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I'm the founder of TinyPilot, a project that operates in the same space. I haven't really been following BliKVM, but some alarm bells are going off as I follow
by mtlynch 4y ago
I'm the founder of TinyPilot, a project that operates in the same space.
I haven't really been following BliKVM, but some alarm bells are going off as I follow the links here:
1. BliKVM advertises themselves as open hardware, but the hardware repo[0] contains no sources / schematics that would allow anyone to reproduce the hardware.
2. When I looked for the hardware sources, I realized that BliKVM is redistributing TinyPilot code in violation of TinyPilot's license. [1], [2] We're licensed under MIT, so BliKVM is allowed to redistribute and modify freely, but they have to preserve our license and copyright notice.
If BliKVM actually is open hardware, that would be wonderful, and I'd be interested in collaborating with them, but it doesn't seem like honest advertising at this point.
[0] https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board
[1] https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/blob/master/src/blikvm.sh https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/blob/master/src... vs. TinyPilot's code: https://github.com/tiny-pilot/tinypilot/blob/609b36faf2352cb0922111b2fc9f13bd73824855/quick-install https://github.com/tiny-pilot/tinypilot/blob/609b36faf2352cb...
[2] https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/blikvm/blob/master/package/kvmd-hid/enable-gadget.sh https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/blikvm/blob/master/package/... vs. TinyPilot's code: https://github.com/tiny-pilot/ansible-role-tinypilot/blob/master/files/init-usb-gadget https://github.com/tiny-pilot/ansible-role-tinypilot/blob/ma...
- ddalex 4y agoThank you for putting TinyPilot together - it saved my ass a couple of times; but the big problem is that the USB port of the host computer doesn't provide enough current to reliably power the Pi through the USB-C, so an out-of-box Pi is not really reliable.
- mtlynch 4y agoGlad to hear it! Regarding power, you can get a USB-C splitter[0], which will allow you to give your Pi the full 3 Amps. The TinyPilot Voyager 2 has this built-in, and the PoE one makes it so you don't need AC power at all. [0] https://tinypilotkvm.com/blog/build-a-kvm-over-ip-under-100#the-power-problem https://tinypilotkvm.com/blog/build-a-kvm-over-ip-under-100#...
- ddalex 4y agoI'm not familiar with the electric specs of the USB connection, but couldn't the reverse current flow through the _data lines_ through the splitter ? If the ground lines of the computer and splitter drift apart because they are no longer connected, wouldn't the data lines be subject to a large potential difference ?
- geerlingguy 4y agoHuh... I didn't even notice that in the source code. Definitely off-putting. These boards do boot off PiKVM directly, so their prebuilt images aren't even necessary. They do have open issues on that git repo, I would suggest opening an issue and asking them to either remove the code or make it fit the license (preserving any of the statements as required by MIT).
- mtlynch 4y agoThanks, Jeff! I opened some issues: https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/issues/38 https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/issues/38 https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/issues/39 https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/pikvm-board/issues/39 https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/blikvm/issues/3 https://github.com/ThomasVon2021/blikvm/issues/3
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- Melatonic 4y agoInteresting. I was actually thinking about doing something very similar with a few higher spec Chromeboxes inside my existing desktop - my plan was to have them completely separate from the main PC and then use the existing / unused space and slots of my case. I have room for a lot of drives and was basically gonna try to do a little double hyperconverged system.