all and can run in the cloud. Linking all your repeaters to a hub, for example a VHF and a UHF repeater, means that users only need to connect to the hub to be heard on both.

If you only want to use AllStarLink through a local repeater that is already connected, you do not need an account. The manual points to the active node list for finding a repeater near you, and reminds users to ask the owner before they control a node by radio or DTMF, because amateur radio etiquette applies.

Ways to Use the Network

The manual lists the typical uses. You can talk through an AllStarLink-enabled FM repeater, where DTMF commands, the internet or an autopatch control the connection. You can buy or build a small hotspot node that links you directly to the network. Mobile and desktop apps, such as DVSwitch Mobile on Android, RepeaterPhone on iOS and the IAXRpt or Transceive programs on computers, connect directly to a node over the internet and use the device’s microphone and speaker. The manual also mentions the reverse autopatch.

That variety makes AllStarLink a good companion to the FM repeater world described in our guide to VHF and UHF simplex and repeater operating, and an alternative to the digital voice systems compared in DMR, D-STAR and System Fusion. The audio is plain analogue FM carried over the internet, so any FM radio can take part.

ASL3: Hardware and Software

The current software generation is ASL3. According to the manual, it was redesigned to run on a long-term-support version of Asterisk, on the latest Debian Linux and on modern hardware or virtual machines. Supported platforms are any x86-64 computer, any emulated x86-64 virtual machine and any arm64 device such as a Raspberry Pi, with Debian 12 or 13. Compared with the old ASL1, ASL2 and HamVOIP releases, the manual lists a long set of improvements: fixes for memory leaks, packages installed with apt, Asterisk running as a non-root user, a Raspberry Pi image with a landing page and reduced SD-card wear, HTTP registration, USB interface improvements and a reworked EchoLink code.

The radio side needs an interface between the computer and the transceiver. The radio connections page describes the most common solution, which is a USB audio adapter based on the CM108 or CM119 chip families that provides audio plus lines for PTT and carrier or tone squelch detection. Ready-made adapters, Raspberry Pi hats, plug-and-play all-in-one hotspots with a built-in low-power radio and do-it-yourself modified USB sound fobs are all listed. The page also gives notes on using surplus commercial radios as repeater nodes. If you are new to Raspberry Pi projects in the shack, read our article on Raspberry Pi ham radio projects first.

Getting a Node Number

To run a public node you need an account at the AllStarLink portal and a node number. The portal chapter walks through the steps. You create an account and upload a copy of your amateur licence, as an image or a PDF, or take a picture with a camera. Registration requests and callsign changes need that upload since a policy change in January 2026. You confirm your email address, wait for the helpdesk to validate the account, which the manual says should happen within 24 hours, then add a server with its location and request a node number. Your first node number is approved automatically, and extra nodes can be created with the NXX extension, giving up to ten numbers based on the first one. Other additional numbers need administrator approval.

After the node is running, check the public node list. A node that appears with a green background has registered successfully. The manual warns that after power-up it can take up to 30 minutes for a node’s status to spread through the whole network. Because node numbers are a finite resource, the project announced in February 2026 that it is reclaiming unused numbers and will assign new ones randomly from within defined ranges. Keep your node online so that yours stays active.

Controlling a Node With DTMF

Every AllStarLink node must support a small set of command codes so that users find the same behaviour everywhere. They are sent as DTMF tones from the radio or a phone, followed by the node number.

Node number zero is shorthand for the last node you operated on. In command mode, all received DTMF digits go to the remote node until you send the pound key. The manual lists optional codes that are usually configured by default, such as forcing a system ID, saying the time and software version, disconnecting all links and reconnecting them with macros. It adds that these defaults live in the configuration file and can be edited, so check the actual file on a node before you rely on a code.

Private Nodes, EchoLink and Hotspot Tuning

Private nodes are nodes that do not connect directly to the public network, and the public network cannot connect to them. They are useful for a test drive or for a closed system on your own hardware. Their numbers are limited to values below 2000, and the manual suggests avoiding the numbers used in most examples, because the loop protection in the software refuses a connection when it detects the same node number on two sides of a link.

EchoLink integration is documented in the advanced topics. EchoLink node numbers are padded to six digits and prefixed with a 3, so EchoLink node 9999 is dialled as 3009999. For that reason AllStarLink node numbers that start with 3 are reserved for EchoLink. The EchoLink channel driver is not loaded by default and must be enabled in the configuration. A separate page explains how to shorten the transmitter un-key delay on a hotspot to improve responsiveness. These topics show that most of the effort in AllStarLink goes into small configuration details, so read the pages that apply to your setup.

Who Benefits Most

Three groups get the most from the system. Club repeater owners can link a VHF and a UHF repeater through a hub, so that both bands carry the same conversation and visitors need to remember only one number. Travellers and people without a local repeater can use a phone or computer application to join a favourite hub from anywhere. Experimenters can build a hotspot, a remote base or a multi-site voting repeater system, and the manual has separate chapters for advanced topics, the Allmon3 interface and the VOTER and RTCM hardware that is primarily used for voting systems.

Etiquette and Responsibilities

• Ask before you link. A repeater owner decides who may connect their system to the network.
• Listen first. Connect in monitor mode and check that the hub is not in the middle of a net.
• Identify properly. Your node is a transmitter under your callsign and your national rules apply to everything it sends.
• Do not leave nodes connected carelessly. A forgotten link can tie up a repeater and annoy other users.
• Keep a net schedule in mind. If you run a net over a hub, our guide to running a net covers the habits that keep it orderly.

A Short Start-Up Checklist

1. Decide whether you want to use a node, build a hotspot, link a repeater or run a hub.
2. Pick hardware that the manual supports: a Raspberry Pi or a PC with Debian 12 or 13.
3. Create a portal account and upload a licence copy.
4. Install ASL3 with the packages or the Raspberry Pi image and use the menu program to set up the node.
5. Connect a USB radio interface and set the audio levels so the signal is clean.
6. Check that your node appears on the list, then try a few connections in monitor mode.
7. Back up your configuration and update through the normal package process.

The Bottom Line

AllStarLink is a practical way to tie repeaters, hotspots and portable devices together over the internet, with a clear structure of nodes, hubs and numbers, a well-documented software stack and a community that cares about etiquette. You can use it without owning anything, build a small hotspot in an evening or run a club hub for a whole region. Read the manual chapters on the basics, the portal and the standard commands, start with a private node if you want to experiment and always talk to the owner of any system you plan to control.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is AllStarLink?

It is a network of amateur radio repeaters, remote bases and hotspots linked by voice over IP, built on the Asterisk open-source telephone software with the app_rpt application.

Do I need an account to use AllStarLink?

Not to use an AllStarLink-enabled repeater. You need a portal account, with a licence copy, to get a node number for your own public node.

What hardware do I need for a node?

A Raspberry Pi or another arm64 or x86-64 computer running Debian 12 or 13, plus a radio interface such as a USB adapter, or an all-in-one hotspot that already has a small radio.

How do I connect to another node by radio?

Send the DTMF code *3 followed by the node number to connect in transceive mode, or *2 to listen only. Use *1 followed by the node number to disconnect, and get permission from the node owner first.

Can AllStarLink connect to EchoLink?

Yes. EchoLink nodes are reached by dialling a 3 followed by the six-digit padded EchoLink number, and the EchoLink channel driver has to be enabled on your node.

What is a hub?

A hub is a node that other nodes connect to as a meeting point. It may have no radio and can run in the cloud, which makes group conversations and permanent repeater links easier to manage.