OpenMANET Project

OpenMANET is a Raspberry Pi–based MANET (Mobile Ad-Hoc Network) radio built on Wi-Fi HaLow (802.11ah).
It’s designed around Raspberry Pi HATs and currently built specifically for the Seeed HaLow board, with plans to add support for other devices later.

Description

This project aims to provide a flexible HaLow mesh radio using Raspberry Pi hardware and HaLow HATs. A number of optional components are supported; current testing includes the WaveShare 1850 UPS for power and the Panda Wireless PAU06 USB Wi-Fi adapter (additional drivers are included but not yet fully tested).

Note: On most Raspberry Pi models, the onboard Wi-Fi shares the SDIO address with HaLow modules and cannot be used for client networking in this setup. Use a USB Wi-Fi adapter or the Ethernet port on the Raspberry Pi 4 to bridge connectivity.

Networking Model

  • The mesh exposes a flat 10.41.0.0/16 LAN to end users, even though BATMAN-V may send frames over multiple HaLow hops in the background.
  • A single Mesh Gate now runs strictly in router mode, handing out 10.41.1.1 and NATing the MANET into whatever uplink you connect it to, your upstream network stays separate.
  • Every mesh point keeps its own DHCP scope and unique 2.4/5 GHz SSID, so clients can join over Ethernet or Wi-Fi and still get a lease during disconnected operations.
  • MDNS and Alfred advertise hostnames mesh-wide, so you can reach hostname.local from anywhere without touching DNS servers.

This design is deliberately opinionated to reduce the amount of networking knowledge you need to bring a cluster online. See the dedicated Networking page for the full breakdown.

Advantages vs. the Seeed image

  • Different BCF radio file increases TX power (≈21 dBm → 27 dBm)
  • Newer build than the Seeed image
  • Includes 802.11s and batman-adv support

📡 Range Testing

Want to see how OpenMANET performs in the field?
Check out the dedicated Wi-Fi HaLow Range Testing page for detailed results, images, and notes from real-world testing.