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dvmcfggen - Answers File Usage

Overview

The answers file feature allows you to pre-populate wizard prompts using a YAML file. This enables:

Batch Configuration - Generate multiple configurations with shared defaults
Automation - Integrate with deployment scripts and CI/CD pipelines
Reproducibility - Save and reuse configuration templates
Learning - Understand what each prompt expects

Quick Start

1. Use Example Files

Example answers files are provided in the examples/ directory:

# For conventional systems
dvmcfg wizard -a examples/conventional-answers.yml

# For trunked systems
dvmcfg wizard --type trunk -a examples/trunked-answers.yml

2. Create Your Own

Copy an example file and customize it:

cp examples/conventional-answers.yml my-config-answers.yml
vim my-config-answers.yml
dvmcfg wizard -a my-config-answers.yml

3. Run Without Answers File (Default Behavior)

The answers file is completely optional. The wizard works normally without it:

dvmcfg wizard

Answers File Format

Answers files are YAML format with one key-value pair per configuration option. All fields are optional.

Conventional System Template

# Step 2: Basic Configuration
template: enhanced
config_dir: .
system_identity: MYSITE001
network_peer_id: 100001

# Step 3: Logging Configuration
configure_logging: true
log_path: /var/log/dvm
activity_log_path: /var/log/dvm/activity
log_root: DVM
use_syslog: false
disable_non_auth_logging: false

# Step 4: Modem Configuration
modem_type: uart
modem_mode: air
serial_port: /dev/ttyUSB0
rx_level: 50
tx_level: 50

Trunked System Template

# Step 1: System Configuration
system_name: trunked_test
base_dir: .
identity: TRUNKED001
protocol: p25
vc_count: 2

# Step 2: Logging Configuration
configure_logging: true
log_path: /var/log/dvm
activity_log_path: /var/log/dvm/activity
log_root: TRUNKED
use_syslog: false
disable_non_auth_logging: false

Supported Answer Keys

ConfigWizard (Conventional Systems)

Basic Configuration:

template - Template name (conventional, enhanced)
config_dir - Configuration directory
system_identity - System identity/callsign
network_peer_id - Network peer ID (integer)

Logging Configuration:

configure_logging - Enable logging (true/false)
log_path - Log file directory
activity_log_path - Activity log directory
log_root - Log filename prefix
use_syslog - Enable syslog (true/false)
disable_non_auth_logging - Disable non-authoritative logging (true/false)

Modem Configuration:

modem_type - Modem type (uart, null)
modem_mode - Modem mode (air, dfsi)
serial_port - Serial port path
rx_level - RX level (0-100)
tx_level - TX level (0-100)

Optional Settings:

rpc_config - Configure RPC (true/false)
generate_rpc_password - Generate RPC password (true/false)
rest_enable - Enable REST API (true/false)
generate_rest_password - Generate REST password (true/false)
update_lookups - Update lookups (true/false)
save_lookups - Save lookups (true/false)
allow_activity_transfer - Allow activity transfer (true/false)
allow_diagnostic_transfer - Allow diagnostic transfer (true/false)
allow_status_transfer - Allow status transfer (true/false)

Protocol Configuration (for Step 8/9):

dmr_color_code - DMR color code (integer)
dmr_network_id - DMR network ID (integer)
dmr_site_id - DMR site ID (integer)
dmr_site_model - DMR site model (small, tiny, large, huge)
p25_nac - P25 NAC code (hex string)
p25_network_id - P25 network ID (integer)
p25_system_id - P25 system ID (integer)
p25_rfss_id - P25 RFSS ID (integer)
p25_site_id - P25 site ID (integer)

TrunkingWizard (Trunked Systems)

System Configuration:

system_name - System name
base_dir - Base directory
identity - System identity
protocol - Protocol (p25, dmr)
vc_count - Number of voice channels (integer)

Logging Configuration:

configure_logging - Enable logging (true/false)
log_path - Log file directory
activity_log_path - Activity log directory
log_root - Log filename prefix
use_syslog - Enable syslog (true/false)
disable_non_auth_logging - Disable non-authoritative logging (true/false)

Network Settings:

fne_address - FNE address
fne_port - FNE port (integer)
fne_password - FNE password

Optional Settings:

base_peer_id - Base peer ID (integer)
base_rpc_port - Base RPC port (integer)
modem_type - Modem type (uart, null)
generate_rpc_password - Generate RPC password (true/false)
base_rest_port - Base REST port (integer)
rest_enable - Enable REST API (true/false)
generate_rest_password - Generate REST password (true/false)

Usage Examples

Example 1: Single Configuration with All Defaults

# hotspot-answers.yml
template: enhanced
config_dir: /etc/dvm/hotspot
system_identity: MY_HOTSPOT
network_peer_id: 100001
configure_logging: true
log_path: /var/log/dvm
log_root: HOTSPOT
modem_type: uart
modem_mode: air
serial_port: /dev/ttyUSB0

Usage:

dvmcfg wizard -a hotspot-answers.yml

Example 2: Trunked System

# trunk-p25-answers.yml
system_name: trunk_p25
base_dir: /etc/dvm/trunk
identity: TRUNK_P25
protocol: p25
vc_count: 4
configure_logging: true
log_path: /var/log/dvm
log_root: TRUNK_P25
p25_nac: 0x293
p25_network_id: 1
p25_system_id: 1

Usage:

dvmcfg wizard --type trunk -a trunk-p25-answers.yml

Example 3: Batch Generation

Create multiple configs programmatically:

#!/bin/bash

for SITE_NUM in {1..5}; do
  SITE_ID=$((100000 + SITE_NUM))
  SITE_NAME="SITE$(printf '%03d' $SITE_NUM)"
  
  cat > /tmp/site-${SITE_NUM}-answers.yml << EOF
template: enhanced
config_dir: ./site-${SITE_NUM}
system_identity: ${SITE_NAME}
network_peer_id: ${SITE_ID}
configure_logging: true
log_root: ${SITE_NAME}
modem_type: uart
modem_mode: air
EOF
  
  dvmcfg wizard -a /tmp/site-${SITE_NUM}-answers.yml
  echo "Generated config for ${SITE_NAME}"
done

Example 4: CI/CD Pipeline

# .github/workflows/generate-test-configs.yml
name: Generate Test Configs

on: [push]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v2
      
      - name: Setup Python
        uses: actions/setup-python@v2
        with:
          python-version: '3.9'
      
      - name: Generate conventional config
        run: |
          python3 dvmhost/tools/dvmcfggen/dvmcfg.py wizard \
            -a examples/conventional-answers.yml          
      
      - name: Generate trunked config
        run: |
          python3 dvmhost/tools/dvmcfggen/dvmcfg.py wizard \
            --type trunk \
            -a examples/trunked-answers.yml          
      
      - name: Validate configs
        run: |
                    python3 dvmhost/tools/dvmcfggen/dvmcfg.py validate -c config.yml

Advanced Usage

Partial Answers Files

You only need to specify the fields you want to pre-populate. Missing fields will be prompted for interactively:

# minimal-answers.yml
system_identity: MYSITE
network_peer_id: 100001
# User will be prompted for other values

Saving Generated Answers

After creating a configuration interactively, you can extract the answers:

from answers_loader import AnswersLoader
from pathlib import Path

# After wizard completes
answers = {
    'template': 'enhanced',
    'system_identity': 'MYSITE001',
    'network_peer_id': 100001,
    # ... etc
}

AnswersLoader.save_answers(answers, Path('my-site-answers.yml'))

Validation

Answers files are validated automatically, but you can check them manually:

from answers_loader import AnswersLoader
from pathlib import Path

answers = AnswersLoader.load_answers(Path('my-answers.yml'))

# Non-strict validation (warns about unknown keys)
is_valid = AnswersLoader.validate_answers(answers, strict=False)

# Strict validation (fails on unknown keys)
is_valid = AnswersLoader.validate_answers(answers, strict=True)

Key Features

✅ Backward Compatible

Existing wizard usage works unchanged
Answers file is completely optional
No breaking changes

✅ Flexible

Answer any or all questions
Interactive prompts for missing answers
Easy to create custom templates

✅ Easy to Use

Simple YAML format
Clear comments in example files
Error messages for invalid files

✅ Reproducible

Save and version control answers files
Generate identical configs across systems
Document configuration decisions

Troubleshooting

"Unrecognized keys in answers file"

This is a warning (not an error) if your answers file contains unknown keys. It won't stop the wizard from running. To suppress this, ensure you're only using valid keys from the lists above.

"Error loading answers file"

Check that:

The file path is correct
The file is valid YAML (use python3 -c "import yaml; yaml.safe_load(open('file.yml'))"
The file has proper indentation (2 spaces per level)

Answers not being used

Verify that:

The key name matches exactly (case-sensitive)
The file is being passed with -a or --answers-file
The value type is correct (string, integer, boolean)

File Reference

Core Files

answers_loader.py - Utility for loading/validating answers
wizard.py - ConfigWizard and TrunkingWizard classes (refactored)
dvmcfg.py - CLI interface (updated with --answers-file support)

Example Files

examples/conventional-answers.yml - Example for conventional systems
examples/trunked-answers.yml - Example for trunked systems

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