Here is the question. I have a Minview DVI KVM from Iogear (GCS 1782). I have a 30" HP DVI-D dual link monitor. I am trying to connect a laptop with VGA which to one of the KVM ports and obviously it is not working with an adapter.
Will Plugable UGA-2K-A do the job for me?
Hi Thomas,
Thanks for asking ahead before buying our UGA-2-A (http://plugable.com/products/uga-2k-a/) in a specific case like this!
In the end, I’m suspecting the problem will be that you want a dual-link DVI connection from one machine, and need to use a USB display on the other – but no USB display supports dual-link, so it would be a single-link DVI connection from that side. I’m not sure this KVM could handle that – I’m suspecting there’ll be a problem (unless you go to single-link from both computers).
Here’s some detailed thoughts:
* The model you have (http://www.iogear.com/product/GCS1782/) has explicit support for EDID which is great, because both USB graphics specifically and Windows 7 generally require it – and many other KVMs don’t support it.
* There are no USB 2.0 graphics adapters that support dual-link DVI. So you’ll need an extra single-link DVI cable (if your monitor didn’t already come with one), and use that to connect with the UGA-2K-A. You’ll have a max mode up to 2048x1152 (if the monitor offers that as a secondary choice in its EDID).
* In theory, you might be able to use the UGA-2K-A on either side of the KVM - as a DVI output device to the KVM for the VGA-only computer (assuming the other computer has native DVI out?) — Or, not even use the DVI connector on the KVM, and rather have the UGA-2K-A go straight to the monitor, and plug it into the switching hub on the KVM, and just a USB cable from the KVM to each computer.
* *That said* we’ve seen a lot of special issues with KVMs - they’re not all perfectly compatible with every device (EDID is the most common problem on the video side; some KVMs have limited USB support). So the KVM may have limitations to watch out for (we don’t have or know the details of this model).
* Which leads us to another option - you could buy a cheaper USB switch (like http://www.amazon.com/USB-Device-Swit…) and have the single UGA-2K-A be the connection to the monitor for both machines. It’ll be single link, though.
So again, this is a great opportunity to talk about the options of KVMs. But in your particular case – because of the high-end dual-link DVI monitor – I wouldn’t recommend the solution, because you’ll likely be stuck at a lower resolution than you want.
Hope that helps. Thanks again for asking ahead!
Bernie