DragonOS Adds Standalone Meshtastic Sniffer for HackRF Radios
Developer cemaxecuter wrote the sniffer in C as a standalone binary that does not depend on GNU Radio, and it monitors the full Meshtastic band.
Developer cemaxecuter has added a Meshtastic sniffer to DragonOS, his radio-focused Linux distribution, according to Hackaday. The tool monitors the full bandwidth Meshtastic uses, detects traffic and decodes it when the key is known.
The sniffer is written in C as a standalone binary and does not depend on GNU Radio, which keeps it separate from the rest of the signal-processing stack that DragonOS is built around.
The project uses a HackRF software-defined radio. That hardware does not cover every Meshtastic operating frequency, but it covers most of them.
In one test, after cemaxecuter started his own node, the software detected it quickly and displayed its details in the terminal.
He suggests the sniffer could be used for wardriving and for locating other networks more easily.
Background
Meshtastic has grown in popularity over the last few years because it requires no license and its hardware is cheap compared with much ham radio gear. A 2023 treatise on the Meshtastic protocol and hardware is often referenced for newcomers to the system.
Quick answers
What is the DragonOS Meshtastic sniffer?
It is a standalone C binary built into DragonOS that monitors the full Meshtastic band, detects traffic and decodes it when the key is known.
Does the sniffer need GNU Radio?
No. It is written as a standalone binary and does not depend on GNU Radio.
Which radio hardware does it use?
The project uses a HackRF software-defined radio, which covers most but not all Meshtastic operating frequencies.