Drone Engage RPI Image Tools - Terminal

This is a web SSH terminal for the RPI image. It allows you to run Linux commands directly on your Raspberry Pi. This guide is designed for beginners who need to manage DroneEngage modules.

DroneEngage Directory Structure 

All DroneEngage modules are installed in the ~/drone_engage directory.

List all DroneEngage modules:

ls ~/drone_engage

Navigate to DroneEngage home:

cd ~/drone_engage

Managing DroneEngage Services 

DroneEngage modules run as systemd services. Here are the essential commands to manage them:

Checking Service Status 

Check if Communication Module is running:

sudo systemctl status de_comm

Check if Camera Module is running:

sudo systemctl status de_camera

Check if Mavlink Module is running:

sudo systemctl status de_mavlink

Tip

A service is running if you see active (running) in green. Press q to exit the status view.

Starting and Stopping Services 

Start a service:

sudo systemctl start de_comm
sudo systemctl start de_camera
sudo systemctl start de_mavlink

Stop a service:

sudo systemctl stop de_comm
sudo systemctl stop de_camera
sudo systemctl stop de_mavlink

Restart a service (useful after configuration changes):

sudo systemctl restart de_comm
sudo systemctl restart de_camera
sudo systemctl restart de_mavlink

Enabling/Disabling Auto-Start 

Enable a service to start automatically on boot:

sudo systemctl enable de_comm
sudo systemctl enable de_camera
sudo systemctl enable de_mavlink

Disable a service from starting on boot:

sudo systemctl disable de_comm
sudo systemctl disable de_camera
sudo systemctl disable de_mavlink

Viewing Logs 

Logs are essential for troubleshooting. Use these commands to view service logs:

View recent logs for a service:

sudo journalctl -u de_comm -n 50

Follow logs in real-time (live view):

sudo journalctl -u de_comm -f

View logs since last boot:

sudo journalctl -u de_comm -b

Tip

Replace de_comm with de_camera or de_mavlink to view logs for other modules. Press Ctrl+C to stop following logs.

System Commands 

Reboot and Shutdown 

Reboot the Raspberry Pi:

sudo reboot

Shutdown the Raspberry Pi:

sudo shutdown now

Schedule a reboot in 5 minutes:

sudo shutdown -r +5

Checking System Resources 

Check disk space:

df -h

Check memory usage:

free -h

View running processes:

htop

Note

Press q to exit htop.

Check CPU temperature:

vcgencmd measure_temp

Network Commands 

Check IP address:

ip addr

Check network connectivity:

ping -c 4 google.com

Restart networking:

sudo systemctl restart networking

Manually Running Modules 

In some cases, you may need to run modules manually for debugging purposes.

Manually start Communication Module:

cd ~/drone_engage/de_comm
sudo ./de_comm.so

Manually start Camera Module:

cd ~/drone_engage/de_camera
sudo ./de_camera64.so

Manually start Mavlink Module:

cd ~/drone_engage/de_mavlink
sudo ./de_mavlink.so

Warning

Before running modules manually, make sure to stop the corresponding systemd service first using sudo systemctl stop <service_name>.

Quick Reference Table 

Common Commands Summary
Task	Command
Check service status	`sudo systemctl status de_comm`
Start a service	`sudo systemctl start de_comm`
Stop a service	`sudo systemctl stop de_comm`
Restart a service	`sudo systemctl restart de_comm`
View service logs	`sudo journalctl -u de_comm -n 50`
Follow logs live	`sudo journalctl -u de_comm -f`
Reboot system	`sudo reboot`
Shutdown system	`sudo shutdown now`
Check disk space	`df -h`
Check memory	`free -h`
Check IP address	`ip addr`