diff --git a/docs/development/dev_setup.md b/docs/development/dev_setup.md
index 7fe72b59..74ab92cf 100644
--- a/docs/development/dev_setup.md
+++ b/docs/development/dev_setup.md
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ graph TD
 
 ### Run the local test suite
 
-The local test suite can be run via 
+The local test suite can be run via
 
 ```shell
 make test
@@ -53,6 +53,7 @@ make tilt-up
 ```
 
 This `Makefile` directive will:
+
 - create a local Kind cluster with local registry
 - install cert-manager
 - install [boot-operator](https://github.com/ironcore-dev/boot-operator) to reconcile the `ServerBootConfiguration` CRD
@@ -71,3 +72,166 @@ The local development environment can be deleted via
 ```shell
 make kind-delete
 ```
+
+### Connecting a Remote BMC in the Tilt Environment
+
+By default, Tilt runs against a local Redfish mock server. To point the environment at real hardware instead, apply the following changes.
+
+#### Prerequisites: Ensure the BMC is not actively managed
+
+Before connecting a real BMC to your local Tilt environment, make sure it is not actively reconciled by another `metal-operator` instance to avoid conflicts. Some common ways to achieve this:
+
+- **ServerMaintenance**: Create a `ServerMaintenance` resource on the production cluster to claim the server and optionally power it off.
+- **Exclude from automation**: Remove the server from the production `metal-operator`'s scope, for example via label selectors or namespace isolation, so it is no longer reconciled.
+- **Decommission temporarily**: If the server is not in active use, you can power it off or disconnect it from the production cluster before testing.
+
+> **Note:** Refer to your production cluster's runbooks for the appropriate procedure.
+
+If you use the `ServerMaintenance` approach, apply a manifest like this on the cluster that currently owns the server:
+
+```yaml
+apiVersion: metal.ironcore.dev/v1alpha1
+kind: ServerMaintenance
+metadata:
+  name: <maintenance-name>
+  namespace: default
+  annotations:
+    metal.ironcore.dev/maintenance-reason: '<maintenance-name>'
+spec:
+  policy: Enforced
+  serverRef:
+    name: <server-name>
+  serverPower: 'Off'
+```
+
+```shell
+# Run against the remote cluster
+kubectl apply -f servermaintenance-<node-name>.yaml
+```
+
+To release the server back when done:
+
+```shell
+# Run against the remote cluster
+kubectl delete -f servermaintenance-<node-name>.yaml
+```
+
+> **Note:** All `kubectl` commands from this point on target the **local** Kind cluster.
+
+#### 1. Replace the mockup endpoint with a real BMC resource
+
+Edit `config/redfish-mockup/redfish_mockup_endpoint.yaml` to define a `BMC` resource targeting the real hardware:
+
+```yaml
+apiVersion: metal.ironcore.dev/v1alpha1
+kind: BMC
+metadata:
+  name: <node-name>
+spec:
+  bmcSecretRef:
+    name: <node-name>
+  hostname: <bmc-hostname>
+  consoleProtocol:
+    name: SSH
+    port: 22
+  access:
+    ip: <bmc-ip>
+  protocol:
+    name: Redfish
+    port: 443
+    scheme: https
+```
+
+#### 2. Create a BMCSecret with credentials
+
+Create a `BMCSecret` file with credentials for the BMC:
+
+```yaml
+apiVersion: metal.ironcore.dev/v1alpha1
+kind: BMCSecret
+metadata:
+  name: <node-name>
+data:
+  username: <base64-encoded-username>
+  password: <base64-encoded-password>
+```
+
+> **Note:** The `username` and `password` values must be base64-encoded. You can encode them with `echo -n '<value>' | base64`.
+
+Save this as `bmcsecret-<node-name>.yaml`, but do not apply it yet.
+
+#### 3. Enable HTTPS for the BMC connection
+
+The `--insecure` flag is deprecated. Use `--protocol` and `--skip-cert-validation` instead.
+
+For a real BMC that uses HTTPS on port 443, configure the manager to use secure HTTPS with certificate validation enabled in the `Tiltfile`:
+
+```python
+settings = {
+    "new_args": {
+        "metal": [
+            # ...
+      "--protocol=https",
+      "--skip-cert-validation=false",
+        ],
+    }
+}
+```
+
+#### 4. Start Tilt and verify
+
+Start the environment:
+
+```shell
+make tilt-up
+```
+
+Once the manager is running, apply the `BMCSecret` to the local Kind cluster (it is not part of the kustomize config and must be applied manually):
+
+```shell
+# Run against the local Kind cluster
+kubectl apply -f bmcsecret-<node-name>.yaml
+```
+
+The metal-operator will pick up the `BMC` resource, connect to the remote hardware, and create a matching `Server` resource. Watch the resources come up:
+
+```shell
+kubectl get bmc -w
+kubectl get server -w
+```
+
+You can monitor the manager logs to verify the connection succeeds:
+
+```shell
+kubectl logs -n metal-operator-system deployment/metal-operator-controller-manager -c manager -f
+```
+
+To tear down the environment:
+
+```shell
+make kind-delete
+```
+
+#### Optional: Use the debug manager image
+
+To get a shell-accessible manager image with `curl` and `ca-certificates` (useful for diagnosing BMC connectivity), switch the Tilt build target to `manager-debug`:
+
+In `Tiltfile`:
+
+```python
+docker_build('controller', '../..', dockerfile='./Dockerfile', only=['ironcore-dev/metal-operator', 'gofish'], target = 'manager-debug')
+```
+
+And add the corresponding stage to `Dockerfile`:
+
+```dockerfile
+FROM debian:testing-slim AS manager-debug
+LABEL source_repository="https://github.com/ironcore-dev/metal-operator"
+WORKDIR /
+COPY --from=manager-builder /workspace/manager .
+COPY config/manager/ignition-template.yaml /etc/metal-operator/ignition-template.yaml
+RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y --no-install-recommends \
+    ca-certificates curl && \
+    rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
+ENTRYPOINT ["/manager"]
+```