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?

Select camera as "INDI Camera" and Mount as "On-Camera". Btw, this will probably not solve your problems since PHD2 also uses INDI and the problem you described seems to be INDI-issue, not Ekos, but you can try anyway. Alternatively, you can use "native" QHY5 drivers (if they have this on Linux). If you select "INDI Camera" then you need to start the drivers in Ekos, go to PHD2 and run it to connect to the INDI camera, then go back to Ekos and connect to PHD2 from Guide Module.

Make sure the server is running inside PHD2. There is an option in one of the drop down menus.

I can show you what I'm doing, when are you available? Teamviewer is the best way though, it's an easy install.