Hardware Setting up an Orange Pi 3 LTS with EKOS/INDI/KStars

Initial setup (Ubuntu image)

The OrangePI 3 LTS used in this article is the 2GB version.
When you get your Orange Pi 3 LTS, I'd recommend using an Ubuntu image instead of the Debian. I spent 8 hours trying to get the Debian image that was available at the time my Orange Pi can in to work with tightVNC, and never could. Once I used BalenaEtcher to install Ubuntu Jammy I had no issues. I will detail the issues that I had with the Debian install at the end of the article. This is primarily targeted at using Ubuntu Jammy with the Orange Pi LTS.

After installing the Ubuntu image on your SD card, you can start the Orange Pi up. It comes loaded with SSH, so you can use that to log in, or you can do like I did and simply hook an HDMI capable display up and a keyboard and mouse for direct access.
The default login info for the Orange Pi is
Username orangepi
Password orangepi
Once you are logged in (the Ubuntu install automatically logs you in when using a display and keyboard mouse upon boot up.
You will need to open a terminal window and make sure you update to the latest of the operating system.

Code:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade

To set up the VNC server on Ubuntu Jammy

Install the XFonts base used by tightVNC (this may already be installed)
sudo apt-get install xfonts-base

Install tightVNC server
sudo apt-get install tightvncserver

This is where I strayed from most of the guides that tell you to set up a user for VNC. Since I already had the default orangepi user, I simply set up the :1 for that user.
So, while logged in as orangepi I ran
Code:
vncserver :1
You will be prompted to create a password for access. Keep it less than 8 characters. You will also be asked if you want set up a view only password, which I chose not to do.
You can create a user of your own if you choose to.

Once you have done this, you should be able to connect to the instance for the orangepi user by using
IP_Address:5901 in your VNC client on your remote system. I would suggest testing to make sure you can connect at this point.

Now, to get tightVNC to autostart, you will need to do a few more things.
The VERY first thing you need to do is add your orangepi user (or the one you created) into the sudo group by
sudo gpasswd -a orangepi sudo

Create a service by creating the below file (which will be an actual script when done)
Code:
sudo nano /usr/local/bin/tightvncserver
(note, I use joe personally instead of nano as it uses the old WorsStar combos)

In that file you need to have
Bash:
#!/bin/bash
PATH="$PATH:/usr/bin/"
DISPLAY="1"
DEPTH="16"
GEOMETRY="1024x768"
OPTIONS="-depth ${DEPTH} -geometry ${GEOMETRY} :${DISPLAY}"

case "$1" in
start)
/usr/bin/vncserver ${OPTIONS}
;;

stop)
/usr/bin/vncserver -kill :${DISPLAY}
;;

restart)
$0 stop
$0 start
;;
esac
exit 0

You now need to make this file executable (to be a script)
Code:
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/tightvncserver

Now you need to set up the Systemd process to start it automatically (again, you can use any text based editor you are comfortable with, nano, vi or joe as examples)
Code:
sudo nano /lib/systemd/system/tightvncserver.service

This file needs to contain the following information

Code:
[Unit]
Description=Manage tightVNC Server

[Service]
Type=forking
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/tightvncserver start
ExecStop=/usr/local/bin/tightvncserver stop
ExecReload=/usr/local/bin/tightvncserver restart
User=orangepi

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Be sure to change your user to whatever you ran the vncserver :1 command under.

The next step to do is restart Systemd and enable the tightvnc server process
Code:
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable tightvncserver.service


You have the basic commands that most services use under Linux for stopping, starting and restarting
to start sudo systemctl start tightvncserver.service
to stop sudo systemctl stop tightvncserver.service
to restart sudo systemctl restart tightvncserver.service
and to get status sudo systemctl status tightvncserver.service

Now all you have to do is reboot your Orange Pi and it should have tightVNC up and running.

Using Armbian with the Orange Pi 3

Thanks to freddylq, I have been playing with Armbian as an install option in addition to the default Orange Pi install options.
This page will detail some of the install processes for Armbian (desktop) compared to the default Orange Pi Ubuntu Jammy images.
The first step is to obtain the Armbian Orange Pi3 install image.
You will want to make sure to get the XFCE version as the Cinnamon and Gnome do not auto-start into the desktop.

From my initial exposure to the Cinnamon & Gnome desktop versions, there are some issues present. I'm still working through them and more updates will come as I work through them.
The biggest issue so far is the VNC login.... after some work I simply get this when accessing via VNC with Gnome and Cinnamon desktops..

Screen Shot 2023-04-07 at 3.18.33 AM.png

I still need to work through this. I will be doing a direct connect to the Orange Pi shortly to see if that is an issue that needs to be addressed before VNC access is enabled.

If you choose the XFCE desktop, you will be able to pretty much use the initial instructions, with the exception of with Armbian you have to create a new user during the setup. You will need to either have your Orange Pi 3 LTS hooked into a monitor/keyboard mouse or access it via SSH after initial startup as you have to assign a new root password (the default is 1234) during the setup, and then to get the desktop to start up normally create a new user.
After doing that, the main guide will still work with the exception of using your recently created user in place of the orangepi user that the OEM Orange Pi installs of Jammy set up automatically in the tightvncserver.service file you create.

In the Armbian BookWorm you will create a user for the OS install (had to be hardwired with monitor/keyboard/mouse), so whatever user you create that is the one you will use in your tightvncserver.service file you created.

On recent updates to Armbian, I've found that the WiFi no longer works reliably.
If you are using hardwire to the OrangePI and using Armbian then you should be able to connect easily (if you are using a router/hotspot hardwired to the OrangePI for remote use).
Currently I cannot recommend Armbian as a valid install if needing to connect via WiFi.

08/27/2023 EDIT:
I have gone through the Armbian install of both Bookwork w/KDE and Jammy w/I3 again, and the WiFi issue is still present.

Setting up INDI/EKOS/Kstars

This is a very simple process once you have your Orange Pi up and running and available by VNC access.

The first thing you will need to do is add the PPA's (repositories) for the software.
Code:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:mutlaqja/ppa
sudo apt-get update

To install the INDI library and 3rd party drivers
sudo apt-get install indi-full gsc

To install latest EKOS
sudo apt-get install indi-full kstars-bleeding

To install INDI library with basic drivers only
sudo apt-get install libindi1 indi-bin

Once you have done this, then the process should be very similar to any other Kstars/Indi/EKOS setup.
You will need to start up KStars, then start up EKOS. If your equipment is not already attached, you can still set up a profile for it for later use.

Once you have done that, you need to choose the simulator if you have not set up your equipment and it is not attached, and then there are a few processes you need to compete before you are ready to use it on capturing stars. Most previous users of KStars/INDI/EKOS will be familiar with this, but this is for those first starting.


The first thing you need to do is choose Data tab and then start downloading the necessary data to the Orange Pi for use.

data_downloads.jpg


The only things you really don't need are the images, but you DO need all the catalogues.

Once you have done that, you will then need to start your simulator in EKOS and download the index files for plate solving.
You do this by clicking on the Align tab (looks like a red/white/blue target) and then select the Options at the bottom right.

Once you have done that, then click on the Index Files in the lower left of the pop-up box. You will see a LOT of files crop up, and NONE of them will be installed.
You now will need to create a new file location in your home directory to use for these index files. I simply called mine index_files, but you can name the directory whatever you want so you can recognize it.

Once you have done this, you will now need to select that directory you created to install the index file into.
You do this by the Index Files Location at the top input area of the pop-up. You can click on the + and then point at the directory to install them into.

store_location.png


Once you have done this, choose ALL the index files up to the 2.5GB size, those should be index_4203.fits and index_5203.fits.

index_files.jpg


Once you have done all this, your KStars/INDI/EKOS should be ready to rock and roll.

Orange Pi 3 LTS Debian images

Here I will give a brief synopsis of the issues I had with the Debian install (Orange Pi 3.0.8 lts Debian Bullseye 5.16.17). I did NOT try any earlier OS versions as I prefer to use the latest for installs.
The install using BalenaEtcher went just as expected, with no issues any of the times on the SanDisk 256GB card.
The issue I had EVERY time was after running all the updates, getting the desktop configured and then installing tightVNC server via the normal repo's, upon reboot you could NOT log into the system, simply getting kicked back to a login screen. When trying to connect via the VNC server, you would simply get a blank gray screen with a black X cursor that would move, but no other visual items.

I have a smaller card, and I plan on experimenting with older versions to see if that may be the issue, but honestly I'm just as happy with Ubuntu, as it is, from my understanding, the LTS version.

EDIT:

I have successfully installed Debian and the Tightvnc server, but there is an issue when you go to add the Indi/Kstars repository.
There are several dependencies that are not installed on the Debian package, and you get a GPG key error when you try to add the PPA for Indi/Kstars.
When I get another SD-Card I will play with Debian further.
I did discover you don't want to even try using the indi-bin or KStars that is available via a normal install process from their repositories. It's WAY outdated.

Future Orange Pi plans

This is a decent option to the Raspberry Pi 4 and Astroberry/Stellarmate OS. realizing that the chipset is more along the lines of an RPi 3 instead of the 4. But for over 1/2 the price difference, this may be a viable option.
The exception is you WILL need to be familiar with Linux and setting it up, and if you are not, the additional cost of an RPi4 may be the better option.
I will be shortly purchasing the Orange Pi 5 series to evaluate, but I am pretty sure it will have many of the issues with this version of the Orange Pi in that it needs to have a dedicated install of the OS, then manually installing the necessary astrophotography related tools, unlike the RPi4 which has pre-configured installs.

Final thoughts

This is a decent option to the Raspberry Pi 4 and Astroberry/Stellarmate OS. realizing that the chipset is more along the lines of an RPi 3 instead of the 4. But for over 1/2 the price difference, this may be a viable option.
The exception is you WILL need to be familiar with Linux and setting it up, and if you are not, the additional cost of an RPi4 may be the better option.
I will be shortly purchasing the Orange Pi 5 series to evaluate, but I am pretty sure it will have many of the issues with this version of the Orange Pi in that it needs to have a dedicated install of the OS, then manually installing the necessary astrophotography related tools, unlike the RPi4 which has pre-configured installs.

This device has been rather problematic... especially when dealing with the WiFi and using Armbian. I'm not really that sure that I'd "save" the money by purchasing one when compared to the RaspberryPI or even spending a more on an actual Intel NUC. The issue I am currently having is that the ETH connection is fine.. but a WiFi connection, even when defined, never connects.
About author
Tracy
I've been interested in astronomy since I was in Jr. High (graduated in the early 80's).
It wasn't until I retired that I was able to really get into it due to monetary and time constraints.

Comments

Hi Tracy, total Linux newbie here but I was proficient in DOS back in the day. I just received my Orange Pi 3 LTS a few days ago and I'm going to give this a try. How do we set up an Indi Server only with the client software running on a remote PC? Do you think an Orange Pi Zero 2 would handle that ?
 

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