Remotely access any system with a PiKVM and Tailscale

KVM-over-IP software (short for “keyboard, video, and mouse”) enables remote management of computers regardless of OS. With an IP KVM in place, you can jump right into the BIOS or reinstall an OS, and do all of this right from a web browser.

But if you’ve ever priced out a commercial IP KVM solution you’ll know that they can be prohibitively expensive. That’s one of the reasons we’re so excited about PiKVM, free and open source KVM software designed to run on a Raspberry Pi. The price of entry is orders of magnitude less; a fully DIY solution can be assembled for under $100 USD.

But what happens when you want to access your remote control software from far away? That’s where Tailscale comes in.

In today’s video, I walk you through the basics of the PiKVM software, how to install Tailscale on it, and also as an added bonus show you how to configure an 8 port HDMI KVM switcher to control up to 8 physical servers from only one PiKVM device.

Based around the Raspberry Pi 4, PiKVM can handle up to 1920x1200@60hz video signals with ease. It supports remote keyboard and mouse functionality with copy and paste, and can even simulate the ATX power controls of a remote physical button press thanks to the GPIO pins on the Pi.