How It Works
Pi-hole runs on the same Raspberry Pi as ClawTutor. Devices are registered by MAC address. When blocked, DNS resolution fails and the device can't connect to anything.
📺
Apple TV Beamer
🚫 Blocked
🎮
PlayStation 5
🚫 Blocked
📱
Max's iPad
✅ Allowed
💻
Nintendo Switch
🚫 Blocked
Parent Commands
Control devices directly via WhatsApp:
tv wohnzimmer an → Unlock living room TV tv aus → Block all TVs beamer 30 min max → Unlock beamer, deduct from Max's balance tv status → Show current state of all devices
Auto-Off Flow
1 Max requests 30 min Beamer
2 System checks balance (45 min available)
3 Beamer unlocked, 30 min deducted
4 Cron job monitors time
5 After 30 min → auto-block
Setup
- Devices must use Pi-hole as DNS (set in router or per-device)
- Register devices by MAC in
device-control.sh - Script uses Pi-hole FTL API to block/unblock
- Cron runs every 2 minutes to check for expired sessions
Why DNS?
DNS blocking is unbypassable for most devices:
- Works on any device without installing anything
- Apple TV, PlayStation, Switch — all blocked equally
- Kids can't disable it (unless they reconfigure network settings)
- Instant on/off — no app sync delays
For local-only games (offline Switch, downloaded content), a smart plug add-on can cut power to the TV entirely.
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