Dan,

I ran into a conflict trying to install the firmware piece. It looks like it conflicts with the existing qhy driver.

Binary firmwares udev rules for CCD and Lin_guider.
This package contains firmwares and udev rules for DSI2PRO,
QHY5, QHY6, QHY8L, QHY9, Starlight Xpress cameras for CCD
and Lin_guider projects.
Do you want to install the software package? [y/N]:y
dpkg: regarding firmware-ccd_1.3_all.deb containing firmware-ccd:
libqhy conflicts with firmware-ccd
firmware-ccd (version 1.3) is to be installed.

dpkg: error processing archive firmware-ccd_1.3_all.deb (--install):
conflicting packages - not installing firmware-ccd
Errors were encountered while processing:
firmware-ccd_1.3_all.deb

Dan,

The lin_guider package compiled and runs. I am wondering if it will work with the existing QHY5 firmware that is installed on my system now. Thoughts?

If the package runs and your camera is connected, you should be seeing images. If that's true, I would not change a thing. Your next step then will be to test it under the stars.

You will start the package, KStars, then after initializing Ekos for your mount and camera, slew to a good star area. I would suggest something not too low or high, and, definitely not circumpolar. I would suggest something west of your meridian. This way, if your scope is a GEM, you won't be worrying about a meridian flip.

Now, with the Lin_guider screen open, select the Calibrate window. (third from right icon) You should be seeing hot pixels and some star or stars. Cover your guide telescope. Click the lower right Start button. It will take and save 10 images, your hot pixels should all go away. Then uncover, you should now see only stars or maybe faint hot pixels. Now, click the Find Star button. A box will appear around the star. If the box is too small, change the square size to ensure its enclosed. Then, click the middle right Start button. You should see the star drift in both axis. It should go a few seconds drifting and then returning to the starting position. If it goes the wrong direction, you must go to the Pulse Device Settings window and change the settings. If successful, it will say Done. If the rate is not correct, you will get an error message as the program attempts to return but can't. The star should not be drifting outside the box during the calibration for any length of time. If done successfully, the cross hair lines representing DEC and RA will align over your guide star. If it fails, you must close, change the settings and restart.

Next click the second to right icon, (Guiding) In the lower right click Start. It should begin guiding your telescope. With some luck, the directions of the motors are correct and do not need reversed.
Best wishes,
Dan

Just want to note my experiences with the SSAG autoguider and Indi. I use PHD2 to guide, but it was working in the Ekos guider. The problem I had with the Ekos guider was that it would refuse to calibrate, but I think it has something to do with the focal length of my guide scope being too small for the 8" SCT. I'm still working this out, but it otherwise solid. Strangely I did have problems in a imaging session last night with PHD2 in Linux losing connectivity to the camera via Indi. It was the first time for me running the camera in below freezing temps, but I think it may have some something to do with sharing the USB hub on the RPI3. Actually about to to run some tests right now.

lin_guider apparently requires the firmware that Dan recommended to work. I am not sure how to resolve that conflict yet. I don't want to lose QHY support in the INDI/Ekos stack but I want my guiding to work. Jon, You mentioned that you use PHD2 to guide. I think that's where I will end up in the short run until I can figure out a way to resolve the QHY dependency on lin_guider. Would you mind walking me through your setup for you have PHD2 configured? I started down this path and actually almost had it working but I took a left somewhere when I should have taken a right I think and it all went sideways.

Newbie help needed.

I'm relatively new to this, although I've been working on it for a couple weeks now. I have a SSAG. I'm starting INDI Server and it's connecting to my SSAG as a QHY CCD QHY5-0-M- and appears to be operational.

When I go to the Guide module in Ekos control, it's not connected to anything. If I go to "Options" and select either PHD2 or LinGuider, I get the same message, "The connection was refused by the peer. Make sure the LinGuider <PHD2> is running, and check that the host name and port settings are correct." If I select the Internal Guider in the options, it connects.

I would like to use PHD2. I believe I have it installed on my Pi3 correctly and updated. Is there some step I'm missing? I can't get the guider control to allow me to do anything with either LinGuider or PHD2 selected.

Thanks:
JT

Was PHD2 already running and configured by you? Ekos does not configure PHD2, it just connected to an existing instance.

I guess not. I looked at the guiding info on the web page and it said to go to the module tab and select PHD2 but my version of the Kstars configuration window does not have that option in the modules tab. So I selected it in the options section of the guiding window. I assumed that was how it's done.

I accept user error as pripbably the cause of most of my issues. I looked at the web page under the Ekos description for the GUide Module and it made it seems like clicking PHD2 in that module was all that's needed.

As for access to my Pi, you got it. We just need to find a time when the time difference can be dealt with. From 1100 UTC (soon to be 1200 when we roll our clocks back) until about 2200 UTC, Monday thru Friday, I'm not available to play with it due to work. Occasionally, that's not the case. BUT, I'm willing to get up very early here to make myself available to you for a tutoring session if we can straighten this all out. I'll contact you again on the google hangout and see if we can make an appointment for one day this week, if that's OK

I appreciate the very generous offer to help. I may take you up on that eventually. For now, I think I am going to reset the QHY5 to it's default settings and set kstars to use PHD2. In the PHD2 software, did you set your mount up as well or just the QHY5 for the SSAG? Do you connect to the QHY5 with the native drivers or do you use the INDI driver?

I'm available almost every day from UTC 06:00 - 21:00. Will only be available tomorrow & wed from 06:00 to 12:00 but today I'm available.

If you're using your ST4 cable, then set it to guide via the camera itself.

Cool. Yes. I am using an ST4 cable. So, in PHD2, do I just completely leave the mount out then since the SSAG will be doing the guiding? Also, should I set PHD2 to use the native QHY5 drivers or should I have it connect via the INDI drivers?