Radio Setup

The Radio Setup dialog is the master per-radio configuration window. It organizes radio identification, network, GPS, transmit, phone/CW, receive, calibration, antenna names, filters, transverters, USB cables, peripherals, APD, themes, SmartLink certificate management, serial port settings, DX cluster, KiwiSDR receivers, and user interface settings across multiple tabs.

Opening Radio Setup

1. Open Settings > Radio Setup....
2. The dialog opens as a persistent dialog; its geometry is saved and restored automatically across sessions.

Radio tab

The Radio tab displays radio information, identification, license info, and firmware update controls.

Radio information

Control	Kind	Notes
Radio SN	Indicator	Chassis serial number (read-only). Click the copy icon next to the value to copy it to clipboard. New in v26.5.3 (#2976).
Region	Indicator	Radio regulatory region.
HW Version	Indicator	Hardware version string. Click the copy icon to copy the text. New in v26.5.3 (#2976).
Model	Indicator	Radio model. Click the copy icon to copy the text. New in v26.5.3 (#2976).
Options	Indicator	Shows licensed radio options. Click the copy icon to copy the text. New in v26.5.3 (#2976).
FlexControl	Indicator	Detected state of FlexControl hardware.
multiFLEX	Indicator	multiFLEX enabled state.

Identification

Control	Kind	Notes
Nickname	Text field	User-friendly radio nickname.
Callsign	Text field	Station callsign.
Station Name	Text field	Identifies this AetherSDR client to other multiFLEX stations. Defaults to the OS hostname if empty. Stored in AppSettings. Sent to radio as 'client station '.

Copying read-only values

Each read-only information field on this tab (Radio SN, Callsign, Options, HW Version, Region, Model, IP Address, Mask, MAC Address, and License Info fields) displays a small copy icon when you hover over the value. Click the icon to copy the text to the clipboard. A brief "Copied" popup confirms the action.

License information

The dialog displays license details from the radio including subscription status, expiration date, radio ID, and licensed version. Each field includes a clipboard copy button next to the value.

Firmware update

1. Click Check for Update to query for firmware updates.
2. If an update is available, the status label shows the available version and instructs you to download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com.
3. If the firmware is already current, the status label shows "Firmware is up to date."
4. Download the SmartSDR installer from flexradio.com if one is available.
5. Click Select Installer....
6. The file picker accepts .msi (FlexRadio v4.2+ WiX installer), .exe (older self-extracting installer), or a pre-extracted .ssdr file.
7. The firmware stager detects the file format automatically and extracts the .ssdr without requiring external tools.
8. While the stager prepares the firmware, the progress bar is shown and the status label reads "Preparing firmware from \<filename>...".
9. Once staging completes, click Upload Firmware to transfer the firmware to the radio. Progress and result are shown in the status label.

Control	Kind	Notes
Check for Update	Button	Queries for available firmware updates.
Select Installer...	Button	Opens a file picker. Accepts .msi, .exe, or .ssdr. Previously labelled Browse .ssdr... (changed in v26.5.3).
Upload Firmware	Button	Starts the firmware upload. Progress bar and status label update throughout.

Remote On

Click Remote On to enable remote wake / remote-on capability.

Reboot Radio

Click Reboot Radio to restart the connected radio.

Control	Kind	Notes
Reboot Radio	Button	Restarts the radio. A confirmation dialog is shown before rebooting. The button is disabled when the radio is not connected. For LAN connections, AetherSDR automatically reconnects after the radio finishes booting. For SmartLink/WAN connections, you must reconnect manually. The dialog closes after initiating the reboot.

1. Click Reboot Radio.
2. A confirmation dialog explains the behavior difference between LAN and WAN connections.
3. Click OK to confirm. AetherSDR sends the reboot command to the radio and closes the setup dialog.

Network tab

The Network tab displays radio network information and provides advanced network options.

Network information

Control	Kind	Notes
IP Address / Mask / MAC Address	Indicator	Read-only network addresses. Each includes a clipboard copy button.

Network settings

Control	Kind	Default	Valid range	Notes
Enforce Private IP Connections:	Toggle button	Enabled	—	Rejects non-RFC1918 peers. The button always shows "Enabled" when checked.
Agent Automation (MCP):	Toggle button	Disabled	—	Enables the in-app automation bridge so an AI coding assistant (via the MCP server) can introspect and drive the running app. Off by default; the operator opts in. New in v26.8.4 (#3646). Persisted via AutomationBridgeSettings. The AETHER_AUTOMATION launch environment variable force-enables the bridge regardless of this toggle and disables the control in the UI. Transmit-keying stays blocked unless AETHER_AUTOMATION_ALLOW_TX is set.
Access Token:	Text field	(none)	—	Read-only display of the MCP access token; paste it into the assistant's AETHER_MCP_TOKEN environment variable. Stored in the OS secret store. New in v26.8.4. Auto-mints a 128-bit hex token when the bridge is enabled without one. Placeholder '(loading…)' until the keychain read lands.
Copy (Access Token)	Button	—	—	Copies the access token to the clipboard. New in v26.8.4.
Rotate (Access Token)	Button	—	—	Generates a new token and applies it immediately, locking out any client still using the old one. New in v26.8.4.
Allow TX via MCP: Enable transmit control	Checkbox	False	—	Lets an MCP client key the transmitter (MOX/PTT/TUNE/ATU/CWX). Off by default; first enable raises an operator-responsibility confirmation. New in v26.8.4. Enforced in the bridge; no client can flip it. Overridden by AETHER_AUTOMATION_ALLOW_TX (force on) and AETHER_AUTOMATION_NO_TX (pinned off). A force-unkey watchdog limits bridge-originated TX.
Observe only: Read-only (block all driving)	Checkbox	False	—	Makes the bridge observe-only: MCP clients can read state but every mutating verb (set/invoke/connect/tune/capture) is refused. New in v26.8.4 (#4188). Enforced in the app, so a client cannot bypass it. AETHER_AUTOMATION_READONLY launch variable pins it on for headless/CI runs.
VITA-49 RX buffer:	Slider	4 MB	0.25–4 MB (presets)	Snap-to-preset slider setting the kernel receive buffer (SO_RCVBUF) for the VITA-49 stream socket; larger absorbs panadapter/waterfall bursts so packets aren't dropped. New in v26.8.4 (#3810). Presets 256 KB to 4 MB. The system caps the grant at net.core.rmem_max; a live 'granted: ' label shows what the kernel actually granted.
granted: (VITA-49 RX buffer)	Indicator	—	—	Shows the buffer size the kernel actually granted (vs the requested preset). Shows '(applies on connect)' when no connection is active. New in v26.8.4.
Network MTU:	Spin box	1450	576–9000 bytes	Sets maximum outgoing VITA-49 UDP packet size in bytes. Default 1450 is safe for most VPN/SD-WAN tunnels. Stored in AppSettings as NetworkMtu.
DHCP / Static	Toggle button	—	—	Switches between DHCP and Static IP modes.
IP Address: / Mask: / Gateway:	Text field	—	—	Static IP configuration fields.

Apply network configuration

Click Apply to push the network configuration to the radio.

GPS tab

The GPS tab displays GPS presence and live latitude, longitude, altitude, time, and satellite information.

TX tab

Use this page to configure transmit settings including timings, interlocks, max power, tune mode, waterfall display, and slice/TX follow behavior.

TX band settings

Click TX Band Settings to open the dedicated per-band power and tune dialog.

TX controls

Control	Kind	Default	Notes
Max Power:	Spin box	—	Sets radio-level TX power cap.
Tune Mode:	Combo box	—	Selects how the tune button behaves.
Timings	Spin box	—	TX hang / delay timings.
Interlocks - TX REQ: RCA / Accessory	Toggle button	—	Enables RCA and accessory interlock inputs.
Show TX in Waterfall:	Toggle button	—	Draws TX signal in the waterfall.
TX Follows Active Slice	Button	False	TX follows the active slice. Mutually exclusive with 'Active Slice Follows TX'. Disabled automatically during Split operation.
Active Slice Follows TX	Button	False	Switches the active slice when TX moves externally (e.g. WSJT-X or CAT). Mutually exclusive with 'TX Follows Active Slice'.

TX timing fields

Field	Display label	Reported unit	Command suffix
ACC TX	ACC TX	ms	acc_tx_delay
TX Delay	TX Delay	ms	tx_delay
RCA TX1	RCA TX1	ms	tx1_delay
Timeout (sec)	Timeout (sec)	seconds	interlock_timeout (value multiplied by 1000 before sending to radio)

The interlock timeout field displays in whole seconds for readability. The radio stores and expects the value in milliseconds; AetherSDR multiplies by 1000 before sending the command to the radio.

Phone/CW tab

The Phone/CW tab configures microphone, CW keyer, and RTTY defaults.

CW keyer settings

Control	Kind	Default	Valid range	Notes
Iambic:	Toggle button	—	Enabled / Disabled	Enables or disables the iambic keyer on the radio.
Iambic Mode: A / B	Button	A	A / B	Selects Curtis iambic mode A or B for both the radio and the local software keyer. Mutually exclusive pair.
Swap:	Toggle button	—	—	Swaps dit/dah.
Sideband:	Combo box	—	LSB / USB	Selects CW pitch sideband.
CWX:	Toggle button	—	—	Enables CWX macro keying.
Decode: RX	Toggle button	True	—	Enables the CW decode overlay on the panadapter for received CW. New in v26.5.3: split from single CwDecodeOverlay toggle into independent RX/TX toggles. Persisted as nested JSON blob under CwDecoder with rx and tx fields. Legacy CwDecodeOverlay key auto-migrated on first read.
Decode: TX	Toggle button	False	—	Decodes the operator's own CW keying via client-side sidetone, useful as a self-training tool for paddle/bug timing. New in v26.5.3 (#2417).

Other audio settings

Control	Kind	Notes
Enable/Disable the Level Meter During Receive	Toggle button	Shows mic level meter even in RX.
RTTY Mark Default:	Spin box	Default RTTY mark frequency.

RX tab

The RX tab contains controls for manual frequency offset calibration and 10 MHz reference source selection. Calibration controls are always shown regardless of whether a GPSDO is installed.

How to run a frequency calibration

1. Open Settings > Radio Setup....
2. Click the RX tab.
3. Enter a known-accurate reference frequency in Cal Frequency (MHz):.
4. Click Start.
5. The button label changes to Busy and becomes disabled while calibration runs.
6. The status field to the right of the button shows progress text ("Starting…" then live state).
7. Before starting, AetherSDR resets the frequency error to zero (radio set freq_error_ppb=0) and then issues `radio pll