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title: TAK Integration

parent: User Guide

nav_order: 10

last_updated: 2026-09-11

description: Interoperate with ATAK and WinTAK — CoT position sharing, TAK roles, and plugin setup.

aliases:

• tak

• atak

• team-awareness-kit

Meshtastic integrates with the Team Awareness Kit (TAK) ecosystem, enabling interoperability between Meshtastic radios and TAK applications like ATAK and WinTAK.

The TAK module allows Meshtastic nodes to:

• Share position data in TAK-compatible CoT (Cursor on Target) format

• Appear as team members on TAK map displays

• Receive TAK PLI (Position Location Information) messages

• ATAK (Android Team Awareness Kit), iTAK, or WinTAK installed

• Your node's Device Role (Device configuration) set to TAK or TAK Tracker — this is what makes the

TAK module appear in Module configuration at all

• Firmware 2.8.0 or newer on the radio. Earlier firmware accepts a TAK config write and never

stores it, so the app hides the TAK module entry below that version even when the role is set

correctly. See Firmware Updates

│ ⚠️ Warning: The old Meshtastic ATAK Plugin is no longer part of this path and cannot work. It

│ bridged through the cross-process AIDL API, which was removed in app 2.8.0; the mesh service is

│ now in-process only. Do not install it. Interop today runs over the app's own local TAK server

│ plus the Mesh to CoT Converter, both described in the following sections, with stock

│ ATAK/iTAK/WinTAK.

Navigate to Settings → Module configuration → TAK. The module's own settings are your TAK identity —

there is no separate enable switch here, because the Device Role setting in Device configuration is what

turns TAK on. Your node broadcasts this identity, which appears on TAK maps.

Your TAK callsign isn't a separate setting — it's derived automatically from your Meshtastic node

name.

│ 💡 Tip: Team/role colors are the standard TAK affiliation colors. Coordinate with your TAK team

│ to use consistent team assignments.

The app can also run a local TAK server so ATAK/iTAK on the same phone can connect directly, without a remote TAK server. The server binds to localhost only (T383838127.0.0.1:8089) and uses TLS with mutual certificate authentication (mTLS), so it is not reachable from other devices on the network.

Open Settings → Advanced → TAK Server. These are app settings stored on this phone, which is why they sit next to Firmware Update and Debug Panel rather than under the TAK module config — and why they need neither a TAK role nor firmware 2.8.0:

!Local TAK Server settings with enable toggle and export option

• Enable Local TAK Server — starts the loopback-only mTLS server on port 8089 for ATAK/iTAK connections from the same phone.

• TAK Mesh Channel — selects which Meshtastic channel outgoing TAK traffic is sent on (default: the primary channel, index 0). Incoming TAK traffic is accepted from any channel. Matches the equivalent setting on iOS and in the legacy ATAK plugin.

• Mesh to CoT Converter — off by default, and shown under the server toggle. With the server

running, this synthesizes a CoT contact for every node in your node database, so ordinary

Meshtastic nodes appear on the ATAK map as contacts. **This is what replaced the old plugin's

node visibility** — without it, only TAK-role nodes show up.

• Export TAK Data Package — generates a T383838.zip data package that ATAK/iTAK can import to connect to this server.

Nodes configured with TAK-related roles behave differently from standard clients:

│ 💡 Tip: Use TAK Tracker for devices that only need to report position (e.g., a radio mounted in a

│ vehicle). Use TAK for devices where users actively participate in TAK operations.

TAK messages use the Cursor on Target XML format — a military standard for sharing situational awareness data. Meshtastic converts its internal protobuf messages to CoT format when bridging to TAK systems, so no manual format conversion is needed.

Meshtastic supports two TAK wire formats, chosen automatically based on the connected radio's firmware — no manual configuration needed:

A node still relays legacy V1 packets from older nodes even while running V2 itself, so mixed-firmware meshes keep working.

Once configured:

• Meshtastic nodes appear as markers on the ATAK map with callsign labels

• Chat messages can bridge between mesh and TAK networks

• Position updates flow bidirectionally between Meshtastic and TAK

• TAK Tracker nodes broadcast PLI automatically — their positions appear on ATAK maps without any ATAK-side configuration

│ ℹ️ Note: TAK integration requires specific node roles. Standard client nodes don't automatically

│ participate in TAK operations — though with Mesh to CoT Converter enabled they still appear on

│ the ATAK map as contacts.

│ 🔒 Privacy: TAK data shares your position and callsign information. The TAK module respects the

│ same channel encryption as other Meshtastic messages — in sensitive environments, use a channel

│ with a non-default key.

• Settings — Modules & Admin — TAK module configuration

• Nodes — TAK and TAK Tracker roles in the node list

• Map & Waypoints — node positions on the map