MeshCore Regions for Switzerland

Our mesh network now extends far beyond Switzerland. This incredible success brings new challenges. On this page you will find the current recommendations for using MeshCore Regions in Switzerland.

To understand Regions, you first need to understand the underlying problem. Most messages on MeshCore are sent via Channels using "Flood Routing". This means messages do not follow a specific path but are repeated by every repeater that hears them.

So when we chat locally in channels like #bern or #wallis, these messages are repeated by all repeaters across Europe, as far as the mesh reaches – even though nobody in Germany, Italy, France or Austria may be interested. The same applies in reverse: local chats like #muenchen or #freiburg are also received and forwarded by repeaters here in Switzerland.

In the long run this will lead to problems because we waste a lot of airtime on messages that nobody wants to hear. MeshCore's solution to this problem is Regions. Simply put, when sending you can choose which region a message should go to; only repeaters assigned to that same region will then repeat the message.

Swiss Regions

An overview of the MeshCore Regions used in Switzerland.

Main Regions Switzerland

We have agreed on a relatively simple solution for Switzerland in the Swiss MeshCore Community. Based on this discussion, we recommend using these regions in Switzerland:

Important: Configuring these regions does not break anything; everything works exactly as before. We simply give ourselves the additional option to distribute certain messages only within Switzerland.

Other Regions

  • The region * is enabled by default on all repeaters; this is correct and should not be changed. The region * simply means that the repeater repeats all packets that are not assigned to a region – exactly as before.
  • Depending on where you live and your personal preferences, it may make sense to configure additional regions from neighbouring countries on your repeaters.
  • For longer distances within Europe, there is the region "europe".

Repeater Regions

Details on region settings for MeshCore Repeaters.

For MeshCore Regions to work properly, it is important that we configure our repeaters correctly. This is not complicated either:
  • The repeater itself should run at least MeshCore v1.13.0 or newer.
  • The Companion Node should also run at least MeshCore v1.13.0 or newer.
  • You should use at least the MeshCore app v1.40.0 or newer.
  • Multiple regions can be configured; you don't have to choose just one.
  • All repeaters in Switzerland should have at least the region "ch" configured. Additionally, we recommend the language region matching the repeater's location, e.g. "ch-fr" if it is in the French-speaking part of Switzerland.
  • All repeaters in Switzerland continue to allow repeating of messages that are not assigned to a region.

Configuration

  1. Configuring the regions can be done conveniently via Remote Management directly from the MeshCore app. To do this, log in to the repeater and go to "Manage Regions" under "Settings".
  1. Then you can add the desired regions with the + button in the top right.
  1. Now you need to "Allow Flood" for each region by clicking the three dots.
  1. Finally, save the settings permanently with the ✓ symbol in the top right.

Important: Be sure to keep the region * enabled. This way the repeater continues to repeat all messages that are not assigned to a specific region, just as before.

Here is a screenshot of a correctly configured repeater in Biel. Since it is located near the French-speaking region, both ch-de and ch-fr regions are configured:

Companion Regions

Details on using Regions with MeshCore Companion Nodes.

Using regions in the app is very simple. You can set a region for each channel. If you don't, messages will be repeated by all repeaters that have the region * enabled. If you set it to "ch" for example, the message will only be repeated by repeaters with that region.
  1. In the MeshCore app, open the channel, then simply long-press on the channel name. A menu will open. If you already have regions in the app, you can switch directly there.
  1. If you don't see any regions yet, simply tap "Set Region Scope" in the same menu, then add new ones with the + in the top right.
  1. When a region is set for the channel, it is displayed in the top center of the MeshCore app.