perfSONAR User Q&A and Other Discussion

[Larry Blunk <>]

  Yep, this looks like it should work --

http://acquisitionsyndrome.com/2014/07/headless-ecs-liva/

  Google "VGA Dummy Plug".  Looks like they can be purchased
for about $10.




On 01/07/2016 03:44 PM, Joni Julian wrote:
> While this solution may not apply, it reminds me of a problem I've seen
> before (computer won't boot headless). The solution was to put some
> resistors across the correct pins of a video connector to make the
> computer think that a monitor was connected.
> 
> http://soerennielsen.dk/mod/VGAdummy/index_en.php#1x_en
> 
> https://macminicolo.net/blog/files/build-a-dummy-dongle-for-a-headless-mac-mini.html
> 
> 
> https://macminicolo.net/blog/files/an-hdmi-adapter-for-a-headless-mac-mini.html
> 
> 
> No guarantees, but if you have some cables or adapters and resistors
> handy, this could be easy to test.
> 
> HTH!
> - Joni
> 
> On 01/07/2016 03:23 PM, Hyojoon Kim wrote:
>> Michael,
>>
>> Yes, it seems to be a bit of a mystery. Thanks for the update! I will
>> try a bit more and let the list know if I come up with something.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Joon
>>
>>> On Jan 7, 2016, at 2:36 PM, Michael Johnson 
>>> <>
>>>  wrote:
>>>
>>> Joon,
>>>
>>> I just checked with the person who set up that Liva (and several
>>> others) and he said he didn't have to do anything in particular as
>>> far as booting goes. But, he has had mixed experiences where some
>>> will boot headlessly, while others won't. Seems a bit mysterious.
>>> He did say that sometimes hooking a keyboard/monitor up, then
>>> booting, and then trying again, it may start working. So, you could
>>> try a few more times and see that gets you anywhere. We're definitely
>>> seeing mixed results on this issue.
>>>
>>> - Michael
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 07, 2016 at 07:17:33PM +0000, Hyojoon Kim wrote:
>>>> Hello Michael,
>>>>
>>>> That would be awesome. Thanks!
>>>>
>>>> Just FYI, playing with the grub file did not work for me
>>>> (http://superuser.com/questions/746803/how-to-turn-a-desktop-linux-box-headless).
>>>> Maybe there are other tricks that I don’t know.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>> Joon
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> On Jan 7, 2016, at 2:08 PM, Michael Johnson 
>>>>> <>
>>>>>  wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Hello Joon,
>>>>>
>>>>> For what it's worth, I know people are booting these headless.
>>>>> There's one in my office that will boot without a monitor, but I
>>>>> didn't set it up, so I am not sure if any special steps were taken
>>>>> to make it boot that way. I'll see if I can find anything out.
>>>>>
>>>>> - Michael
>>>>>
>>>>> On Thu, Jan 07, 2016 at 07:02:44PM +0000, Hyojoon Kim wrote:
>>>>>> Hello Michael,
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Ah, I see. Thanks for the heads up! You just saved my time
>>>>>> attempting this.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I was even thinking of trying CentOS, but I just found this review
>>>>>> post about the product on Amazon, which points out the eMMC
>>>>>> storage detection issue with CentOS and Debian (plus about the
>>>>>> booting problem without a monitor)
>>>>>> http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R2VPK26HWQCYAA/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00KX93WQW#R2VPK26HWQCYAA
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> We were thinking about deploying these LIVA X boxes around campus
>>>>>> BDFs. However, I think we will have to reconsider this because it
>>>>>> seems that we cannot even reboot the box remotely without a
>>>>>> monitor plugged in all the time.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>> Joon
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Jan 7, 2016, at 1:48 PM, Michael Johnson 
>>>>>>> <>
>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hi Joon,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I don't know about the Ubuntu issue in particular, but in my
>>>>>>> experience, Debian 7 didn't recognize the eMMC. You might have a
>>>>>>> different experience, but I wouldn't expect that to work. Hope
>>>>>>> this helps.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>>> Michael
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Thu, Jan 07, 2016 at 06:43:22PM +0000, Hyojoon Kim wrote:
>>>>>>>> Hi all,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> It turns out that latest Ubuntu desktop OSes cannot boot without
>>>>>>>> a monitor plugged in to the machine, so this happens with the
>>>>>>>> LIVA X box as well. Did anyone find a working solution for this?
>>>>>>>> I might just move on to using Debian 7 Wheezy, which I assume
>>>>>>>> will not have this problem, but I just wanted to check if anyone
>>>>>>>> was successful with this matter with Ubuntu before I try Debian 7.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> FYI,
>>>>>>>> This seems to be a known problem:
>>>>>>>> "Q: Ubuntu can’t boot up without monitor plugged to LIVA MINI PC”
>>>>>>>> http://www.ecs.com.tw/ECSWebSite/Product/Product_LIVA_FAQ.aspx?DetailID=1593&LanID=0
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I tried to solve this problem by following links and using all
>>>>>>>> suggestions I can find on the web, including (but not limited to):
>>>>>>>> http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1223504
>>>>>>>> http://askubuntu.com/questions/166009/use-ubuntu-graphical-desktop-without-monitor-at-boot
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> However, all methods did not work for me..
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Using Ubuntu *Server* OS would be one solution, but I had
>>>>>>>> installation problems with that, which I did post about it on
>>>>>>>> this mailing list before. (problem: installation process fails
>>>>>>>> to recognize the eMMC storage space)
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thanks,
>>>>>>>> Joon