This little C# .NET 8 stand-alone app creates two "dynamic" COM to Alpaca drivers for the given IP address, and port - one for SafetyMonitor and the other for ObservingConditions. It is intended to provide ASCOM/COM access in a shared observatory to shared SafetyMonitor and ObservingConditions for applications such as NINA which do not use the ASCOM Chooser. This will allow access to these devices across LAN/VLAN boundaries since Alpaca Discovery does not show worldwide devices.
This is a Windows-only program, as it provides a bridge between classic ASCOM/COM and the remote Alpaca device(s).
This uses the ASCOM Cross-Platform Library.
Please make sure you have the
ASCOM Platform 7.1
or later installed if you're on Windows.
The library is distributed via NuGet and consists of five packages (search for ASCOM on NuGet):
- ASCOM.Alpaca.Components - ASCOM Alpaca Clients and Client Discovery Library.
- ASCOM.Alpaca.Device - Device / driver side discovery library.
- ASCOM.Com.Components - A .Net Standard (.Net Core / .Net 5+) access library for ASCOM COM drivers.
- ASCOM.Common.Components - The types, interfaces and enums for the ASCOM CrossPlatform library.
- ASCOM.Tools - A set of Cross Platform tools for logging, settings and conversions.
As always, questions and help at the ASCOM Driver and Application Development Support Forum.