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Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis

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  Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-06 18:00 +0100
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Dave Higton <dave@davehigton.me.uk> - 2015-09-06 21:46 +0100
      Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-07 17:42 +0100
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis ray carter <ray@zianet.com> - 2015-09-07 00:36 +0000
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis davehigton14@gmail.com - 2015-09-07 03:54 -0700
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Gordon Levi <gordon@address.invalid> - 2015-09-08 00:54 +1000
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Andrew Smallshaw <andrews@sdf.lonestar.org> - 2015-09-13 12:45 +0000
      Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Alan Adams <alan@adamshome.org.uk> - 2015-09-13 19:22 +0100
      Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Jonathan Lane <tidux@faeroes.freeshell.org> - 2015-09-27 15:28 +0000
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid> - 2015-09-13 13:48 +0000
      Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis David James <david@tcs01.demon.co.uk> - 2015-09-13 14:22 +0000
        Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid> - 2015-09-13 17:42 +0000
          Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis David James <david@tcs01.demon.co.uk> - 2015-09-16 00:01 +0000
    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis DisneyWizard the Fantasmic! <wiz@FANTASMIC!disneywizard.com> - 2015-09-17 08:38 -0700
      Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2015-09-18 08:40 -0400
        Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Rob Morley <nospam@ntlworld.com> - 2015-09-18 14:26 +0100
        Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Martin Gregorie <martin@address-in-sig.invalid> - 2015-09-18 18:42 +0000
          Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2015-09-18 15:09 -0400
            Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-18 20:17 +0100
              Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Rob <nomail@example.com> - 2015-09-18 21:35 +0000
                Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-18 23:19 +0100
                  Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis Rob <nomail@example.com> - 2015-09-19 06:48 +0000
                    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-19 11:15 +0100
                  Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis mm0fmf <none@mailinator.com> - 2015-09-19 08:13 +0100
                    Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> - 2015-09-19 11:19 +0100
              Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> - 2015-09-19 11:31 -0400
              Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis druck <news@druck.org.uk> - 2015-09-19 19:39 +0100
                Re: Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis colonel_hack@yahoo.com - 2015-09-20 22:06 -0700

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#9544 — Something like a KVM switch for multiple Raspberry Pis

I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
single monitor (by switching).

One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.

I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me 
moved later.

Any of you guys already done this?

James

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#9553

In message <mshrck$o68$1@dont-email.me>
          "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:

>I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
>Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
>reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
>single monitor (by switching).
>
>One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
>aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
>Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
>OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
>
>I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me 
>moved later.
>
>Any of you guys already done this?

Curiously, there seem to be no HDMI + USB KVM switches at anything
like sensible prices.  There are some HDMI switches cheap, and there
are some USB switches cheap, but not integrated.

According to my last search of eBay and the WWW, anyway.

Dave

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#9559

"Dave Higton" <dave@davehigton.me.uk> wrote in message 
news:9a460aff54.DaveMeUK@my.inbox.com...
> In message <mshrck$o68$1@dont-email.me>
>          "James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations.
>>Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a
>>reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a
>>single monitor (by switching).
>>
>>One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone
>>aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough.
>>Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be
>>OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
>>
>>I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me
>>moved later.
>>
>>Any of you guys already done this?
>
> Curiously, there seem to be no HDMI + USB KVM switches at anything
> like sensible prices.  There are some HDMI switches cheap, and there
> are some USB switches cheap, but not integrated.

I see what you mean. There is a big price difference between an HDMI + 
USB switch and individual switches. The integrated switches are much too 
expensive.

Options? Perhaps these:

1. Convert USBs to PS/2s

2. Convert HDMIs to VGAs

3. Have one switch for USB and one for HDMI.

4. Use the network, as others have suggested.

5. Use the olde way and swap cables. :-(

I might have one or two machines in there for which the network would 
not do as I would need to see them boot up, but it would do in some 
cases. I could maybe have a hybrid solution mixing different solutions. 
Sounds a bit complicated and it would not be as convenient as I wanted 
but may be a practical way forward.

Thanks to everyone for the responses.

James

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#9554

On Sun, 06 Sep 2015 18:00:50 +0100, James Harris wrote:

> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations.
> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a
> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a
> single monitor (by switching).
> 
> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone
> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough.
> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be
> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
> 
> I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me
> moved later.
> 
> Any of you guys already done this?
> 
> James

If they are all networked, the simple solution would be to set up one 
full machine and use ssh -X to login to the others remotely from that 
machine. You could also set them up with xdmcp or use vnc (that would be 
my last choice).

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#9557

On Sunday, September 6, 2015 at 6:00:51 PM UTC+1, James Harris wrote:
> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
> single monitor (by switching).
> 
> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
> 
> I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me 
> moved later.
> 
> Any of you guys already done this?

I would recommend that you try using either RDP or VNC to use one of
them to control the rest.  Much cheaper, requires no extra hardware.

Dave

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#9558

"James Harris" <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:

>I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
>Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
>reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
>single monitor (by switching).
>
>One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
>aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
>Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
>OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
>
>I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me 
>moved later.
>
>Any of you guys already done this?

Not exactly but if they are on your network
"sudo apt-get install xrdp"
on each Pi makes them standard Windows remote desktop clients
<http://www.xrdp.org/>. Now you can use a single Windows (or Linux)
computer to display the same X Window desktop as that on your Pi.
Windows remote desktop makes it easy to automatically log into, and
switch between, Pis. It works well and I have never had any need to
connect a display, keyboard or mouse directly to a Pi.

I should add that I have not tried audio let alone some other devices
that you may be able to connect with a sophisticated KVM switch. To
counter that possible disadvantage you can use the power of your
Windows box for remote development in Python using Visual Studio
<http://microsoft.github.io/PTVS/> or Java using Netbeans. 

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#9628

On 2015-09-06, James Harris <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:
> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
> single monitor (by switching).
>
> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.

I'm a bit late into this discussion but as others have already said
I'd be thinking more in terms of network conenction for day to day
access.  The problem is that both HDMI and USB are a bit too smart
to make this kind of thing easy - there is constant two-way
communication between the devices so a layer of emulation is needed
to give the attahed hosts something to talk to while they are
disconnected from the real peripherals.  The older PS/2/VGA KVM
switches had it a lot easier in this regard.

For initial set-up and emergency access (if it drops off the network)
my preference would be for a serial console hooked up to a console
server (or a serial access server - they're the same thing).  Those
aren't cheap new either but if you keep an eye on ebay or similar
for a few weeks you'll be able to find a used one going for a song,
just don't expect to be able to go out and buy one today for sane
money.  I picked up a Lantronix 32 port model for £1 seven or
eight years ago (plus £10 P&P) and while it's never been more than
a third full it's given spectacular service for the money.  

Just be sure you are comfortable on a serial line, i.e. a bare
command prompt: Unix old hands will feel perfectly at home but if
you want everything graphical from the get-go you will find yourself
lost.

-- 
Andrew Smallshaw
andrews@sdf.lonestar.org

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#9635

In message <slrn3vfsmvas24.ts.andrews@sdf.lonestar.org>
          Andrew Smallshaw <andrews@sdf.lonestar.org> wrote:

> On 2015-09-06, James Harris <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:
>> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations.
>> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a
>> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a
>> single monitor (by switching).
>>
>> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone
>> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough.
>> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be
>> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.

> I'm a bit late into this discussion but as others have already said
> I'd be thinking more in terms of network conenction for day to day
> access.  The problem is that both HDMI and USB are a bit too smart
> to make this kind of thing easy - there is constant two-way
> communication between the devices so a layer of emulation is needed
> to give the attahed hosts something to talk to while they are
> disconnected from the real peripherals.  The older PS/2/VGA KVM
> switches had it a lot easier in this regard.

I'm using a VGA/USB 4-port switch. On that, if I change the display 
from computer A to B, A gets a disconnection from the USB devices. 
Actually that is what is needed, otherwise the keyboard and mouse 
could end up controlling all the computers simultaneously. It does 
mean I don't want to run the printer through it, otherwise there's a 
significant chance I will start something printing, then switch 
computers and disconnect the print stream in mid-flow.

> For initial set-up and emergency access (if it drops off the network)
> my preference would be for a serial console hooked up to a console
> server (or a serial access server - they're the same thing).  Those
> aren't cheap new either but if you keep an eye on ebay or similar
> for a few weeks you'll be able to find a used one going for a song,
> just don't expect to be able to go out and buy one today for sane
> money.  I picked up a Lantronix 32 port model for £1 seven or
> eight years ago (plus £10 P&P) and while it's never been more than
> a third full it's given spectacular service for the money.

> Just be sure you are comfortable on a serial line, i.e. a bare
> command prompt: Unix old hands will feel perfectly at home but if
> you want everything graphical from the get-go you will find yourself
> lost.



-- 
Alan Adams, from Northamptonshire
alan@adamshome.org.uk
http://www.nckc.org.uk/

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#9713

Andrew Smallshaw <andrews@sdf.lonestar.org> wrote:
> On 2015-09-06, James Harris <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:
>> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations. 
>> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a 
>> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a 
>> single monitor (by switching).
>>
>> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone 
>> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough. 
>> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be 
>> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
 
> For initial set-up and emergency access (if it drops off the network)
> my preference would be for a serial console hooked up to a console
> server (or a serial access server - they're the same thing).  Those
> aren't cheap new either 

You can get a cheap SFF PC, install Linux or *BSD on it, and stick a
bunch of USB serial adapters in it.  I actually use my RPi B+ as a baby
console server for an old Sun pizzabox and an ASIC miner.  My preferred
serial terminal client for console work is C-Kermit (available as
"ckermit" in the Debian repositories) since it's highly scriptable - you
can write a Kermit script for each individual port and set it
executable, and it supports Kermit protocol file transfers.  Very handy.

> Just be sure you are comfortable on a serial line, i.e. a bare
> command prompt: Unix old hands will feel perfectly at home but if
> you want everything graphical from the get-go you will find yourself
> lost.
> 

If you're not comfortable with a Unix shell you really aren't getting
the most use out of your RPi.  This makes as good an excuse to learn as
any.

-- 
tidux@sdf.lonestar.org
SDF Public Access UNIX System - http://sdf.lonestar.org

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#9629

On Sun, 06 Sep 2015 18:00:50 +0100, James Harris wrote:

> Any of you guys already done this?
>
I wouldn't do it that way. 

Ethernet is my preferred solution: I run my RPi headless as a normal host 
on my LAN and SSH into it from whatever bigger box I'm sitting in front 
of. If I wanted a GUI on it, it would be equally simple to do that over 
the LAN.

If you need a lot of RPis, put them all in a common case/rack together 
with an Ethernet hub (16-port switches are available from under £20 at 
Ebuyer) and a common PSU (5v 26A regulated PSUs from £35.00 at Power 
Supplies Online http://www.powersuppliesonline.co.uk/) and you can talk 
to as many of them as you want simultaneously via SSH, VNC or whatever.

Or you might see if anybody has ported the Beowulf clustering system to 
the RPi yet - that could be fun to play with.


-- 
martin@   | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org       |

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#9630

On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 13:48:58 +0000, Martin Gregorie wrote:

> 
> Or you might see if anybody has ported the Beowulf clustering system to
> the RPi yet - that could be fun to play with.

It has been done - see, for example, http://coen.boisestate.edu/ece/
raspberry-pi/

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#9634

On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 14:22:34 +0000, David James wrote:

> On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 13:48:58 +0000, Martin Gregorie wrote:
> 
> 
>> Or you might see if anybody has ported the Beowulf clustering system to
>> the RPi yet - that could be fun to play with.
> 
> It has been done - see, for example, http://coen.boisestate.edu/ece/
> raspberry-pi/
>
Thanks. Thats a really nice cluster and the PDF describing how he did it 
is great too. Bookmarked.

I did have a search for the Beowulf mother lode (or should that be 
Grendel?) before asking but didn't get far, partly because the saga is 
much more interesting to the Internet at large and partly because 
beowulf.org seems to be devoted to a mailing list, its archives and, errm, 
nothing else. I didn't see anything useful in Wikipedia either.

Do you know if there is a central reference point for Beowulf downloads, 
update news, etc?


-- 
martin@   | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org       |

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#9637

On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 17:42:39 +0000, Martin Gregorie wrote:

> On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 14:22:34 +0000, David James wrote:
> 
>> On Sun, 13 Sep 2015 13:48:58 +0000, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>> 
>> 
>>> Or you might see if anybody has ported the Beowulf clustering system
>>> to the RPi yet - that could be fun to play with.
>> 
>> It has been done - see, for example, http://coen.boisestate.edu/ece/
>> raspberry-pi/
>>
> Thanks. Thats a really nice cluster and the PDF describing how he did it
> is great too. Bookmarked.
> 
> I did have a search for the Beowulf mother lode (or should that be
> Grendel?) before asking but didn't get far, partly because the saga is
> much more interesting to the Internet at large and partly because
> beowulf.org seems to be devoted to a mailing list, its archives and,
> errm,
> nothing else. I didn't see anything useful in Wikipedia either.
> 
> Do you know if there is a central reference point for Beowulf downloads,
> update news, etc?

No idea, sorry. 

I only know of that cluster because your posting triggered a vague 
recollection of having seen something about a Raspberry Pi cluster in the 
past. 

I think I found that one by Googling for "Raspberry Pi cluster" or perhaps 
"Raspberry Pi cluster beowulf" - there seemed to be other people who had 
made clusters from Raspberry Pi's too.

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#9663

Who is up for designing a pair of scalable plug-in KVM-over-Ethernet 
plug in modules for Pi stacks?
Pi-side dongle with Ethernet and dual power (USB b + legacy barrel) on 
one side, with
HDMI input, USB b power to Pi, and perhaps an Ethernet-thru port for the 
Pi, with usb mouse/keyboard control input as a dongle, paired with a
User-side dongle accepting legacy PS2 mice/keyboard as well as USB 
mice/keyboard, dual power and HDMI output?
Most setups would have a single User-side dongle and multiple Pi-side 
modules, but would be able to accommodate several User-side dongles 
(useful in educational configurations.)

That would satisfy monitoring the start-up.

I am plugging in my pair of Pis to a monitor which accepts up to three 
HDMI inputs, swapping the keyboard/mouse USB cables when needed, but 
primary control of each is via Ethernet PuTTY shell and Xming-windows 
from a laptop, with more than satisfactory results. Reboots are done in 
the PuTTY command line and I have faith the session can be restarted 
after reboot. So I rarely need the TV. (save the occasional display of 
traffic or weather html pages I wrote specifically for my Pi) …and a 
clutter of mice. Yet, I still prefer two RPis headless.
The R-Pis each allow several students to log-in simultaneously over 
Ethernet  (using donated e-waste laptops) to test scripts, while the 
instructor laptop runs top to keep an eye on endless loops.

On 9/6/2015 10:00 AM, James Harris wrote:
> I fancy setting up a few Raspberry Pis with different configurations.
> Their small size would make them ideal for having many of them in a
> reasonably small space and I would need them all to be viewable on a
> single monitor (by switching).
>
> One monitor, keyboard and mouse would probably do for them all. Anyone
> aware of a good-value KVM solution for this? An 8-way would be enough.
> Some sort of power distribution would be a bonus. Second hand would be
> OK. Cheap components would be a double bonus.
>
> I am not thinking of compute modules as the individual Pis could me
> moved later.
>
> Any of you guys already done this?
>
> James
>

-- 
   All ladders in the Temple of the Forbidden Eye have thirteen steps.
There are thirteen steps to the gallows, firing squad or any execution.
  The first step is denial...                           Don't be bamboozled:
        Secrets of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye revealed!
           Indiana Jones™ Discovers The Jewel of Power!
          visit —(o=8> http://disneywizard.com/ <8=o)— visit

- better to learn by mistakes of others, - Wiz.
  -  erroneous examples as provided, - Wiz.
   - than to learn by mistakes made for oneself. - Wiz.
    - A bakers dozen out of 12 Wizards agree: "And far less painful. - Wiz."

All larders in the Temple of the Forbidden Eye rung a bakers dozen true.
   There are thirteen steps to the tallows, firing square or salivation.
    The first step is dental...             Don't be bamboo skewered:
        Secrets of the Temple of the Forbidden Eye revealed!
           Indiana Jones­™ Discovers The Jewel of Power!
         visit —(o=8> http://disneywizard.com <8=o)— visit

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#9667

On 9/17/2015 11:38 AM, DisneyWizard the Fantasmic! wrote:
> Who is up for designing a pair of scalable plug-in KVM-over-Ethernet
> plug in modules for Pi stacks?
> Pi-side dongle with Ethernet and dual power (USB b + legacy barrel) on
> one side, with
> HDMI input, USB b power to Pi, and perhaps an Ethernet-thru port for the
> Pi, with usb mouse/keyboard control input as a dongle, paired with a
> User-side dongle accepting legacy PS2 mice/keyboard as well as USB
> mice/keyboard, dual power and HDMI output?
> Most setups would have a single User-side dongle and multiple Pi-side
> modules, but would be able to accommodate several User-side dongles
> (useful in educational configurations.)
>
> That would satisfy monitoring the start-up.
>
> I am plugging in my pair of Pis to a monitor which accepts up to three
> HDMI inputs, swapping the keyboard/mouse USB cables when needed, but
> primary control of each is via Ethernet PuTTY shell and Xming-windows
> from a laptop, with more than satisfactory results. Reboots are done in
> the PuTTY command line and I have faith the session can be restarted
> after reboot. So I rarely need the TV. (save the occasional display of
> traffic or weather html pages I wrote specifically for my Pi) …and a
> clutter of mice. Yet, I still prefer two RPis headless.
> The R-Pis each allow several students to log-in simultaneously over
> Ethernet  (using donated e-waste laptops) to test scripts, while the
> instructor laptop runs top to keep an eye on endless loops.

I'm not completely clear on what you are suggesting.  Are you thinking 
the Ethernet connection could be used to multiplex the user side dongle 
between multiple Pis?  It seems rather a busy device, likely another rPi 
equivalent in complexity.

-- 

Rick

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#9668

On Fri, 18 Sep 2015 08:40:52 -0400
rickman <gnuarm@gmail.com> wrote:

> On 9/17/2015 11:38 AM, DisneyWizard the Fantasmic! wrote:
> > Who is up for designing a pair of scalable plug-in KVM-over-Ethernet
> > plug in modules for Pi stacks?
> > Pi-side dongle with Ethernet and dual power (USB b + legacy barrel)
> > on one side, with
> > HDMI input, USB b power to Pi, and perhaps an Ethernet-thru port
> > for the Pi, with usb mouse/keyboard control input as a dongle,
> > paired with a User-side dongle accepting legacy PS2 mice/keyboard
> > as well as USB mice/keyboard, dual power and HDMI output?
> > Most setups would have a single User-side dongle and multiple
> > Pi-side modules, but would be able to accommodate several User-side
> > dongles (useful in educational configurations.)
> >
> > That would satisfy monitoring the start-up.
> >
> > I am plugging in my pair of Pis to a monitor which accepts up to
> > three HDMI inputs, swapping the keyboard/mouse USB cables when
> > needed, but primary control of each is via Ethernet PuTTY shell and
> > Xming-windows from a laptop, with more than satisfactory results.
> > Reboots are done in the PuTTY command line and I have faith the
> > session can be restarted after reboot. So I rarely need the TV.
> > (save the occasional display of traffic or weather html pages I
> > wrote specifically for my Pi) …and a clutter of mice. Yet, I still
> > prefer two RPis headless. The R-Pis each allow several students to
> > log-in simultaneously over Ethernet  (using donated e-waste
> > laptops) to test scripts, while the instructor laptop runs top to
> > keep an eye on endless loops.
> 
> I'm not completely clear on what you are suggesting.

An out-of-band management device, I think - something that allows
remote monitoring and control independent of the operating system.

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#9671

On Fri, 18 Sep 2015 08:40:52 -0400, rickman wrote:

> On 9/17/2015 11:38 AM, DisneyWizard the Fantasmic! wrote:
>> Who is up for designing a pair of scalable plug-in KVM-over-Ethernet
>> plug in modules for Pi stacks?
>> Pi-side dongle with Ethernet and dual power (USB b + legacy barrel) on
>> one side, with HDMI input, USB b power to Pi, and perhaps an
>> Ethernet-thru port for the Pi, with usb mouse/keyboard control input as
>> a dongle, paired with a User-side dongle accepting legacy PS2
>> mice/keyboard as well as USB mice/keyboard, dual power and HDMI output?
>> Most setups would have a single User-side dongle and multiple Pi-side
>> modules, but would be able to accommodate several User-side dongles
>> (useful in educational configurations.)
>>
>> That would satisfy monitoring the start-up.
>>
>> I am plugging in my pair of Pis to a monitor which accepts up to three
>> HDMI inputs, swapping the keyboard/mouse USB cables when needed, but
>> primary control of each is via Ethernet PuTTY shell and Xming-windows
>> from a laptop, with more than satisfactory results. Reboots are done in
>> the PuTTY command line and I have faith the session can be restarted
>> after reboot. So I rarely need the TV. (save the occasional display of
>> traffic or weather html pages I wrote specifically for my Pi) …and a
>> clutter of mice. Yet, I still prefer two RPis headless.
>> The R-Pis each allow several students to log-in simultaneously over
>> Ethernet  (using donated e-waste laptops) to test scripts, while the
>> instructor laptop runs top to keep an eye on endless loops.
> 
> I'm not completely clear on what you are suggesting.  Are you thinking
> the Ethernet connection could be used to multiplex the user side dongle
> between multiple Pis?  It seems rather a busy device, likely another rPi
> equivalent in complexity.
>
Put that way, it sounds very like an RPi with USB keyboard+mouse + HDMI 
monitor plus an Ethernet hub/switch connecting all the RPIs together. 

Use the one with keyboard etc to login to the other headless RPis.
  


-- 
martin@   | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org       |

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#9672

On 9/18/2015 2:42 PM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
> On Fri, 18 Sep 2015 08:40:52 -0400, rickman wrote:
>
>> On 9/17/2015 11:38 AM, DisneyWizard the Fantasmic! wrote:
>>> Who is up for designing a pair of scalable plug-in KVM-over-Ethernet
>>> plug in modules for Pi stacks?
>>> Pi-side dongle with Ethernet and dual power (USB b + legacy barrel) on
>>> one side, with HDMI input, USB b power to Pi, and perhaps an
>>> Ethernet-thru port for the Pi, with usb mouse/keyboard control input as
>>> a dongle, paired with a User-side dongle accepting legacy PS2
>>> mice/keyboard as well as USB mice/keyboard, dual power and HDMI output?
>>> Most setups would have a single User-side dongle and multiple Pi-side
>>> modules, but would be able to accommodate several User-side dongles
>>> (useful in educational configurations.)
>>>
>>> That would satisfy monitoring the start-up.
>>>
>>> I am plugging in my pair of Pis to a monitor which accepts up to three
>>> HDMI inputs, swapping the keyboard/mouse USB cables when needed, but
>>> primary control of each is via Ethernet PuTTY shell and Xming-windows
>>> from a laptop, with more than satisfactory results. Reboots are done in
>>> the PuTTY command line and I have faith the session can be restarted
>>> after reboot. So I rarely need the TV. (save the occasional display of
>>> traffic or weather html pages I wrote specifically for my Pi) …and a
>>> clutter of mice. Yet, I still prefer two RPis headless.
>>> The R-Pis each allow several students to log-in simultaneously over
>>> Ethernet  (using donated e-waste laptops) to test scripts, while the
>>> instructor laptop runs top to keep an eye on endless loops.
>>
>> I'm not completely clear on what you are suggesting.  Are you thinking
>> the Ethernet connection could be used to multiplex the user side dongle
>> between multiple Pis?  It seems rather a busy device, likely another rPi
>> equivalent in complexity.
>>
> Put that way, it sounds very like an RPi with USB keyboard+mouse + HDMI
> monitor plus an Ethernet hub/switch connecting all the RPIs together.
>
> Use the one with keyboard etc to login to the other headless RPis.

Exactly.  Unless there is some advantage to having a device on the pi 
that actually plugs into the HDMI/USB connectors to emulate the physical 
devices.

-- 

Rick

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#9674

"rickman" <gnuarm@gmail.com> wrote in message 
news:mthne9$pjl$1@dont-email.me...
> On 9/18/2015 2:42 PM, Martin Gregorie wrote:

...

>> Put that way, it sounds very like an RPi with USB keyboard+mouse + 
>> HDMI
>> monitor plus an Ethernet hub/switch connecting all the RPIs together.
>>
>> Use the one with keyboard etc to login to the other headless RPis.
>
> Exactly.  Unless there is some advantage to having a device on the pi 
> that actually plugs into the HDMI/USB connectors to emulate the 
> physical devices.

Sure. Remote desktop or VNC etc can only work on a running OS and, what 
is more, a running OS which has suitable apps. For bare-metal 
programming, OS development and to see what's happening in the boot 
process you need access to the real inputs and outputs.

James

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#9677

James Harris <james.harris.1@gmail.com> wrote:
> "rickman" <gnuarm@gmail.com> wrote in message 
> news:mthne9$pjl$1@dont-email.me...
>> On 9/18/2015 2:42 PM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
>
> ...
>
>>> Put that way, it sounds very like an RPi with USB keyboard+mouse + 
>>> HDMI
>>> monitor plus an Ethernet hub/switch connecting all the RPIs together.
>>>
>>> Use the one with keyboard etc to login to the other headless RPis.
>>
>> Exactly.  Unless there is some advantage to having a device on the pi 
>> that actually plugs into the HDMI/USB connectors to emulate the 
>> physical devices.
>
> Sure. Remote desktop or VNC etc can only work on a running OS and, what 
> is more, a running OS which has suitable apps. For bare-metal 
> programming, OS development and to see what's happening in the boot 
> process you need access to the real inputs and outputs.

Then throw out the Raspberries, get a decent Intel/AMD based server,
install VMware ESXi and you can do all the "bare metal programming",
OS development etc that you like and have access to consoles over the
network.

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