How to use the side panel

  • Updated on Oct 16, 2026
  • Published on Jul 24, 2026
  • 9 minute(s) read
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WHAT TO EXPECT

In this article, users will learn how to use the side panel. In this panel, users can view and filter streams and configure groundSwXtches. In the Advanced tab, users can run diagnostics, check reachability and capture packets. Connection Detail lets users check connectivity between two or more groundSwXtches.

This page is organized into the following sections:

Streams

The Streams tab lists all configured streams; the count is shown at the top.

To find particular streams, use the filter area.

Once the stream is identified, right-click it to open the groundSwXtch details pane with the stream information, as shown below.

Or hover over a groundSwXtch to see its details.

Configure

The Configure tab is used to configure the groundSwXtch. At the top, a drop-down selects the groundSwXtch to configure.

The Configure tab has three sections. Each link below goes to that section, or users can scroll down:

Network

The Network section sets up the Local and Wide Area Networks. During installation, the groundSwXtch tries to pick the best NIC for each, as well as the WAN gateway; users can also set them with installer options (refer to Installing groundSwXtch). If the wrong NIC was selected during installation, change it here.

For the local network, users can choose whether to use the internal virtual device. Users can also configure the gateway and the MTU size here. This section also shows the address CIDR range of the groundSwXtch.

License

Please refer to How to license the groundSwXtch for more information on this section.

Sockets

The Sockets · listeners & streams section of the Configure tab shows the extra connection endpoints declared on the selected groundSwXtch. The section header shows the count, for example "1 listener · 0 streams". If none are declared, it reads "No declared listeners or legacy streams."

Most installations don't need anything here. groundSwXtch automatically creates its own built-in listener (_default_server) for connections between groundSwXtches, and that listener isn't shown in this section. Sockets is for advanced setups that need additional listeners, or for configurations carried over from older versions.

Listeners

A listener is an SRT connection point that other groundSwXtches or senders connect to. Each listener card shows its name, port, protocol, whether it's encrypted, and its rate limit. The rate shows auto when no limit is set.

Field

Description

Listener name

A unique name for the listener.

Listen port

The local port it listens on (1–65535).

Protocol

srt, udp or tcp. The default is srt.

Max clients

The maximum number of connections at the same time. Leave it blank to use the default (8).

Congestion control

bbr (the default) adjusts its speed to the link. livecc holds a steady live-media bitrate.

Media rate

A bitrate limit in Mbps. 0 or blank means no limit (auto).

Flight window

The send buffer size in packets. The default is 5,000.

Passphrase

An optional SRT encryption passphrase. When set, the card shows encrypted.

Legacy streams

Streams are an older way of defining traffic flow, kept for configurations created in earlier releases. Each stream maps an input (address, port, protocol) to an output (address, port, protocol), using udp, tcp, srt or rist. New setups should use Add Source / Add Destination or Dynamic join/leave instead.

Making changes

  1. Edit the fields on a listener or stream card. A dot appears next to the name of anything you've changed.

  2. Click Apply for the section to save the changes to the groundSwXtch.

NOTE

A groundSwXtch managed from another node is locked, and its fields can't be edited here.

Advanced

This tab is intended for advanced users. It has the following sections:

Diagnostics & tools

Diagnostics & tools is the first section of the Advanced tab. It brings together three on-demand troubleshooting tools for the selected groundSwXtch:

  • Run Diagnostics: a full health check of the groundSwXtch, its host and its network.

  • Reachability checks: confirms the groundSwXtch can reach its WAN gateway.

  • Packet Capture: a short, limited capture of traffic on one interface, plus a list of the multicast groups each interface has joined.

All three are read-only. They report on the system but don't change any configuration. The section is collapsed by default.

To open Diagnostics & tools:

  1. Open the side panel and select the Advanced tab.

  2. Choose the groundSwXtch to troubleshoot from the selector at the top of the tab.

  3. Click Diagnostics & tools to expand the section.

Run Diagnostics

Run Diagnostics runs a set of checks on the selected groundSwXtch and opens a Diagnostics window with the results.

To run diagnostics:

  1. Select Run Diagnostics.

  2. The Diagnostics window opens and shows "Running diagnostics…" while the checks run.

  3. Review the results:

    • Verdict: the overall result. It is one of:

      • Healthy: all checks passed.

      • Degraded: at least one check found a problem.

      • Failed: a critical check failed.

      • Inconclusive: a critical check couldn't be completed.

    • Generated: when the report was produced.

    • Each check shows a status, plus what was observed and what was expected where that applies.

    • Next steps: recommended actions, when there are any.

    • Suggested command: some checks include a command to fix the problem, with a Copy button.

  4. Select Re-run to run the checks again, for example after making a fix.

Checks performed:

Check

What it looks for

Reverse-path filter (rp_filter) on media interface (critical)

A wrong setting silently drops traffic coming from other subnets.

accept_local on media interface

A kernel setting needed for local delivery of traffic.

IGMP version + querier presence

The IGMP version in use and whether a querier is active on the network.

UDP receive buffer / RcvbufErrors

Whether packets are being dropped because receive buffers are full.

spp datapath + per-socket state (critical)

Whether the switching engine and its connections are running correctly.

Routing table / ip rule sanity

Problems with the host's routing setup.

Peer control-plane reachability

Whether this groundSwXtch can reach the other groundSwXtches.

Firewall rules blocking media port / multicast / IGMP (critical)

Host firewall rules that would block groundSwXtch traffic.

Host net.core buffer limits

Host network buffer sizes.

License fingerprint matches this node's live identity

Whether the installed license belongs to this machine.

LAN veth (swx0-lan) attached

When using the internal virtual LAN, whether swx0-lan exists.

Effective daemon-network-namespace kernel tuning

Whether the recommended network tuning is in place.

spp memory mode + af_packet ingest MTU ceiling

Hugepage or standard memory mode, and the largest packet size the groundSwXtch can accept.

NOTE

A check can show as not applicable when it doesn't apply to how the groundSwXtch is deployed. For example, the LAN veth check doesn't apply when a physical LAN NIC is used. This is expected and isn't a fault.

Reachability checks

This check confirms that the groundSwXtch can reach its WAN gateway, the next hop toward the Internet or the other sites. It runs automatically when the section opens.

Result

Meaning

REACHABLE (green)

The gateway responded. The details line shows the gateway IP, the interface and the gateway's MAC address.

WAN ISSUE (red)

The gateway didn't respond: "The link/WAN appears down — spp cannot reach off-subnet peers through this interface."

UNKNOWN / ERROR (amber)

The check couldn't produce an answer. A note explains why.

To check again, for example after fixing a cable or gateway setting, select Re-check.

TIP

If the result is WAN ISSUE, confirm the Gateway (WAN) and WAN interface settings under Configure → Interfaces · network.

Packet Capture

Packet Capture records a short sample of traffic on one interface so you can confirm whether packets are arriving. It stops automatically after a set time or number of packets.

To run a capture:

  1. Interface: select the interface to capture on. A status line confirms how the capture will run:

    • "kernel interface · capture via tcpdump · READY", or

    • "spp/DPDK dataplane · spp packet capture · READY"

  2. Stop after (s): the maximum time to capture, from 1 to 25 seconds. The default is 10.

  3. Stop after (packets): the maximum number of packets to capture, from 1 to 100,000. The default is 1,000.

  4. Filter (optional): choose Simple or Advanced.

    • Simple: fill in any of Source IP, Source port, Destination IP and Destination port. Leave a field blank to match anything.

    • Advanced: enter a BPF/pcap filter expression, for example:

      • host 239.20.102.1 and udp port 5004

      • src host 10.4.0.144 and greater 1000

      • vlan and udp

  5. Select Start capture. The status reads "Capturing on interface for up to Ns…".

Results:

  • Summary: total Packets, Rate (Mbps), Avg len (bytes) and number of Flows.

  • Filter applied: the filter that was actually used, or "(none — all traffic on the interface)".

  • Packet table: time, source, destination, protocol, ports (source → destination) and length for each packet. On busy interfaces only the first packets are shown, with a note suggesting you narrow the filter.

TIP

To check whether a specific multicast stream is reaching the groundSwXtch, set Destination IP to the multicast group (for example 239.1.1.1) and capture on the LAN interface.

Multicast memberships

Below the capture form, Multicast memberships (ip maddr) lists the multicast groups each interface on the groundSwXtch has joined.

  • Type in the filter box (for example 239.20) to narrow the list.

  • Tick hide system groups to hide standard groups such as 224.0.0.1.

This is a quick way to confirm that a groundSwXtch has joined the group you expect.

Manual packet capture (gswx-capture)

The Packet Capture tool in the UI can't export. It only shows a summary and a table of packets on screen, and the capture file it records is deleted afterwards, so there's no download button.

To get a file you can open in Wireshark, use the gswx-capture command, which is built into the groundSwXtch container. Run it on the groundSwXtch host, for example:

sudo docker exec gswx gswx-capture 239.1.1.5 --duration 30

  • Replace 239.1.1.5 with the multicast group you want to capture.

  • --duration is how many seconds to capture (default 30).

  • When it finishes, it prints where it saved the .pcap file. With no --dir, it saves into the captures folder of the groundSwXtch configuration, which on the host is normally /var/lib/groundswxtch/captures/.

  • Copy the file off the host (for example with scp or WinSCP) and open it in Wireshark.

Useful options:

  • --direction rx|tx|both: capture traffic coming in, going out, or both (default both).

  • --mode rotate --max-size 200 --files 4: keeps capturing until you stop it, overwriting the oldest of 4 files of 200 MB each. This is useful for catching an intermittent glitch.

  • --method spp: captures inside the switching engine instead of on the network interface, which sees traffic the normal capture can't. It slightly affects live traffic, so only use it while diagnosing.

  • --dir PATH: saves somewhere else.

  • --min-free MB: the command won't start if the destination has less free space than this (default 1 GB), so it can't fill the disk.

Instance

The Instance section of the Advanced tab allows users to configure things like:

  • Instance port, log level and log format.

  • Metrics bind address (where the groundSwXtch exposes its metrics).

  • SRT settings such as listen port and protocol.

  • groundSwXtch engine configuration: memory ring size, number of WAN cores and number of LAN cores.

Inter-Site Connections

The Inter-Site Connections section shows the other groundSwXtches this groundSwXtch is connected to, with their status and Mbps totals.

Use + New Connection to add a connection, for example to test connectivity:

The connection is then added:

Multicast Routes

The Multicast Routes section shows the configured routes and whether or not they are joined.

Dynamic Multicast

The Dynamic Multicast section of the Advanced tab is a read-only status view of how a groundSwXtch automatically learns and delivers the multicast streams that devices on its local network ask for. It answers three questions:

  • What can it hear? Whether a querier (the device that asks which streams are wanted) is active, the IGMP version in use, and which multicast groups have been discovered.

  • What is it doing? The current mode (Query, Snoop or Off), which streams it has added automatically, their status, and whether they'll be removed automatically once no one is watching.

  • What traffic is moving? How much of the port's incoming traffic is multicast being forwarded versus everything else, plus CPU use and packet loss.

Changes aren't made here. Turning Dynamic multicast on or off and setting allow/block rules for streams happen in the Dynamic join/leave option. Refer to How to enable Dynamic Join/leave.

Connection Detail

When the Connection Detail pane is open, users can double-click a connection point in the graph to see more details about the connection.