JetKVM: Tiny IP KVM That's Not an Apple Watch

I just got a PiKVM4 Mini which is like this device but already 100% open source (GPLv3) and not a Kickstarter (available in PiShop, etc.) I had a great experience unboxing it and setting it up. Was able to remotely KVM over to to my target device in just a few minutes of setup. It does cost about $275 USD though.

Works well with Tailscale, too.

https://docs.pikvm.org/tailscale/

My use case is to be able to provide a password upon boot to an Apple pre-boot environment with no network access which does the unlock of my fully encrypted disk (via FileVault). Once the full OS boots up I can use other remote access software like ssh. I also recommend coupling the device with a remote smart plug (e.g. Kasa/TP-Link) so you can turn the KVM on remotely only when you need it, or at least turn it off when you're physically at the computer in question (if ever). This way you don't always have an HDMI virtual monitor connected. Another tip is to put your main display/monitor on a smart plug so you can turn it off when remoting, to make sure the OS uses the KVM's HDMI port as the primary/sole monitor.

I bought a TinyPilot Voyager 2a[0] last year and it's been a pleasure to work with. Got Tailscale going so I get easy access anywhere without any firewall hole-punching, and latency is good. Attached a 256GB micro USB for holding various ISOs for installing OS. I have the PoE model so no power adapter needed. Very handy.

The only negative for me is, the creator sold the business[1] and so the future is uncertain at this point.

[0]: https://tinypilotkvm.com/product/tinypilot-voyager2a

[1]: https://mtlynch.io/i-sold-tinypilot/

I tried deploying PiKVM on a research vessel so I’d have remote access via Starlink to some systems I was administrating. I didn’t have a seamless experience, falling into a rabbit hole of framebuffer kernel bugs and troubleshooting STUN over Tailscale. I was also surprised by the price tag. At $70 the JetKVM is less than 20% the cost—incredible if it works.

I know it's a bigger ask but would be nice to see some kind of kvm that can switch between controlling 3-5 different systems.

ATX power control feels semi mandatory if you actually want remote operation. There's just too much chance of something not going right with reboots or after a power failure not coming back online. That kind of would be ideal to have remote control itself.

I guess an obvious question is, what does this KVM do better than, say, a raspberry pi KVM? It seems cool, though!

At the bottom of the post:

> And the NanoKVM also still exists, with it's own upsides and downsides. I covered the NanoKVM just a few weeks ago <https://www.jeffgeerling.com/blog/2024/sipeed-nanokvm-risc-v...>

which is GPLv3 https://github.com/sipeed/NanoKVM#opensource--contribution--...

I don't have a horse in this race aside from a network connected device that has essentially "keylogger access" to devices should for sure be as open as possible

I don't like having to position my Raspberry Pi near my router just for an Ethernet connection. I recently started using a USB 3 Cytrence Kiwi KVM. It’s not an IP KVM, but it handles my Raspberry Pi and NUC beautifully. It's really nice to finally free up some desk space by getting rid of the extra keyboard and mouse

I am hopeful for a secure and reliable seL4-based firmware for KVM devices such as this one.