Cheap KVM Over IP?

An anonymous reader asks: "I've been looking for a cost effective (ie, cheap) way to remotely administer several servers running a variety of OS's, and would like to have a solution that would allow for monitoring of the bios on startup, etc (ie, not VNC). The most appealing solution is KVM over IP, which really just means a souped up KVM switch with something like VNC running on it, unfortunately all of the solutions I've been able to find are more expensive than I can justify spending. I've played around a bit with making my own Poor man's KVM over IP; I did this by purchasing a cheap (sub $50) VGA-to-NTSC convertor, then feeding it into a video card with NTSC input (the ATI All-In-Wonder Radion), and then by logging into a machine running Windows Terminal Services I'm able to watch the reboot process. Of course, this doesn't address the mouse/keyboard issue, and the quality isn't all that great. What I'm hoping is that someone else might have a suggestion on how to do this, preferably using Linux and the least hardware necessary. Does anyone have any suggestions or insights on ways to do this?" There are pre-existing solutions, but it seems they are all kind of pricey. Can any of you suggest cheap solutions (at or below $500USD) that could handle a farm of 5-10 machines?

"Here are the three approaches I found:

ViewProxy: They make the most economical for administration of multiple machines (by one person). Their ProxyView device plugs into your KVM just like it was a monitor/mouse/keyboard, and then does all the packetizing magic. Price is about $6k from what I can tell.

eRIC: These are the same guys who make the Rolf (Reboot on Lan), which is pretty cool. They make a card called Eric which replaces your normal video card with their card, which has a built in ethernet connection and allows remote control. The cheapest solution at about $700 but only would allow control of the machine it's installed in.

Avocent: I think the first to introduce the whole KVM over IP solution, they have KVM's with this sort of functionality integrated. Some of their products allow multiple users to multiple machine, which is a neat feature but not needed for my applications. Their units run from $4k on up."

RealWeasel

[travisd]

http://www.realweasel.com/intro.html

Serial Console (BIOS Redirection)

[Precision]

Many newer motherboards support BIOS redirection over the serial port. All of my systems (intel 440gx) supports this. It allows full remote BIOS configuration, etc. Used in conjuction with linux's serial console and sysrq over serial I find the solution works quite well.

try cyberguys

[option8]

this link (which slashdot will probably munge: http://cyberguys.com/cgi-bin/sgin0101.exe?UID=2002 080514403159&GEN6=00&GEN9=5CG01&FNM=00&T1=104+1150 &UREQA=1&UREQB=2&UREQC=3&UREQD=4

or else try product # 104 1150 on http://www.cyberguys.com

it's a KVM "extender" that works over cat 5 for 500 feet. i don't know who makes it, but the cyberguys catalog had it. this plus a KVM switch on each end of your setup might be enable you to do what you want...

Raritan

[Kraegar]

Raritan [raritan.com] has some nice CAT5 based KVM solutions, that work terribly well in scaling between small and large environments. However I think the price may be a bit higher then you were hoping.

Hey, why not?

[delta407]

This probably isn't exactly what you were looking for, but I would consider and maybe request an eval of VMware GSX Server [vmware.com] or maybe even ESX Server [vmware.com]. Both let you monitor the virtual machine over IP -- in fact, there's even a web-based administration interface. And, of course, you can watch BSODs as they happen, hit the reset button using your toolbar, and go into the BIOS setup utility remotely.

Neither is cheap (GSX is the cheaper of the two and runs $3500, $1600 academic [creationengine.com]) but if you can consolidate your boxes into one big box it might be worth it. After all, it's always good to centralize your points of failure, right?

Big thumbs up for VMware.

Simple answer...

[Tet]

...is don't use PC hardware. I have a farm of Suns at a remote hosting site. Because they're Real Computers(tm), they're designed with remote admin in mind. Which means you get a full serial console access, so you can mess around with the PROM (the equivalent of a BIOS), and I can even remotely power them on and off, all via a serial port. A few PC makers are starting to get the idea, but not a single one comes close to Sun (or other non PC hardware like Alphas or Power boxen). Dell and Compaq both offer remote access options, but they're a) expensive, b) require drivers, and hence are geared towards Windows, and c) typically take up the only available PCI slot on a 1U server. With a Netra T1, for example, it just works straight out of the box, no extra purchase needed, all you need to access it is an ANSI terminal emulator, and your precious PCI slot is still free for that extra SCSI card / quad ethernet / whatever.

But given that non-PC hardware is probably not an option for you, then consider something like the RealWeasel, although I've heard mixed reports about it from those that have tried it. The online demo looks like it should at least be usable, though.

Re:PC Weasel

[Scrybe]

This looks like a cool product but would work IF and ONLY IF you only need a console. no mouse, no GUI, no XMMS :`( From the post I am guessing that he needs a mouse and a GUI (XMMS or Winamp optional).

One comprimise might be to use the small slender rodent adapter to capture your post and then use a VNC server for daily operation but that sound almost as kludgey as what he is using now.

Hopefully someone will come up with a smaller/cheaper process for IP KVM's and/or economies of scale will kick in and the price on these units will come down.

One final thought that could be very dangerous, what is the possibility of hacking the BIOS on the motherboard to dump the post out the serial or ethernet ports, heck if there is enough free code space you might even be able to configure through the serial. (note IANAEE and IANACS)

Good luck!

Here is a per server solution that is cheap.

[meyeaard]

Another poster pointed me in this direction....

1. Get a weasle card for each server you have.
2. Get a Clysdale terminal server, or plug the serial into a Linux box and ssh to that system and use minicom....

This may or may not work for windows. Windows won't let you use the weasle as primary video, but if you can add an AGP card to the system for windows and the weasle card for BIOS.... Make sure winblows gets the primary display setup for the AGP card....

This is pure conjecture and you are responsible for any purchases and headaches caused by the preceeding!

What on earth are you talking about?

[los furtive]

We use VNC here at work over 10/100 at those specs with no issue whatsoever. Hell, I use IBM's Desktop on Call over a 56k Connection without any fuss. Your issue is a non-issue.

MegaRAC-G2

[unclei]

Disclaimer: I work for AMI on the MegaRAC-G2

That said, the MegaRAC-G2 sounds similar to what you want. It's not really a KVM switch (although you might see one from us in the future), but it is a great remote access card. It does very fast video redirection (10-15 fps) of the server's native display - which means it works on the console, in bios, in X, Windows, whatever. It redirects the client's keyboard/mouse activity, and even cdrom and floppy drives if you want.

It does a lot of other cool stuff too, check out the website: http://www.ami.com/megarac/

Oh yeah, and the card runs linux, and requires no drivers on the server. :)

Compaq Remote Insight

[Kenja]

I just picked up a few Compaq Remote Insight boards on ebay for about nine dollars each. Seems to be a good system as it allows remote power on and access even after a power outage thanks ot a battary backup.

Re:Cheap Terminal Server

[travisd]

Did this: Bought a Cyclades 8-port serial board and stuffed it into a P133. Load $FreeOS and $Term_Program and go at it. Keep in mind that consoled-devices that don't deal well with a serial BREAK may not like it if/when you reboot the console server box. There are usually hardware or software ways around this.

Re:PC Weasel

[laserjet]

Why would you need anything more than a console? After the machine is booted up beyond the BIOS/etc, you can use the features of X or VNC to do whatever you want with a GUI. There is no need for it.

Re:Sorta OT

[DJHeini]

If you only have 2 PCs, I like my Linksys KVM - less than $60 at buy.com including cables, and I can have it buried behind my desk (double-tapping CTRL switches inputs). Only bummer is that it only has PS2 inputs, but I have no problem running my Logitech cordless kb and Intellimouse optical through USB>PS2 adapters. Linksys KVM Kit [buy.com]

Dell DRAC cards can do this

[Stonent1]

Dell sells these cards with some of their servers. They will allow you to do pretty much what you have said. I don't know if they require any special connections but you could look into it.

"The Dell Remote Assistant Card is part of Dell's Open Manage program. DRAC offers "dead" server manageability via network or modem/remote access. This card allows you to access, diagnose and remotely manage your server regardless of its state."

Re:try cyberguys

[ahaning]

Come on, you've been here long enough that you should by now know how to make a link. If you think people might be afraid of what it is, post the text for the foil-heads and a real link for convenience.

CONSOLE EXTENDER CE-220 [cyberguys.com]

Re:Raritan

[NetJunkie]

I just ordered this set up for work. Very nice, but yes, it's pricey. It uses CAT5 but not IP. We're switching to get rid of the clutter of those fat KVM cables that other boxes use.

If you want connectivity over IP you can add the TeleReach option to the Paragon box (the one mentioned above).

RealWeasel and Other Issues

[SEWilco]

Yes, the RealWeasel provides a serial MGA/VGA text interface. It also translates serial input to keyboard code conversion. It solves most of the problems, just needs serial-to-TCP/IP to meet the IP requirement.

• Serial Console (including reset and boot BIOS access)
  • RealWeasel (or similar if there is one) for console in each machine. Needed on machines whose BIOS or OS does not support a serial console.
  • Without RealWeasel, you could use a serial-to-keyboard adapter for remote ASCII console input. Console output becomes a separate problem. (I see a Keyat unit also allows several adapters on a single RS-485 interface, so a single RS-485 link could service several servers)
  • For Linux use, see the Remote Serial Console HOWTO [tldp.org]..but no method to reset.
  • Terminal server, to convert all those serial ports to TCP/IP; IP support was specified. (Linux Serial Console HOWTO above has terminal server info also)
  • Mouse support: Another serial port, with servers configured for serial mice. On management workstation, install a serial mouse specifically for remote use.
  • Make a program for your management station which lets you select a remote console. The program pops up an appropriate terminal window (unless it already is running) and connects the serial mouse to remote's serial mouse input port.
• Reset/power control.
  • RealWeasel offers reset control.
  • Reset could be wired to relays, which would require relays controlled through TCP/IP (could b done through terminal server serial or parallel ports).
  • Web cam and robot arm. Details left as an exercise for the reader.
• Graphical console remote access
  • X11 Windows System: The usual X11 network access.
  • MS-Windows: Choose favorite remote console solution.
  • VNC: Question asker specified not to use it.
  • Remote Control Review: Review of several remote control packages. [nwfusion.com]
• As IP is being used, all this can be run through Ethernet or serial PPP links. Or USB, with serial ports for console/mouse and USB-Ethernet for X11 through USB network (Is there an Ethernet-to-USB_Host device, so a USB-through-Ethernet device driver could talk to a remote USB network?)
• Encryption to protect console data: Have to encrypt the terminal server's link. X11 could run through an SSH tunnel.

See my Linux Journal article on the subject

[defile]

I know it's not exactly what the poster asked for, but I was in the same boat about 6 months ago and you can at least step through my thought processes.

Article linked here [linuxjournal.com].

Re:Pretty simple setup... not so $$$

[AngusSF]

Sure it will.

OmniView(TM) ENTERPRISE Series Remote IP Console

Belkin Part Number: F1DE101N

The Belkin Enterprise Series Remote IP Console (the Console) allows users to control, view, and administrate a server or multiple servers connected to a KVM switch remotely over a TCP/IP network. The Console enables the administrator to access the information stored on the servers, as well as to reset the hardware, access BIOS, and reset power. Unlike other KVM-over-IP solutions, the Console works with all PS/2-based servers and does not require additional software to support multiple operating systems. The Console uses the banking industry's 128-bit SSL encryption to prevent unauthorized personnel from accessing the server. Offering the easiest installation and setup in the industry, the Console monitors server activities and notifies administrators if and when problems arise. Its advanced capabilities far surpass current methods of remote server administration.

The Belkin Advantage:

• Remote control of a server or KVM switch over a TCP/IP network
• VGA Video Emulation (even with power off)
• Remote power on/off or server-reset capability
• Standard web browser remote viewing
• Support for VNC (Virtual Network Computing) remote display
• 128-bit SSL encryption with three security levels and three security modes: Relaxed, Stealth, and Turtle
• Support for up to 10 users

Features:

• Serial port monitoring and switching capability for serial devices
• Flash-Upgradeability
• PS/2 keyboard and mouse support
• One local port for direct KVM access to your server
• Automatic server monitoring and notification

This is $3100 or so from Provantage; add a KVM at the server end and you're flying.

See also http://www.kvmswitchoverip.com/ [kvmswitchoverip.com] and http://www.kvm-switches-online.com/remote-access-s ervers.html [kvm-switches-online.com] for other solutions. I think these guys both have Raritans which haven't been mentioned yet.

Nothing low-end, though, you'll have to roll your own with a PC Weasel [realweasel.com] ($250-$250/server) and a remote machine you can SSL to and then use as a serial terminal for the PC Weasels. You'd need a multi-port COM card for the SSL box as well, and you'll have to disable any onboard video to let the weasel control the servers.

Re:RealWeasel

[Anonymous Coward]

We use the weasel at work on 100+ linux servers and roboman ER for the windows boxes. Everything is connected through a console server that connects the serial ports to the lan. It works pretty well, excpet that the console server (baytech device) needs special cables to work.