YSF Server names now truncated?

HB9XBO

Hi, when registering a YSF-reflector, its name is/was limited to 13 characters, to which a leading country code was added by the registry, like CH- DE- GB- US- etc. These can still be seen in the pistar.uk listings, but I have just seen on my OS1 and OS4 dashboards that these leading codes seem to have -mostly- disappeared from the YSF server lists. Is this intentional?
Admittedly, these codes were not always consistent (GB/UK, CH/HB etc) but were useful when using the server name search box.
I for one chose my reflector name precisely in order to score the same ID# as that of my Wires-X room, so I won't be changing my reflector name any more; however my country no longer shows up in the server list, which is a pity.
Any thoughts?

HA2NON

Please post an example server name which is truncated in the OS4 list and what it should look like untruncated.

HB9XBO

Hi Norbert,
The Pistar lists of YSF servers append the country codes which were added automatically at the time of registering, and I think that the Openspot also used to do this, but I may be wrong.
For example, if I search for Swiss reflectors by typing CH- then the Pistar list comes up with 6 servers, and I think that used to also work on Openspot, but it doesn't now.
My reflector was originally registered as SUHR-YSF-BSZH in order to obtain the ID #44298, it then received the full description CH-SUHR-YSF-BSZH and used to appear on my Openspot amongst several other Swiss reflectors. Now it appears alphabetically under SU... I can still find my own reflector, but what if I'm looking for a country? Many server names reference a placename, but not often with a country name or callsign, because with the old registry the country code was added automatically.

Has there been a change? Or am I dreaming that the Openspot server list also used to show the country codes?

While reading the DVRef.com site I got the impression that a designator may now be freely chosen, rather than being provoked by using the reverse-hash method as earlier, so maybe this would make it possible to choose a new name and keep the old designator.. just a thought.
Best regards, hb9xbo

HA2NON

We used the list at register.ysfreflector.de before 1st June and now we use dvref.com as the YSFReflector database source. Probably they now list each server by a different name. Our database does not alter server names reported by these sites.

HB9XBO

OK, that would explain the change and I'm not dreaming.
BUT I just discovered something strange on the DVRef website: the YSF list and the individual records do indeed display the whole 16-letter string (including country code) BUT this info is NOT SEARCHABLE! The search box there evaluates only characters contained in the string of 13 registered characters and ignores the extra 3 characters which it appends and even displays...

I suppose that means that the DVRef database now only passes on the 13-character string, although it clearly seems able to display the appended country codes. This is a pity because it represents a loss of useful info which used to be directly searchable.

It also means that we have found a "bug" which is definitely not your fault, so I will stop bothering you and will bother DVRef instead hi.

Have a great day, 73

HB9XBO

I asked at DVRef and got this response:

kc1awv (19. Juni 2025 20:55):
"DVRef does not manage hotspot software, or how they retrieve/display host files. You will need to get in touch with the hotspot developer for assistance there.

"Adding in the country code as a prefix to YSF host name is legacy functionality. On an API export, the country code is not prefixed to the chosen name. Processing this legacy functionality is up to the developer of the software when they generate their host files for their software."

Maybe this is not necessary any more: if I understood correctly, any designator may now be chosen if available, so I am guessing that from now on a node can be renamed any way the user wants and this will then be shown on the exports.

HB9XBO

Hi Norbert, sorry for the "shouting" - didn't intend to make bold text!

I asked again at DVRef for confirmation, if the 13-character name could now be edited without losing the 5-digit designator, so then a new, clear node name can be made, regardless of the implementation of the country-code. I got this reply:

"Your designator won't change, Once you create a record with that number, it's yours until you delete it. You can change the name to whatever you want it to be, so long as it fits within the 13 character limit."

So now it's up to the user, and the so-called "legacy functionality" becomes irrelevant. Thanks for bearing with me.