For anyone using a Raspberry Pi 4, 400 or 5 with Pi OS Bookworm or later, you can use a nice remote control app. Bookworm is based on Debian 12, which is the current version at the time of this article.
We will cover the installation, setup and use of the Pi Connect software.
Installation
If you install an image of the Raspberry Pi OS, by using the ‘Pi Imager’ program, you can download and write the Operating System (OS) image to an SD card.
After writing the image, you can boot from the SD card and get the OS running.
The Pi Connect software should be present, by default, but not enabled to start automatically. We need to check all of this before we assume the installation has been done.
Whether Pi Connect is present, we need to update the OS to get everything to the current version that is available. Perform the following to update the Debian-based OS:
Now, you can run the command to install the Connect software from the repository if it is not present:
If the Connect software is on the system, then you will simply get the message that the software is up-to-date.
If the commands caused the software to be installed, then reboot the system for the service to start properly.
Once you start the service, there will be an icon in the system tray, as shown in Figure 1, showing that the service is present. It is grayed out, but if you left click on the icon, a drop-down menu appears. Here, you can select to ‘Turn on Raspberry Pi Connect’. The Internet Browser should open the page ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’.
FIGURE 1
Pi Connect Access
If you do not have a Raspberry Pi ID, you can create one. You can check if you have an account at ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’.
Once you have an account, you can left-click on the Pi Connect icon and select ‘Sign In’. Use the account credentials you set up. It should prompt you to name the device and then you can connect remotely to your Pi device.
After you start the service and you log into the service with an ID, then the icon changes to active as shown in Figure 2.
FIGURE 2
From a second system, whether a PC, Android, iOS or Linux Web Browser, go to the same address, ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’, and after logging in a web browser to your account, it will list your available devices that are connected to your ID, powered on and connected to the Internet. The browser should show the screen of the Pi device and you can remotely control the device from within the browser.
Command-Line Interface
If you want to use a terminal and not the GUI, then you can use the ‘rpi-connect’ command to set up the
To start, you need to start the service with the command:
When you no longer need to allow remote access, you can turn off the service with the ‘off’ parameter.
If sign out of the service, then you will need to sign in again. When issuing the sign in command, the prompt is a website, ‘connect.raspberrypi.com/verify/’, which you can right-click on and select ‘Visit URL’ (be aware that the address will contain other information than what I stated):
Of course, if you want to sign out, the command is:
If needed, we can restart the Connect Service with:
You can also reload screen sharing settings with:
You can manage the screen sharing aspect by turning off or on the ability to screen share. The alternative is a shell command line (terminal) instead of a Graphical User Interface (GUI). So turning the screen sharing ‘on’ or ‘off’, the commands are:
You could also remove shell access, or enable it, with:
When connecting from a web browser, as shown in Figure 3, when selecting the option ‘Connect via’, you have two options: Screen Sharing or Shell. If you disable either, then the option is grayed out with a strike-through line over the option.
FIGURE 3
To get the current version of the Connect software, you can look at the web browser, or use the command:
You can get information about the current service by issuing the command:
The results are:
The results may vary depending on the connections and whether you are signed in.
Most of these are obvious, but there is no definition for ‘Subscribed to events’. When you create a device under your sign in, the server gives the device access tokens from the Raspberry Pi Connect server. If you remove the tokens or they become invalid, then the subscription is now ‘no’.
The last parameter is ‘doctor’. This is a troubleshooting option that you can use when something isn’t working properly.
For instance, I changed the display server to Xorg and not Wayland. The ‘rpi-connect’ service did not work. When I ran the command ‘rpi-connect doctor’, I was informed that I needed to enable Wayland to get the service started. So keep in mind that you cannot use Xorg as your display server on the Pi device.
Conclusion
Using Pi Connect allows you to remote into your Pi devices from a web browser. Keep in mind that you can either connect using GUI or shell command.
Depending on your need, one should work for you. Of course, the speed will depend on your Internet bandwidth and how much bandwidth is available on either end of the connection.
We will cover the installation, setup and use of the Pi Connect software.
Installation
If you install an image of the Raspberry Pi OS, by using the ‘Pi Imager’ program, you can download and write the Operating System (OS) image to an SD card.
After writing the image, you can boot from the SD card and get the OS running.
The Pi Connect software should be present, by default, but not enabled to start automatically. We need to check all of this before we assume the installation has been done.
Whether Pi Connect is present, we need to update the OS to get everything to the current version that is available. Perform the following to update the Debian-based OS:
Code:
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -yNow, you can run the command to install the Connect software from the repository if it is not present:
Code:
sudo apt install rpi-connect -yIf the Connect software is on the system, then you will simply get the message that the software is up-to-date.
If the commands caused the software to be installed, then reboot the system for the service to start properly.
Once you start the service, there will be an icon in the system tray, as shown in Figure 1, showing that the service is present. It is grayed out, but if you left click on the icon, a drop-down menu appears. Here, you can select to ‘Turn on Raspberry Pi Connect’. The Internet Browser should open the page ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’.
FIGURE 1
Pi Connect Access
If you do not have a Raspberry Pi ID, you can create one. You can check if you have an account at ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’.
Once you have an account, you can left-click on the Pi Connect icon and select ‘Sign In’. Use the account credentials you set up. It should prompt you to name the device and then you can connect remotely to your Pi device.
After you start the service and you log into the service with an ID, then the icon changes to active as shown in Figure 2.
FIGURE 2
From a second system, whether a PC, Android, iOS or Linux Web Browser, go to the same address, ‘https://connect.raspberrypi.com/sign-in’, and after logging in a web browser to your account, it will list your available devices that are connected to your ID, powered on and connected to the Internet. The browser should show the screen of the Pi device and you can remotely control the device from within the browser.
Command-Line Interface
If you want to use a terminal and not the GUI, then you can use the ‘rpi-connect’ command to set up the
To start, you need to start the service with the command:
Code:
rpi-connect onWhen you no longer need to allow remote access, you can turn off the service with the ‘off’ parameter.
If sign out of the service, then you will need to sign in again. When issuing the sign in command, the prompt is a website, ‘connect.raspberrypi.com/verify/’, which you can right-click on and select ‘Visit URL’ (be aware that the address will contain other information than what I stated):
Code:
rpi-connect signinOf course, if you want to sign out, the command is:
Code:
rpi-connect signoutIf needed, we can restart the Connect Service with:
Code:
rpi-connect restartYou can also reload screen sharing settings with:
Code:
rpi-connect reloadYou can manage the screen sharing aspect by turning off or on the ability to screen share. The alternative is a shell command line (terminal) instead of a Graphical User Interface (GUI). So turning the screen sharing ‘on’ or ‘off’, the commands are:
Code:
rpi-connect vnc on
rpi-connect vnc offYou could also remove shell access, or enable it, with:
Code:
rpi-connect shell off
rpi-connect shell onWhen connecting from a web browser, as shown in Figure 3, when selecting the option ‘Connect via’, you have two options: Screen Sharing or Shell. If you disable either, then the option is grayed out with a strike-through line over the option.
FIGURE 3
To get the current version of the Connect software, you can look at the web browser, or use the command:
Code:
rpi-connect versionYou can get information about the current service by issuing the command:
Code:
rpi-connect statusThe results are:
Code:
Signed in: yes
Subscribed to events: yes
Screen sharing: allowed (1 session active)
Remote shell: allowed (1 session active)The results may vary depending on the connections and whether you are signed in.
Most of these are obvious, but there is no definition for ‘Subscribed to events’. When you create a device under your sign in, the server gives the device access tokens from the Raspberry Pi Connect server. If you remove the tokens or they become invalid, then the subscription is now ‘no’.
The last parameter is ‘doctor’. This is a troubleshooting option that you can use when something isn’t working properly.
For instance, I changed the display server to Xorg and not Wayland. The ‘rpi-connect’ service did not work. When I ran the command ‘rpi-connect doctor’, I was informed that I needed to enable Wayland to get the service started. So keep in mind that you cannot use Xorg as your display server on the Pi device.
Conclusion
Using Pi Connect allows you to remote into your Pi devices from a web browser. Keep in mind that you can either connect using GUI or shell command.
Depending on your need, one should work for you. Of course, the speed will depend on your Internet bandwidth and how much bandwidth is available on either end of the connection.
