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rtl-sdr

Host tools and library for RTL2832U-based receivers

What it does

The command-line tools and shared library for RTL2832U DVB-T dongles used as general receivers: rtl_test, rtl_fm, rtl_power, rtl_tcp and rtl_sdr itself.

Why you would want it

It is the foundation of the cheapest possible entry into SDR, and rtl_test is the canonical first diagnostic — if it reports your dongle and its tuner, the hardware and permissions are right and any remaining problem is in the application.

Before it will work

An RTL2832U-based dongle and the udev rules from the rtl-sdr hardware entry, which now carries all 42 identifiers Debian's own rule recognises.

How it installs

  • apt: rtl-sdr

Known problems

The kernel's DVB-T driver claims the device first on many systems and must be blacklisted; rtl_test reports this as a device that is busy. Cheap dongles drift with temperature and need a PPM correction, which is not a fault. Several tuner chips exist behind the same identifiers with different frequency coverage.

Keeping it current

  • probe: apt policy
  • strategy: apt_upgrade

Source: catalog/packages/rtl-sdr.yaml