NVIDIA Jetson Nano and Orin Nano Setup Guide
The Jetson Nano and Jetson Orin Nano from NVIDIA are small computers built for embedded applications and capable of supporting modern AI workloads.
Follow this guide to set up the Jetson Nano Developer Kit or the Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit to prepare your NVIDIA Jetson Nano for viam-server
installation.


Important
This guide assumes that you have a Jetson Nano Developer Kit or a Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit with a Jetson module and reference carrier board. If you want to use a different carrier board to incorporate your Nano into your machine, the type of carrier board you use will affect your hardware requirements.
CAUTION: Use 3.3V inputs and outputs
The GPIO pins on Jetson boards are rated 3.3V signals. 5V signals from encoders and sensors can cause damage to a pin. We recommend selecting hardware that can operate 3.3V signals or lower. For details, see pages 1-3 of the Jetson Nano Developer Kit 40-Pin Expansion Header GPIO Usage Considerations Applications Note.
Hardware requirements
You need the following hardware, tools, and software to install viam-server
on a Jetson Nano or Jetson Orin Nano:
Initial setup with display attached:
- A Jetson Nano Developer Kit or Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit
- A microSD card (32GB UHS-1 minimum recommended)
- A computer display (HDMI or DP) with a USB keyboard and mouse
- A way to connect the microSD card to the computer (like a microSD slot or microSD reader)
- Ethernet cable and/or Wifi dongle, to establish network connection on the Nano
- 5V-2A (Nano) or 9-19V (Orin Nano) DC power supply with barrel jack connector
Initial setup in headless mode:
- A Jetson Nano Developer Kit or Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit
- A microSD card (32GB UHS-1 minimum recommended)
- An internet-connected computer
- A way to connect the computer to the Nano (like a USB 2.0 A-Male to Micro B Cable)
- A way to connect the microSD card to the computer (like a microSD slot or microSD reader)
- Ethernet cable and/or Wifi dongle, to establish network connection on the Nano
- 5V-2A (Nano) or 9-19V (Orin Nano) DC power supply with barrel jack connector
Nano setup guide
Follow the instructions in Getting Started with Jetson Nano Developer Kit or Getting Started with Jetson Orin Nano Developer Kit. Once you have reached Next Steps, return to the Viam docs.
Note
Some vision services in the registry require you to install Jetpack 6 on your Jetson AGX Orin. If you intend to use GPIO, however, we recommend installing Jetpack 5 on your Jetson AGX Orin.
Install viam-server
Tip: viam-server
installation with curl
If curl
is not installed on your Orin, run sudo apt install curl
before downloading the viam-server
binary.
If this command fails, try using wget https://storage.googleapis.com/packages.viam.com/apps/viam-server/viam-server-stable-aarch64.AppImage
to download the viam-server
binary.
viam-server
is the open-source software that drives your hardware and connects your device to the cloud.
Install viam-server
on the computer or single-board computer (SBC) that is directly connected to your hardware (for example sensors, cameras, or motors):
Make sure your computer or SBC is powered on and connected to the internet.
Create a Viam account on app.viam.com. You can configure and manage devices and data collection in the web UI.
Create a new machine using the Add machine button in the top right corner of the LOCATIONS tab in the app. A machine represents your device.
On your machine’s page, click View setup instructions.
Select Linux / Aarch64.
Select your installation method:
viam-agent
(recommended): installs viam-agent, which will automatically install (and update) viam-server and provide additional functionality such as provisioning and operating system update configuration.manual
: installs onlyviam-server
on your machine.
Follow the instructions on the page to install
viam-server
and connect it to the cloud with your machine’s unique credentials.After you install
viam-server
, a secure connection is automatically established between your machine and Viam. When you update your machine’s configuration,viam-server
automatically gets the updates.You are ready to configure supported hardware on your machine.
Serial communication protocol tips
To change the pins that are in use for modes of serial communication, launch
cd ~
sudo /opt/nvidia/jetson-io/jetson-io.py
In the interactive menu that opens, select Configure Jetson 40 Pin Header and Configure header pins manually to select and deselect pins to enable use. For a Jetson Orin Nano, reference the following:
GPIO Header Pin | Viam Bus ID | jetson-io.py ID |
---|---|---|
3, 5 | 7 | i2c2 |
27, 28 | 1 | i2c8 |
19, 21, 23, 24, 26 | 0 | spi1 |
13, 16, 18, 22, 37 | 2 | spi3 |
15 | pwm1 | |
33 | pwm5 |
Note that I2C buses do not need to be configured through
Try an example
Once you’ve installed viam-server
and your machine has come online, if your machine has a webcam, you can try an example project:
Click the + icon next to your machine part in the left-hand menu and select Insert Fragment.
Add the
DeskSafariGame
fragment by theRobot Land
organization and click Insert Fragment. This adds a number of resources to your machine:- a camera component which connects to the webcam
- machine learning resources to run a model and apply it to the camera stream
- control logic that implements a game
Save your config and review the available resources on the CONFIGURE tab.
Log into this Viam application with your Viam credentials and select your machine. The application provides a UI for playing the game
Select a camera and press the Start Game button. The goal of the game is to find and show specific objects to the camera.
If you’d like to learn how to create this game, see the Desk Safari tutorial.
Should the game not work, return to your machine in the Viam web UI and check the LOGS tab for errors.
Next steps
Troubleshooting
Make sure the polarity on your barrel jack power supply is matched when powering your machine. See the last step of your appropriate initial setup guide for instructions on choosing the correct power supply for your Nano board.
If you do not see an interactive menu after launching
You can find additional assistance in the Troubleshooting section.
You can also ask questions in the Community Discord and we will be happy to help.
Was this page helpful?
Glad to hear it! If you have any other feedback please let us know:
We're sorry about that. To help us improve, please tell us what we can do better:
Thank you!