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5.7 KiB

PiKVM v3 HAT

Installation requirements

??? note "If you have an assembly kit, you will need the following things" * Raspberry Pi 4 with 1Gb RAM or more. * MicroSD card (at least 16Gb, class 10 recommended). * USB-C to USB-A cable. * HDMI cable. * Straight Ethernet cable (for the ATX expansion board connection). * Power supply unit (5.1V 3A USB-C, recommended by the Raspberry Pi).

Basic setup

If you have a kit without a metal case, you can use our free 3D printing case drawing: v3.3{target=_blank} for the Kickstarter/Store model, v3.2{target=_blank} for the pre-release.

  1. Flash the memory card.{target=_blank}

  2. Build PiKVM according to the video instruction: : ??? tip "With the metal case" type:video : ??? tip "Device with or without the 3D-printed case" type:video

  3. Connect PiKVM to the computer according to the diagram below:

    Back side Front side
    • HDMI input and USB emulation port must be connected to the computer. ATX too, but it's optional, read below. There should be no USB hub between PiKVM and the computer, as some UEFI/BIOS cannot detect them at the boot stage.

    • Connect Ethernet to the network and USB Power to the Raspberry Pi power supply.

  4. Turn on the power supply.

  5. Carefully read the "First steps" guide{target=_blank} - how to find a device on the network, how to log in there, change passwords, and so on. Follow the steps described there and come back here.

  6. ??? note "If your kit includes the OLED display and/or the fan, you'll need to turn them on" Log in to PiKVM and run these commands:

    # rw
    # systemctl enable --now kvmd-oled
    # systemctl enable --now kvmd-fan
    # ro
    
  7. !!! danger "Just reminding again: CHANGE THE PASSWORDS! :)" How to do this was written in the "First steps" guide{target=_blank}

  8. Try to manage the computer using PiKVM with the Web Interface. Make sure that you see the image, and the keyboard and mouse are working. If something doesn't work, check out our FAQ (it's really useful). If nothing helped, you can get support in our Discord chat.

  9. ??? note "Check the HDMI backpowering problem" Try restarting PiKVM using the reboot command executed in the terminal. If PiKVM hangs during boot (you can't get the Web Interface for a long time), then you are faced with this rare problem. Don't worry, it's easy to fix. Turn off the PiKVM, disconnect all cables from it, take a close look at the diagram of its ports and jumpers, and remove jumper #14 (it is to the right of the CSI connector). Then you can connect and power up PiKVM again. Now everything will be fine.

  10. !!! warning "IO ports and other things" Before using GPIO pins to control a relay, KVM switch, or anything else, be sure to check the HAT pinout. Many ports are busy with internal functions. Before using them for your own use, you must disable them, otherwise you may damage the device.

ATX connection

======================== TODO =========================

IO ports and jumpers

??? note "See the diagram"

1. **ATX controller** interface (power on/off, reboot control, PWR and HDD ACT LEDs).
2. **HDMI reset** jumper.
3. **SPI and GPIO** for the custom extension boards.
4. **Audio capture** jumpers.
5. **UART access** pins.
6. **Serial console port** (for the Raspberry Pi or server console access).
7. **USB-C console port**.
8. **Power** and **activity LEDs**.
9. **USB-C power input**.
10. **I2C display connector**.
11. **Alternate +5V power input/output** header pins.
12. **RTC clock** supercapacitor (rechargeable).
13. **FAN connector** - PWM controlled.
14. **CSI-2 interface** and **HDMI backpowering** jumper.
15. Built-in **power splitter** port.
16. **HDMI capture port** (max 1080p @ 50Hz) with **sound capture** support.
17. **USB emulation pins** for alternative access.
18. **USB-C emulation port** - this port is doing the emulation of a USB keyboard, mouse, Virtual CD-ROM or USB Flash Drive, USB-Ethernet, USB-Serial port and a lot of other Linux-supported features.
19. **1-Wire** & **Neo-pixel** interface (under, advanced user feature).

================ PINOUT TODO ====================

??? note "ATX RJ-45 pinout" The pinout of the RJ-45 connector is the same on the AT and ATX adapter.

<img src="rj45.jpg" />

??? note "ATX LED wiring example"

Known issues and limitations

  • The actual frame rate of the image received via HDMI will depend on the network bandwidth, resolution and the load on the Raspberry Pi. This is usually ~20-24 FPS for 1080p over LAN.
  • There may be compatibility issues with some motherboards (such as HP or DELL) which are the same as those that exist with PiKVM v2. Not everything is perfect, but if you have already used PiKVM v2 - our new v3 will work perfectly and please you. If there is no image from the BIOS, you can fine-tune the HDMI settings, but it is possible that the Mass Storage devices will not be available in the BIOS.
  • Pre-release v3.2 board (NOT Kickstarter/Store edition) doesn't have HDMI backpowering workaround jumper.