Question KVM Switch Three Monitors DP Help Please

[noob123]

Hello,

I have two computers, three 4K monitors. I am looking for a high end KVM switch that will allow me to switch between the two computers. An included audio switch would be nice as well. Does anyone have any recommendations for the best switch? Also note I''d prefer DP connections. Thank you in advance!

 

[aigomorla]

...

at this point have you considered maybe to instead remote into the machine instead of kvm if you need all the displays.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Do you want to just switch the main display or all 3? A 3 monitor KVM might be harder to find but check out TESmart KVMs on Amazon they have a variety of them. They do have 2x monitor ones at least but can't see any that are 3. I have two single monitor ones, best KVM I ever used. They switch decently fast, and they don't lock up or go flaky like a lot of KVMs seem to do. I personally tend to just switch the primary monitor as the other boxes don't have multi monitor just the main one.

Amazon.ca : tesmart

Something there might possibly work for you. The Matrixes might be worth looking at too.

 

[noob123]

Thank you for that recommendation Red Squirrel! I will definitely check those switches out- I was under the impression that if I have three monitors, the switch wouldn't work unless I had a three switch KVM? In other words, can I switch from three screens to one, or two for that matter if need be? If so, do you have a different / better recommendation for a switch?

 

[noob123]

Also note I found this:

CKlau 4 port KVM

which seems legit- not sure if you have heard to this brand or could recommend it? Thanks again in advance!

 

[Red Squirrel]

Shows as unavailable but never heard of it. Looks like it might be decent though.

 

[noob123]

Shows as unavailable but never heard of it. Looks like it might be decent though.

OK thanks! So is it in fact possible to go from three monitors to one, or two? I thought if you had three monitors you had to switch to three from three?

 

[Red Squirrel]

OK thanks! So is it in fact possible to go from three monitors to one, or two? I thought if you had three monitors you had to switch to three from three?

No you don't have to switch them all if you don't want. For example if the centre monitor is your primary you would run that one through the KVM and the other monitors direct to the PC. You could use the KVM to switch to a different PC on the main monitor while the other two are still displaying what's on the main PC.

Now if the other PCs have multi monitor too, that's when you want a KVM that can switch multi monitors. Or you can use separate KVMs for each. You can also get HDMI switches so that would work too for the other monitors. There's different ways you can do it, depends what you want in the end.

I personally tend to stick to a single monitor KVM as I normally only have one machine that requires more than one monitor.

 

[noob123]

Wow Ok thank you man! In that case I only need one monitor on my second machine- so one last question, I have all three of my monitors connected via DP, direct to the computer, could I run an HDMI cable from my main monitor to the KVM, while keeping the DP plugged in, and still switch properly? with both the HDMI and DP plugged in to the same monitor?

No you don't have to switch them all if you don't want. For example if the centre monitor is your primary you would run that one through the KVM and the other monitors direct to the PC. You could use the KVM to switch to a different PC on the main monitor while the other two are still displaying what's on the main PC. ..

 

[Red Squirrel]

That would work too, you could then switch the monitor only.

Only thing is Windows does this weird thing where if you switch an input it starts to shuffle all your windows all over the place, so if you do plan to switch monitors you may still want a KVM or HDMI/DP switch. But you can experiment without it and see if it works. It seems to depend from system to system whether or not it will cause problems. Even in Linux I had issues when switching my second monitor to my work machine and it would shuffle everything around. Really annoying.

 

[noob123]

That would work too, you could then switch the monitor only.

Only thing is Windows does this weird thing where if you switch an input it starts to shuffle all your windows all over the place, so if you do plan to switch monitors you may still want a KVM or HDMI/DP switch. But you can experiment without it and see if it works. It seems to depend from system to system whether or not it will cause problems. Even in Linux I had issues when switching my second monitor to my work machine and it would shuffle everything around. Really annoying.

Awesome thank you Red Squirrel! Super helpful. I am about to buy the tesmart right now. I really appreciate you!

 

[aigomorla]

Wow Ok thank you man! In that case I only need one monitor on my second machine-

do you do something which requires intensive 3D on the second machine?
If not you really want to RDP (remote desktop protocal) or VNC into the machine so you can be on both machines at the same time, or drop in the fly on other machine without having to flip a kvm switch.

Here is some info on what RDP is:

 

[noob123]

do you do something which requires intensive 3D on the second machine?
If not you really want to RDP (remote desktop protocal) or VNC into the machine so you can be on both machines at the same time, or drop in the fly on other machine without having to flip a kvm switch.

Here is some info on what RDP is:

wow very cool- ive never heard of this magic before? Very interesting I will check it out for sure, thank you!

 

[aigomorla]

the term we use is:

Headless PC setup with RDP.
Headless meaning it has no monitor keyboard or mouse.
RDP meaning RDP.

So its just a box which sits in the corner with the ethernet connector and power plug.

And you just remote into it as needed, and let it run by itself all happy in the corner.

 

[Red Squirrel]

RDP does not really replace a KVM though. A KVM gives you direct hardware access so even if you need to reload the OS or go in the bios etc you can still access the system. Now if the PC is just a server doing something in the background then yeah you can probably get away with just RDP, VNC etc. Though I often think of adding a KVM and KVM console to my server racks since any time I run into a system that is not responding or setting up a new system it's always a pain as I need to move it upstairs to the workbench.

 

[aigomorla]

A KVM gives you direct hardware access so even if you need to reload the OS or go in the bios etc you can still access the system.

i assumed its not for something like that because he required multi screen setups.
You could essentially stretch the RDP window across 3 screens and make it triple monitor.

But yes Squirrel is right, it has its limitations when you can not install the RDP program overlay or VNC on the OS, or if the OS halts and faults.

 

[postmortemIA]

There's best of both words, KVM over IP switches, bit pricey

KVM-OVER-IP Switches | Products - Raritan

Raritan provides a variety of KVM-over-IP Switches that leverage today’s Ethernet and TCP/IP networks to provide anytime/anywhere remote access, control and management. Our Dominion KVM-over-IP switches provide at-the-rack access plus unlimited IP access and control via LAN, WAN and the...

www.raritan.com

 

[noob123]

Thank you all for your insightful replies! I have the KVM switch that was recommended and it is working like a charm. Could not be more pleased with ti! Thank you kindly. You all seem extremely knowledge and thus I have a follow up question:

I have two PCs sitting right next to each other One for work., the other personal. I am all the time transferring files from one to the other, using a USB stick. Its a pain to constantly plug and unplug the USB. I was thinking it would be easier to just drag and drop between the two PCS- do you know the best way to do that? I looked at USB transfer cables, but they all require software, asking that I disable my firewall, so i'm not doing that. I have heard of setting them up as a network to share files? But I don't know how to do that. Id like to just see a hard drive on my file hierarchy of the other computer and just drag and drop between them without going into the cloud. I am sure this is possible, What do you think is the best solution?

Thank you again in advance!