Board Setup

Put Wardrive Scan on your ESP32 board.

One-time setup ยท about 2 minutes

Set up your Wardrive Scan board

This puts the free Wardrive Scan program on an ESP32-2432S028R board (the "Cheap Yellow Display"). After that, the board listens for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and sends everything to the Scan page on your phone.

This browser can't installOpen this page on a Windows, Mac, Linux or Chromebook computer in Chrome or Edge. Phones and Safari can't install firmware. Needs a secure pageOpen this page through https://, the padlock version of your site.

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Step by step

  1. Use a computer with Chrome or Edge. Installing doesn't work from a phone.
  2. Plug the board in with a USB cable. Use a cable that carries data. Some cheap cables only charge, and those won't work.
  3. Click Install on my board. A box pops up listing ports. Pick the one that says USB Serial, CH340 or USB-SERIAL, then click Connect.
  4. Click Install Wardrive Scan, and say yes if it asks to erase the board. Leave it plugged in until it says it's done, about a minute.
  5. Watch the board's screen. It shows WARDRIVE SCAN, then the word WAITING at the top right. That means it's ready for your phone.

Connect your phone

  1. iPhone: install the free Bluefy browser from the App Store and open this site in it. Android: use Chrome and turn on Location in your quick settings.
  2. Open the Scan page, tap Board at the top, then Connect a board.
  3. Pick the name that starts with WRS-. The board's screen changes to PHONE LINKED.
  4. Tap REC to start a run.

The board's buttons and lights

What you see or doWhat it means
Press BOOT onceFlips the screen colors. Use this if the screen looks white or washed out instead of black.
Hold BOOT for 2 secondsTurns the screen upside down, for however you mount it.
Blue light blinkingScanning, waiting for your phone
Green lightPhone connected
Red light blinkingRecording a run
Optional: microSD backup

Put a microSD card (32 GB or smaller, formatted FAT32) in the slot, and every run is also saved on the card as a WiGLE file named like WRS0001.CSV, with locations from your phone. You can load those files into Wardrive Replay later.

If something goes wrong

No port shows up in the list

Try another USB cable (the most common cause), then another USB port. On Windows, you may need the free CH340 driver from the chip maker, WCH. Search for "CH340 driver WCH" and install it, then try again.

The install fails or stops partway

Unplug the board, plug it back in, and try again. If it still fails, hold the BOOT button while you click Install, and let go once it starts.

My phone doesn't see the board

Make sure the board's screen says WAITING and you're within a few feet. On Android, turn on Location. On iPhone, use the Bluefy browser, not Safari. Only one phone can be connected at a time.

The screen is blank

The light on the back should still blink. Press BOOT once in case the colors are flipped. If the screen stays dark but the phone still connects, scanning works fine without it. Let us know your board's exact version.

Is this legal?

The board only listens to signals that devices already broadcast. It never joins or tries to get into any network. Laws differ by place, so read the golden rules in the beginner's guide. This is general information, not legal advice.