DOCGetting started

Install Open Signal on Linux (Ubuntu)

Run Open Signal on 64-bit desktop Linux: unpack the self-contained tarball, pick the right ALSA audio device, and open your rig's serial port.

Open Signal runs on 64-bit desktop Linux — tested on Ubuntu 22.04 and 24.04. Nothing extra to install: the download is self-contained (the .NET runtime is bundled) and audio uses ALSA, which every Ubuntu desktop has. PipeWire and PulseAudio systems work through their ALSA compatibility automatically.

Installing

tar -xzf OpenSignal-<version>-linux-x64.tar.gz
cd OpenSignal-<version>-linux-x64
chmod +x OpenSignal.App
./OpenSignal.App

If it doesn’t start, run it from a terminal — the reason prints there. A desktop session (X11 or Wayland; Wayland runs it via XWayland) is required.

Radio setup differences from Windows

Everything is the same app; only the device names differ:

Audio: in Settings, pick your USB radio codec from the capture/playback lists. Choose a default, sysdefault or plughw: entry for your rig — not a raw hw: one (those don’t convert sample rates).
Serial CAT/PTT: your rig’s port is /dev/ttyUSB0 (or similar) instead of COM3. If the port won’t open, add yourself to the dialout group: sudo usermod -a -G dialout $USER, then log out and in.

Your files

Settings and pictures live under ~/.config/OpenSignal (the Linux equivalent of the Windows %APPDATA%\OpenSignal folder).

New to Open Signal?

Start with the overview — what it does, the honest status, and how the pieces fit together.

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