Depending on your mount type, you can connect to your telescope mount using different connection types:

• USB: This is the most common type of connection type between StellarMate and the mount. The connection usually requires RS232 Serial to USB connector where the USB end is connected to StellarMate while the serial plug connects to the handset (or sometimes directly to mount).
• Bluetooth: Limited supported for Bluetooth dongles for some mounts. Please chech StellarMate Manual for more details.
• Ethernet/WiFi: Connects to the mount over Ethernet or WiFi network. In the Mount driver connection tab, switch the mount to Ethernet mode and set the host name and port where your mount is running.

In case Ekos reports it failed to communicate with the mount still, please make sure of the following:

1. Read your specific mount driver documentation.
2. Telescope is properly powered and connected via RS232 to your PC (in case of USB connection).
3. RS232 or RS232-to-USB cable is firmly connected at the mount and PC USB port.
4. Telescope is aligned (2 or 3 star alignment).
5. Use StellarMate Serial Port Assistant to assign permenant designation in situations where you have multiple USB-to-Serial devices.
6. Ensure the port specified is the correct port. Usually your port is /dev/ttyUSB0 but sometimes if you unplug and plug the USB cable again, you might get port /dev/ttyUSB1. Use dmesg to find out which port your mount is connected to if all of the above fails.

Before contacting support, please make sure to enable the logs and submit them in the ticket.

If you have purchased StellarMate from a retailer, please submit a new ticket and attach your order receipt and tell us if you don't see an order in the Orders page.

To be able to use a different MicroSD than the already built-in one, you need to flash StellarMate OS onto your MicroSD.

1. Login to the stellarmate.com website and then go to the Orders page.

2. You should see a list of  your orders. Click on your order link, then scroll down to see the downloads. Make sure to download the SM OS version appropiate for your hardware platform.

3. Download balenaEtcher, and install it, then open it.

4. Connect an SD card reader to your computer with the MicroSD card inside.

5. Open Etcher and select from your hard drive the StellarMate OS  .xz file you just downloaded to write it to the MicroSD card.

6. Select the MicroSD card you wish to write your image to.

7. Review your selections and click 'Flash!' to begin writing data to the SD card.

8. When it's done, connect the MicroSD to StellarMate and power it up!

While a view to the celestial pole is desirable, it's not strictly necessary. The App would work almost anywhere in the sky, prefereably closer to the meridian.

Please check the following suggestions:

1. Ensure that you can see stellarmate HotSpot network name in the list of networks detected by your tablet. If the stellarmate network is not listed, then check StellarMate power. If power is OK (steady Red Led with occasional Green flashes) then check and make sure the SD card at the bottom of the unit is plugged in securely. If SD card OK, use the HDMI cable to connect the unit to a nearby monitor/TV and check for any error messages. Take a photo of the error and open a support ticket in order for our technical support to help you further.
2. Ensure Tablet must be connected to the HotSpot (default password is stellar@mate)
3. Ensure that StellarMate power is sourced from a 5v @ 3A steady power source. Anything less than 3A would make it unstable.
4. If you have equipment connected to the USB3 ports of StellarMate, try to unplug them and restart StellarMate as USB3 might sometimes causes interferance with 2.4Ghz wireless networks

It's right there! Check under Diffraction Limited manufacturer and you should see the SBIG drivers.

Celestron Focus Motor is supported in StellarMate. It can be connected either directly to the AUX port of the mount, or via USB cable to StellarMate.

If the focuser is connected via USB, then you need to select Celestron SCT focuser driver in your equipment profile in order to control it.

Connectiong via AUX is only supported in the Celestron Nexstar/GPS drivers as explained below.

StellarMate provides two different Celestron drivers:

• Celestron Nexstar/GPS driver: If focuser is connected via AUX port, this driver would automatically recognize the focuser and provides complete control for it.
• Celestron AUX/Evolution driver: This driver does not support control of the focuser via the AUX port, and therefore the focuser must be connected via USB and controlled via its own dedicated Celestron SCT focuser driver.

Live Stacking image can be saved to the Tablet/Phone storage or photo gallery by clicking on the save button in the LiveStacking options as illustrated below:

Please note that the Live Stacking images are already saved to StellarMate internal storage and can be accessed via the View tab or via browsing SM shared network drive. All Livestacked images are automatically tagged with #livestacking tag so you can easily search for via the tag.

Usually this message is displayed when there is a communication error between your phone/tablet and StellarMate. Try to check the following steps:

1. If you have Mobile Data enabled on your phone, then disable it as this might interfer with your connection to StellarMate Hotspot.
2. Double check you are fully connected to the hotspot, sometimes Android/iOS do not fully connect, check network settings for any warnings. If possible, click Keep This Connection.
3. Check if you can reach StellarMate WiFi using your tablet browser. Open the browser and then go to http://10.250.25.1 You should see StellarMate Dashboard if all connection is OK.
4. If you changed your username, then this automatically invalidates your license and you need to be re-issued a new license. Please contact support to request this. After a new license is generated for you, uninstall the App completely and then reinstall it so that the new license is downloaded.
5. If you cannot connect with StellarMate WiFi at all, double check the power. It must be supplied 5v@3A.
6. If no response at all after reboot (i.e. not hotspot created), try to connect HDMI cable to the mini-HDMI port closest to the USB-C power port and connect it to an external monitor. Do you see any messages? Please send a screenshot to support.
7. If all above fails, you can try re-flashing StellarMate OS image unto the SD card (or a new SD card).

Fast Exposure is an experimental features in all INDI Camera drivers. It enables client (e.g. Ekos) to take multiple exposures in a sequence without awaiting the client to request the next frame.

You can enable Fast Exposure by toggle it in the camera Options tab as shown below. You do not need to set Fast Count as it is handled automatically by Ekos.

In Ekos or App, take exposure as you normally would. For example, if you add a Job with 5 exposures, without Fast Exposure it works like this:

1. Ekos asks camera to take 1st exposure.
2. Camera takes exposure. Once done, driver downloads the image from the camera.
3. The driver uploads image to Ekos.
4. After Ekos receives an image, it requests camera to take the 2nd exposure and so forth.

With Fast Exposure enabled, the driver immediately starts the next exposure as soon as the image data is downloaded from the camera.

Therefore, the camera is always busy exposing and downloading data without any wasted time setting as IDLE.

There are a few reasons for failing to get a 3D FIX from your GPS dongles.

• Indoor obstructions. Test with GPS outside with clear access to the sky so that it can communicate with the satellites.
• USB3 Interferance: If the GPS antenna is is connected close to an active USB3 port (a USB3 port connected to a device like a camera), then the interferance may lead to failure in obtaining a fix. It's recommended to get a GPS dongle with a long wire away from StelarMate to protect against unwanted interferance.
• Incorrect baud rate: Some older GPS dongle uses a baud rate of 4800. The default baud rate in StellarMate is configured as 9600. Therefore, StellarMate would fail to communicate with the GPS dongle unless the rate is changed within StellarMate to match the GPS dongle rate.