Headless mini boot

[agregson]

Hi,

I have several older minis (late 2012 and late 2014) that perform perfectly. Both upgraded to SSD and 16GB/8GB memory. I cannot bear to part with them as I can maintain them and they have benefits.

A small network server runs from Raspberry PI4 at moment. I would like to move to use Mac for this and eliminate the last of non-Apple computers from my network. It will operate as file server to Macs and iOS, time machine backup server, upgrade server, file server for backup, Media server for Plex and Infuse.

It all works flawlessly at the moment. Apart from one thing. I cannot start without a monitor and if reboot or power failure it will not restart without keyboard or mouse. I can share screen, ssh login, operate all services perfectly - until it reboots.

It connects to iCloud and I have FileVault turned on. I am guessing the vault is the issue as on reboot it requires a password to be entered to release the disk and boot the OS. Is there any way around this? If I disable FileVault (reluctant in case of theft/loss) will it boot headless?

Eventually I will replace both with new machines. iMac 5k will upgrade sometime to studio Mac and display and iMac will replace a mini. The other mini will be replaced by an M1 mini I am using at the moment as my (only) ARM machine until my main desktop migrates. I would like to have an option to run both current mini headless.

I suppose one way around it is a monitor and key/mouse along with video switch but that is bulky unless I go for mini HDMI display and a small bluetooth keyboard (Rip type) which is what I do on PI at the moment when maintenance is needed. I just wondered if Apple have a more elegant option.

Any help or comments would be much appreciated.Thanks in advance.

A

 

[headlessmike]

I don't have experience with FileVault, but issues connected to booting the machine without a monitor can be resolved with an HDMI dummy plug, something like this.

 

[Boyd01]

I think it must be filevault. I have a headless 2012 Mini with no mouse/keyboard and no filevault. There is no problem starting it up. I do have an HDMI dummy plug installed however.

 

[agregson]

I don't have experience with FileVault, but issues connected to booting the machine without a monitor can be resolved with an HDMI dummy plug, something like this.

I tried to startup with a monitor connected and had same issue. Also tried keyboard and mouse connected. Same issue. If I did not enter the FileVault password to get to login password after OS boot then mini went back to power off. It must be FileVault.

 

[agregson]

I think it must be filevault. I have a headless 2012 Mini with no mouse/keyboard and no filevault. There is no problem starting it up. I do have an HDMI dummy plug installed however.

Nuisance. I think you are right. Even with monitor, key and mouse connected if I don't intervene and enter FileVault password then it powers off after a short time. Shame. Pity Apple did not cover this with some sort of remote authenticate via iCloud with a password much as when adding a new machine. I cannot see any way around it other than to disable FileVault.

 

[chabig]

A small network server runs from Raspberry PI4 at moment. I would like to move to use Mac for this and eliminate the last of non-Apple computers from my network. It will operate as file server to Macs and iOS, time machine backup server, upgrade server, file server for backup, Media server for Plex and Infuse.

I use a mini to do many of these things as well. And for the same reason as you, I want it to auto-boot. So I don't have FileVault working on this machine and I'm ok with that. I understand that if it's stolen, someone could boot it, but without a user password they would have to show some dedication to remove and mount the internal drive if they wanted to see any data on that drive, but it is possible. To preclude even that, run only the OS from the internal drive and keep all of your data on encrypted external drives.

 

[agregson]

I use a mini to do many of these things as well. And for the same reason as you, I want it to auto-boot. So I don't have FileVault working on this machine and I'm ok with that. I understand that if it's stolen, someone could boot it, but without a user password they would have to show some dedication to remove and mount the internal drive if they wanted to see any data on that drive, but it is possible. To preclude even that, run only the OS from the internal drive and keep all of your data on encrypted external drives.

I have tried it with FileVault off - disabled surprisingly quickly. I have several minis and experiment with the older ones that are "non-critical" (only reason I have 3 - 2012, 2014 and M1) is the older work so well I cannot bear to sell them for all they fetch on eBay and how useful they remain such as servers, workshop computer or experiment. Anyway ...

Confirmed file vault was off then restarted remotely via screen share. Mini did not reappear on network. It is in workshop (room off garage) and it is pouring with rain so decided to wait to investigate further. It remained connected to monitor but the keyboard (Logitech MX Mini) and Mouse (Logitech MX) are bluetooth so normally only connect when a key or button is pressed on start (much like the Apple key/track on my iMac).

I will do some digging and see what I can determine then report back. Thanks for all comments and assistance to date. Much appreciated.

 

[Boyd01]

I should have added that I have my headless mini set to auto-login at startup. Since you're concerned about security, that could be an issue. For own home and usage, that doesn't worry me much.

 

[agregson]

I should have added that I have my headless mini set to auto-login at startup. Since you're concerned about security, that could be an issue. For own home and usage, that doesn't worry me much.

I have disabled FileVault and enabled auto login. It does indeed reboot to allow remote access. I have not yet tried with the monitor removed but suspect it will retain the resolution configured before it is removed. I will experiment a little more and see if there is any way to ensure it works without auto login.

While theft is not a major concern the possibility cannot be overlooked. With messages working for many 2FA and iCloud sync ensuring messages and even previews of 2FA codes pop up it has to be considered. One option could be some sort of remote wipe option - will look into that.

Thanks for all help and comments to date. It is all much appreciated.

 

[Boyd01]

I have not yet tried with the monitor removed but suspect it will retain the resolution configured before it is removed.

Without a monitor I found that the Mini would have a strange resolution when I connected with screen sharing. I don't recall the details, but it was low resolution and pretty unusable. The HDMI dummy plugs are available at Amazon and cost less than $10 IIRC.

 

[agregson]

Without a monitor I found that the Mini would have a strange resolution when I connected with screen sharing. I don't recall the details, but it was low resolution and pretty unusable. The HDMI dummy plugs are available at Amazon and cost less than $10 IIRC.

Thanks for tip. I will order one anyway. For the cost they never go to waste.

 

[circatee]

@agregson what is the latest update on your issue? All working as expected now, with FileVault turned off?
Thanks...

 

[agregson]

@agregson what is the latest update on your issue? All working as expected now, with FileVault turned off?
Thanks...

I have been experimenting with various things.

Conclusion was headless boot worked if filevalut was disabled and auto login was enabled. To ensure proper resolution a dummy monitor was needed.

It was a satisfactory outcome in that the problem was solved. However I found the compromises needed were unsatisfactory for what I wanted. I am a little surprised that there is no Apple solution for a headless "server" given they have some "server" functions in macOS.

I obtained an older HP mini PC for £50 on eBay - the sort used for enterprise and built to a suitable standard. The machine was immaculate with not a sign of dust, wear or scratches. Came with original brick power supply. Dismantling, cleaning and researching was interesting. The build quality was similar to what I found inside the minis and I was left quite impressed.

Very small (much smaller than mini) and can be completely dismantled and self-services. I changed the drive for SATA SSD (it also has M2 port), added memory (8GB for now). The machine has decent i5 gen 7 processor so performs well. The firmware has all sorts of options to support remote, headless and other boot options - even PXE boot and remote management. It was licensed for Windows 10 Pro OEM and on install from USB Windows installed and activated. That allowed me to test and confirm. All the server apps I wanted (Plex, media, file and so on) all worked on Windows. Time machine and content cache clearly doesn't.

Not sure what to do now. May keep the HP on Windows or may move to Linux probably via DietPI. As Windows works so well and is easily accessible via VNC I am tempted to retain it.

I really wish Apple would provide options for mini to be used as a proper home server. While they are at it enable it to act as a wifi router - it certainly has the power. I so wanted to use Apple for this but the compromises did not justify the benefits.

 

[circatee]

I have been experimenting with various things.

Conclusion was headless boot worked if filevalut was disabled and auto login was enabled. To ensure proper resolution a dummy monitor was needed.

It was a satisfactory outcome in that the problem was solved. However I found the compromises needed were unsatisfactory for what I wanted. I am a little surprised that there is no Apple solution for a headless "server" given they have some "server" functions in macOS.

I obtained an older HP mini PC for £50 on eBay - the sort used for enterprise and built to a suitable standard. The machine was immaculate with not a sign of dust, wear or scratches. Came with original brick power supply. Dismantling, cleaning and researching was interesting. The build quality was similar to what I found inside the minis and I was left quite impressed.

Very small (much smaller than mini) and can be completely dismantled and self-services. I changed the drive for SATA SSD (it also has M2 port), added memory (8GB for now). The machine has decent i5 gen 7 processor so performs well. The firmware has all sorts of options to support remote, headless and other boot options - even PXE boot and remote management. It was licensed for Windows 10 Pro OEM and on install from USB Windows installed and activated. That allowed me to test and confirm. All the server apps I wanted (Plex, media, file and so on) all worked on Windows. Time machine and content cache clearly doesn't.

Not sure what to do now. May keep the HP on Windows or may move to Linux probably via DietPI. As Windows works so well and is easily accessible via VNC I am tempted to retain it.

I really wish Apple would provide options for mini to be used as a proper home server. While they are at it enable it to act as a wifi router - it certainly has the power. I so wanted to use Apple for this but the compromises did not justify the benefits.

Thanks for the detailed response and sharing your experience. Much appreciated...

 

[agregson]

Thanks for the detailed response and sharing your experience. Much appreciated...

You are welcome. As always your mileage may vary.

I should have added the HP mini PC is an EliteDesk G2 MiniPC with i5-6500 3.2ghz. Highly recommended. It can run Windows 10 Pro (should have license as OEM kit) or Linux (DietPI makes install of apps very easy). Current servers I am running are - NZBGet, Sonarr, Radarr, Lidarr, Plex. Planning to have a look at urBackup as a backup server.

Webserver is Abyss, FTP server is either FileZilla or Regex - not decided which to keep yet. Local servers are mainly for test and static content. May run a small mail server (VPOP3 as mentioned).

Finally, Windows 10 Pro allows running WSL. May install Pengwin and X410 for remote Linux box. One thing Windows does really well and macOS has little official answer for is the WSL and virtualisation system. With pro license Hyper-V and WSL are both readily accessible which can be handy to have on network.

I only wish all of this was possible on a mini server. I would happily buy a new mini if it could work headless with no compromises or hacks.

 

[MikeDr206]

Yes, for headless you have to disable FileVault and enable automatic logon. A dummy HDMI adapter will improve the available resolution. They’re dirt cheap, too.

 

[Puonti]

This is an interesting thread, thank you (all) for sharing your findings.

There's something related that I wanted to run by you: I've been running an old iMac on automation for the longest time, where it sleeps most of the time if I don't need it, but wakes up on its own at a specific time of day to run backups (TimeMachine, Arq). Filevault is on, there's no automatic login in effect. Works perfectly. I can remote to it too if I want to.

I gather that the biggest problem you all are struggling with is the fact that you need to get through reboots - but assuming a mini / Studio running Monterey is mostly sleeping and configured to do automated backups once a day, would that work just like it does on my old iMac? (with the caveat that the remote connection screen resolution might be wonky as was pointed out)

 

[knightwrangler]

Has anyone used a dummy mini displayPort on their mini, and if so did it work with an increase of resolution (2560x1400) using the Remote Desktop? I find the HDMI resolution too low when using my widescreen monitor.

 

[Brian33]

I've been running an old iMac on automation for the longest time, where it sleeps most of the time if I don't need it, but wakes up on its own at a specific time of day to run backups (TimeMachine, Arq). Filevault is on, there's no automatic login in effect. Works perfectly. I can remote to it too if I want to.

I gather that the biggest problem you all are struggling with is the fact that you need to get through reboots - but assuming a mini / Studio running Monterey is mostly sleeping and configured to do automated backups once a day, would that work just like it does on my old iMac? (with the caveat that the remote connection screen resolution might be wonky as was pointed out)

If I understand you correctly, yes, you could run a new (or old) Mini or Studio to act just like your iMac does now, no monitor needed. I can't think of any reason they wouldn't. I don't have mine using Filevault, but that seems to be an issue only relating to automatic re-booting as described above. Assuming you don't require Filevault AND auto-reboot, you should be fine! And a Mini would use less power than your iMac, no doubt.

 

[agregson]

Has anyone used a dummy mini displayPort on their mini, and if so did it work with an increase of resolution (2560x1400) using the Remote Desktop? I find the HDMI resolution too low when using my widescreen monitor.

I was experimenting with some dummy monitors I ordered from Amazon. Just to try out I got 2k, 4k HDMI and several display port. They work fine. Show up on mini as second or primary monitor with specified resolution.

Also tried something interesting. Connected my 21:9 monitor to mini along with dummy. Set the real screen to mirror the dummy screen and could force the resolution of real monitor to the dummy plug which the monitor duly displayed. Not really sure why that was useful but curiosity took over!

Your comment on HDMI resolution just may work with a dummy Mirroring as mentioned assuming the monitor can display the dummy resolution.

 

[agregson]

If I understand you correctly, yes, you could run a new (or old) Mini or Studio to act just like your iMac does now, no monitor needed. I can't think of any reason they wouldn't. I don't have mine using Filevault, but that seems to be an issue only relating to automatic re-booting as described above. Assuming you don't require Filevault AND auto-reboot, you should be fine! And a Mini would use less power than your iMac, no doubt.

Apple seriously miss a trick with the reboot and FileVault. Surely it can be done? Even use something like 2FA to phone much as works with a new device or iCloud signit, a physical yubikey or similar.

I have an HP mini PC running Windows 10 as a media server. The HP shows it’s enterprise build - quality very similar internally to a Mac mini yet without all the soldered on stuff (memory slots, wireless in slots, SATA slot, M2 NVMe slot etc). It uses UEFI and TPM. Windows can and does encrypt the boot drive and seems to manage just fine using physical TPM or fTPM (which processor also has). Keys can be exported and/or linked to MS account for recovery (as is digital license for Windows). Video resolution can be configured in UEFI firmware and/or Windows when booted headless. It will even PXE boot and I tested this from my NAS - worked a treat and loaded up both Windows and Linux from NAS then proceeded to use internal SSD and iSCSI on NAS. NAS is simple Synology DS218+.

Given HP and MS can manage all of this I am sure Apple could have sorted it. Surely a server is not that niche especially as Apple allow content caching, time machine and so on. A mini with option to act headless and retain security could even be just the consumer model with some sort of firmware option.

I love Apple kit - hardware and software. I have all my devices with Apple and would not consider others as my primary machines. However there are times when I see the locked down, soldered up hardware/software as a little frustrating. A Mac mini like the 2018 model with PCIe SSD in a slot would be a winner. Combine with external storage and GPU via TB then add some options to configure firmware and/or OS sensibly with some user control allowed (even if an expert mode) would be a winner for me and I suspect many more.

 

[agregson]

This is an interesting thread, thank you (all) for sharing your findings.

There's something related that I wanted to run by you: I've been running an old iMac on automation for the longest time, where it sleeps most of the time if I don't need it, but wakes up on its own at a specific time of day to run backups (TimeMachine, Arq). Filevault is on, there's no automatic login in effect. Works perfectly. I can remote to it too if I want to.

I gather that the biggest problem you all are struggling with is the fact that you need to get through reboots - but assuming a mini / Studio running Monterey is mostly sleeping and configured to do automated backups once a day, would that work just like it does on my old iMac? (with the caveat that the remote connection screen resolution might be wonky as was pointed out)

I can recommend Synology NAS. I think of them as what NAS would be if Apple did NAS. The “better” models also have the option to change storage, memory and other modules yourself.

I run a small HP mini PC as my network server. It can run TrueNAS which also works very well on Apple network and can handle SMB, TM and other tasks (though not content caching).

Both are very frugal on power, will sleep and wake reliably, have no issues with reboot, need no hacks and generally just work. The HP has been especially intriguing for me. the build quality and attention to detail in every aspect including UEFI really impressed me. These are clearly very different to the consumer tat that many PC vendors push out. I have a consumer HP laptop someone donated to me and it is a piece of junk compared to the HP enterprise or Apple kit. I suppose same applies to Dell - consumer monitors are at best consumer quality, yet the UltraSharp clearly show attention to detail and quality.

 

[Boyd01]

Apple seriously miss a trick with the reboot and FileVault. Surely it can be done?

I don't use FileVault, but this seems like something intentional. If you are concerned about security, you wouldn't want a computer to automatically boot/login where anybody could access it. Maybe I'm missing something, but why would you want to enable FileVault on a machine that is used like this?

Sounds like you just wish the Mini was something that it isn't.

 

[Puonti]

I can recommend Synology NAS. I think of them as what NAS would be if Apple did NAS. The “better” models also have the option to change storage, memory and other modules yourself.

I've occasionally considered a NAS, but so far they've not made sense for my needs. Some day they might.

 

[agregson]

I don't use FileVault, but this seems like something intentional. If you are concerned about security, you wouldn't want a computer to automatically boot/login where anybody could access it. Maybe I'm missing something, but why would you want to enable FileVault on a machine that is used like this?

Sounds like you just wish the Mini was something that it isn't.

I probably do wish it was something it isn’t. I suppose Apple have been moving away from servers for quite some time. I just thought that with no official network time machine and the inclusion of services in macOS there may have been some reasonable expectation to be able to run a headless server.

The reason for running FileVault on the server is mainly security. I like to secure all storage with hardware level encryption. This is true on my Synology NAS, my HP/Win10 mini server and all macs. The other reason is that I hoped to keep a copy of all iCloud data on the mini so it could be cached and backed up to external storage connected to mac. This is not that easy to do securely on a headless system.