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Q&A Hardware for occasional direct control of personal server

Sorry if the title is weird, please feel free to suggest a rephrase. I have a personal server in my closet. I host various software on this for my family's use. The vast majority of the time I con...

2 answers  ·  posted 1y ago by matthewsnyder‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Journeymangeek ‭

#2: Post edited by user avatar matthewsnyder‭ · 2023-07-01T17:43:02Z (over 1 year ago)
  • Sorry if the title is weird, please feel free to suggest a rephrase.
  • I have a personal server in my closet. I host various software on this for my family's use. The vast majority of the time I control it with SSH.
  • There are occasional times when SSH is not possible. For example, when the server is booting up (for security reasons, I set it up so that a manual password must be entered), the network is malfunctioning, or the system is so impaired that SSH server is broken (can happen when you accidentally fill your hard drive 100% or a buggy update).
  • Currently, I keep a keyboard and monitor in the same closet, that I connect to the server when I cannot use SSH. This is a bit annoying, because the monitor is bulky, there's a long delay when you first connect, the cables end up in a tangle, etc.
  • I've looked around and it sounds like the techs at data centers carry around a console that they connect to servers as needed. These seem like a laptop but without a computer inside, so just a screen/keyboard combo. However, these seem horrendously expensive ($400+ a few years ago) and I have no idea if they require a special enterprise server to work. My server is simply a regular desktop PC that I run headless.
  • What is a practical way for occasionally managing a personal server, when remote control like SSH is not available?
  • Sorry if the title is weird, please feel free to suggest a rephrase.
  • I have a personal server in my closet. I host various software on this for my family's use. The vast majority of the time I control it with SSH.
  • There are occasional times when SSH is not possible. For example, when the server is booting up (for security reasons, I set it up so that a manual password must be entered), the network is malfunctioning, or the system is so impaired that SSH server is broken (can happen when you accidentally fill your hard drive 100% or a buggy update).
  • Currently, I keep a keyboard and monitor in the same closet, that I connect to the server when I cannot use SSH. This is a bit annoying, because the monitor is bulky, there's a long delay when you first connect, the cables end up in a tangle, etc.
  • I've looked around and it sounds like the techs at data centers carry around a console that they connect to servers as needed. I've never worked such a job and don't know anyone who has, so it's all a mystery to me. The consoles seem like a laptop but without a computer inside, so just a screen/keyboard combo. However, these seem horrendously expensive ($400+ a few years ago) and I have no idea if they require a special enterprise server to work. My server is simply a regular desktop PC that I run headless. I've never worked such a job and don't know anyone who has, so it's all a mystery to me.
  • What is a practical way for occasionally managing a personal server, when remote control like SSH is not available?
#1: Initial revision by user avatar matthewsnyder‭ · 2023-07-01T17:42:09Z (over 1 year ago)
Hardware for occasional direct control of personal server
Sorry if the title is weird, please feel free to suggest a rephrase.

I have a personal server in my closet. I host various software on this for my family's use. The vast majority of the time I control it with SSH.

There are occasional times when SSH is not possible. For example, when the server is booting up (for security reasons, I set it up so that a manual password must be entered), the network is malfunctioning, or the system is so impaired that SSH server is broken (can happen when you accidentally fill your hard drive 100% or a buggy update).

Currently, I keep a keyboard and monitor in the same closet, that I connect to the server when I cannot use SSH. This is a bit annoying, because the monitor is bulky, there's a long delay when you first connect, the cables end up in a tangle, etc.

I've looked around and it sounds like the techs at data centers carry around a console that they connect to servers as needed. These seem like a laptop but without a computer inside, so just a screen/keyboard combo. However, these seem horrendously expensive ($400+ a few years ago) and I have no idea if they require a special enterprise server to work. My server is simply a regular desktop PC that I run headless.

What is a practical way for occasionally managing a personal server, when remote control like SSH is not available?