Assembly Instructions

The instructions below walk you through assembling and connecting your TinyPilot kit.

Step 1: Assemble the case

  1. Remove the Raspberry Pi and the case from their packaging:

  2. Place the Raspberry Pi on the base so that its screw holes line up with the holes in the case.

  3. Remove the paper/film coverings from the thermal tape.
  4. Apply the thermal tape to the top of the case.

    If your package included a single piece of thermal tape, tear it into three pieces (one large, two small) along the perforations.

  5. Place the top of the case on top of the Pi, and use the Allen wrench to screw everything together.

Step 2: Insert the TinyPilot microSD card

Insert the TinyPilot microSD card into the Pi's microSD slot.

The microSD is already configured with TinyPilot's software.

Step 3: Hook up the power connector

  1. Use the short USB-C to USB-A cable to connect the USB-C port on the Raspberry Pi to the USB-A port on the TinyPilot Power Connector.

  2. Connect a microUSB to USB-A cable to the port labeled "Power" on the TinyPilot Power Connector. Connect the other end to the USB to AC adaptor and plug it into a power outlet.

    Only use the TinyPilot power connector with power supplies that provide power isolation. Virtually all modern power supplies isolate power, but if you're working with especially old (20+ years) or low-quality hardware, verify that it's power isolated.
  3. Connect a microUSB to USB-A cable to the port labeled "Data" on the TinyPilot Power Connector. Connect the other end to a USB port on your target computer.

    If everything is connected correctly, you should see the Pi's power LED shine a solid red. The disk activity LED will flash green intermittently as the device runs.

Step 4: Connect the HDMI cable

  1. Plug the HDMI capture dongle into one of the Pi's USB ports.

    You can use any USB port. The USB 3.0 ports (blue) and the USB 2.0 ports (black) perform identically.
  2. Connect an HDMI cable from the HDMI capture dongle to the output display port of the target computer.

    Depending on the target computer's output, you can use a HDMI to HDMI cable, a DisplayPort to HDMI cable, or a DVI to HDMI cable.

Step 6: Attach an Ethernet cable

Connect TinyPilot to your local network by connecting an Ethernet cable to device's Ethernet port.

Step 7: Access the TinyPilot web interface

With your TinyPilot booted, you can now access the TinyPilot web interface at the following URL from any device on your local network:

Your very first boot might take up to two minutes as the Pi expands the microSD card's disk to maximize storage space.

Your target computer's display output should display in the browser. TinyPilot forwards any keystrokes you enter to the target machine.

Step 8: Change SSH credentials

TinyPilot's default credentials are:

  • Username: pilot
  • Password: flyingsopi

For security, you should connect to TinyPilot through SSH and run passwd to update your password.

Questions? Feedback?

How'd installation go?

If you have any questions or feedback about your TinyPilot, we'll be happy to help you in the support forum.