Guide
Getting started
From the first start to driving on your real layout, step by step.
01Install and start
Install Node.js 20 or newer, download Stellhaus and unzip it. Then start it:
- Windows: double-click
start-stellhaus.cmd - macOS: double-click
start-stellhaus.command(the first time: right-click, then Open) - Linux and Raspberry Pi:
./start-stellhaus.sh
Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser. To stop Stellhaus, press Ctrl+C in its window.
02Try the simulation
Without options, Stellhaus starts in simulation. Nothing real moves: trains accelerate, brake and trigger sensors on screen, protected by exactly the same safety logic as on a real layout.
A fresh installation has no layout yet: in the Editor, open Examples, choose one and save it. Then go to Control and place a train.
On your first visit a welcome screen offers a guided tour and Learn Stellhaus: eight short exercises that tick themselves off as you go. Press the space bar at any time: that is Stop.
03Your layout
Open the Editor and choose how to begin:
- Draw your track plan piece by piece, to scale, in your own track system.
- Examples: 37 ready-to-run layouts.
- Generator: enter your baseboard and get designs that fit, with blocks, sensors and addresses.
- Import a plan from XTrackCAD.
Give each block its sensor contact and each turnout its address. The Check tab tells you what is missing. In simulation a saved plan is active immediately.
04Connect your command station
Start Stellhaus with the type and the network address of your command station:
./start-stellhaus.sh --mode cs3 --host 192.168.1.50 # Märklin CS2 or CS3
./start-stellhaus.sh --mode z21 --host 192.168.0.111 # Roco/Fleischmann Z21
./start-stellhaus.sh --mode dccex --host 192.168.1.60 # DCC-EXOn Windows, use start-stellhaus.cmd with the same options.
Stellhaus now starts in read-only mode: it shows what happens on your layout but sends nothing. Drive a few trains with your own handset and watch them being followed on the track plan.
05Commission your layout
The Commissioning page walks you through it: connection, sensors, placing trains, every turnout and a short test drive. Layout ready? checks everything before each session.
When you are confident, switch read-only mode off in the mode bar. Cautious mode stays on: no loco runs faster than the step you set, until you switch it off yourself.
06Routes and automatic driving
Routes work right away: tap a train on the track plan, choose Route from here… and tap the destination.
On a real layout, automatic driving, trips and timetables stay off until you deliberately start Stellhaus with:
./start-stellhaus.sh --mode cs3 --host 192.168.1.50 --automaat echtLet each loco do a measuring run on the Locos page first, so Stellhaus knows their speed and braking distance.
07Tablets and phones
To use Stellhaus on other devices in your home network, add --bind 0.0.0.0 and open the computer’s address in their browser, for example http://192.168.1.20:8080. On a phone you can add Stellhaus to the home screen.
The walkie-talkie needs a secure connection: add --https and install the Stellhaus home certificate on each device. The built-in manual explains how.
08Your data and updates
Everything you set up is stored in the data folder next to Stellhaus. Every change keeps the previous version: Versions restores it with one click, exports everything to one file and can back up to another disk.
To update, unzip the new version and move your data folder into it. Stellhaus converts older data by itself and keeps a backup first.
09Help in the program
Every page has its own explanation: the help link in the menu opens the built-in manual at the right section, with search. When a signal is red, the ? next to the reason explains exactly why. After a fault, What now? suggests the next step.