Rapsberry Pi [5]: Using the Pi as the tethered desktop

Due to the fact that my main internet feed is filtered, I sometimes need to access websites that are blocked by the filter. This is easier than trying to get a site unblocked. For example a Family First website, porninquiry.nz, is currently blocked by the web filtering, as are several misclassified Christian sites I read such as truelovedates.com and also another site called endsexualexploitation.com that I enjoy reading.

For this reason I have need of a computer that has both Wi-Fi and wired internet connections. Bedroompc is an example but it is inconvenient to use partly because its Wifi connection turns itself off after a while and can’t be brought back up without a reboot. Meaning it was more convenient for me to configure it to use the network cable for everything and not use the Wifi at all, but then it wouldn’t be able to be the tethered desktop, because both connections are needed for this.

So I have just finished setting up the Pi to be able to do this task, by flashing Raspbian onto it and connecting it to the same display as Win10Pc uses. Because now I have so little use of Win10Pc I have changed its display over to the Pi (Win10Pc is still connected to the VGA input on the screen, while the Pi has taken over the HDMI to DVI adapter cable) and given it the wireless mouse and Bluetooth keyboard. But with a little more work I can get it to install and auto-start x11vnc which allows me to VNC into it (using Remmina) from mainpc so I can sit in front of my regular keyboard and work in a Remmina window.

Then in the same way as I had BedroomPC set up, the wired internet connection is given a fixed IP address with no other configuration information. So that the computer can’t connect to the Internet through the network cable, but we can use that cable to connect with x11vnc. Then we set up the Wifi connection to connect to the internet through the tether (one of my phones set up as a hotspot). And then it’s all hunky dory. All checked out and working just fine.

Of course this means I won’t be doing any more testing of Pi vs Chromecast. So I will experiment with putting Kodi onto the Elitepad tablet that I have, and test that on a TV to see if it can play well.

After using the Pi in this role it works well, but I want to be able to turn it back into a media player which conflicts with this role. I have decided that the tethered PC role can be filled by my Toshiba R500 laptop which has a docking station that it can be quickly attached to and detached from, that can be left in position on the desktop ready for it to be deployed quickly for the tethered PC role, which is just an occasional usage. The R500 also has the advantages of having its own display and being significantly more powerful and being able to run regular Debian, albeit with LXQt as the desktop environment, and Firefox Developer as the browser, which is my preferred web platform. I had a few issues with the Pi dropping out on VNC, which is probably due to known issues with the stretch standard packages of x11vnc and are fixed with buster packages. So that is where things are heading now, the Pi being set up again with LibreElec and tested as a media player