Access the BMC KVM Console from Brainsalt Hub

Open a remote keyboard-video-mouse (KVM) session to your Brainsalt server's Baseboard Management Controller (BMC) from the Brainsalt Hub Desktop App. The BMC gives you BIOS-level control of the server even when its operating system is not running.

Before you start

• The Brainsalt Hub Desktop App is running and has discovered the server
• The server's BMC network port is connected — it is a separate socket from the server's normal network interfaces (all B7, B8 and B9 Series servers have a built-in BMC)
• The BMC's IP address is reachable from the computer running the Hub — the same subnet, or a route to it
• BMC credentials: by default there is nothing to set. The server keeps its BMC users synchronized with its own users, and the Hub signs in with your server login. Set separate credentials under Settings → Credentials only if synchronization is switched off on that server

Steps

1. Select the server

Click the server row in the list. Its actions appear in the functions panel below the list (One window layout) or inline on the row (Separate windows layout). The BMC button is present whenever the Hub knows of a BMC for that server; its tooltip shows the controller's IP address.

The BMC address is not configured by hand. The Hub learns it from the server over the discovery channel and remembers it, so the button still works after the server has been switched off — the BMC runs on standby power.

2. Open the BMC web interface

Click BMC. The controller's web interface opens over HTTPS — as a tab beside the server list in One window layout, or in its own window in Separate windows layout. The Hub recognises which controller the server has and submits the matching credentials for you, so you land in the interface already signed in.

Clicking BMC again while that tab is in front closes it. Alt+← and Alt+→ (or the arrows on the tab strip) step back and forward, and F11 hides the Hub's header and sidebar so the interface fills the window.

3. Open the KVM console

Navigate to the KVM or remote-console section of that interface — the Hub does not jump there for you, and the wording differs between server families (typically Remote Control → KVM, iKVM or H5Viewer). From there you have full keyboard, video and mouse control of the server, including the BIOS and the boot sequence.

4. Close the session

Close the KVM window offered by the BMC interface first, then close the Hub's BMC tab or window. Leaving KVM sessions open holds a slot in the controller's small session table.

Options explained

BMC credentials live under ⚙ Settings → Credentials, one set per server family. The Hub picks the set matching the server it is talking to. Every set defaults to Same as User, so the Hub signs in to the BMC with your server login — the synchronized account. Untick it only when BMC synchronization is switched off on the server, or the controller genuinely needs its own account. All stored secrets are encrypted by the operating system's own credential protection.

Common Mistakes

• The BMC button is amber and the interface does not load — the controller's address cannot be reached from this computer, usually because it sits on a VLAN or a foreign subnet. The server's own network being fine does not help. Correct the address under IP Config → IPMI / BMC, or move this computer onto the controller's network.

• Nothing opens and the status line says no BMC was found — the controller's dedicated Ethernet port is not plugged in, or the server has never answered a BMC query. Connect the BMC port, then reselect the server.

• The login page appears instead of the signed-in interface — the stored credentials do not match the controller. A set left on Same as User sends your server login, which the BMC knows only while the server keeps its BMC users synchronized. In the server's System Management, open Configure → Access, check that Keep BMC users synchronized is ticked and click Update BMC now. If synchronization is deliberately off, enter the BMC's own account for the right family (B7 / B8 / B9) under Settings → Credentials.

• 'Session limit reached', or the interface hangs — these controllers keep a very small session table, and force-closed browser or KVM sessions linger in it. Wait for the idle sessions to time out, or reset the controller from its own interface.

• Power actions are offered but the sensor detail is thin — on some server families part of the management API sits behind a controller licence that is not activated. The Hub falls back to a safe default power menu; the missing detail needs that licence in place. Contact Brainsalt support.

Tips

• The KVM console works while the operating system is down. Use it for BIOS settings, boot troubleshooting and reinstalling Windows remotely.

• Manage BMC access on the server, not on the BMC. Add, remove or re-role a user on the server's Access page and the BMC follows. Accounts created directly in the BMC's own interface are not carried back to the server.

• You rarely need the controller's own sensor pages — the Hub's health panel already reports temperatures, fans, voltages, power supplies and hardware errors for the selected server, refreshed continuously.

• Chassis power does not need the BMC interface either: the ⏻ Power menu on the server row performs the controller's own reset actions, and the label shows the current power state.

• Ctrl + and Ctrl − scale the Hub's interface if the controller's pages render small; the page inside the tab keeps its own zoom.

• Keep the BMC network on your management LAN. It is a full out-of-band route into the server and should not sit on a public or guest network.

Related

Use the Brainsalt Hub Desktop App — the server list, per-server actions, health and power in full.

Manage Users and Roles — the server's users and roles, which are mirrored to the BMC.

What is Brainsalt Hub? — how the desktop app, the on-server services and System Management fit together.

Control Server Power — power actions from the Hub and from System Management.

Monitor Server Health and Hardware Status — reading sensors, power supplies and hardware faults.