Heltec V4 — power on and pairing

Sentinel nodes are built on Heltec V4–class boards (LoRa radio, GPS, and battery). After power-on, the device follows your organization’s pairing policy.

Sentinel nodes are built on Heltec V4 boards or equivalents: they combine LoRa radio (excellent for long-range, low-power coverage), GPS, and an internal battery. That combination makes them ideal for operations where you can't rely on permanent cellular coverage: rural areas, rugged terrain, mobile operations that move faster than roaming.

Before going to the field, every new node goes through a short but strict checklist: flash the Prysma-provided firmware or binary, register the organization in the web dashboard, copy the Org ID into the assigned operator's mobile app, bring the node within range of the gateway according to the coverage plan, and verify on the tactical map that it shows nominal status (steady cyan ring, recent heartbeat). Skipping any of these steps almost always translates into deployment-day frustration.

The coverage plan is the most strategic call: depending on the terrain, you can run all nodes directly against a central gateway (star topology) or use the visual mesh to understand which nodes can talk to each other. For large sites (warehouses, industrial yards, mountainous areas) it can pay off to deploy multiple gateways. Prysma advises topology during onboarding; documenting the choice in writing helps audit the system later.

When the node shows nominal on the map, add it to your unit inventory with a clear alias (e.g. 'North Patrol' or 'Mobile 12') from the admin panel. Aliases show up in map, chat, tactical log, and exports—a readable operational name is much more useful than the default hex ID. Operators also appreciate it when receiving messages and missions.