Hi guys and gals. So a noob question here and purely academic as I am curious and don’t actually need one but say for example the gps module dies in your drone, are you able to replace it with any module available or does it have to be a like for like brand or model replacement?
I have seen that some modules have 4 or 6 wires on a single connector block and some have 2x 4 wire connectors etc so it looks like it might be a minefield.
Depends on the drone. If it’s a self build, then any compatible unit should work. If it’s a branded drone (DJI, Autel etc), then you’ll probably need to have the correct one to match their software/firmware requirements.
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Cool, thanks. I thought it might have just been down to the pinouts which by the sounds of it is likely the case with self build. It would make sense that the branded models lock you in to proprietary replacements, heaven forbid you should have free rein on a repair with them! 
The 6 pin ones will have a built in magnetometer (compass)
In theory any GPS module should work.
The GPS connection is usually to a UART, and if there is a built in magnetometer (Compass) this would connect to the I2c bus. Though with many off the shelf drones, such as DJI, the magnetometer is usually separate from the GPS module, either externally mounted as in earlier Phantoms, or is a hard soldered single chip device on the main board.