SERVSWITCH™ MULTI
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6. Planning and Installing anExpanded System (Optional)
If you are going to be setting up a keyboard/video/mouse-switching system that involves interconnecting
multiple ServSwitch Multi units, you should follow the instructions in this chapter to design the layout of this
system and install your Switch-to-Switch links (including Expansion Cards and expansion cables) before you
install any Interface, Management, or Serial Cards in, or attach any computer or peripheral equipment to, any
individual Switch.
This chapter will focus on the basic principles of ServSwitch Multi expansion, on installing expansion
hardware, and on possible designs for expanded layouts that involve only the ServSwitch Multi EXP and SB
(and, if absolutely necessary, the Base Unit and MX). For information about the ServSwitch Multi Hub
(including how to install it and its modules) and on designs for expanded layouts including the Hub, refer to
Chapter 7.

CAUTION!

Systems involving a large number of ServSwitch Multi units can be very tricky to set

up, and if they are wrongly configured, it can be difficult to figure out where the

problem is. Read this chapter carefully; if there’s anything you’re not clear about or

not confident about, please call Black Box Technical Support before you proceed, and

consult with our technicians for added assurance that your configuration will be

correct the first time.

To expand your ServSwitch Multi system beyond the confines of a single unit, you will need to add Expansion
Transmit and Receive Cards to your system. Connecting a Transmit Card in one Switch to a Receive Card in
another melds those two Switches into one larger switching matrix; see Figure 6-1 on the next page. If you
install Transmit Cards in the same ServSwitch Multi as a set of computers, those computers can communicate
with consoles (user stations) attached to other Switches. Conversely, if you install Receive Cards in the same
ServSwitch Multi as one or more consoles, those consoles can communicate with computers attached to other
Switches. Regardless of whether or not any Expansion Cards are installed in a ServSwitch Multi, the console(s)
attached to that unit can always access any computer attached to the same unit.
You will use one or more Expansion Cables to connect your Transmit Cards to your Receive Cards. Each of
these cables can be up to 250 feet (76.2 m) long (although total cable length between a console and a
computer can’t be more than 500 ft. [152.4 m]). Two ports are available on each Transmit and Receive Card for
Expansion-Cable connections.
Refer to Section 2.6.4 for descriptions and illustrations of the ServSwitch Multi EXP and the Expansion Cards
and Cables.