ORARES OADN Quarterly Connectivity Test & Report

Provide for a meaningful, practical quarterly connectivity test from local ARES stations to county level VHF Packet RMS Stations, Oregon HF Pactor RMS stations, and HF Pactor RMS stations located outside of Oregon. Provide a simple reporting mechanism utilizing plain text formatted messages from Airmail’s Address Book feature. Provide training opportunities for local EC’s and team members in connecting to county level VHF Packet RMS Stations, Oregon HF Pactor RMS stations, and HF Pactor RMS stations located outside of Oregon.

Objectives 1.To insure the operational capability of the Oregon ARES Digital Network as a statewide network. 2.To insure the operational capability of the grant provided equipment located in each county. 3.To provide training opportunities for EC’s and county ARES Team Members in operating the grant provided equipment. 4.To provide training opportunities for EC’s and county ARES Team Members in completed NIMS/ICS compatible forms.

Prerequisites Each county will be responsible for the following: 1.Pre-determining the network paths or direct connection information required to connect to a neighbor county’s VHF OADN Gateway. 2.Maintaining an accurate frequency list in Airmail for HF RMS gateways in the U.S. 3.Training local ARES team members in using the radio and associated equipment. 4.Training local ARES Team members in using Airmail and HF Propagation Software

Methods 1.Send an ICS 213 Message through an Oregon HF RMS Pactor Gateway. 2.Connect to a non-Oregon based HF RMS Pactor Gateway station and re-send the same ICS 213 Message that was sent in step 1. 3.Complete the ORARES Quarterly Connectivity Test plain text form. 4.Send the Quarterly Connectivity Test Report through a neighbor county’s VHF RMS Gateway.

Send an ICS 213 Message through an Oregon HF RMS Pactor Gateway This message shall contain the following information 1.Number of active ARES members 2.Projected Training Topics for the next three months (or until the next connectivity test will be performed) 3.VHF and/or HF net info 1.frequencies, 2.days of week, 3.Frequency 4.Other items of interest to the SM, SEC, and DEC

Send an ICS 213 Message through an Oregon HF RMS Pactor Gateway Record the following information for later use : 1.Date and time message sent. 2.Oregon based HF RMS Gateway station contacted (W7ODN or K7ODN). 3.Frequency of contact. 4.Maximum throughput observed in Airmail. 1.This information is located in the bottom left corner of the Airmail HF terminal display

Connect to a non-Oregon based HF RMS Pactor Gateway station and re-send the ICS 213 Message Send the ICS 213 previously sent 1.The same message will be sent so that transmission times can be compared. 2.Send the ICS 213 message to the same list of addressees.

Oregon ARES OADN Quarterly Report Top section of the report Sample of how to complete the form.

Oregon ARES OADN Quarterly Report Message section of the report Sample of how to complete the form.

Oregon ARES OADN Quarterly Report Signature section of the report Sample of how to complete the form.

Send the Quarterly Connectivity Test Report through a neighbor county’s VHF RMS Gateway. 1.Will help local ARES team learn best path to neighbor county gateway. 2.Can save path to neighbor county gateway in Airmail Packet Client Module for future use 3.Identify and help your neighbor with problems related to connecting to their gateways

Deliverables 1.List of counties participating in the quarterly, or more regular, OADN Connectivity Test Program - delivered to the SEC and DECs 2.Connectivity results from counties to Oregon based HF RMS Gateways - delivered to SEC, DECs and County ARES teams 3.List of non-Oregon based HF RMS gateways connectivity results; with frequency and time of day correlation - delivered to SEC, DECs and County ARES teams 4.List of VHF RMS Packet Gateways operational and accessible by individual counties - delivered to SEC, DECs and County ARES teams 5.Status report and list of projected training activities from each participating county ARES team - delivered to SEC and DEC’s

Questions ?? Thank you for your participation in Oregon ARES. Also thank you for helping to maintain the Oregon ARES Digital Network (OADN).