Selfhosted

Ah my bad! Had originally added it but it got overwritte by the image url - whops! Added it now.

Source code: https://github.com/jetkvm/kvm

you could at least

Note: here “it would be nice if” is more polite, since the least one could have done is always

Yeah, a bit suspicious.

KVM also allows access if the machine isn't booted up, so like mounting remote recovery images, re-installing an OS, and changing BIOS settings and that kind of thing.

@Lemjukes @Sunny It's a KVM that you access over IP. It's physically plugged into a machine's HDMI and USB ports so, unlike software solutions, it can be used to access the BIOS/UEFI and system functions prior to hitting the desktop (like login managers and recovery consoles), and allows you to boot other operating systems and the like. It can also act as a PXE host for loading disk images, issue Wake On LAN to its connected machine, and likely a bunch of other convenience functions.

If I understand correctly, it's kinda like an add-on IPMI, in the sense that it doesn't rely on the target computer's OS to be running to work.

As for food functionality it is very comparable to software remote control of a computer. There are 3 key features that stand out:

• It does not rely on the target machine being booted into the OS. This means you can access it even if it crashes or locks up.
• It can "push" the power button on the machine. This requires an accessory that plugs into the motherboard. So you can force a machine off or cold boot a system.
• You can mount a boot ISO. This is like having a bootable flash drive in the target machine so you can install an OS remotely.

Edit: Because this is essentially full access to the machine as if you where physically at it, it should be considered a security risk. Not saying that you need to be scared of it, but you should be aware of the risk and protect it from unauthorized access.

ELI5:

It lets you remotely control a computer.

It's different (arguably better) than remote connection software because it is a separate device that basically just forwards your keyboard & mouse inputs. This means that you can control the remote device even if it's powered off or not able to boot properly, and you can configure the BIOS remotely too.

You could call someone on-site to connect the KVM to a server, but KVMs, while expensive by regular person standards, are pretty cheap as enterprise hardware goes. So some organizations just keep separate KVMs plugged into all critical hardware all the time.

Worth noting here that KVMs are potentially a quite high security risk.

Their website is probably light on details because "KVM" is fairly common industry parlance. If you normally work with this stuff then just hearing those 3 letters tells you most of what you need to know.

Edit: high, not Hugh

ELI5

Remote KVM lets you access the machine as if you’re in front of it, including pre-boot / BIOS / BSoD’s / Etc (when software isn’t / can’t run) because the device (usually) connects to the computer’s USB/VGA port.

I have a similar project called PiKVM. I can remotely turn on my computer from a full shutdown, navigate the BIOS to select an OS, and log in, after which I typically switch to a software-based Remote Desktop which is more performant. But you can’t power on a computer and navigate a BIOS with a software solution.

For me, they're also useful because a lot of my jobs don't allow remote software to be installed on laptops, so I use something like this to be able to remote in still.

https://github.com/jetkvm/kvm/blob/main/LICENSE

Unless it doesn't boot.

It’s for one , but you can use a normal kvm that supports switching with the keyboard

What is an "actual target hardware platform"?

I don't exactly know what you mean but here is the OS and CPU they use.

• Operating System: Linux 5.10 with Buildroot

• CPU: RockChip RV1106G3, Cortex A7 1.0GHz, H264 & H265 hardware encoder

Are you looking for the reference manual?

They're making a KVM targeted at data centers that doesn't support VGA?