retro-alcoi

Tools for configuring PCs at a retro gaming fair.

Utilities

setup-network

Assigns a static IP address and hostname to a Debian 13 machine based on a machine number (1–254). Designed for an isolated local network with no gateway or DNS required.

sudo ./setup-network <machine_num>

Example:

sudo ./setup-network 4
# → IP: 10.0.1.4/24, hostname: retro-alcoi-4

See setup-network/ for source and build instructions.

Quick start

cd setup-network/
python3 -m venv .venv
.venv/bin/pip install -r requirements.txt
bash build.sh
# Binary is at dist/setup-network

Copy dist/setup-network and dist/config.ini to a USB stick, then on each fair PC:

sudo ./setup-network 4

Configuration

Edit config.ini (alongside the binary) before distributing:

[network]
subnet_root = 10.0.1
hostname_prefix = retro-alcoi-

How it works

1. Detects the first wired Ethernet interface (skips WiFi, bridges, veth).
2. Sets the hostname via hostnamectl and updates /etc/hosts.
3. Configures the static IP via nmcli if available, otherwise falls back to /etc/network/interfaces.

Re-running with the same or a different machine number is safe (idempotent).