DE Module Updater

The DE Module Updater screen allows you to update, manage, and maintain DroneEngage software modules on your unit. You can update individual modules, perform bulk updates, backup configurations, and check installed versions.

Warning

This tool updates DroneEngage modules from the release server. Use with caution and always backup your configuration files before performing updates.

Danger

CRITICAL: Configuration Reset After Update

When a module is updated, the new version comes with fresh default configuration files. Your previous settings (account credentials, server URLs, custom parameters) will NOT be preserved automatically.

After updating, you MUST either:

  1. Reconfigure the module using the WebAdmin interface (recommended), or

  2. Manually restore specific fields from your backup configuration files

Warning

Do NOT simply overwrite the new config files with old backups! New module versions may contain new required fields or changed parameter formats. Overwriting with old files may cause the module to malfunction.

Best Practice: Use the WebAdmin interface to reconfigure modules after updates, or carefully copy only the specific fields you need (such as account credentials) from the backup to the new configuration file.

Server Configuration

Release Server URL - The URL where DroneEngage module binaries are hosted.

  • Default: https://cloud.ardupilot.org/downloads/RPI/Latest/

  • Only change this if you are using a private or custom release server

Update Options

These checkboxes modify the behavior of update operations:

  • Force Update - When enabled, updates modules even if the local version matches the server version. Useful for reinstalling or repairing modules.

  • Dry Run - When enabled, shows what would be updated without actually making any changes. Use this to preview updates before applying them.

Select Modules

This section displays all available DroneEngage modules with checkboxes to select which ones to update.

Available Modules:

Module

Description

de_comm

Communication module for DroneEngage - handles server connectivity

de_mavlink

MAVLink protocol handler - communicates with flight controllers

de_camera

Camera streaming module - manages video feeds

de_rpi_gpio

Raspberry Pi GPIO control - hardware pin management

de_tracking

Object tracking module - visual tracking capabilities

de_sdr

Software Defined Radio module - radio communication features

Selection Controls:

  • Select All - Checks all module checkboxes

  • Deselect All - Unchecks all module checkboxes

Action Buttons

The main action buttons provide different update strategies:

Button

Description

Update Selected Modules (Blue)

Updates only the modules you have checked in the Select Modules section

Update Outdated Modules (Yellow)

Automatically detects and updates only modules that have newer versions available on the server

Force Reset & Update All (Red)

Forces a complete reinstall of all modules regardless of current versions. Requires confirmation.

Backup Configuration Files (Green)

Creates a backup of all JSON configuration files before making changes

List Binary Versions (Cyan)

Displays the currently installed version of each DroneEngage binary

Quick Actions

The Quick Actions table provides one-click access to common operations:

Action

Description

Reset & Update All Modules (Red)

Force reset and update all modules to the latest version

Update Outdated Modules (Yellow)

Update only modules with newer versions available

Dry Run - Check Updates (Cyan)

Check what would be updated without making changes

Backup Configuration Files (Green)

Backup all JSON configuration files

List Binary Versions (Blue)

Display installed versions of all DroneEngage binaries

Output Area

The Output section displays real-time feedback from all operations.

  • Shows the exact command being executed

  • Displays progress and results in real-time

  • Reports success or error messages upon completion

  • Clear button - Clears all output messages from the display

Automatic Module Backups

Important

Before each module update, the system automatically creates a complete backup of the existing module folder as a compressed tar archive. This ensures you can always roll back to a previous version if needed.

Backup Location:

/home/pi/drone_engage_backups/

Backup Naming Format:

<module_name>_<YYYYMMDD>_<HHMMSS>.tar.gz

Example backup files:

/home/pi/drone_engage_backups/
├── de_camera_20251203_172624.tar.gz
├── de_comm_20251203_172630.tar.gz
├── de_mavlink_20251203_172634.tar.gz
├── de_sdr_20251203_172638.tar.gz
└── de_tracking_20251203_172641.tar.gz

Each backup contains the complete module folder from before the update, including binaries and any local configuration files.

Tip

To restore a previous module version, extract the corresponding tar.gz file back to its original location. For example:

cd /home/pi/drone_engage/
tar -xzf ~/drone_engage_backups/de_comm_20251203_172630.tar.gz

Configuration File Backups

Use the Backup Configuration Files button to create a snapshot of all JSON configuration files from every module. This is useful before making manual configuration changes or major updates.

Configuration Backup Location:

/home/pi/drone_engage_config_backups/

Backup Structure:

Each backup is stored in a timestamped folder containing the configuration files organized by module:

/home/pi/drone_engage_config_backups/
└── 2025-12-03_17-27-32/
    ├── de_ai_tracker/
    │   └── de_ai_tracker.config.module.json
    ├── de_camera/
    │   ├── de_camera.config.module.json
    │   └── template.json
    ├── de_comm/
    │   ├── de_comm.config.module.json
    │   └── template.json
    ├── de_gpio/
    │   └── de_rpi_gpio.config.module.json
    ├── de_mavlink/
    │   ├── de_mavlink.config.module.json
    │   └── template.json
    ├── de_rpi_gpio/
    │   └── de_rpi_gpio.config.module.json
    ├── de_sdr/
    │   └── de_sdr.config.module.json
    └── de_tracking/
        └── de_tracker.config.module.json

Backed Up Files Include:

  • *.config.module.json - Main configuration files for each module

  • template.json - Template files where applicable

Backup Summary

Note

The system provides two types of backups stored in different locations:

Type

Location

Contents

Module Backups

/home/pi/drone_engage_backups/

Complete module folders as tar.gz (automatic before each update)

Config Backups

/home/pi/drone_engage_config_backups/

JSON configuration files only (manual via button)

Post-Update Configuration

Danger

IMPORTANT: You must reconfigure modules after updating!

After a module update, the new version contains default configuration files with no user data. Your previous settings are NOT automatically migrated.

Recommended Approach - Use WebAdmin:

  1. Open the DroneEngage WebAdmin interface

  2. Navigate to the updated module’s configuration section

  3. Re-enter your settings (account credentials, server URLs, etc.)

  4. Save the configuration

  5. Restart the module

Alternative Approach - Manual Field Copy:

If you prefer to restore from backup files:

  1. Open the new configuration file (e.g., de_comm.config.module.json)

  2. Open your backup configuration file from /home/pi/drone_engage_config_backups/

  3. Carefully copy only the specific fields you need (e.g., userName, accessCode, auth_ip)

  4. Do NOT replace the entire file - new versions may have new required fields

  5. Save and restart the module

Fields Commonly Needing Restoration:

  • Account credentials (userName, accessCode)

  • Server URLs (auth_ip)

  • Custom port configurations

  • Module-specific settings you have customized

Warning

New module versions often introduce:

  • New configuration fields (required for new features)

  • Changed parameter names or formats

  • Removed deprecated options

Blindly overwriting new config files with old backups may cause modules to fail or behave unexpectedly.


DE Module Updater Screen

Typical Workflows

Checking for Available Updates:

  1. Click Dry Run - Check Updates in Quick Actions (or enable Dry Run checkbox)

  2. Review the output to see which modules have updates available

  3. Decide whether to update all or select specific modules

Updating All Outdated Modules:

  1. Click Backup Configuration Files first (required)

  2. Click Update Outdated Modules

  3. The system automatically backs up each module before updating

  4. Wait for the update process to complete

  5. Verify success in the Output area

  6. Reconfigure each updated module via WebAdmin or manual field copy

Updating Specific Modules:

  1. Click Backup Configuration Files first

  2. Use Deselect All to clear all checkboxes

  3. Check only the modules you want to update

  4. Click Update Selected Modules

  5. Monitor progress in the Output area

  6. Reconfigure the updated modules

Fresh Installation / Repair:

  1. Click Backup Configuration Files to save your settings

  2. Click Force Reset & Update All

  3. Confirm the action when prompted

  4. All modules will be reinstalled from the server

  5. Reconfigure all modules using WebAdmin

Rolling Back an Update:

  1. Navigate to /home/pi/drone_engage_backups/

  2. Identify the backup file for the module you want to restore

  3. Extract the tar.gz file to restore the previous version

  4. Restart DroneEngage services

  5. Your old configuration will be restored along with the old binary

Before Major Updates:

  1. Click List Binary Versions to document current versions

  2. Click Backup Configuration Files to save configurations

  3. Proceed with your update operation

  4. If issues occur, restore from the backups

Video Tutorials

For step-by-step video guides on updating DroneEngage modules, visit the tutorial playlist:

DroneEngage Video Tutorials