Using Raspberry Pi5

Gramps Web
10

When Gramps Web was first announced, I was thinking that having it on a Raspberry Pi might make a good low-cost portable genealogy server at a family reunion.

Perhaps developing a standard setup would be worth doing? And figuring out what addon plugins would make Gramps Web more useful for the purpose.

(Made this a wiki posting. Any registered user can edit it.)

Prompted to be an expert in Raspberry Pi and Gramps Web, Perplexity.ai suggests a cost-effective remote Raspberry Pi Wi-Fi solution to allow users to log into and browse a Gramps Web tree. Here’s a recommended setup:

Hardware Components

  1. Raspberry Pi 4 Model B (4GB or 8GB RAM)
  2. MicroSD card (32GB or larger)
  3. Power supply for Raspberry Pi 4
  4. External USB hard drive (1TB or larger)
  5. Wi-Fi dongle with external antenna (for improved range)
  6. disposable label printer (for ID badges or QR codes) <$20

Setup and Limitations

The Raspberry Pi 4 can effectively run Gramps Web, serving as a low-cost, powerful enough web server for genealogical data. This setup allows for remote access to the family tree database via Wi-Fi.

Expected Limitations:

  1. Concurrent Users: The Raspberry Pi 4 should handle 5-10 simultaneous users comfortably. Performance may degrade with more users.
  2. Network Speed: Wi-Fi connection speed will affect user experience, especially when accessing media files.
  3. Storage Capacity: The external USB hard drive will determine the amount of genealogical data and media that can be stored.
  4. Processing Power: While sufficient for basic operations, complex queries or report generation might be slower compared to more powerful systems.
  5. Wi-Fi Range: The range will depend on the Wi-Fi dongle and antenna used, as well as environmental factors.

This setup provides a cost-effective solution for hosting Gramps Web, allowing family members to collaboratively edit genealogical information using a web browser. The Raspberry Pi’s ARM architecture is supported by Gramps Web, making it an ideal low-cost server option.

Citations:

[1] Addon:Gramps Web - Gramps
[2] https://www.grampsweb.org
[3] Web based Gramps
[4] Reddit - Dive into anything
[5] Sharing user access
[6] https://forums.raspberrypi.com/viewtopic.php?t=343626
[7] https://gramps-project.org
[8] Getting Started - Gramps Web