bluetooth error w/ChessLink eboard on a Debian 13.2 tablet x86_64

[Luigi Vogliobene]

Hi,

bluetooth is not working : error "no Chesslink eboard" (maybe permissions fault) in Debian 13.2 tablet x86_64.

The Millennium eboard is paired and connected via bluetooth.

Attacched you will find the picochess log file and the Millennium bluetooth printouts.

Thank you.

Luigi

[Randy Reade]

Luigi, try running the following command in a terminal then reboot:

sudo setcap 'cap_net_raw,cap_net_admin+eip' /opt/picochess/venv/lib/python3.13/site-packages/bluepy/bluepy-helper

Randy

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[Luigi Vogliobene]

Hi Randy,

now it does work!

Thank you very much

Luigi

[Ro Bert]

Hi all,

i also have strange problems with chesslink.

when i start from my sd card on a raspi 3 everything works fine except that it is slooooow.

The same card in a raspi 4 won't connect to my chesslink board. Bluetooth is working

an bluetoothctl shows a connected device:

pi@pico:~ $ sudo bluetoothctl

Agent registered

hci0 34:81:F4:E8:80:4A type LE Public connected eir_len 21

[CHG] Device 34:81:F4:E8:80:4A Connected: yes

hci0 type 6 discovering on

[CHG] Device 34:81:F4:E8:80:4A ServicesResolved: yes

hci0 type 6 discovering off

hci0 type 6 discovering on

[MILLENNIUM CHESS]> devices

Device 34:81:F4:E8:80:4A MILLENNIUM CHESS

---------------------------------------------

here is a part of the log file:

2025-12-29 19:31:19.439   ERROR chess_link_bluepy - worker_thread: Failed to create BLE peripheral at 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a, Failed to connect to peripheral 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a, addr type: public

2025-12-29 19:31:19.507   ERROR chess_link - _connect: Connection to Chess Link via eboard.chesslink.chess_link_bluepy at 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a FAILED.

2025-12-29 19:31:22.508 WARNING chess_link - __init__: Retrying scan and connect after error.

2025-12-29 19:31:32.578   ERROR chess_link_bluepy - worker_thread: Failed to create BLE peripheral at 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a, Failed to connect to peripheral 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a, addr type: public

2025-12-29 19:31:32.650   ERROR chess_link - _connect: Connection to Chess Link via eboard.chesslink.chess_link_bluepy at 34:81:f4:e8:80:4a FAILED.

2025-12-29 19:31:35.650 WARNING chess_link - __init__: Retrying scan and connect after error.

--------------------------------------------

Has someone the same issues and solved it?

Thanx

Robert

[Randy Reade]

Switching SD cards between different devices can cause connectivity issues since the Pi's MAC address has changed. I've found it's a good practice to exit PicoChess and delete the /var/lib/bluetooth folder and the chess_link_config.json file in /opt/picochess when using the same card in different Pi's so the key pair gets remade between the Pi and the ChessLink module. Sometimes I also reset Bluetooth on the board itself (e.g. chessnut).Then Reboot.

Check that Bluetooth remains ON after rebooting and the board is also ON before PicoChess starts.

Note that PicoChess doesn't use bluetoothctl when connecting to non-DGT boards.

Randy

[Ro Bert]

Hi Randy,

that did the job. You are my hero.

Good to know because i want to test on a pi5 next. 

Thanx

Robert

[Ro Bert]

Thats strange. On every reboot of the system the connection to the chesslink board

is denied. Only after deleting the /var/lib/bluetooth folder an the chess_link_config.json file 

and a reboot it is connecting again. that behaviour is different from the pi3 where i 

first used the sd card.

Robert

[Johan Sjöblom]

Luigi (and other Linux users)

I added the setcap command for bluepy helper to the the install-picochess script to be set when running on x86_64.

On Pi (aarch64 architectures) after every system upgrade those setcaps were needed again... Maybe its the same on Linux Trixie like Debian etc. Its a good idea to run the install script after every update, so we do need to have all the rights in place. Thanks again for testing Luigi and Randy.

When you run the install script with the parameter "pico" it will skip the system updates (maybe you did them yourself, or you have recently updated). That will run the install script much faster and still run all setcap.

> sudo ./install-picochess.sh pico

-- Johan

[Randy Reade]

Yes. That is strange. I can't test my Millennium board but I have never had those issues in the past. What if you just delete one or the other, i.e. the folder or the file? What if you power cycle the board when rebooting? Is your Pi4 in a metal case (perhaps causing interference in BT communication)? Can you test a v3.4 image?

Randy

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[Randy Reade]

Johan, 

I've never needed to reissue the setcap command for bluepy-helper unless it was reinstalled or copied from somewhere or I mistakenly tried to use setcap on a symlink. But, yes, if Python is upgraded (not the case when I used pyenv in v3.4) /usr/lib/python3.xx would lose its capabilities.

Randy

[Ro Bert]

Just installed picochess on a new sd card in a raspi 5.

On first boot the chesslinkboard was connected immediately.

After the first reboot the board wasn't found anymore.

How can i assure that bluetooth remains on after a reboot?

Greetz

Robert

[Randy Reade]

Robert,

I assume you mean that PicoChess isn't connecting via Bluetooth and that you are not trying to connect the board yourself using the BT icon. And that BT is not shutting itself OFF on reboot.

To isolate whether it's v4 related, flash with the v3.4 Trixie Desktop image to see if it also happens there. 

Randy

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[Ro Bert]

Hi Randy,

when i shut down i use the Webinterface via "System -> shutdown"

I dont see a bluetooth icon on the webserver page.

when i fire up bluetoothctrl it shows a blue Millenium prompt.

So is there a recommended way to shut down picochess?

When reconnecting again, i first switch the chesslink on, then the raspi.

Robert

[Randy Reade]

Sounds like you are doing everything right. The BT icon is on the desktop at the top right. It should not be greyed out which would indicate BT is OFF. Another way to check is with the command 'rfkill list'.

Is v3.4 Trixie working on your Pi5?

Randy

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/picochess/9fbb3e69-e201-470b-aced-7187758941f1n%40googlegroups.com.

[Ro Bert]

Hi Randy,

i installed PicoV3.4Desktop64-bit for the raspi 5.

Bluetooth is now working as expected even after a reboot.

Now im not able to configure WLAN with raspi-config.

Gives this error mesaage: There was an error running option S1 Wireless LAN

Arrgh.

Robert

[Randy Reade]

Perhaps wifi is soft-blocked. In a terminal run 'rfkill list'. If it shows as blocked, run 'sudo rfkill unblock all'. After that you should be able to use raspberry-config or the wifi icon at the top right of desktop (to close web server you can 'Exit PicoChess' using the web interface or 'sudo pkill -f chromium' from a terminal/ssh.

Randy

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/picochess/b4b4a617-c141-4b6d-a4d2-98820f13640cn%40googlegroups.com.

[Ro Bert]

There is no wifi icon nor bluetooth icon in my browser window.

I use chrome on a mac powerbook Tahoe 26.2.

WiFi runs now but raspi-config gave me the mentioned error message.

Strange.

Robert

[Randy Reade]

I just built a new v4 Trixie image (using the 2025-12-04 RPiOS Desktop image) on a Pi5 in a 10-inch display case and my ChessNut Air+ reconnects both on shutdown/power ON and restart. I don't have my ChessLink board to test, unfortunately. I'm not sure why ChessLink won't reconnect for you. If you are knowledgeable with Git, you could try going back to v4.1.8 or earlier as a test:

From the /opt/picochess folder:

For 4.1.8:

git checkout fb2f3e7a92145d2f1905d88bb69eb5210053e9a7

For 4.1.7:

git checkout fd16f09dc5de6d00317062dc0f19d696868214ff

Randy

On Wed, Dec 31, 2025 at 10:55 AM Ro Bert <robert...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Randy,

[Randy Reade]

Oh. I thought you were using a monitor locally.

[Ro Bert]

The system is not stable. After a reboot chesslink is not found.

Only after deleting the /var/lib/bluetooth folder an the chess_link_config.json file 

and a reboot it is connecting again. 

So i will do that every time i fire up picochess for a game.

But now new years party.

Robert

[Johan Sjöblom]

Hi Robert

My 10 cents on the Bluetooth issue on Raspberry Pi 5:

the install-picochess in V4 does not install the etc/hciuart.service, but some old instructions refer to that it should be copied to /lib/systemd/system. You did  not mention how you created the image, but please check that you DO NOT HAVE IT. Its some Pi3/4 legacy, not to be used on Pi5 if you ask me.

[Randy Reade]

If that is when using both v3.4 and v4 I would suspect something other than PicoChess. Anyway, it can wait until you've recovered from the New Year's celebrations. 😊

Randy

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/picochess/0ef6e96e-8ca2-411b-8bca-e9d45e9afdfcn%40googlegroups.com.

[Randy Reade]

Yes. That IS old. Not required in any RPiOS versions since Buster I believe.

Randy

[Johan Sjöblom]

There seems to be some other old stuff that should not be used: fix_bluetooth_4b.sh and pico_dgt_bt.sh.

But yes, now time for some new year celebrations, we have 2 hours to go, and I am currently in Northern Finland (Lapland). We are getting quite a cold start of the new year, its now -31 degrees Celsius (-24 Fahrenheit). Enjoy the new years celebrations everyone, and stay warm :-) 

[Ro Bert]

V3.4 trixie is working as expected. I just had to wait a little bit for a reconnect. 

We will see whats wrong with v4 later. 

Yeah thats frosty. We are also ready for a midnight sauna in our garden. But +4 Celsius here in northern germany. 

Have fun. 

Robert 

[Ro Bert]

Hi all,

connecting with vnc the x desktop opens but no picochess window. how to start a x-session?

Happy new year

Robert

[Randy Reade]

If you are running headless you might need to create a dummy display in order for the kiosk browser to open. These instructions might still work:

https://groups.google.com/g/picochess/c/jbd9nadNacw/m/TNvRuv9cAgAJ

Randy