FAQ for OpenBootTS 0.5 Beta

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What is OpenBootTS?

OpenBootTS is a Debian-based LiveCD that can be used in combination with a USRP to act as a GSM base station. It includes fully-compiled binaries for GNU Radio, OpenBTS, Asterisk and much more, and lacks only the configuration files for OpenBTS and Asterisk to connect calls from GSM to the PSTN.

System Requirements

OpenBootTS requires an x86 cpu (x64 is untested but should work), Ethernet connectivity (via DHCP), and a USRP with a 52MHz clock. It has been tested on a variety of Dell desktops and laptops, as well as in VMWare. It includes full source code and build environment for both GNU Radio (version 3.2.2) and OpenBTS (version 2.5) if you wish to modify either; it also includes full apt-get functionality for installing additional packages and sshd for convenience.

Running the system

Boot from the CD (as you would any other live CD) and wait for the prompt. Retrieve your relevant Asterisk configs and OpenBTS.config and copy them into /etc/asterisk (don't forget to restart it) and /root/openbts-2.5/apps/ (where the OpenBTS binary also lives).

Upcoming features:

OpenBootTS 1.0 will be released at ShmooCon and will include several enhancements. Source code for the DebianLive build scripts will be released shortly afterwards.

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