NOCT
Releases

NOCT for Raspberry Pi

One image that turns a Raspberry Pi into a NOCT appliance. Flash it, power on, open a browser and follow the setup wizard. No terminal needed.

0.9.0 Beta

Released 2026-10-03

Raspberry Pi image

The ready-to-flash image is available to Ko-fi members, whose support pays for NOCT's development. The download link is in the members' post on Ko-fi.

Get the image on Ko-fi 783 MB

Check your download against its SHA-256:

40418fde8f9f9ad149d0b7847edbae1eade975fe1992bc9fd024994a5b6d2265
Boards
Raspberry Pi 4 (tested). Pi 3 and Pi 5 should work but are not yet verified for this release.
Card
8 GB or larger microSD card or USB SSD
Based on
Debian 13 (trixie), 64-bit, built from Raspberry Pi OS Lite sources
Login
noct / noct1234, SSH on. Change it on first use with passwd over SSH.
Hotspot
Wi-Fi NOCT, password noct1234. Change it from the System page.

Install

  1. Download the image from the Ko-fi members' post and check its SHA-256 against the value above.
  2. Open Raspberry Pi Imager. Choose your board, then Operating System → Use custom and pick the .img.xz file. Choose your card.
  3. When Imager offers OS customisation, choose No. The image sets its own user, hostname and SSH.
  4. Put the card in the Pi and power it on. The first boot takes a minute or two longer while the unit makes its own keys and certificate.
  5. Connect one of three ways:
  6. Follow the setup wizard. Connect radios when it asks for them.

If another NOCT is already on your network, the new one appears as noct-2.local.

About this beta

  • Every radio service is installed and held at boot; start the ones you use from System → Services once the setup wizard has set them up.
  • Updates are by reflashing a newer image, which erases the card, settings included. In-place updates and station backup/restore are planned.
  • Change the factory login and hotspot password before taking a unit into the field. NOCT is meant for a local or field network, not the open Internet.

Source code and licences

NOCT is free software: Copyright © 2026 The Comms Channel, LLC, licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 3 or any later version. The image also contains software from other projects under their own licences; each unit lists them under System → Info → About / Licenses, in /opt/noct/THIRD-PARTY-LICENSES.txt and in /usr/share/doc/*/copyright.

For each release, SOURCES.txt lists every component of the image whose licence requires its source to be offered, at the exact version shipped, with where to get its source, and the build scripts archive holds the scripts NOCT used to build its own packages. NOCT itself is installed as source code in /opt/noct on every unit, and is included in the complete source bundle available on request.

For at least three years from a release, the complete source is also available in one bundle on request: write to [email protected] quoting the image version.