Winlink, or formally, Winlink Global Radio Email (registered US Service Mark), also known as the Winlink 2000 Network, is a worldwide radio messaging system that uses amateur-band
radio frequencies and government frequencies to provide radio interconnection services that include
email with attachments, position reporting,
weather bulletins, emergency and relief communications, and message relay. The system is built and administered by volunteers and is financially supported by the Amateur Radio Safety Foundation.
Network
Winlink networking started by providing interconnection services for
amateur radio
Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency radio spectrum, spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emer ...
(also known as ''ham radio''). It is well known for its central role in emergency and contingency communications worldwide. The system used to employ multiple central message servers around the world for
redundancy, but in 2017–2018 upgraded to
Amazon Web Services
Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS) is a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Amazon that provides Software as a service, on-demand cloud computing computing platform, platforms and Application programming interface, APIs to individuals, companies, and gover ...
that provides a geographically-redundant cluster of virtual servers with dynamic
load balancer
In computing, load balancing is the process of distributing a set of tasks over a set of resources
''Resource'' refers to all the materials available in our environment which are Technology, technologically accessible, Economics, economically ...
s and global
content-distribution. Gateway stations have operated on sub-bands of
HF since 2013 as the ''Winlink Hybrid Network'', offering message forwarding and delivery through a mesh-like smart network whenever Internet connections are damaged or inoperable. During the late 2000s, it increasingly became what is now the standard network system for radio email, worldwide. Additionally, in response to the need for better
disaster response
Disaster response refers to the actions taken directly before, during, or immediately after a disaster. The objective is to save lives, ensure health and safety, and meet the subsistence needs of the people affected.UNGA (2016)Report of the open- ...
communications in the mid to later part of the 2000s, the network was expanded to provide separate parallel radio email networking systems for the US Department of Homeland Security SHARES Winlink Radio Email System, along with other governments (non-amateur radio) services, also to include Non-government Organizations such as the US American Red Cross, the Austrian International Red Cross, and other such critical infrastructure Non-Government Organizations. Although these services are separate, and for reasons of security may be unknown to each other, the capability to cross services with complete Interoperability is available. For example, a US ham using Winlink on the amateur radio spectrum may email a Winlink user on the DHS SHARES Winlink system (non-amateur) radio service, which may then be picked up on the DHS SHARES Winlink network system. Of course, the originator of any service must be familiar with the regulatory environment of the recipient's service should it be another Winlink service.
Amateur radio HF e-mail
E-mail via
HF['']High frequency
High frequency (HF) is the ITU designation for the band of radio waves with frequency between 3 and 30 megahertz (MHz). It is also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as its wavelengths range from one to ten decameters (ten to one ...
'' (HF) is the band of radio frequencies from 3–30 megaHertz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in ter ...
, or equivalently wavelengths
In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.
In other words, it is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same '' phase'' on ...
from 100–10 meters. It is approximately the same as the wider ''shortwave
Shortwave radio is radio transmission using radio frequencies in the shortwave bands (SW). There is no official definition of the band range, but it always includes all of the high frequency band (HF), which extends from 3 to 30 MHz (app ...
'' band. can be used nearly everywhere on the planet, and is made possible by connecting an HF
single sideband (SSB) transceiver system to a computer, modem interface, and appropriate software. The HF modem technologies include
PACTOR,
Winmor (deprecated), ARDOP, Vara HF, and
Automatic Link Establishment (ALE). VHF/UHF protocols include AX.25 Packet and Vara FM.
Guidelines
Operators in each country must, as a baseline, follow the appropriate regulatory guidelines for their license. Some countries may limit or regulate types of amateur messaging (such as e-mail) by content, origination location, end destination, or license class of the operator. Origination of ''third party messages'' (messages sent on behalf of, or sent to, an end destination who is not an amateur operator) may also be regulated in some countries; those that limit such ''third party messages'' normally have exceptions for emergency communications. In accordance with long standing amateur radio tradition, international guidelines and FCC rules section 97.113, hams using the Winlink system are advised that it is not appropriate to use it for business communications.
Users
The Winlink system is open to properly licensed amateur radio operators, worldwide. The system primarily serves radio users without normal access to the internet, government and non-government public service organizations, medical and humanitarian non-profits, and emergency communications organizations. As of July 2008, there were approximately 12,000 radio users and approximately 100,000 Internet correspondents. Monthly traffic volume averages over 100,000 messages.
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For offshore cruising yachts, Winlink is widely used as an alternative, or alongside, Sailmail, which is an HF PACTOR based-email system using marine HF frequencies rather than amateur, and unlike the amateur radio use of Winlink, allows business to be conducted over radio. In addition to email, Winlink uses a system called "Saildocs," and other file delivery methods, which allows properly licensed amateur radio cruisers to retrieve meteorological, maritime safety and other crucial files over Winlink email. As example, Winlink was found to be more useful in and around South Africa where best weather was provided by SAMNet (South African Mobile Maritime Net).
Supported radio technologies
* 802.11 wifi
Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for Wireless LAN, local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by ...
* ALE
Ale is a style of beer, brewed using a warm fermentation method. In medieval England, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops.
As with most beers, ale typically has a bittering agent to balance the malt and act as a preservative. Ale ...
( Automatic Link Establishment)
* APRS ( Automatic Packet Reporting System)
* AX.25 Packet Radio
In digital radio, packet radio is the application of packet switching techniques to digital radio communications. Packet radio uses a packet switching Communication protocol, protocol as opposed to circuit switching or message switching protocols ...
* D-Star
* PACTOR
* PACTOR-II
* PACTOR-III
* PACTOR-IV
* WINMOR(Deprecated)
* ARDOP
* Vara HF
* Vara FM
* TCP/IP
The Internet protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, is a framework for organizing the communication protocols used in the Internet and similar computer networks according to functional criteria. The foundational protocols in the suite are ...
(Telnet and other Wireless Technologies)
Technical protocols
PACTOR-I, WINMOR(deprecated), ARDOP, HSMM (WiFi), AX.25 packet, D-Star, TCP/IP, and ALE are non-proprietary protocols used in various RF applications to access the Winlink network systems. Later versions of PACTOR are proprietary and supported only by commercially available modem
The Democratic Movement (, ; MoDem ) is a centre to centre-right political party in France, whose main ideological trends are liberalism and Christian democracy, and that is characterised by a strong pro-Europeanist stance. MoDem was establis ...
s from Special Communications Systems GmbH. In amateur radio service, ''AirMail'', ''Winlink Express'', and other email client programs used by the Winlink system, disable the proprietary compression technology for PACTOR-II, PACTOR-III, and PACTOR-IV modems and instead relies on the open FBB protocol, also widely used worldwide by packet radio
In digital radio, packet radio is the application of packet switching techniques to digital radio communications. Packet radio uses a packet switching Communication protocol, protocol as opposed to circuit switching or message switching protocols ...
BBS forwarding systems.
Controversies and US regulatory issues
In May 1995, the American Radio Relay League
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the largest membership association of amateur radio enthusiasts in the United States. ARRL is a non-profit organization and was co-founded on April 6, 1914, by Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence D. Tuska of ...
(ARRL) privately asked the FCC to change Part 97.309(a) to allow fully documented G-TOR, Clover, and original open source PacTOR (Pactor I) modes. The FCC granted this request in DA-95-2106 based on the ARRL's representation that it had worked with developers to ensure complete technical documentation of these codes were available to all amateur radio operators. However, subsequent versions of Pactor contained proprietary compression algorithms that prevent over-the-air interception. As of July 9th, 2024, the Winlink Development Team has stated that their software only uses an open compressed binary format called Open B2F, which is publicly listed on th
Winlink website
and replaces proprietary compression used by some manufacturers of protocols used.
In 2007, a US amateur radio operator filed a formal petition with the Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...
(FCC) aimed at reducing the signal bandwidth in automatic operation subbands; but, in May 2008 FCC ruled against the petition. In the Official Order, FCC said, "Additionally, we believe that amending the amateur service rules to limit the ability of amateur stations to experiment with various communications technologies or otherwise impeding their ability to advance the radio art would be inconsistent with the definition and purpose of the amateur service. Moreover, we do not believe that changing the rules to prohibit a communications technology currently in use is in the public interest."
In 2013, the FCC ruled in Report and Order 13-1918 against the use of encryption in the US amateur radio bands for any purpose, including emergency communications. The FCC cited the need for all amateur radio communications to be open and unobscured, to uphold the Commission's long-standing requirement that the service be able to police itself.
Winlink itself uses point-to-point protocols that may be copied by a third party through methods provided by the authors of these protocols as well as from independent sources. Because the content of data is not obstructed on the amateur spectrum, those government agencies who do use Winlink for Continuity of Government and public safety emergency communications requested (or in some cases, mandated) that they be allowed to encrypt their messages.
On non-amateur radio frequencies worldwide, Winlink provides for encryption via AES-256 for its most used protocols, Pactor and VARA. Such transmission encryption, once set up properly, is seamless to the end-user and requires no additional effort, but is left up to the individual operator or government agency to setup.
In addition to "readers" being made available for protocols used by the Winlink system, in the US, all messages passing through licensed US amateur radio stations by radio are freely accessible by other licensed amateurs via the WinLink Open Message Viewer on the Winlink WebSite. Amateurs concerned about encryption are encouraged to help the US amateur radio community police itself by search and viewing such messages, and reporting messages if they spot a violation (https://winlink.org/content/us_amateur_radio_message_viewer).
Deletion of the Symbol Rate Rule RM-11708
This change was requested in 2013 by ARRL, and the FCC released notice of proposed rulemaking in 2016. In November of 2023, the FCC finally removed the symbol rate limit of 300 baud in favor of an occupied bandwidth limit of 2.8 KHz (WT Docket No. 16-239).[FCC 47 CFR § 97.305(c). Bands with a 300 baud rate limitation that we eliminate in this ''Report and Order'' are: 160 meter band; 80 meter band; 40 meter band segments 7.000–7.100 MHz and 7.100–7.125 MHz; 30 meter band; 20 meter band segment 14.00–14.15 MHz; 17 meter band segment 18.068–18.110 MHz; 15 meter band segment 21.0–21.2 MHz; 12 meter band segment 24.89–24.93 MHz. The 10 meter band segment 28.0–28.3 MHz has a 1200 baud rate limitation that was eliminate in this ''Report and Order''.] In the Report and Order, the FCC stated, "The amateur radio community can and does play a vital role in emergency response communications, but is often unnecessarily hindered by the baud rate limitations in the rules."
Supporting this change were a host of federal, state and local emergency management agencies, who continually wrote ''ex parte'' comments to the FCC regarding their concerns with the impact such a limitation had on emergency email communications via Winlink. In addition, American Radio Relay League (ARRL) continued to push its efforts toward this change through Congressional pathways.
Because Winlink is a worldwide service, similar issues are the concern of other countries, who are also pushing for innovative changes that will positively impact their ability to provide a “no infrastructure” resilient system to bridge SMTP mail over radio, both over the amateur radio spectrum as well as for government service uses as an emergency service option.
See also
* Amateur radio emergency communications
* Automatic Link Establishment
* PACTOR
* Winmor
Footnotes
References
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External links
The official Winlink Web Site
Winlink Research Project
Winlink Tutorial
Winlink wide-area HF MESH network
Introduction to RMS Express Winlink client program
Guida italiana completa per l'uso di RMS Express /-/ Winlink 2000
The Wiki for Pat - a cross platform Winlink client
Guia rápida en Español de introducción a la Red WL2K, Winmor y uso del RMS Express, (Spanish White Paper)
{{Telecommunications, state=collapsed
Packet radio