(3.4.124–.126 were unpublished previews of this change.)
Fixed
- Dark maps need a free CARTO key, and Configuration → Map walks you through getting one. CARTO, who draws the dark basemap, started stamping every tile with “API KEY REQUIRED” unless you send a key. Light maps (OpenStreetMap) are unchanged. Open Configuration → Map: four steps copy this install’s address and a one-line description, send you to CARTO’s free key form (no account — they email the key straight back), and let you paste it. Step 2 also tells you what to pick for their extra questions: Under 10,000 map loads a month (a home install is well under that) and Raster (PNG tiles) (that’s what Aerodrome uses). Copy address / Copy description put the on-screen text on the clipboard, including over plain HTTP. Save — no restart. The Live radar, the aircraft detail map, and the display board pick it up on the next load (force-refresh if a watermarked tile is still cached). Until a key is saved, those maps show a banner that links to the same settings page.
Behind the scenes
map.carto_api_key is live-reloadable (no restart) and included in /api/ui-config because Leaflet fetches tiles in the browser — the same LAN-trust model as the rest of config. Dark tile URLs append ?key= when a key is set and stay on the existing CARTO Dark Matter endpoint otherwise. The validator accepts a blank key and rejects spaces or URL punctuation. A shared project-wide key isn’t viable: CARTO keys are per-customer and every install is a different origin. Copy uses the existing HTTP-safe helper (Clipboard API is blocked on LAN http://); the buttons read the visible pills so the click handler isn’t nested-quoted into a dead onclick.