venus/dbus-no-foreign-land/README.md

NFL Tracking for Venus OS

A Venus OS addon that sends boat position and track data to noforeignland.com without requiring Signal K.

Features

• Reads GPS position from Venus OS D-Bus (uses built-in dbus-python, no extra downloads)
• Sends track data to the NFL API
• Configurable via Settings menu (Settings → GPS → NFL Tracking)
• 24h keepalive when boat is stationary
• Runs as a daemon with automatic restart

Requirements

• Venus OS device (Cerbo GX, Venus GX, etc.) with root access
• Python 3 with dbus-python (built into Venus OS)
• GPS connected to Venus OS (USB/serial GPS or router GPS)
• noforeignland.com account and Boat API Key (Account > Settings > Boat tracking > API Key)
• Internet connection for API uploads

Installation

From built package

# On your computer - build the package:
cd dbus-no-foreign-land
./build-package.sh --version 1.0.0

# Copy to Venus OS device:
scp dbus-no-foreign-land-1.0.0.tar.gz root@<device-ip>:/data/

# SSH to device and install:
ssh root@<device-ip>
cd /data && tar -xzf dbus-no-foreign-land-1.0.0.tar.gz
mv dbus-no-foreign-land /data/dbus-no-foreign-land
bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/install.sh
bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/install_gui.sh   # Add to Settings menu
# Configure via Settings → GPS → NFL Tracking (API key, boat name, intervals)

Manual install (from source)

1. Copy the project folder to /data/dbus-no-foreign-land on your Venus OS device
2. Run bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/install.sh
3. Run bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/install_gui.sh to add NFL Tracking to Settings → GPS
4. Configure via Settings → GPS → NFL Tracking (API key, boat name, intervals)

Configuration

All settings are configured via the Venus GUI: Settings → GPS → NFL Tracking

• Boat API Key – Get from noforeignland.com: Account > Settings > Boat tracking > API Key
• Boat name – Optional display name
• Enable tracking – Master on/off switch
• Track interval – Minimum seconds between points (10–3600s)
• Min distance – Meters moved before logging new point (1–10000m)
• Send interval – Minutes between API uploads (1–1440min)
• 24h keepalive – Send a point every 24h when stationary

Settings are stored in Venus localsettings (D-Bus) and persist across reboots.

Alternative: Configure via MQTT: N/<vrm-id>/nfltracking/0/Settings/BoatApiKey, etc.

GUI Settings

After install.sh, run install_gui.sh to add NFL Tracking to Settings → GPS:

bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/install_gui.sh

If the GUI goes blank, run install_gui.sh --remove to restore.

GPS Data Source

The addon reads GPS from Venus OS D-Bus:

1. Reads com.victronenergy.system → /GpsService to get the best GPS service name (e.g. com.victronenergy.gps.ve_ttyUSB0)
2. Reads position from that GPS service:
   • Prefers /Latitude and /Longitude (numeric)
   • Fallback: /Position (string "lat,lon")
3. Requires /Fix = 1 (GPS fix) before using position

If GPS data is not received:

• Ensure GPS is connected and has a fix (Device List > Boat > GPS)
• Run dbus -y on the device and inspect com.victronenergy.gps.* to verify paths
• Some GPS sources (e.g. router NMEA) may use different path names

Debugging

# View logs
tail -F /var/log/dbus-no-foreign-land/current | tai64nlocal

# Restart service
/data/dbus-no-foreign-land/restart.sh

# Check status
svstat /service/dbus-no-foreign-land

Troubleshooting

"MemoryError" or "Cannot allocate memory" – Python may fail to start on very low-RAM devices. Check free memory: free -m

Uninstall

bash /data/dbus-no-foreign-land/uninstall.sh

License

MIT