[HN Gopher] JetKVM - Control any computer remotely
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       JetKVM - Control any computer remotely
        
       Available for retail purchase: https://jetkvm.com/products
        
       Author : elashri
       Score  : 229 points
       Date   : 2025-10-27 16:44 UTC (6 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (jetkvm.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (jetkvm.com)
        
       | tmyrden wrote:
       | Has been for close to a week now! Mine is already through
       | Canadian customs after shipping from China. Purchased via Wisdpi.
       | 
       | I think they opened sales the same day that GL.iNet announced
       | their new cloud KVM.
        
       | nati0n wrote:
       | PiKVM seems to be the large competitor here and is completely
       | open source. If you're looking into KVM solutions, probably check
       | it out, but JetKVM is over 50% less, which is a huge argument in
       | favor of it.
       | 
       | https://pikvm.org
        
         | yapyap wrote:
         | JetKVM is over 50% less what?
        
           | gessha wrote:
           | Price.
        
           | holysoles wrote:
           | over 50% less the price, I see the JetKVM at $90 USD, but
           | PiKVMs range from $230+.
           | 
           | I found PiKVM useful as I already had the hardware laying
           | around, so setting one up didn't cost me anything, and its a
           | pretty good experience. If I were to buy new though, not sure
           | I'd find it worth the cost for my use case.
        
         | newsclues wrote:
         | Tiny pilot is also an option
        
           | mliezun wrote:
           | Was gonna say the same thing, here: https://tinypilotkvm.com/
        
             | pythonaut_16 wrote:
             | Is it really $400 per host?
             | 
             | Why would one pick a TinyPilot over NanoKVM or JetKVM?
        
         | tripdout wrote:
         | What justifies the V4 Plus being worth $350? They're using the
         | CM4 so they've made a PCB, but what hardware are they adding
         | over the peripherals available on a Pi 4/5? All I can tell is
         | an additional Ethernet port, a SIM card tray, and an "ATX
         | controller".
         | 
         | What does the board look like, why can't I DIY that version,
         | etc. Are they just trying to make it up with the software (that
         | I also can't tell what it looks like).
        
           | nerdsniper wrote:
           | It's not really worth that much. You absolutely could DIY it,
           | probably just kludge in a basic $30 HDMI capture card. Also
           | JetKVM is now just as "open-source" as PiKVM is, so there's
           | not even a moral high ground to spending extra. Both are
           | open-source software but not open-source firmware or hardware
           | (no schematics or gerbers or anything like that available).
        
         | choilive wrote:
         | I can buy 3 or 4 x JetKVMs for 1 PiKVM, pretty hard to justify
         | going for PiKVM unless there is a PiKVM feature you need
        
         | NelsonMinar wrote:
         | The JetKVM is very impressive looking at a great price. Until
         | recently it wasn't really available in the US but it looks like
         | it is now/
         | 
         | The V4 Mini is a very nice piece of hardware. I paid $300 for
         | one in April from Amazon. I also got PiKVM running on a Pi Zero
         | 2 W and it worked fine but was a bit squirrely. Having the
         | purpose-built device is nice.
         | 
         | You can also use a Pi Zero 2 W as a serial console: it has a
         | USB On-the-Go port perfect for the purpose. But the KVM
         | approach is more generally useful since you can access a
         | consumer BIOS from it.
        
           | iamtedd wrote:
           | They recently opened a global store. Previously, the only way
           | to get one was to "buy" it on kickstarter, presumably from
           | the US as well as the rest of the world.
        
         | Aurornis wrote:
         | The JetKVM software is also open source:
         | https://github.com/jetkvm/kvm
        
       | breput wrote:
       | Just a FYI - many people[0] (including myself) have had serious
       | issues with JetKVM.
       | 
       | In my case, I found it is not compatible with all HDMI sources
       | but others just have unknown "Loading video stream..." issues.
       | 
       | [0] https://github.com/jetkvm/kvm/issues/84
        
         | ahepp wrote:
         | It's difficult for me to tell how many of the issues in that
         | thread are serious, because there also seem to be a surprising
         | number of people who come back to say "I solved it by enabling
         | h264 in my browser".
         | 
         | On the other hand there are people who say "I ordered three,
         | two work and one doesn't" which seems like pretty good evidence
         | there can be real issues with the hardware.
        
           | bradfitz wrote:
           | I ordered three and they all worked and then one died.
           | Fortunately they replaced it, though.
        
             | woleium wrote:
             | this doesn't seem ideal for a piece of hardware that may go
             | in a remote location.
        
           | _factor wrote:
           | Ordered 2, one was fine, other required a reflash to resolve
           | a black screen. Worked fine across a variety of SBCs and
           | desktops since.
           | 
           | Security is not top priority very obviously, but for a quick
           | kvm on a system without bmc, it's fine. Picks up DHCP quickly
           | and responsive web UI.
        
         | hk1337 wrote:
         | > people[0]
         | 
         | I read that as you were selecting the first record from the
         | people array
        
         | nerdsniper wrote:
         | I'm excited to take mine apart soon and figure out why this
         | might be happening for those people.
        
         | SmellTheGlove wrote:
         | I've been using the glinet comet kvm for my homelab and have no
         | complaints. Their cloud is optional and I don't use it. The
         | built in tailscale client does what I need it to. I use it with
         | their ATX power accessory to manage physical power on/off when
         | needed.
         | 
         | Given that these things have bare metal access, keeping them
         | off of the public internet seems wise no matter what though.
        
           | spockz wrote:
           | Keeping these kind of management devices off the Internet
           | seems prudent. But how do you do that and still get Tailscale
           | to work? Assign the device to a separate vlan that is
           | restricted to only talk to Tailscale? Otherwise, if the
           | device is on your regular network, it will still be connected
           | to the internet.
        
             | mcsniff wrote:
             | Use Tailscale subnet routing.
             | 
             | Untrusted devices can sit on a separate VLAN or get WAN
             | blocked, you can still reach them internally, and from any
             | other device on Tailscale. You just need to expose the
             | subnet via Tailscale subnet routing.
        
       | awill wrote:
       | From the specs it's very annoying this uses a mini-HDMI. There's
       | room for a full HDMI port, and it's such a waste. We all have
       | dozens of HDMI cables at home, but zero mini-HDMI.
        
         | mynameisvlad wrote:
         | Looking at the product itself, it looks like it barely squeezes
         | the mini-HDMI externally as is, let alone then PCB/internal
         | available space.
         | 
         | I don't think there is, in fact, room for a full HDMI port.
         | Mini HDMI is a compromise, and everyone knows it. It wouldn't
         | have been included if full size HDMI was feasible.
        
           | jonah wrote:
           | The formfactor is self-imposed though, they could have made
           | the device a few mm wider to accommodate a full HDMI port,
           | but then it wouldn't be nice and square. Form over function
           | maybe.
        
             | rtkwe wrote:
             | Mini-HDMI is fine for this use though and can just move
             | with the item so it's not like you need to buy many.
        
             | mynameisvlad wrote:
             | The form factor is based on the Apple Watch screen they
             | use, clearly.
        
       | amelius wrote:
       | I've been looking for something like this, but with a built in
       | LTE modem.
       | 
       | Also, where do you buy (IoT?) Sim cards cheaply, valid over
       | entire continents or worldwide?
        
         | gruez wrote:
         | get a esim adapter (ie. euicc in sim card format), find a plan
         | on https://esimdb.com/, load it onto the esim, and plug it into
         | your iot device.
        
         | spott wrote:
         | Looks like they are coming: https://www.gl-
         | inet.com/products/gl-rm10c4/?utm_source=websi...
        
       | candiddevmike wrote:
       | Why not combine the ATX board and the unit itself, and have a
       | real HDMI port? This seems like a mess of cables and dongles.
        
         | nullify88 wrote:
         | Something like the NanoKVM-PCIe? I have both JetKVM and
         | NanoKVM-PCIe, its nice to have options.
        
           | candiddevmike wrote:
           | Yea, just looked at this based on the recommendation in the
           | other comment, it's exactly what I was looking for. Hopefully
           | the software holds up/stays maintained...
        
             | nullify88 wrote:
             | I do think that JetKVM software is more polished, and has
             | more frequent updates. Stuff like streaming images over the
             | network is something that is handy.
             | 
             | Nano KVM commits have stagnated a bit, but the form factor
             | is really nice to have everything tucked away. I wish I
             | could run JetKVM on the Nano KVM.
        
         | rtkwe wrote:
         | The KVM can be plugged into any system not just those with a
         | spare PCI-e and you can move it around easier without having to
         | bring systems down if you don't need the direct power control
         | which is the main use case of the PCI-e board.
        
       | dmitrygr wrote:
       | I've been satisfied with NanoKVM lite. Cheap and does what i
       | want.
        
         | fotcorn wrote:
         | I have the PCIe version of NanoKVM, and I am also happy with
         | it.
         | 
         | The big advantage of the PCIe version is that it does not take
         | up space on the desk and all the cables for ATX power control
         | an inside the PC case.
         | 
         | Full-sized HDMI is nice, the only limitation here is 1080p
         | resolution. 1440p or higher would allow mirroring the output on
         | the main monitor to the NanoKVM, but this probably a weird use-
         | case anyway.
        
       | ahepp wrote:
       | I've been really happy with my JetKVM. The tariff situation is
       | unfortunate, my recollection is that it was something like $50
       | during the kickstarter (could be wrong, didn't check). Looking
       | around a bit, I'm not sure I see anything remotely as hackable at
       | a competitive price, so maybe $90 is still a great deal.
       | 
       | It would be awesome if they made a PoE version.
        
         | 542458 wrote:
         | > The tariff situation is unfortunate
         | 
         | I wish there was a way of ordering from a non-US source so I
         | didn't get hit. I'm not in the US, so it feels silly that I
         | have to pay the American import tariffs on Chinese goods!
        
           | nerdsniper wrote:
           | I believe the $90 is "mostly" without the tariffs - it
           | appears to be the updated post-Kickstarter price (which was
           | $70). The iKoolCore distributor says:
           | 
           | > US Tariff update: There are currently no additional
           | tariffs, but this may change after November 1st. We'll ship
           | your order promptly to help minimize the risk of tariffs,
           | though we can't guarantee none will apply.
           | 
           | I am in the USA and the unit I ordered from iKoolCore is
           | being shipped to me from China. I have no idea how much more
           | I might have to pay in tariffs once it arrives to customs, or
           | how I will even go about paying those tariffs.
        
       | gommm wrote:
       | I've been using it since I got it. It's been working great with
       | one small issue that I haven't been able to solve. For some
       | reason when I use plasma on Arch linux (but not ubuntu), the
       | display outputs garbage. I'm guessing it's not detecting the EDID
       | correctly and setting a weird resolution or refresh rate. It's
       | not a major issue since other desktop work well so I haven't
       | spent much time looking into it.
        
         | iamtedd wrote:
         | I get that too on a machine running Mint Cinnamon. It also
         | happens from the BIOS screen, so I don't think its a Linux
         | issue. A re-plug fixes it, but that's not great for a remote
         | access device.
        
       | directmusic wrote:
       | As others have said, a full size HDMI port would be nice.
       | However, I've been very satisfied with my JetKVM. I was about to
       | order the GL.iNet KVM they just launched, but I ended up picking
       | up another JetKVM now that sales are open.
       | 
       | My use-case is that I have it connected to an Raspberry Pi which
       | I use to test the RPi builds of my application. I just ordered a
       | second to connect to a mini-PC which is the minimum spec
       | supported by my application. It has made my testing experience
       | very smooth.
        
       | ape4 wrote:
       | I couldn't see if it could "press" the reset button.
        
         | spogbiper wrote:
         | there's this add on which allows it to do front panel/power
         | stuff
         | 
         | https://jetkvm.com/products/atx-extension-board
        
         | rtkwe wrote:
         | They made an add on board that you wire between your case
         | buttons and the header on your motherboard so you can than then
         | 'press' any of the buttons.
        
       | somanyphotons wrote:
       | I wish there was a KVM out there that didn't need HDMI, where it
       | sat on PCIe bus and presented a really dumb framebuffer/kb/mouse
       | to the BIOS/OS, but sent it out over the network
        
         | brokensegue wrote:
         | or that just connected over usb and acted as a usb display
         | adapter
        
           | spogbiper wrote:
           | afaik usb isn't an option for bios/preboot display. so only
           | useful if the thing is booting up OK enough to run a usb
           | display driver
        
             | wtallis wrote:
             | USB-C in DisplayPort Alt mode plus USB 2.0 signalling for
             | the keyboard and mouse inputs is starting to be a pretty
             | common option on consumer systems. Capturing that would
             | allow remote control of a PC including the BIOS using a
             | single cable (though a second cable would still be needed
             | for connecting to a desktop motherboard's header for power
             | and reset buttons).
             | 
             | I think there just aren't as many options for DisplayPort
             | capture chips as for HDMI/DVI capture.
        
         | nullify88 wrote:
         | Something like Intel AMT? Some prosumer motherboards like
         | ASRock Rack have out of band management controllers in them.
        
           | fotta wrote:
           | annoyingly, AMT still requires me to have a dummy HDMI dongle
           | plugged in to work
        
           | nerdsniper wrote:
           | Yes - but a bolt-on solution for nearly any motherboard with
           | an extra PCIe or NVMe slot.
        
             | mbreese wrote:
             | I've seen raspberry pi based kvms that do just this - draw
             | power from PCI to operate. Except they still usually
             | require a cable to HDMI/USB ports on the computer. I
             | suspect you'd like to have the whole thing to be on card
             | without cables.
             | 
             | Example: https://geekworm.com/collections/pikvm (but I
             | think this still requires separate power)
             | 
             | To do this, wouldn't you effectively need to make a
             | graphics card (VGA would work) where a separate chip could
             | read the screen buffer? And somehow get this card to
             | display preferentially over the on-board video card?
             | 
             | I'm sure the all in one card version exists, but honestly a
             | cabled version seems more robust (w/o vendor support that
             | is).
        
               | toast0 wrote:
               | > To do this, wouldn't you effectively need to make a
               | graphics card (VGA would work) where a separate chip
               | could read the screen buffer? And somehow get this card
               | to display preferentially over the on-board video card?
               | 
               | If you do basic VGA (and UEFI), that'd be plenty for
               | most. If it had a local output it'd be great for systems
               | without video on the cpu (am4 non-apus, but also others)
        
         | ohnoesjmr wrote:
         | Teradici is that, but too expensive for home users.
        
           | nerdsniper wrote:
           | It looks like I can find Teradici card for $50-200 (used to
           | new), which is in a similar range as the JetKVM. However,
           | according to the installation manual that I found [0], you
           | still need to plug in the DisplayPort connector on the
           | Teradici host card to the GPU output port(s).
           | 
           | 0: https://anyware.hp.com/web-
           | help/pcoip_remote_workstation_car...
        
         | nerdsniper wrote:
         | Yeah there are sort of some BMC/IPMI options like [0] but all
         | of the ones I've seen still require some kind of special
         | (generally proprietary) internal connector on the motherboard,
         | which might not be "HDMI" exactly, but still violates the
         | spirit of your requirements.
         | 
         | 0: https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/p/accessories-and-
         | software/thin...
        
         | downrightmike wrote:
         | Lights out kvm
        
         | tencentshill wrote:
         | That seems to be one of their products
         | 
         | https://jetkvm.com/products/atx-extension-board
        
           | dymk wrote:
           | That's not what that is
        
       | dang wrote:
       | Related:
       | 
       |  _JetKVM - Control any computer remotely_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42986909 - Feb 2025 (1
       | comment)
       | 
       |  _JetKVM Source_ - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42553822
       | - Dec 2024 (1 comment)
       | 
       |  _JetKVM - Next generation open-source KVM over IP for $69_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42313894 - Dec 2024 (2
       | comments)
       | 
       |  _JetKVM: Tiny IP KVM That 's Not an Apple Watch_ -
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41957056 - Oct 2024 (14
       | comments)
        
       | systems wrote:
       | I know this might sound naive but for those of us who had to
       | google
       | 
       | kvm here mean keyboard video and mouse, not the linux kernel-
       | based virtual machine kvm
       | 
       | this device apparently is used to connect to machines remotely
       | over IP
        
         | layer8 wrote:
         | People familiar with KVM switches have the reverse issue with
         | the Linux kernel thing. ;)
         | 
         | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45706866#45713054
        
           | RicoElectrico wrote:
           | Likewise with DRM.
        
             | bigbuppo wrote:
             | Digital Radio Mondiale?
        
             | technothrasher wrote:
             | Being a nerdy kid in the 80's, I can't see the acronym MCP
             | without thinking, "You're in trouble program. Why don't you
             | make it easy on yourself. Who's your user?"
        
               | btschaegg wrote:
               | Well that one at least has appreciable parallels :)
               | 
               | Letting an LLM loose on a real system without containing
               | it in a sandbox sounds about as predictably disastrous as
               | letting a glorified chess program run all ENCOM
               | operations...
        
               | CamperBob2 wrote:
               | And your mom who grew up in the 1960s might have yet
               | another interpretation in mind (
               | https://www.ebay.com/itm/305272862225 ). MCP is
               | definitely an overloaded acronym at this point.
        
               | technothrasher wrote:
               | Well, my mom was in her mid-twenties by the time that
               | phrase came into usage, but point still well taken.
        
         | rtkwe wrote:
         | The virtualization KVM is the new kid to the block. Back in the
         | day the best way to get multiple machines controlled was to
         | just have multiple machines sharing the same monitor, keyboard
         | and mouse.
        
         | deepsun wrote:
         | I thought that was RDS (remote desktop).
        
           | trenchpilgrim wrote:
           | RDP is over network, which doesn't work well if your need to
           | access a machine that doesn't have a working network stack
           | because you're troubleshooting a hardware failure, early boot
           | failure, OS provisioning, etc.
           | 
           | KVM can also be nicer than RDP for certain multi-box
           | workstation setups that need high bandwidth and low latency.
        
         | cleech wrote:
         | Classic TCP (TLA [Three Letter Acronym] Collision Problem)
        
         | dingdingdang wrote:
         | I'm mildly confused as to the value over, say RustDesk. The
         | latter allows remote control of external machines and has ip
         | hole punching .. no hardware involved! Any takes here?
        
           | zamadatix wrote:
           | RustDesk is an alternative to other remote desktop software,
           | JetKVM is an alternative to a built-in IPMI. It could be used
           | as a remote desktop in a pinch, but that's not really the
           | point.
        
       | lawrencegripper wrote:
       | Have 2 of these for my homelab with the power management
       | extension and they've been great, would recommend
        
       | chelmzy wrote:
       | Don't use these on your corporate devices or the infosec
       | department will think you are a DPRK remote worker.
        
       | jauntywundrkind wrote:
       | No out of the box TailScale but it's 'easy to add.'
       | 
       | WebRTC is neat. It looks like it relies on CloudFlare WebRTC
       | relay for STUN / TURN, but supposedly you can self-host the cloud
       | api. https://jetkvm.com/docs/networking/remote-access
       | 
       | I'd also point out the gl.inet Comet Pro, which has some nice to
       | haves like wifi 6, full sized HDMI ports, HDMI and USB pass
       | through. https://www.gl-inet.com/campaign/gl-rm10/
       | 
       | The PiKVM approach of having a whole computer you can also use
       | makes so much sense to me. Interesting seeing similar parallels
       | in NAS space, where Ugreen for example is running Debian on their
       | NAS.
        
         | Sean-Der wrote:
         | Hopefully you are in a network that allows P2P! Then STUN just
         | works and you can use any of the public servers (CloudFlare,
         | Google, Twilio...)
         | 
         | Running your own TURN server would be trivial also. I have been
         | tempted for a long time to make a 'TURN in a Box' that does
         | autoconfig so people can run it easily on Hetzner/AWS
        
       | dangerboysteve wrote:
       | I picked up one from the kickstarter campaign. It's a wonderful,
       | well-made device and open-source to boot. I plan to buy more.
        
       | nixosbestos wrote:
       | If Sipeed had any idea how to run a product or software, the
       | NanoKVM line would eat this alive.
       | 
       | Fortunately, Sipeed is like most other chinese manufacturers and
       | have no idea what they're doing. Did they partner with Manjaro
       | for that one? I don't think the Manjaro folks are even that
       | incompetent.
        
       | crims0n wrote:
       | Please forgive my ignorance, but what advantage does this have
       | over RDP/VNC?
        
         | dmd wrote:
         | RDP/VNC don't work when the computer is off. Or the computer's
         | network card is down.
        
         | pythonaut_16 wrote:
         | Operates at a hardware level, separate from the target machine
         | rather than software in the OS.
         | 
         | With RDP/VNC what do you do if the machine fails to boot? Or
         | RDP stops working for some reason and you can't SSH in?
         | 
         | Or for installing a headless OS on a new machine.
         | 
         | I'm sure there are more specific usecases as well but that's
         | what I mainly use remote KVM devices for at home.
        
         | mlapida wrote:
         | A few things: 1/ the system doesn't need to be connected to a
         | network, or can be on a private/secured network. 2/ You can
         | make changes to BIOS and other elements of the system that the
         | OS can't "see". 3/ If the system is sleeping or shutdown,
         | JetKVM can send a wake-on-LAN signal/magic packet.
         | 
         | I'd say for many use cases, it's not better than RDP/VNC, but
         | if you're looking access that is independent of the network and
         | state of the system, JetKVM can't be beat.
        
           | crims0n wrote:
           | Ah, this use case makes the most sense to me - thank you kind
           | stranger.
        
         | burnt-resistor wrote:
         | Add-on, almost lights-out remote management.
         | 
         | Without lights-out management, eventually physical access to
         | power cycle will be needed.
         | 
         | For systems people care about, they already have BMC
         | (Supermicro), iLO (HP), iDRAC (Dell) controllers.
         | 
         | Anything that can capture HDMI and spit it securely over a wire
         | without some cloud-dependency bullshit, present "virtual USB"
         | or input over the network, and close a RST circuit momentarily
         | would do the job. The problem is, in the name of consumerishism
         | and convenience, none of these home-gamer "solutions" have been
         | independently audited that I know of by any reputable firm. (A
         | competitor, NanoKVM, is known to be shady AF downloading
         | serialized binary crap. It talks to tailscale without user
         | permission, communication, or approval. Never use it for
         | anything.) Don't trust something simply because there's press
         | release or social media hype about it. I have to endure
         | constant Cloudflare CAPTCHAs because it's probable that a large
         | fraction of other customers on my ISP have pwned IoT (cameras,
         | doorbells, whizbang startup weather station, etc.) DDoSing and
         | hacking the rest of the world.
         | 
         | PSA: For the love of the sysadmin gods, please don't use
         | desktops as servers. ECC RAM, HA, duty cycle, lights out
         | management, and vendor support are completely different beasts
         | compared to retail gear.
         | 
         | For non-lights-out, host-based remote desktop that can be self-
         | hosted, RustDesk is able to work locally without relaying to
         | any clouds. And using WG (non-TS) for "VPN"/remote network
         | bridging, that's a pretty compelling option. I haven't yet
         | checked if it can work in an air-gapped environment but I think
         | it might work; but if it doesn't, that would be sad.
        
       | Greed wrote:
       | I might be missing something, but what does this do that an app
       | like AnyDesk doesn't? Is there something inherently better about
       | remoting in with dedicated hardware rather than using any of the
       | free and widely available software solutions? I can see where
       | this would make sense for low powered machines that can't easily
       | encode video at high speeds / low latency, but I struggle to see
       | the sense of this in a context where I actually want video output
       | (a powerful workstation) rather than just SSH.
        
         | woleium wrote:
         | it's useful to be able to get into the bios for remote support
         | situations of critical servers, I guess
        
         | cjm42 wrote:
         | I believe the primary use-case for devices like this is
         | debugging "Why isn't this server rebooting?" without driving to
         | the datacenter. Good luck figuring that out with AnyDesk or
         | SSH.
        
         | layer8 wrote:
         | It doesn't require the OS on the target hardware to be running,
         | and no other software can get in the way. It can also connect
         | via a separate network than the one the computer is on (if
         | any).
        
         | IvyMike wrote:
         | > what does this do that an app like AnyDesk doesn't
         | 
         | Work when the network config on that particular computer is
         | down/borked.
        
       | neilv wrote:
       | Provenance and trust are relevant for a remote KVM.
       | 
       | But I can't find any information on their Web site about who runs
       | the JetKVM company, not even a partial name or handle of anyone,
       | nor even what country they are in. Which seems odd for how much
       | this product needs to be trusted.
       | 
       | Searching elsewhere, other than the company Web site...
       | Crunchbase for JetKVM shows 2 people, who it says are based in
       | Berlin, and who also share a principal company, BuildJet, which
       | Crunchbase says is based in Estonia. The product reportedly ships
       | from Shenzhen. BuildJet apparently is a YC company, but
       | BuildJet's Web site has very similar lack of info identifying
       | anyone or their location, again despite the high level of trust
       | required for this product.
       | 
       | Are corporate customers who are putting these products into
       | positions of serious trust -- into their CI, and remote access to
       | inside their infrastructure -- doing any kind of vetting? When
       | the official Web sites have zero information about who this is,
       | are the customers getting the information some other way, before
       | purchasing and deploying?
       | 
       | If these people are still running the companies, why aren't they
       | or anyone else mentioned on the company Web sites? That would be
       | helpful first step for trust for corporate use. So its absence is
       | odd.
        
         | delusional wrote:
         | I don't think this is nearly at the stage of "corporate
         | customers putting into serious trust"
         | 
         | Buildjet (the parent company) looks to be a pretty small
         | company with currently modest revenue[1]. I agree that the
         | absence of people on both webpages is sort of odd. I think it
         | make more sense for their original service (CI workers) than it
         | does for a hardware product.
         | 
         | https://ariregister.rik.ee/eng/company/16075023/Buildjet-O%C...
        
         | trenchpilgrim wrote:
         | I think products like JetKVM are targeting hobbyists and small
         | outfits; corporations who aren't on a public cloud are using
         | stuff like idrac, ilo, or dedicated rackmount KVM hardware.
        
           | echo7394 wrote:
           | IDrac often demands that the PC connecting to it be on the
           | same network however, an rkvm like this let's you skip the
           | pc-in-the-middle step.
        
             | trenchpilgrim wrote:
             | Fine for one or two machines, but if you're dealing with a
             | rack or more, an extra machine for management tools is no
             | big deal.
        
           | neilv wrote:
           | True. Small outfits can be a pretty big category of companies
           | that don't have a fully locked-down enterprise security
           | environment with clout who can insist that everything like
           | that racked and put under their control.
           | 
           | Homelabbers tend to like rackmount. (I've owned multiple
           | servers with such dedicated remote management/access hardware
           | built in.)
           | 
           | JetKVM seems designed to be more a shadow IT at individual
           | desks solution, for use at companies that don't prohibit and
           | actively police that.
        
             | pseudalopex wrote:
             | Home lab is a subset of hobbyists. And many of them like
             | mini PCs.
        
           | mike_d wrote:
           | The target market does not alleviate any concerns. Consumer
           | grade hardware is used to build botnets and residential proxy
           | networks. The latter could be used to get into your employer
           | if they happen to have credentials and want to match your
           | home IP to avoid detection.
        
           | hsbauauvhabzb wrote:
           | Implying idrac, ilo and similar are somehow reputable?
        
             | otterley wrote:
             | There's no way to know for sure, since they are closed-
             | source and closed-hardware implementations. But they are
             | backed by billion-dollar companies that lawyers can squeeze
             | if they cause some sort of legally cognizable injury.
        
           | godelski wrote:
           | > targeting hobbyists and small outfits
           | 
           | Sounds like a great botnet!
           | 
           | I'm joking a bit but these are exactly the entities that have
           | fewer capabilities to detect malicious behavior.
           | 
           | Assuming JetKVM is operating in full good faith that doesn't
           | mean they themselves aren't going to be the target. You
           | compromise them and you compromise all their customers.
           | That's true regardless of the company size, but is also the
           | reason for transparency
        
         | Joel_Mckay wrote:
         | It does share similarity to a rebranded Sipeed NanoKVM model
         | already sold in China.
         | 
         | Would have to dump the flash with proper tooling, and load up a
         | clean OS on a blank chip to even begin checking for issues.
         | Mostly, these gadgets are purposely built like garbage for a
         | number of reasons.
         | 
         | If I needed a DIY KVM install for a home-theater, I'd just
         | setup a https://pikvm.org/ install. =)
         | 
         | https://github.com/pikvm/pikvm/
        
           | trenchpilgrim wrote:
           | For those prices I could buy an old PC to do out of band
           | management and have over half the money left over. The appeal
           | of JetKVM/NanoKVM is they're price competitive with an extra
           | PC for a tiny fraction of the physical and power footprint.
        
             | gcommer wrote:
             | For feature parity, the old PC will require USB OTG, HDMI
             | input, wiring for ATX control, and a software stack.
        
               | Joel_Mckay wrote:
               | Sipeed makes a PCIe KVM card for around $80 that drops
               | into standard PC cases.
               | 
               | I'd assume it runs off the 5v standby power when the
               | primary ATX supply is sleeping. =3
               | 
               | https://github.com/sipeed/NanoKVM?tab=readme-ov-file
        
             | Joel_Mckay wrote:
             | A pi4 is $35 + parts, and can do a PXE server as well...
             | but it is the OS/kernel upkeep that always hits proprietary
             | devices.
             | 
             | Small recycled PCs can certainly work too, and reminds me
             | of the https://guacamole.apache.org/ project. =3
        
         | XiS wrote:
         | This guy on YouTube made several videos reviewing these and
         | also doing some WireShark analysis, also on NanoKVM.
         | 
         | Personally I'd never use these on an interned facing network.
         | But they can still be handy for local only.
         | 
         | https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yHhdTRVvDFU&pp=0gcJCQYKAYcqIYz...
        
         | Y_Y wrote:
         | Estonia is (trying to be) the Delaware of the EU for companies.
         | They make it deliberately convenient for any Europeans to
         | incorporate there, so I wouldn't read much into that.
        
         | gcommer wrote:
         | This is why I recently went with a PiKVM. Pricier and clunkier
         | but much more open and transparent.
        
         | mfrye0 wrote:
         | If you do this sort of thing often, I'd love to chat further.
         | I'm basically trying to automate this sort of manual research
         | around companies with a library of deep research APIs.
         | 
         | Had a show HN last week that seemed to go under the radar:
         | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45671087
         | 
         | We launched corporate hierarchy research and working on UBO
         | now. From the corporate hierarchy standpoint, it looks like the
         | Delaware entity fully owns the Estonian entity. Auto generated
         | mermaid diagram from the deep research:                 graph
         | TD         e1[BuildJet, Inc.]-->|100%, 2022-12-16|e2[Buildjet
         | OU]
        
           | embedding-shape wrote:
           | If you want to feature a governance structure infamously hard
           | to get right and impressive to use as an demo, IKEA/Ingka
           | would be an good example.
        
       | RajT88 wrote:
       | This is cool. JetKVM seems really popular on my homelab groups,
       | but I use something similar called Aurga for my personal stuff.
       | 
       | I don't see anyone in this thread using Aurga. It's not as good
       | as RDP or physically being in front of the machine, but it's good
       | enough.
        
         | nickphx wrote:
         | I have an aurga. I've found their client software to be
         | lacking.
        
       | karteum wrote:
       | I have happily used nanokvm
       | (https://wiki.sipeed.com/hardware/en/kvm/NanoKVM_Pro/introduc...
       | ).
       | 
       | (N.b. unfortunately the ATX board cannot be ordered
       | independently, so be sure to order the "nanokvm-full" package)
        
       | karolist wrote:
       | I love this little thing. In case someone uses ESRack system,
       | here's the bracket I designed you can print
       | https://www.printables.com/model/1359418-esrack-module-jetkv...
        
       | GaryBluto wrote:
       | >Join our Discord
       | 
       | Nothing instils faith in a product like using a gaming chatroom
       | populated by tweens for communication.
        
       | nodesocket wrote:
       | I got tired of waiting for JetKVM availability in the US and
       | pulled the trigger on a GL.iNet Comet PoE. A bit more expensive
       | on Amazon ($110) but supports PoE which the JetKVM does not.
       | Honestly, it has worked great. I know the earlier Comet firmware
       | had some issues, but apparently they fixed it up and it has been
       | solid.
        
       | tamimio wrote:
       | The cringe thumbnails in the videos in the homepage and having
       | discord for communication is enough for me to NOT use it or try
       | it.
        
       | greenavocado wrote:
       | My company runs on GL.iNet Comet GL-RM1 KVMs to manage servers
       | deployed at remote customer sites and I'm about to deploy more
       | tomorrow
        
         | burnt-resistor wrote:
         | "GL Technologies (HK) Ltd & GL Intelligence, Inc & Shenzhen
         | GuangLianZhiTong Tech Co.Ltd"
         | 
         | Since there's no independent audit of these and no way to prove
         | that these aren't being intercepted, I wouldn't be bragging
         | about voluntarily installing potential infrastructure
         | vulnerabilities.
        
       | rat87 wrote:
       | Since people are saying this software doesn't have enough
       | time/known contributors for trust who would people recommend for
       | remote control of say a parents laptop for remote IT support.
       | Preferably $0 and open source but others as well
        
       | syntaxing wrote:
       | For what its worth, GL inet released something similar
       | https://www.gl-inet.com/campaign/gl-rm10/?utm_source=website...
        
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