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robmwpropane asked

RPi Without Screen?

Good day all. Tipping my toes in the Victron environment and I'd really like a way to monitor remotely via wifi (for less $$$). I understand that I can connect an RPi which is awesome but I have a few questions.


1.) Can I operate it just fine without a screen? Once setup besides adding things I doubt that I'll need to look at a screen all that much. If I can remote view / login based on the IP address then I'm fine with that. This is going into an rv which has its own network already setup, so the network the pi is connected to will never change. Or do I need the screen for some unforeseen issue?


2.) I see I can load VenusOS onto an rpi 2 w, 3, 4b etc. Because I'm not really asking it to do a whole lot, does it matter which version I choose? I have some limited experience with rpi's, not enough to know what the differences are. I currently have a smartshunt, mppt, and Mopeka sensors I'd like to connect if that matters. I'm sure some other stuff down the road. Would I be limited by the 2 w, or maybe the 4 b is lightning fast? Or maybe has better support?



I tried to search these questions here and Google but I see a lot of talk of what games versions can run and a lot of issues with screens, not any questions of lack of screens.






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2 Answers
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Kevin Windrem answered ·

The RPI version of Venus OS is "headless" (no local display) by default. In your application you would not need a local screen after you have configured Venus OS on the PI.

You should look at the cost of the PI plus the needed adapters VE.Direct to USB for each device, MK3 to USB for VE.Bus (inverters), CANbus USB, etc. A Cerbo GX or Cerbo S might be less money. These can run headless also.

The basic differences between the 2, 3 and 4 RPIs is mostly speed. I'm running a PPI 4 for my test system and it's much faster than Cerbo GX and probably on par with the Ekrano. Spend the money on the RPI 4 if you can or use a RPI 3.

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robmwpropane avatar image robmwpropane commented ·

Thanks for the response!


I am not understanding about the adapters? If all devices are bluetooth can't they just connect with the pi? What I assumed was the pi would work off of wifi and the other devices would all connect through it via BT. The only wire to run would be to power the pi (or plug it into a usb port for now). Admittedly I haven't looked into how the Mopeka sensor links with the pi, but I thought I saw in a video the option was just there to turn on in VenusOS?


I will get the 4 b.

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Kevin Windrem avatar image Kevin Windrem robmwpropane commented ·

Bluetooth can't be used to interface devices to a GX device (Cerbo, RPI running Venus OS, etc). You must use a cabled connection.

The other option is to use VictronConnect on a phone or tablet (or computer) to access each device individually. There is not a single overview screen that shows text values for each device. There is also a bluetooth networking mechanism that provides limited interaction between devices.

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robmwpropane answered ·

Well after more reading and watching some videos apparently you need a VE.Direct to USB for each device connected to the RPI. I'm kind of surprised as I thought the RPI would act like more of a gateway for devices to "login" remotely.


Why does it not work like that? Why can I change settings and view when on BT when local but it wouldn't be able to do so via the RPI with VenusOS (or a cerbo)?

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