Anybody have any experience with KVM switches? Particularly any knowledge of problems with the older mechanical variety?

I got one, but want to make sure it's ok before I use it...

I've got a Belkin Omniview SOHO model. Works as advertised. Then again, it's not all that old.

John

Yeah, I'm looking for info on the old manual switch kind. This one doesn't provide any keyboard or mouse signal emulation, so effectively, you're just unplugging and reattaching the devices when you switch it. Since you're not really supposed to hot-swap these devices, I was just wondering what the trick is...

Now that I think about it, I've occasionally worked with an older one that probably didn't do signal emulation (a Belkin switch circa 1998/99). It was a four port switch with three ports in use, one to computer with NT 4, one to a computer with Win98, and one to an SGI workstation. The keyboard, mouse and monitor were all from the SGI.

It seemed to work OK, but there were a couple of things to remember. If you had to reboot one of the machines, that particular machine had to be selected during the boot process (this is the biggest thing w/o signal emulation, I think). Also, if you switched over to NT 4, the mouse would sometimes 'go crazy,' and you would have to switch to another computer and back to fix it.

John

Luckily, the guy I got the switch from told me the trick about having the machine selected during boot, although I guess I would have figured that out the first time I didn't do it :)

I just wonder why it's ok to use a switch like that when you're not supposed to hot-swap the mouse or keyboard for fear of frying your board...oh well...

Thanks for the replies john

That's a good question. I don't know for sure, but I suspect the reason has to do with ESD. Normally, when you connect a mouse/keyboard through a ps/2 (or older) port there is no guarantee that the board and the device will be at the same potential, so there would be a possibility of an ESD. With a KVM, even if everything is switched mechanically you can still keep a common ground.

That's just a guess though.

John

PS - Now that I have one I wonder how I ever lived without it.

All right you two, how about letting some of us in on what in the world this KVM switch provides!?

I looked around initially when I read the post and found KVM switches by the truck load...alas, couldn't find anything of value on what they were used for...features, benefits, etc. :(

john, if you "cannot live with out one," what in the world are we all missing out on? ;)

Hi Whyzman,

KVM stands for Keyboard Video Mouse :).

It's a switch that allows you to hook up multiple computers to one keyboard, mouse, and monitor. If your like me and you have a lot of used hardware lying around going to waste, but you don't really have the money/space for additional monitors, KVMs are great.

I use Linux almost exclusively, but there are some things I need Windows for; I really found it a hassle to reboot every time I needed to switch, but with a KVM all I have to do is press a button.

John

John,

Thanks for the info! ;)

I have a follow-up question...

In order to switch between computers are all computers hooked to the system booting up simultaneously and idling in the event you want to switch? You mentioned you didn't want to have to hassle with reboots when switching.....

Whyzman,

Yes, they are both on at the same time (allthough they don't have to be, and their is no requirement to boot them simultaneously). The thing that really drove me crazy with a dual boot setup was that every time I needed to switch between Linux and Windows, I had to stop what I was doing, log out, restart, log in, do what I needed to do, and *hope* that I didn't forget something and have to do it all over again 10 minutes later. Now all I have to do is press a button.

Here (http://www.tomshardware.com/network/01q4/011017/index.html) is a nice review/explanation of KVM's from Tom's Hardware Guide. It's what first got me interested.

John