Why network mode
Over USB, every board shares one cable and one USB controller. Some controllers stop at a handful of boards, which is why a Mac may show 6 or 7 boards while a Windows PC shows all 20. Over the network there is no such limit: each board talks to your browser through the router, so you can run several boxes from one laptop.
What you need
- Chrome 147 or newer on Mac, Windows or Linux.
- The computer and the box (or the boards’ Wi-Fi) on the same router.
- A USB connection once after each reboot of the boards, to switch them to network mode.
Set it up
- Put the box in USB mode (blue light) and connect the boards in PhoneFarm as usual.
- Open Network (OTG / Wi-Fi) in the sidebar and click Prepare boards. PhoneFarm starts a small helper on each board and opens its ADB network port (the same as
adb tcpip 5555). Boards reconnect over USB once. - Switch the box to OTG/LAN mode (green light) so the boards use Ethernet, or keep them on Wi-Fi. You can unplug the USB cable.
- Type your network range (for example
192.168.1) and click Find boards on my network. When Chrome asks to allow access to devices on your local network, click Allow.
Tick Network mode on to prepare boards automatically whenever they connect by USB and to reconnect network boards each time PhoneFarm opens.
Good to know
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is it safe? | Boards still require your ADB key, exactly like USB. The helper only forwards to the board’s own ADB service. |
| After a reboot | The helper and the network port stop. Connect the box by USB and click Prepare boards again. |
| OTG mode addresses | In OTG/LAN mode boards get new addresses from the router through Ethernet, so keep the range filled in. |
| Wi-Fi speed | A wired router handles 40+ boards well. On busy Wi-Fi, lower grid quality in Settings. |
Ready? Open PhoneFarm — or try the 40-phone demo first.