Black Box manual Save money by sharing a PS/2 processor, Reset a keyboard without rebooting

© 2003. All rights reserved. Black Box Corporation.

Black Box Corporation • 1000 Park Drive • Lawrence, PA 15055-1018 • Tech Support: 724-746-5500 • www.blackbox.com • e-mail: info@blackbox.com

PS/2 STYLE KEYBOARD SWITCHES WITH VGA

Save money by sharing a PS/2 processor.

Key Features

Enable multiple workstations to share a single PS/2 compatible processor.

Or set them up so a single workstation has access to more than one processor.

For your PS/2 style keyboard with VGA video.

Perfect for sharing images between multiple users.

Rugged design with a lifetime guarantee. Include a reboot button to unlock a frozen keyboard.

With the BLACK BOX® PS/2 Style Keyboard Switches

with VGA, two (or more) different keyboard video/display stations can economically share one IBM® PS/2® compatible processor, or two (or more) such processors can be accessed by a single keyboard/video display station.

They’re perfect for small training seminars in a classroom- type setting where you require fast and efficient switching of keyboards and display stations between common PS/2 compatible processors. You can save money by sharing a common processor—money that can be used elsewhere in your network.

Reset a keyboard without rebooting

Before the development of our PS/2 Style Keyboard Switches with VGA, when two PS/2 compatible PCs were connected to a common keyboard, switching

between them was both tricky and uncertain. The momentary break in the keyboard power connections often caused the keyboard to “freeze.” This meant that the system had to be rebooted after switching.

Not so with these switches. They enable you to reset the keyboard through a reinitialization cycle so that the processor is able to accept new input data. To generate the reinitialization, just press and hold a front-panel pushbutton for several seconds. This lets you unlock a frozen keyboard without rebooting, saving you time (because you won’t waste time rebooting the computer after each switch process) and money (because you don’t have to buy extra keyboards and monitors).

Applications with two keyboard/video display stations typically do not require the reset

switch to be used—it’s usually required only when switching two different PS/2 compatible processors between a single keyboard and monitor.

Durable and easy to set up

The switches are built to last, too. Thanks to a sturdy design, the units can be moved from one location to another—in the office or on the road. In fact, we’re so certain of their durability, we include a lifetime guarantee at no additional charge.

What’s more, the PS/2 Style Keyboard Switches with VGA are easy to install and operate with no frustration over plugging and unplugging bundles of tangled cable. Just insert the common component plug into the rear- panel socket marked “C” and the components to be switched into the sockets that correspond to front-panel selector-knob positions.

Choose from desktop and rackmount chassis versions.

NOTE: These switches can be used with most types of PS/2 compatible processors. Avoid connecting them to actual IBM PS/2 CPUs, or to CPUs that are running OS/2® or other operating systems that must establish contact with the keyboard at bootup time. For more compatibility information, contact Technical Support.

Our desktop 2-to-1 version (the SW779A-R2) even includes cables!

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