Raspberry Pi network management appliance, with serial console, DNS, DHCP, TFTP and HTTP server

To run this on a freshly installed Pi OS, follow these steps:

Prerequisites

1. Fresh Raspberry Pi OS (Bookworm or later recommended)
2. Root access (sudo privileges)
3. Internet connection for package downloads

Installation Steps

1. Clone or Download the Project

• Option A: Using git (if available)

  git clone <repository-url> raspberrypi-usbserial-console
  cd raspberrypi-usbserial-console
  

• Option B: Download and extract if you have the files Transfer files to your Pi and extract to a directory

2. Make Scripts Executable

   chmod +x install.sh
   find modules -name "*.sh" -exec chmod +x {} \;
   

3. Run Full Installation

   Full installation with all modules

   sudo ./install.sh
   

   Or install specific modules only

   sudo ./install.sh system network hostapd dnsmasq nginx
   

4. Check Available Options

   See all available modules

   ./install.sh --list
   

   View help

   ./install.sh --help
   

What the Installation Does

1. System Preparation: Updates packages, installs dependencies
2. Network Setup: Configures IPv4/IPv6 routing, nftables firewall
3. WiFi Hotspot: Creates USBSerial-Console network with WPA3/WPA2
4. File Sharing: Sets up HTTP, TFTP, and SMB access to /srv/shared
5. USB Serial: Configures device naming and console access scripts
6. Service Coordination: Manages systemd services with proper dependencies

Post-Installation

Access the System

• WiFi Network: USBSerial-Console (password is the Pi's MAC address without colons)
• Web Interface: http://192.168.44.1/
• File Sharing: All protocols serve /srv/shared/
• Console Access: Use console and list-consoles commands

Check Status

Check if services are running

sudo systemctl status usbserial-console
sudo systemctl status hostapd dnsmasq nginx

View logs

sudo journalctl -u usbserial-console -f

Customization

If you need to customize settings, edit config/global.conf before installation:

Edit configuration

nano config/global.conf

Then run installation

sudo ./install.sh

Troubleshooting

If Installation Fails

• Check /var/log/usbserial/ for detailed logs
• Ensure Pi has internet connection
• Verify you're running as root/sudo
• Check if WiFi interface exists: ip link show wlan0

Module-Specific Issues

Reinstall specific module

sudo ./install.sh --force hostapd

Install dependencies manually

sudo ./install.sh system network
sudo ./install.sh hostapd

READ THIS !!

The system is designed to work on a completely fresh Pi OS installation with no prior configuration needed!