Multiple Computers, 1 Keyboard/Mouse, No KVM
In my office at work, have have set up two computer systems (soon to be three). Once system is for my day to day work and the other system is for testing and monitoring. Each system has two screens giving me a total of four screens.
Now, the one thing that I didn’t want was two keyboards and mice. So, my first thought was, “Get a KVM. Problem solved.” The problem was that I needed to have all of the screens active at the same time. With a KVM, I would switch screens (although I could always not use the screen portion). The other issue that I saw was that a multiple screen KVM with digital inputs started to get pricy!
After some research, I discovered a wonderful little program called Synergy. It allows you to run a program on each computer and then it transfers control from one computer to another. So now, all I need to do is slide the mouse off the right hand side of screen two on computer one and it magically appears on screen one of computer two.
I have put together a little tutorial on setting up a two computer system with a single keyboard and mouse. I also explain how to set up the system so that it is taking up a minimial amount of desk space with the maximum amount of usability.
If you are planning on running more than one computer, this will give you a really good head start and probably give you some ideas that you have not thought about.
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18 Responses to “Multiple Computers, 1 Keyboard/Mouse, No KVM”
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Robert T Muir Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 8:38 amSynergy looks like a very cool application and it *is* free. However, couldn’t you use a cheap KVM and leave the monitors connected to the appropriate computer instead of connecting them to the KVM?
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Josh Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 8:49 amI always just hook up a KVM to the keyboard and mouse and set the monitors directly into the various machines.
Don’t you have an issue when you have to reboot the master machine?
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deryl Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 9:51 amvery good i have a set up that looks alot like that but mine has 5 moniters and 6 computers the last computer number 6 is my server which is not online right now!!! but i like your set up as well!!!
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Rob Dunn Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 10:10 amHandy dandy tool, although the thing to remember is that some people think that this is a way to extend your desktop. But of course, it is moreso an easier way to remote control your various computers (if you have multiple monitors).
You are right to point out that it is an extremely easy way to remote control multiple computers quickly and easily! I like the idea of calling it a KVM without the KVM - - I’ve added that to my Synergy entry!
I did a review of this at confessions awhile back (for further reading):
http://maximillianx.blogspot.com/2006/05/extend-your-desktop-to-another-pc.html -
Jeffrey Cornish Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 11:53 amI’ve used Synergy for a couple of years now. It’s a marvelous method to use a laptop and a desktop computer next to one another without switching back and forth between keyboards and mice.
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Pebbles Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 2:43 pmI love this software, it really does do the job very well, the only downer is that right now it’s not very actively developed, from what i read on the synergy forums, the 2 guys working on it most of the time have other things occupying their time right now, with no real time-line for when hey will get back to it, although they are talking about a complete re-write from the ground up, a daunting task i believe.
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Simon Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 2:44 pmIf you like Synergy, you will LOVE MaxiVista. It does the KVM thing like Synergy (but more reliably) plus allows you to ‘borrow’ the other PC’s monitors to the other PCs.
Hard to explain, amazing to watch in the video:
http://www.maxivista.com/demo.htmSimon
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runpcrun Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 5:30 pmThe killer feature for me compared to a KVM is being able to cut/copy/paste text between the different machines - regardless of their operating system.
Unless there’s some new KVM’s I’ve not been using? -
SideWynder Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 7:03 pmI’ve been using Synergy for quite some time now. The friend who demonstrated it to me had three screens set up - the center (and server) was his Windows desktop PC. To the right was his MacBook laptop running OSX and to the left was a terminal connected to a Solaris machine. My setup is a similar but Windows, OSX and Ubuntu Linux all controlled by a single keyboard & mouse and able to copy text on any machine and paste it to any other. It’s great!
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Business Unusual Says:
February 19th, 2007 at 10:55 pmHow about running multiple computers, four monitors, one keyboard and one mouse, all at the same time. Impossible, you say! Tim to the rescue with a how-to on a software program and a little time. This will gain you major status around the office. Daily Cup of Tech » Multiple Computers, 1 Keyboard/Mouse, No KVM
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Leif Dalands blogg - IT & Annet Says:
February 25th, 2007 at 9:05 pmcomputer one and it magically appears on screen one of computer two. DCoT har også i anledningen satt opp en god veiledning som er verd å følge. Lifehacker har satt opp en annen veiledning som tar for seg oppsett mellom en Mac og en PC. Kilde: Daily Cup of Tech Del innlegget med andre
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K-IntheHouse Says:
June 19th, 2007 at 10:37 amJust came across this post! Sounds like a great tool and I am definitely trying it out..
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H4CK1N6 D3J4 VU Says:
September 16th, 2007 at 3:27 amhappy, I am thinking again about computers and what would be the best setup for me. So I am searching to see if there is another option other than using a KVM switch to hook up one keyboard to all machines. And I found, in fact I re-found Synergy(viaDailycupoftech). I had forgotten all about it. Here is a video on Youtube. Now this solution is not perfect(the synergy page says its not perfect on Macs) but I at least get to operate two(Mac Pro and PS3) machines with one keyboard.
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CH Says:
December 9th, 2008 at 8:56 amCan someone please help me? I am not good at a lot of computer stuff. My husband wants me to buy him a kvm for Christmas, but after some research I believe he can do the same thing through synergy. All he wants to do is to use 2 computers, 2 monitors and 1 keyboard and 1 mouse. From the research I have been doing I believe that the KVM is mainly for 1 monitor and not 2 however it can be wired to use 2 from what I understood. Can someone tell me if Synergy is the best route to go and if it is truly safe to use? Also from what I read their is no cost to use Synergy is this correct?
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Dave Says:
September 7th, 2009 at 2:17 pmGood program. Also merges the clipboards, so you can copy and paste between computers. Very useful. The only slight quirk I have come across is that extremely rarely (so rare, it’s hardly worth worrying about!) the cursor gets “trapped” on the right-hand screen of my two-PC set-up but I think it happens under a lot of activity and multi-tasking, so the poor thing obviously gets confused!
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dlassen Says:
September 19th, 2009 at 1:30 pmNice work - however I need a slightly different flavor of this setup.
My setup and requirements are essentially the same as yours with one difference: although my 2nd (and sometimes 3rd) PC are on the same network as my primary PC, they are often connected via a VPN to a one of my client’s networks. I believe this precludes using Synergy - is that correct?
Is the only option a physical switch ?
Thanks in advance for any comments ideas!
Dennis
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