How can I install and manage NetBird on TinyPilot?

This article explains how to connect to your TinyPilot remotely using NetBird, a tool for creating a fast, secure, private network.

NetBird offers free accounts, and you can configure NetBird's Zero Trust Network Access software on your TinyPilot in less than 10 minutes.

Pre-requisites

A TinyPilot device
A NetBird account (accounts are free for personal use)

Install NetBird on your TinyPilot

SSH in to your TinyPilot device and enter the following commands to install NetBird's client:

curl -fsSL https://pkgs.netbird.io/install.sh | sudo bash
  sudo netbird up

At the end of the installation, NetBird will print a URL that joins your TinyPilot to your NetBird account. Copy the URL into your web browser.

When NetBird's web interface prompts you to log in, proceed through the login flow. When you're done, NetBird will show a success message:

Confirmation message that your device has been connected to NetBird.

If you visit the NetBird Peers tab, you should now see your TinyPilot device joined to your private NetBird network:

The NetBird Peers tab showing TinyPilot connected to NetBird.

Install NetBird on your computer

To access your TinyPilot device over the Internet, you need to join your computer to your new NetBird network. Note that this is not the computer that TinyPilot controls but rather the computer you use to access TinyPilot in your web browser.

To add your computer, download NetBird, and follow the installation instructions. After you add your computer to your NetBird network, you should see your computer in NetBird's Peers tab:

The NetBird Peers tab showing a Mac Mini added to the network.

Access TinyPilot remotely

Now that your computer and your TinyPilot are on the private NetBird network, you can access your TinyPilot through its NetBird IP address or DNS label.

Copy TinyPilot's IP address from NetBird's Peers tab:

TinyPilot's DNS label and IP address in the NetBird Peers tab.

Paste the IP address or DNS label into the web browser on your computer. You should now see your TinyPilot web interface.

A browser connected to TinyPilot using the NetBird DNS label.

You can access your TinyPilot from anywhere on the Internet through this IP address or DNS label.

Tuning performance

When using your TinyPilot over the internet with NetBird, you will likely see longer delays before your target machine registers your mouse or keyboard input.

For more information about tuning performance, see the FAQ article, "How can I reduce TinyPilot's latency?"