ESP32 Remote

Open Source remote for your home.... with ESP32 and LEDS

Open Source remote for your home.... with ESP32 and LEDS

ESP 32 Connected to Home Assistant to control a LED for testing.

One of the things I have found with time as I expand server and my computers things get a little complicated to manage. I will give you an example.

I decided to install Proxmox on my main computer to have my autonomy over how I use my computer. I run Ubuntu as my main computer, but once I started using it I realized installing all the services and docker things is a little overkill and bogs down my main work stuff. Specifically I wanted to run this app called KASM which allows you to run full desktops vm through your browser. But running it while having a main desktop causes a lot of issues with time for unknown reasons. Point of this app is to be reliable when I am not home, and it is annoying to be running diagnoses through SSH when I am at a coffee shop.

My Solution

  • Make a VM just for KASM and allocate separate resources to it.
  • Switch on and off my VM depending if I am home or not.

So here is the issue. I need to login to my dashboard to turn the VM on and off depending on where I am. I saw a guy on instagram who had SSH shortcuts on his Iphone to do things on his server. I thought what if I could make something in real life that can be on my desk that I can push..... like a remote control to control what computer I want to use.

I got some of my circuit class lab leftover stuff and I wanted to make something that would run my commands when I press a physical button. I got one of these kits with LEDs and buttons and went to town.

I decided to work with Home Assistant as it supports ESP32 and has a vast ecosystem of plugins to do so many DIY sensors. I never installed Home Assistant because I own no smart home devices. But I googled and found Proxmox has a Home Assistant Plugin. For now I have managed to install one LED and control it from my phone. But as I learn to code this, I will add more things to have a perfect remote on my desk.

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This will also give me a glance into what computers and services running. There is a cool dashboard with all the stats live showing what is and isn't running.

I want to be able to push a button, so I can turn on whatever VM I want for the work I am trying to do. For example turn on my main computer and turn off the VM that is for KASM remote desktop. I am trying to make the most of my 13 year old computer which does have a new Nvidia low-end GPU that can still pull some weight (with the right combination of software and hardware.)

I will give more updates as I learn more but I thought I should write down my plans first because this is a little more complicated that I expected at first.