docker-virtualradarserver

Dockerized version of VirtualRadarServer for Linux.

Current and latest release is on the :dev branch. Latest stable releases are at v3pX branches - according to the availabe pre-releases of VRS.

Requirements

This container initially expects SBS data input via network from a running instance of e.g. readsb-protobuf, readsb bare-metal or tar1090 (as long it's attached to your SDR). Any other data sources should work, as long they offer one of the supported formats.

It will run on a Raspberry Pi, recommended is a Raspberry Pi 4 with at least 2GB RAM. As VRS is a bit of ressource hog, your results will depend very much on the amount of planes your receiver picks up (or you get from some other sources).

Example docker-compose.yml

version: '3.8'

services:
  vrs:
    image: ghcr.io/sdr-enthusiasts/vrs:latest
    tty: true
    container_name: vrs
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - 8085:8080
    environment:
        - VRS_ADMIN_USERNAME=your_webadmin_user
        - VRS_ADMIN_PASSWORD=your_webadmin_pass
        - VRS_CULTURE=de-DE #see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/goglobal/bb896001.aspx for a list of supported culture names. Not all translations may be available
        - VRS_DB_UPDATE_POLICY_FULLAUTO=yes #default unset / no
        - VRS_DB_UPDATE_WITH_VACUUM=yes #default unset / no
        - VRS_DB_UPDATE_BACKUP_UNCOMPRESSED=yes #default unset / compressed
        - VRS_ENHANCED_MARKERS=normal #default unset
        - VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_COUNTRY=UK #Currently available: UK,DE,USA1,USAAZ,SE,AU
        - 'VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_CONFIG={

            /* Map Options */
            "defaultMap" : 1,                      /* 1: OpenStreetMap, 2: OpenStreetMap Dark, 3: OpenTopoMap, 4: WaterColour, 5: CartoDark, 6: Terrain, 7: Satellite */
            "layerMenuPosition" : "bottomleft",    /* Valid positions: topleft, topright, bottomleft or bottomright */

            /* Enable Layers */
            "airspace" : 0,
            "navAids" : 0,
            "tfrUSA" : 0,
            "seaMarkers" : 0,
            "trainMap" : 0,
            "clouds" : 0,
            "rain" : 0,
            "temps" : 0,
            "wind" : 0,
            "pressure" : 0,
            "dayNight" : 0,
            "civilAirfields" : 0,
            "militaryAirfields" : 0,
            "heliports" : 0,
            "glidingSpots" : 0
          }'
        - VRS_SBSHOST=readsb  #put IP or container name of data source here
        - VRS_SBSPORT=30003
        - VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_OPENWX_APIKEY=yourapikey
        - VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_OPENAIP_APIKEY=yourapikey
        - VRS_SILHOUETTES_DUALVIEW=true
    tmpfs:
      - /tmp:rw,nosuid,nodev,noexec,relatime,size=128M
    volumes:
      - /opt/adsb/vrs:/root/.local/share/VirtualRadar
      - /etc/localtime:/etc/localtime:ro
      - /etc/timezone:/etc/timezone:ro

Refer to VRSLayers for further information about the defaults you can set in the docker-compose.yml

Virtual Radar server can be accessed at http://<HOST_IP>:8085/VirtualRadar VRS should auto default to desktop or mobile display depending on the type of device you are using to access it. You can force this by appending /desktop.html or /mobile.html to the web address give here.

The final configuration is done via the VRS Web Admin Interface, which can be found at http://<HOST_IP>:8085/VirtualRadar/WebAdmin/Index.html After startup, VRS will point to readsb as it's first and only receiver - which will work out of the box if the container is in the same stack as readsb, which is the case if you followed this guide.

On first startup the container downloads some additional files, namely a pre-populated BaseStation.sqb, a LocalAircraft.txt which corrects some incorrectly tagged (civil a/c flagged as military a/c or visa versa only) aircrafts and some nice custom Operator Flags and Silhouettes made by rikgale and the group effort of the community. Everything is constantly updated and help is much appreciated. Any requests for operator flags / silhouettes can be filed through the issues.

Subsequent updates of the files occur on a container-restart. Additionally, the originating repository is checked every 6 hours for updates. New files will be downloaded automatically.

Requests for additions to the LocalAircraft.txt go Here.

Scope of supply

The container image comes with the following preinstalled VRS V3 plugins:

• Language Pack
• Custom Content
• Database Editor
• Database Writer
• Feed Filter
• SQL Server
• Tile Server Cache
• Web Admin

(batteries are not included)

Environment variables

Variable	Description	Default
VRS_ADMIN_USERNAME	Username used for login to WebAdmin	required
VRS_ADMIN_PASSWORD	Password used for login to WebAdmin	required
VRS_CULTURE	see here for a list of supported culture names. Not all translations may be available	unset means en-GB
VRS_DB_UPDATE_BACKUP_UNCOMPRESSED	Works only in conjunction with VRS_DB_UPDATE_POLICY_FULLAUTO. Prior the update a backup of the database is created. If this is set, the backup will remain uncompressed	unset
VRS_DB_UPDATE_POLICY_FULLAUTO	Activates the initial download of an extended Basestation.sqb DB and keeps it up to date. Warning! This may overwrite user entries	unset
VRS_DB_UPDATE_WITH_VACUUM	Works only in conjunction with VRS_DB_UPDATE_POLICY_FULLAUTO. DB is compressed after update. The update takes longer but the sqb will be smaller.	unset
VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_CONFIG	The configuration for the default map, enabled layers and menu buttom position. See the docker-compose.yml example above!	unset defaults to example values
VRS_DB_UPDATE_BACKUP_UNCOMPRESSED	Works only in conjunction with VRS_DB_UPDATE_POLICY_FULLAUTO. Prior the update a backup of the database is created. If this is set, the backup will remain uncompressed	unset
VRS_CULTURE	see here for a list of supported culture names. Not all translations may be available	unset means en-GB
VRS_ENHANCED_MARKERS	Installs and activates VRS custom markers. normal is for the ADS-B set, hfdl is for an extra set in case you have a HFDL input and disable deactivates the markers. here are more details about the markers.	unset
VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_COUNTRY	Installs and activates VRS enhanced layers. Takes a country code as input. Currently availble are UK, DE, USA1, USAAZ, SE,AU. here are more details, feel free to open an issue there to get your country on board.	unset - Unknown country codes will default to UK
VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_OPENWX_APIKEY	For the enhanced weather layers to work, you need an API key. Again, here are more details, and instructions how to obtain an API key.	unset
VRS_ENHANCED_LAYERS_OPENAIP_APIKEY	For the OpenAIP layers to work, you need an API key. Again, here are more details, and instructions how to obtain an API key.	unset
VRS_SILHOUETTES_DUALVIEW	If set, then the "Dual View Silhouettes" will be used. The set of DV Silhouettes might be incomplete.	unset
VRS_SBSHOST	IP or hostname of a BaseStation ADS-B data feed provider. In general it's more easy to set up the receivers on the WebAdmin panel	unset defaults to readsb
VRS_SBSPORT	Port the BaseStation ADS-B data feed provider	unset defaults to 30003

If not stated otherwise, the envvars should be set to "yes" or "true" (or actually anything, as long they are set.)

Something does not work, is broken or missing

Well, that happens. Drop by our Discord and we'll see what we can do.

Disclaimer and acknowledgements

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Additional map overlays used in this container may contain aviation airscape, weather, navigational aids, airfield information, etc. All of these are purely for entertainment / hobby use and MUST NEVER be relied upon to any extent for real world aviation / flying. You should always use the latest legal airspace charts and weather information as published by official sources. This is not an official source. By using this code you agree to make users of your webpage aware of this, and agree that the publisher is not responsible for any loss or damage resulting from the use of this code. The airspace charts, navigational aids,aerodrome information, weather, etc will not be 100% complete or accurate and will contain errors.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

SDR Enthusiasts are very grateful for the following resources which have been used in the creation of this container:

• Virtual Radar Server (Andrew Whewell) VRS on GitHub / VRS Website
• Database snapshot for base original data provided from PlaneBase, mictronics aircraft database. Ongoing updates from VRS Standing Data and various user contributions.
• Docker container base image, original container and other docker related fun-times (SDR Enthusiasts)
• Container maintainer (Rhodan76)
• Sideviews and Silhoeuttes (rikgale)
• Additonal Aircraft Markers (rikgale)
• Map overlays (rikgale)
• LocalAircraft.txt - (rikgale / Jonboy1081)