After hearing about Mastodon, all I wanted to do is create an instance that only runs on #solar. Any suggestions for #solarpanels that could run a #raspberrypi full time?
@dazinism I'm in southern California. So sun is plentiful, albeit only slightly less in the winter. The new raspis have wifi built in, though I could run it straight from Ethernet as well.
@descartez
was also thinking of requirements if you also want to power a router or 3G/4G connection.
This may be useful?
https://apollo.open-resource.org/lab:ucsspm
@descartez I am more interested in seeing you successfully run a #mastodon instance on a #raspberrypi. Will be a big win for #decentralization.
A Raspberry Pi can be powered by a mobile phone battery bank. Maybe all you need is a solar panel to charge a 10,000 mAH battery.
@descartez This got me thinking about solar-powered community FreedomBoxes serving the digital communication and collaboration needs of communities in remote areas which have only intermittent electricity and internet access.
Inspired by a #freifunk video.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=BxFpY2tsPtU
That would definitely help with #solar instance
You won't be able to run Mastodon on a raspi. Try Pleroma, that works :)
Ok, technically you can, but as it's written in the guide Mastodon requires a lot of memory. You can enlarge the swap, true, but that's going to kill the SD card quite fast.
@descartez
@ciaby @descartez Well, those are the reasons *I* would not install it... :)
@donblanco @ciaby I've heard of Pleroma, and that is also an option. If I wanted to run Mastodon I could invest some more in just building a low cost (but ultimately more powerful) server, but then power consumption would be a problem. I'll probably go with Pleroma. I'm mainly looking for a way to brag that my social media circle is solarpunk and powered by a ball of fire.
@descartez you'd need a battery for overnight use too... So I'd suggest 2 portable solar panels (I have a RavPower that can run a tablet all day or charge a battery... Technically both together but not well -hence 2), to keep a battery topped up and run the pi. In theory 5v @ 3.5a should be enough, but go for more area to cover bad-charging days.
@descartez add a bit more power and you could also run a 4g dongle to cover Internet, and make it completely self sufficient.
@descartez most any panel is gonna give you enough juice. 5V at 2.5A (12.5W) for the Pi means you want a panel that's at least 25W to be safe, and then a battery to support Pi load so Power is clean / consistent.
Be careful about what you choose there. If max is 2.5A, that might be a generous est and leave ya underpowered with undefined behavior.
I use a thing like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Portable-Station-Generator-Inverter-Emergency/dp/B07CNV3S5Z/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529261791&sr=8-1-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Solar+Powered+Generators&psc=1
I have a 100W panel w/ that and it works great. That's heavy for pi obv, but <3 free power
@descartez
Will depend where you are in the world (how much sun) and how much power are you going to consume (just the pi? Or also network gear?)
Need to make sure you can pull in enough power in the shortest days of winter (I'm guessing you're not near the equator), especially if the sun doesnt shine for a fair few days, to keep the battery in good condition.
Either that or have another possible way to charge battery, during this period, if you really need to.