Option to hide the remote cursor

[darkbasic]

Describe the bug When connecting to my PiKVM v4 either via tigervnc or via the web UI the remote cursor is being shown. It lags too much to be usable on its own, so you have to add a local cursor (the small dot) and you end up with duplicate cursors. Ideally the remote cursor should be hidden, not sure how but maybe by faking the input events as touch inputs so that the remote cursor won't even move until you click. If the remove cursor can indeed be hidden then maybe the local one should be changed to something more visible than the thin circle in the web UI.

I wouldn't call the current experience pleasant to use. The web ui/vnc client right now is "barely" usable because having two cursors is confusing and the remote one lags behind the local one (even when setting the polling interval to 10 ms).

To Reproduce

1. Connect to a PiKVM v4 using these settings or the web ui
2. Remote cursor is being shown (laggy, gets clipped when you reach the border of the window).

Expected behavior The remote cursor should not be shown.

Screenshots

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• OS: Gentoo Linux ppc64le
• Browser Chromium
• Version 114
• VNC client: tigervnc 1.13.1-r3

PiKVM info:

• Raspberry Pi board version: PiKVM v4 Mini
• PiKVM platform: PiKVM v4 Mini
• Video capture type HDMI
• KVMD version: 3.231-1
• uStreamer version: 5.41-1
• Linux kernel: 5.15.68-3-rpi-ARCH

Additional context Tigervnc issue: https://github.com/TigerVNC/tigervnc/issues/1642

[mdevaev]

Hello! There are a few things regarding this.

• It is impossible to hide the remote cursor because PiKVM cannot affect the target OS in any way. She thinks that an ordinary mouse is connected. Emulating touch events is possible, but it will lead to worse compatibility because not all devices support touch.
• The showing of the local cursor depends entirely on the VNC client, we also cannot influence this from the VNC server inside PiKVM. In my case, I use TigerVNC on Linux and there is no local cursor.
• It is impossible to completely get rid of the latency, although I'm working to reduce it. The reason is that this is a hardware video capture, it is not the same as a regular VNC or TeamViewer. Image capture takes time, video encoding too, the browser also adds some delay. This problem concerns absolutely all existing KVM over IP.
• As for the web interface, I could add an option that hides the blue dot. However, I suggest you try to get used to it, because it's harder to use the mouse without it. You can focus on the blue dot when you make clicks, because as soon as you make a click, the remote cursor will be instantly moved to the position of the blue dot and the click will be executed in the correct position.

[darkbasic]

Emulating touch events is possible, but it will lead to worse compatibility because not all devices support touch.

Not necessarily: we could emulate both mouse and touch and add a switch in the web ui to choose which one you want to use. Than means being able to emulate the mouse while in the bios and switching to touch once you booted your OS.

The showing of the local cursor depends entirely on the VNC client, we also cannot influence this from the VNC server inside PiKVM. In my case, I use TigerVNC on Linux and there is no local cursor.

That part was a bug and there is an easy workaround: https://github.com/TigerVNC/tigervnc/issues/1340

It is impossible to completely get rid of the latency, although I'm working to reduce it. The reason is that this is a hardware video capture, it is not the same as a regular VNC or TeamViewer. Image capture takes time, video encoding too, https://github.com/pikvm/pikvm/issues/784. This problem concerns absolutely all existing KVM over IP.

Yeah I know, I'm not complaining about the latency but rather the impossibility of hiding the remote cursor somehow.

As for the web interface, I could add an option that hides the blue dot. However, I suggest you try to get used to it, because it's harder to use the mouse without it. You can focus on the blue dot when you make clicks, because as soon as you make a click, the remote cursor will be instantly moved to the position of the blue dot and the click will be executed in the correct position.

That wouldn't help. I'd like to hide the remote cursor, not the local one! I think this can only be achieved via touch events.

[mdevaev]

Got it. However, using a touch device has far-reaching consequences, for example, the inability to turn off the virtual USB device in real time (due to bugs in the kernel) and a limited number of USB endpoints.

Actually, I have an idea how to solve it. We are planning one secret feature here, with the help of which your case can also be solved. So I ask you to wait a couple of months before the release.

[darkbasic]

Actually, I have an idea how to solve it. We are planning one secret feature here, with the help of which your case can also be solved.

Oh nice, curiosity is killing me know :)

So I ask you to wait a couple of months before the release.

Sure.

[mdevaev]

:ok_hand:

[lyonzy]

A Windows-specific option (until we get this intriguing new feature above!) is to set all your cursors in Control Panel to invisible.cur which you can download from various sites (e.g. here)

[mdevaev]

Thanks for the info!

[darkbasic]

@mdevaev any news on this?

[mdevaev]

Not yet, sorry. There are a lot of tasks on other fronts

Сб, 17 февр. 2024 г. в 11:17, Niccolò Belli @.***>:

@mdevaev https://github.com/mdevaev any news on this?

— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/pikvm/pikvm/issues/1050#issuecomment-1949912038, or unsubscribe https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AADFUA724T6W4J4I5UDXOFLYUBYT3AVCNFSM6AAAAAAZ5YY7FKVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMYTSNBZHEYTEMBTHA . You are receiving this because you were mentioned.Message ID: @.***>

[dreamsea503]

Hello.

I am trying to use KVM to control another laptop. But my actual pointer is different from remote cursor. It's the same in the middle of the screen. But when it goes to the side, there becomes different.

Can you describe why it's happening and how to fix this issue?

My captured behavior is attached via video.

screen-capture (1).webm

[mdevaev]

Your host uses software scaling of the screen. Please contact our support in discord.

[arch1mede]

This is for anyone else running into this same issue.

The reason for this is that the Display and Active display does not match. Windows sometimes has a display mismatch, don't know why.

The fix is to have Desktop mode (Display) and Active signal mode match.

In this example, this is a v4 that can support 1920x1200@60hz, otherwise set for standard 1080p@60hz OR whatever resolution you want.

System ->Display->Advanced Display, then display properties, then list all modes, then choose the same display size, for Win10 this might be a little different but should generally be the same.