ReplyBotModule

A lightweight Meshtastic firmware module that responds to simple slash commands via direct message to provide quick link health diagnostics. Should be in the 2.7.19 release.

ReplyBot adds a friendly, low-overhead auto-responder to your Meshtastic node. When enabled, it listens for simple slash commands and replies with useful diagnostics so you can quickly verify mesh connectivity and link health.

---

Why ReplyBot?

In a mesh network, it’s not always obvious whether your messages are reaching other nodes—or how good the link actually is.

ReplyBot acts as a quick “mic check” for your mesh. You send a command from any Meshtastic device and get an immediate response with real link diagnostics.

Each reply includes:

• Hop count — how many relays delivered your message
• RSSI — received signal strength (dBm, normalized if needed)
• SNR — how far above the noise floor your signal is

This module is intentionally human-facing, optimized for clarity and usefulness rather than packet efficiency.

---

Supported Commands

Commands are case-insensitive and must be prefixed with a slash (/). Any extra text after the command is ignored.

Command	Description
/ping	Confirms the bot is alive and returns diagnostics
/hello	Alias for /ping
/test	Alias for /ping

Where commands work

• Direct Message → Bot replies directly
• Primary Channel broadcast → Bot sees it and replies via DM
• Secondary channels → Ignored

ReplyBot runs in promiscuous mode so it can see primary‑channel broadcasts without spamming the network.

---

Example

Command:

/ping

Reply:

🎙️ Mic Check: 1 Hop away | RSSI -75 | SNR 9.4

---

Rate Limiting

To keep the mesh responsive, ReplyBot enforces per‑sender cooldowns:

Message Type	Cooldown
Direct Message	15 seconds
Primary Channel broadcast	60 seconds

If you’re rate‑limited, just wait a bit and try again.

---

Customization

Developers can tune ReplyBot behavior via constants in the source:

• REPLYBOT_DM_COOLDOWN_MS
• REPLYBOT_LF_COOLDOWN_MS
• REPLYBOT_COOLDOWN_SLOTS

Defaults:

• 15‑second DM cooldown
• 60‑second primary channel cooldown

Adjust these based on mesh size and traffic density.

---

How It Works

ReplyBot is written in C++ as part of the Meshtastic firmware.

When compiled in, it:

1. Registers as a text message handler
2. Listens for incoming text packets
3. Filters messages addressed to it or broadcast on the primary channel
4. Parses supported slash commands
5. Applies per‑sender cooldowns
6. Computes hop count, RSSI, and SNR
7. Sends a direct message reply to the sender

The reply format is customizable, including optional emoji.

---

Installation

ReplyBot is not enabled by default.

To enable it:

1. Open Variant.h in the Meshtastic firmware source.

2. Add the following line:

    #undef MESHTASTIC_EXCLUDE_REPLYBOT
   

3. Build and flash firmware as usual for your board.

To disable the module, remove the #undef line and rebuild.

---

Troubleshooting

If replies aren’t working:

• Confirm the module is compiled in
• Use the primary channel for broadcasts
• Respect cooldown limits
• Verify mesh connectivity

---

Shout‑out

Huge thanks to lzmesh.com for helping me in my advancement of learning Meshtastic.

---

Contributing

Meshtastic is a community‑driven project.

Contributions are welcome—code, documentation, testing, or feedback.
Open an issue or submit a pull request via the Meshtastic firmware repository.

---

License

Meshtastic firmware, including this module, is licensed under the
GNU General Public License v3.0. See the LICENSE file for details.