pikvm-ha-sensors

A Python script for collecting sensor information running on my PiKVM, and exporting to Home Assistant.

Prerequisites

This project requires uv for dependency management.

To install uv on PiKVM (Arch Linux ARM):

pacman -Sy uv

Installation

Configuration and installation is handled by install.sh. This script will:

1. Copy the source code to the persistent storage area (/var/lib/kvmd/pst/data/pikvm-ha-sensors).
2. Create/update the virtual environment and sync dependencies using uv sync.
3. Install and reload the systemd service.

Run the script using the kvmd-pstrun wrapper to ensure write access to persistent storage:

kvmd-pstrun -- ./install.sh

You can also use install.sh to upgrade an existing deployed program after updating the git repo.

Configuration

The application uses two YAML configuration files:

• config.yaml: Contains application-wide settings such as MQTT broker details, update intervals, and authentication.
• sensors.yaml: Defines the specific sensors to monitor, including their type, address, and Home Assistant presentation details.

For examples of the available variables and their usage, please refer to config.sample.yaml and sensors.sample.yaml provided in the repository.

Note, some sensors come from a Prometheus node exporter endpoint running on the host PiKVM is attached to; collecting these metrics obviously requires network connectivity, the host to be up, and the exporter running.

Usage

After installation, start/stop the service using systemd:

systemctl start pivkm-ha-sensors

Output is logged to the system journal:

$ journalctl -u pikvm-ha-sensors
Jan 23 07:15:35 pikvm python[21147]: Timestamp: 2026-01-23T07:15:35
Jan 23 07:15:35 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor chassis_temperature: 22.627°C
Jan 23 07:15:35 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor chassis_humidity: 41.83%
Jan 23 07:15:36 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor water_temperature: 20.75°C
Jan 23 07:15:36 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor air_intake_temperature: 18.406°C
Jan 23 07:15:37 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor air_exhaust_temperature: 21.625°C
Jan 23 07:15:37 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor atx_power: ON
Jan 23 07:15:38 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor cpu_temperature: 53.069°C
Jan 23 07:15:38 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor boot_time: 2025-12-30T15:01:51+00:00
Jan 23 07:15:38 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor loadavg: 4.8%
Jan 23 07:15:38 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor update_available: ON
Jan 23 07:15:38 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor host_cpu_temperature: 34.125°C
Jan 23 07:15:39 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor host_system_temperature: 34.5°C
Jan 23 07:15:39 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor host_vrm_temperature: 33.5°C
Jan 23 07:15:39 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor host_pch_temperature: 40.5°C
Jan 23 07:15:40 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor cpu_fan_speed: 1057RPM
Jan 23 07:15:40 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor pump_speed: 1336RPM
Jan 23 07:15:40 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor system_fan_speed_1: 670RPM
Jan 23 07:15:40 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor system_fan_speed_2: 651RPM
Jan 23 07:15:41 pikvm python[21147]:  ↪ Sensor system_fan_speed_3: 591RPM