[Bug]: position.positionBroadcastSecs stays at 3600 on Heltec V4 despite successful --set and --configure

[UnknownEngineOfficial]

Category

Serial / Configuration persistence

Hardware

Heltec V4

Firmware Version

2.7.26.54e0d8d

Description

On a Heltec V4 running Meshtastic firmware 2.7.26.54e0d8d, position.positionBroadcastSecs does not change from 3600 even though both CLI write paths report success.

I tested both:

1. direct --set
2. full YAML round-trip via --export-config -> edit -> --configure

In both cases the CLI reports the value was written successfully, but a fresh readback from the node still shows:

positionBroadcastSecs: 3600

Other nearby position settings do persist correctly on the same node, for example:

• position.positionBroadcastSmartEnabled
• position.gpsUpdateInterval
• display.screenOnSecs

This makes it look like a field-specific persistence or overwrite problem rather than a general CLI or serial write failure.

Steps to Reproduce

With the node connected over USB:

1. Verify current value:

meshtastic --info

Observed:

positionBroadcastSecs: 3600

2. Try to set the value directly:

meshtastic --set position.position_broadcast_secs 60
meshtastic --info

CLI reports success, for example:

Set position.position_broadcast_secs to 60
Writing modified preferences to device
Writing position configuration to device

But readback still shows:

positionBroadcastSecs: 3600

3. Try again together with smart-broadcast disable:

meshtastic --set position.position_broadcast_smart_enabled false --set position.position_broadcast_secs 60
meshtastic --info

Observed:

• positionBroadcastSmartEnabled changes successfully to false
• positionBroadcastSecs still remains 3600

4. Try YAML import path:

meshtastic --export-config node.yaml

Edit YAML:

config:
  position:
    positionBroadcastSecs: 60
    positionBroadcastSmartEnabled: false

Then apply:

meshtastic --configure node.yaml
meshtastic --info

CLI again reports:

Set position.position_broadcast_secs to 60

But readback still shows:

positionBroadcastSecs: 3600

Expected Behavior

After either --set or --configure, meshtastic --info should show:

positionBroadcastSecs: 60

Actual Behavior

positionBroadcastSecs remains at 3600 after both write methods, while other settings in the same config area do persist.

Additional Context

• Tested on the same connected node repeatedly with fresh meshtastic --info readback after each write.
• display.screenOnSecs was changed successfully and persisted.
• position.positionBroadcastSmartEnabled changed successfully and persisted.
• position.gpsUpdateInterval changed successfully and persisted.
• This seems more specific than a general config-write failure.

Related Issues

Possibly related or adjacent:

• [Bug]: telemetry.deviceUpdateInterval and cannedMessage.enabled revert to defaults on reboot (Wio Tracker L1) #9769 — configuration values reported as written but not persisting / reverting in 2.7.x
• --tcp fails irregularly Error 111 #10769 — Heltec V4 / CLI configuration behavior in 2.7.25, though that issue is primarily about --tcp and may not be the same root cause

If helpful, I can provide a sanitized exported YAML and exact full --info excerpts from before/after the write attempts.

[github-actions]

@UnknownEngineOfficial, Welcome to Meshtastic! 👋

Thanks for opening your first issue. If it's helpful, an easy way
to get logs is the "Open Serial Monitor" button on the Web Flasher.

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Welcome to the community! ❤️

[b8b8]

TL;DR

3600 is hardcoded and enforced at reboot to preserve bandwidth. This is only a limitation for broadcast interval not smart interval which means if you are actually moving, you can get a much faster rate for actually tracking things.

#10702 (comment)