Frequently Asked Questions

Why "PicoJump"?

With a tiny amount of effort, you can configure a permanent jump to bridge to your internal server, and then access it from anywhere in the world.

Jumps

How do I get SSH access to my Device from the Internet?

Create an SSH Jump, as shown in the below video:

Will PicoJump work if my Device changes its IP address?

Yes.

Will PicoJump work if my Device roves (or roams) on (and across) mobile networks, or changes SIM cards?

Yes.

Will PicoJump work even if my Network Administrator (or firewall) doesn't allow inbound connections?

Yes, most likely. But you should always get permission from the network owner before installing PicoJump.

What are Jumps?

Technically, they are SSH port forwards that traverse a Secure Shell tunnel between your (possibly mobile) Device and a fixed internet-accessible PicoJump server.

Can I access multiple services all hosted on one Device?

Yes. You will need one Jump to forward each service (or port). E.g. one for SSH, and another separate one for Remote Desktop.

Do I need backup Jumps (more than one per service)?

It is advisable to have more that one Jump for mission critical services such as SSH access, especially if the Device is difficult to access physically (E.g. industrial measurement applications).

Can I have many SSH sessions/terminals over one Jump?

Yes, as many as you want.

Can I have many database connections over one Jump?

Yes, as many as you want.

Can I have many web connections, HTTP sessions over one Jump?

Yes, as many as you want.

What does this error mean "kex_exchange_identification: read: Connection reset by peer"?

The service (HTTP, SSH, Mosh, etc.) that you want to access must already be running and working on your device. In this case, an SSH daemon (this process is often namedsshd).

Try installing one with:

sudo apt-get install -y openssh-server

Security

How do I know whether or not PicoJump is installing malware / viruses / spying software / crypto-miners on my Device?

Everything that PicoJump installs on your Device is Free and Open Source Software. No closed source software. No proprietary software. You can inspect all of it, and many others have. So you can rest assured that your Device is only running software that has publicly vetted and audited like all software available in the standard Debian, Ubuntu, Rasperry Pi OS (Raspbian), etc. software repositories. Your privacy is very important to us.

Will PicoJump be able to read my communications?

Short answer: Not any more than your Internet Service Provider (ISP), or any other service provider (E.g. Google, Twitter).

Long answer: Connecting to a PicoJump server is exactly the same as connecting to any other server on the internet. For true confidentiality, you'll need to ensure that that connection is end-to-end encrypted in the correct manner for that specific service. E.g. SSH is always encrypted, so no problem; for Postgresql, use hostssl rather than host; use Secure FTP instead of legacy FTP, and so on.

Is my Device automatically secure if I use this service?

No, it's on the internet... The Jump to and from your Device and the PicoJump host on the internet is secure. PicoJump even detects and mitigates brute-forcing and denial-of-services attacks. But, it is up to you to decide on the traffic-type you send over the Jump. You may specifically want it not to be secure, that is, public (like a web-site). If this is not the case, then please ensure that you adhere to the usual security best practices. E.g. No default passwords (rather use keys), only use encrypted connections to the underlying service (e.g. TLS, SSL), and so on.

Why don't I just use local/remote/router port-forwarding?

You certainly can, but we think that PicoJump crystallizes tonnes of experience simplifying, enhancing and solving the problems doing exactly that. This is especially true once you have more than one Jump, need them in a production environment, or are concerned about security.

Installation

How do I install a Jump on a Device?

On your Device open a root terminal. On the PicoJump management hub add (create) a Jump. Then copy & paste the "Install Command" into your Device's root terminal and run (press Enter). The Jump's custom installation command will look something like:

curl -s https://hub.picojump.com/api/install/XXX/ | sudo bash

Feel free to examine the open source script first. E.g.: 

curl -s https://hub.picojump.com/api/install/XXX/  | less

Can I re-run the installation command?

Yes. It is idempotent. In fact, if a little too much tinkering has rendered your Device unstable, we suggest that you do in fact re-run the installation command.

How do I uninstall a Jump from a Device?

At the management hub for the Jump in question, click on the "Advanced" section and run the "Uninstall Command" on your Device. Unsurprisingly, you shouldn't be logged in over that Jump when you're uninstalling it.

For example:

SERVICE="picojump.XXX.service"
systemctl stop ${SERVICE}
systemctl disable ${SERVICE}
rm -f /etc/systemd/system/${SERVICE}
systemctl daemon-reload

How do I uninstall/remove all Jumps from a Device?

systemctl stop picojump.*.service
systemctl disable picojump.*.service
rm -f /etc/systemd/system/picojump.*.service
systemctl daemon-reload

How-Tos

How do I git push to my Device over PicoJump ?

See below.

How do I make a git remote use my SSH (port 22) Jump?

With this command:

git remote add my_repo_name ssh://user@XXX.picojump.com:NNNN/home/pi/src/my_repo.git

Get these values from the Jump's web page:

  • XXX the hostname
  • NNNN the forwarded port

Billing

Do I pay for Jumps when my Device is switched off or the internet connection is down?

Yes. We've allocated resources to your Device, even if it is not operating. Delete the Jump to return the resources and halt its charges.

Can I buy extra transfer data?

Yes, certainly (email us). But it's less hassle and cheaper to upgrade your plan.

System Requirements

Do I need internet access to install/run PicoJump?

Yes, you do need unrestricted outbound internet access. E.g. you can browse Wikipedia. However, you don't need inbound access (That is one of the challenges that PicoJump solves).

What Operating Systems or Distributions are supported?

During this βeta phase, we're only supporting Devices running a modern Debian-based, Linux distribution such as: Raspberry Pi Os (Raspbian), Ubuntu, Mint, Debian, Kubuntu, etc. Send us an email mentioning which Operating System you'd like us to support next.