Upgrade to 0.1.7!
Now that 0.1.7 is out we recommend upgrading to automatically detect new expansion units.
Below is the older Manual method needed in previous versions of AmpliPi software
Manual method for 0.1.6 and older
We are working very hard on the next AmpliPi update which will include auto-detection of expanders, but it still requires some polish before releasing it. What that means is that for now adding an expansion unit requires a few small manual steps to let the AmpliPi software know to talk to more zones.
First, make sure the main AmpliPi unit and expander(s) are connected with the expansion ribbon cable, that all units are powered on, and that the main unit is connected via Ethernet to your network. Then connect to the AmpliPi via SSH:
ssh pi@amplipi.local
or with the IP listed on the front-panel display if amplipi.local doesn’t work.
Once connected, stop AmpliPi so we can modify the configuration file:
systemctl --user stop amplipi
Now the new zones need to be added to ~/amplipi-dev/house.json. Under the “zones” section, there will currently be 6 zones with ids from 0 to 5. With 1 expansion unit, zones with ids 6 through 11 need to be added. With 2 expansion units, zones with ids 12 through 17 need to be added as well. We suggest copying the first 6 zones to create new ones, then you need to change the “id” fields to 6 through 11 (or 6 through 17 if you have 2 expanders). It would be a good idea to set the “name” for each new zone to something meaningful now too.
Once done editing house.json go ahead and restart AmpliPi!
systemctl --user start amplipi