Set up Geckoboard on a Raspberry Pi
This article guides you through using our Send to TV feature to display a Geckoboard dashboard on a Raspberry Pi.
What you'll need
Before you begin setting up Geckoboard on a Raspberry Pi, you'll need the following hardware and software:
Hardware
- Raspberry Pi
- If you don't already own one, we recommend the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+. You may also want to consider buying a case to protect the board.
- Power supply
- The Raspberry Pi has a micro USB port, like that of many mobile phones. You'll need a power supply which provides at least 2.5 amps. You can't go wrong using the official Raspberry Pi power supply
- Micro SD card
- The Raspberry Pi needs a micro SD card (freshly formatted is best) with a capacity of at least 8 GB to store all its files and the Raspbian operating system. Depending on your setup, you might also need a Micro SD Adapter (this looks like a regular-sized SD card with a slot in it for the micro SD card) and a USB powered SD card reader.
- Keyboard and mouse
- A USB keyboard and a USB mouse are needed to start using your Raspberry Pi. For a neat combination of keyboard and trackpad, we recommend Logitech's Wireless Touch Keyboard K400 Plus.
- TV or monitor w/ HDMI cable
- The Raspberry Pi has a HDMI output port that is compatible with most modern TVs and monitors. If you don't have a spare HDMI cable you can always bundle one with your Raspberry Pi. Also, if your display doesn't have an HDMI port, you can get HDMI-to-DVI and HDMI-to-VGA adapters.
Software
On a different device to your Raspberry Pi, you'll need to download:
- Raspbian
- The official operating system for all models of the Raspberry Pi. Download the Stretch with desktop version.
- balenaEtcher
- Enables you to flash OS images to a Micro SD card.
Step 1: Set up your Micro SD card
To prepare your micro SD card, follow these steps:
- Connect your Micro SD card to the computer you downloaded Raspbian and balenaEtcher to.
Note
Depending on your setup, you might need a Micro SD Adapter (this looks like a regular-sized SD card with a slot in it for the micro SD card) and a USB powered SD card reader.
- Unzip the Raspbian
.zipfile. This may take a few moments. - Load balenaEtcher. Click Select image and locate the unzipped Raspbian
.imgfile. Then click Select drive and locate the Micro SD card. Click Flash. (You may need to type in your computer’s password). This process may take a few minutes.
- That’s it! You’re all set to connect your Raspberry Pi.
Step 2: Connect your Raspberry Pi
To connect your Raspberry Pi to your display, follow these steps:
- Insert the micro SD card you’ve set up with Raspbian into the micro SD card slot at the underside of your Pi.
Note
If you've been using an SD card adapter, remove the micro SD card first.
- Connect a USB keyboard and mouse to the Raspberry Pi.
Recommended
Get a portable keyboard and trackpad combo. We recommend Logitech's Wireless Touch Keyboard K400 Plus.
- Connect an HDMI cable from your TV to the Raspberry Pi. Make sure your screen is plugged into a wall socket and turned on. If necessary, Use an HDMI adapter for DVI and VGA displays.
- You're all set to boot up your Raspberry Pi
Step 3: Start your Raspberry Pi
To switch on your Raspberry Pi and connect it to your display, follow these steps:
- Plug a micro USB power supply into a socket and connect it to you Pi’s power port. As soon as you connect it to a power outlet, it will turn on. You should see a red LED light up on the Raspberry Pi.
- As it starts up, you will see raspberries appear in the top left-hand of your screen. After a few seconds the Raspbian Desktop will appear.
Note
Make sure you’ve set the display from the correct HDMI source.
- When you start your Raspberry Pi for the first time, the Welcome to Raspberry Pi application will pop up and guide you through the initial setup. Click to begin.
- Set your Country, Language, and Timezone, then click again.
- Enter a new password for your Raspberry Pi, then click .
- Connect to your WiFi network by selecting its name, entering the password, and clicking .
Note
If your Raspberry Pi model doesn’t have wireless connectivity, you won’t see this screen.
- Click and let the wizard check for updates to Raspbian and install them. This might take a little while.
- Click or Reboot your Pi to complete the setup.
- Next we'll set up Geckoboard on your Raspberry Pi.
Step 4: Set up Geckoboard on your Raspberry Pi
To prepare your Raspberry Pi for displaying your Geckoboard dashboard(s) from boot-up, follow these steps:
- Open the Terminal on your Raspberry Pi by clicking on the terminal icon along the top of the desktop.
- Write the following in your terminal window:
Then press Enter. This might take a little while to complete (at least 5 minutes). After a time you’ll see a progress bar.curl -L https://raw.githubusercontent.com/geckoboard/device-scripts/master/raspberrypi -o kiosk_script; bash kiosk_script - When it’s finished you’ll be prompted to reboot. Type
sudo rebootinto your terminal, then Enter to reboot. - After your Raspberry Pi has rebooted you should now see a passcode on your screen.
- We'll now use the passcode to link to your chosen dashboard.
Step 5: Connect Geckoboard using Send to TV
To use Send to TV to display your Geckoboard dashboard, follow these steps:
- On a different device to your Raspberry Pi, log into Geckoboard and click in the top right corner of your screen.
- Enter your passcode under Step 3 in the window that appears. If you already have screens paired, you'll need to click first.
- Click . The screen is now connected and should be displaying the dashboard you’re currently on.
To change which dashboard or dashboard loop is displayed or to connect more devices, click . - And that's it. You can now disconnect your USB keyboard and mouse.