MeshInfo-Lite (Generic & Configurable)

Realtime web UI to run against a Meshtastic regional or private mesh network.

Overview

MeshInfo-Lite is a highly customized version of MeshInfo written in Python and connects to an MQTT server that is receiving Meshtastic messages for the purpose of visualizing and inspecting traffic. It uses MariaDB to persist content.

🎯 NEW: Fully Generic & Configurable! This version has been made completely generic and configurable via config.ini files. Multiple mesh networks can use the same codebase by simply swapping configuration files - no template modifications required!

To make deployment to run an instance for your mesh easy, Docker support is included. We recommend using Docker Compose with a personalized version of the docker-compose.yml file to most easily deploy it, but any seasoned Docker user can also use the Docker image alone.

🎯 For Other Mesh Networks

This fork has been made generic and configurable. Other mesh networks can:

1. Fork this repository
2. Copy one of the example configs (config-csra.ini.example or config-middlega.ini.example)
3. Customize the config for their network
4. Deploy without any template modifications

No more mesh-specific forks needed! 🎉 Everything is driven by configuration files.

Example deployments:

• CSRA Mesh (Central Savannah River Area)
• Middle GA Mesh (Middle Georgia)
• South African Mesh (Original example)
• Your mesh network here!

If you deploy this for your mesh network, let us know and we'll add you to the list above!

If you are running a high elevation node, preferrably a Router or Repeater node, you might be interested in getting on the notification list for a cavity filter that Kevin and Trevor are having made.

If you're interested in aeronautical (ADS-B/ACARS/VDL/HFDL/SATCOM) or ship tracking (AIS), please take a look at sister project Airframes / Airframes Github.

Screenshots

Supported Meshtastic Message Types

• neighborinfo
• nodeinfo
• position
• telemetry
• text
• traceroute
• mapreport
• routing

Features

Current

• Chat
• Map
• Nodes
• Node Neighbors
• Mesh Messages
• MQTT Messages
• Telemetry
• Traceroutes
• Routing Messages

Configuration-Driven Customization

🆕 All mesh-specific content is now configurable via config.ini:

• Branding: Mesh name, region, description, logo
• MQTT Settings: Server, credentials, display settings
• Navigation Links: Customizable dropdown with external tools/resources
• Community Links: Fellow mesh network cross-linking
• External Node Links: MeshMap, regional maps, etc.
• Theming: Colors, styles, favicon
• Features: Toggle #MeshtasticMonday, experimental features
• Node Registration: Optional user accounts and node claiming

Example mesh networks using this codebase:

• CSRA Mesh (Central Savannah River Area)
• Middle GA Mesh (Middle Georgia)
• Your mesh network here!

Upcoming

• Statistics
• Overview of Routes

Chat

If you're using this and have questions, or perhaps you want to join in on the dev effort and want to interact collaboratively, come chat with us on #meshinfo on Meshtastic ZA Discord.

Documentation

📚 Complete documentation is available in the docs/ directory:

• Setup Guide - Docker Compose installation (recommended)
• Manual Setup - Traditional installation guide
• Caching & Performance - Memory management and optimization
• Contributing - How to contribute to the project

🚀 Quick Deploy Guide

For Your Mesh Network

1. Clone this repository
2. Choose a starting config:
   • Copy config.ini.sample to config.ini for a blank template
   • OR copy config-csra.ini.example to config.ini for CSRA-style setup
   • OR copy config-middlega.ini.example to config.ini for Middle GA-style setup
3. Edit your config.ini:
   • Update [mesh] section with your network details
   • Update [mqtt] section with your MQTT server
   • Customize [tools] and [community_links] sections as needed
4. Deploy using Docker Compose (see sections below)

That's it! No template modifications needed - everything is config-driven.

💡 Why This Fork?

Unlike other MeshInfo-Lite forks that require template modifications for each mesh network, this version:

• ✅ Single codebase supports unlimited mesh networks
• ✅ Zero template editing required
• ✅ Easy updates without losing customizations
• ✅ Professional branding for each mesh network
• ✅ Community cross-linking between mesh networks
• ✅ Example configurations to get started quickly

Perfect for mesh network operators who want a professional site without the hassle!

Running

Docker Compose (preferred for 24/7 servers)

For detailed Docker setup instructions, see docs/SETUP_DOCKER.md.

Quick Setup

🎉 Now with fully automatic database setup! Just configure and run - no manual database steps required.

Clone the repo

git clone https://github.com/agessaman/meshinfo-lite.git
cd meshinfo-lite

Edit Configuration

1. Copy and then edit the config.ini.sample to config.ini
2. OR use one of the provided example configs:
   • cp config-csra.ini.example config.ini (for CSRA Mesh setup)
   • cp config-middlega.ini.example config.ini (for Middle GA Mesh setup)

To Run

Change to the directory.

cd meshinfo-lite

docker compose down && docker compose up --build -d && docker compose ps && docker compose logs -f meshinfo

That's it! The application now automatically:

• ✅ Waits for database to be ready
• ✅ Sets up database privileges
• ✅ Runs all database migrations
• ✅ Starts with full functionality

No manual database setup steps required!

To Update

git fetch && git pull && docker compose down && docker compose up --build -d && docker compose ps && docker compose logs -f meshinfo

Directly (without Docker)

Be sure you have Python 3.12.4 or higher installed.

Install MariaDB and create the database and user permissions

sudo mysql -u root
CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS meshdata;
CREATE USER IF NOT EXISTS 'meshdata'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'passw0rd';
GRANT ALL ON meshdata.* TO 'meshdata'@'localhost';
ALTER DATABASE meshdata CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;
COMMIT;

python -m venv .
. bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
python main.py

Development

Building a local Docker image

Clone the repository.

git clone https://github.com/agessaman/meshinfo-lite.git

If already existing, be sure to pull updates.

git fetch && git pull

Build. Be sure to specify a related version number and suffix (this example dev5 but could be your name or initials and a number) as this will help prevent collisions in your local image cache when testing.

scripts/docker-build.sh 0.0.1dev5

Running via Docker Compose while developing

docker compose -f docker-compose-dev.yml up --build --force-recreate

You will need to CTRL-C and run again if you make any changes to the python code, but not if you only make changes to the templates.

Contributing

We happily accept Pull Requests! Please see docs/CONTRIBUTING.md for detailed guidelines and docs/CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md for our community standards.

Meshtastic node settings

These are the settings that must be set, and how they must be set on your node if you would like it to show up on the map. Anything that is not preceded by "Recommended" must be set as stated for your node to show.

Channels > Click on LongFast
	Uplink Enabled: True
	Downlink Enabled: Recommended False
	Position Enabled: True
	Precise Location: False
	Bottom slider: 1194ft is the *most* accurate setting that will still show up on any map. This is a meshtastic limitation.
	
	Be sure to click send to save after each page/section

Position: 
	
	Set your lat/long/alt and set "Used fixed position" to True if your node doesn't have GPS or is stationary
	
	Otherwise set your GPS settings.
	
Lora: 
	OK to MQTT: True
	
MQTT:
	Address: mqtt.meshtastic.org
	Username: meshdev
	Password: large4cats
	
	Encryption enabled: True
	JSON output enabled: False

	Root topic: msh/US/FL/anything
 (Typical options to replace 'anything' above are: orl, jax, etc...As long as your root topic starts with msh/US/FL then you're good.)

	Proxy to client enabled: True if your board isn't directly hooked to Wi-Fi or Ethernet.
	Map reporting: True
	Precise location: False
	
	Slider at the bottom: 1194 feet is the *most* accurate you can set things to and still have your node show up on maps.
	
	Map reporting interval: 900