LoRa, is a low-bandwidth, long-range communication protocol, so minimizing unnecessary traffic is critical for maintaining network efficiency and stability.
Below are key strategies to limit bandwidth and additional best practices.
• Set Stationary Node Location Updates to Every 7200 Seconds: For stationary nodes, configure the position broadcast interval to 7200 seconds (2 hours) or more. Unlike mobile nodes, stationary nodes don’t need frequent location updates, as their position remains constant. This can be set via the Meshtastic app under Settings > Device Configuration > Position, using the position.broadcast_secs option (e.g., meshtastic –set position.broadcast_secs 7200). This reduces unnecessary position packets, freeing up airtime.
• Limit Weather Telemetry to Once Per Hour: Configure weather telemetry to report no more than once per hour (3600 seconds). In the Meshtastic app or CLI, set the telemetry environment update interval to 3600 seconds (meshtastic –set telemetry.environment_update_interval 3600). This ensures environmental data, such as from weather sensors, doesn’t overwhelm the network. Disable telemetry on nodes where it’s not needed to further reduce traffic.
• Optimize Device Roles for Efficiency: Choose appropriate device roles to minimize unnecessary transmissions.
For example:
• Use the Repeater role for nodes solely intended to relay messages, as this role disables telemetry and position broadcasts, reducing bandwidth usage.
• If you are running multiple nodes at one location set the note with the best location in your home to client and all other others to client mute.
• Avoid overuse of the Router role unless strategically placed (e.g., high-elevation permanent locations), as routers prioritize relaying and can increase congestion if misconfigured.
• Reduce NodeInfo Broadcasts: Set the node info broadcast interval to 3600 seconds (1 hour) or higher for all nodes (meshtastic –set device.node_info_broadcast_secs 3600). This limits how often nodes advertise their presence, which is especially useful in dense meshes. Nodes still respond to new node discoveries, so this won’t hinder network functionality.
• Enable Smart Position Broadcasting: For mobile nodes, enable smart position broadcasting to send location updates only when the node moves a minimum distance (e.g., 100 meters) or after a minimum interval (e.g., 30 minutes). This prevents excessive position packets in dynamic environments. Configure via meshtastic –set position.position_broadcast_smart_enabled true.
• Limit Hop Count: Set the hop limit to 4 or 5 to prevent packets from traversing excessive nodes, which consumes bandwidth. In most regional meshes, 5 hops are sufficient, as seen in network analyses. If you live on the front of the network setting to six or seven is totally acceptable. Adjust this in Radio Configuration > LoRa (meshtastic –set lora.hop_limit 5).
• Disable Unnecessary Features: Turn off features like range testing or MQTT uplinking unless required. Range test packets can spam the channel, and MQTT can increase traffic if nodes relay to public servers. Disable via the app under Module Configuration > Range Test or LoRa Configuration (meshtastic –set lora.ignore_mqtt true).
• There are numerous Meshsense instances running on the mesh so adding an additional likely only increases traffic with minimal benefit to the mapping. Limit Traceroute Requests for MeshSense Users: Set MeshSense to send traceroute requests no more frequently than every 120 minutes (7200 seconds). Frequent traceroutes, as the default setting in MeshSense , significantly increases channel utilization. Since firmware version 2.5.1, Meshtastic limits traceroutes to once every 30 seconds, and MeshSense has been updated to queue requests accordingly. Adjust this 120 minute setting in MeshSense’s configuration to reduce bandwidth. This is single-handedly, the biggest offender with traffic.