hotwheels 22

Q: 2006/2012 mac pro KVM switch?

hi all,

 

i need to get a "KVM" switch to (i guess) switch my monitor between my 2006 and 2012 mac pro. i am looking on the IOGear website as someone recommended a specific model to me but i have to find this recommendation and i can't quite figure out if i have options or what i need exactly. OWC does not seem to have much.

 

i've got a 27" (i believe) cinema display with a Mini DP, USB and magsafe power port and i have a 2006 mac pro with a DVI connection (i have to use a "Mini-DP to DVI Belkin converter to get from the 2006 to the cinema display) and i have a 2012 with a Mini-DP port.

 

anyone know what specs i need for this?

 

also, assuming i have the room on my desk is there a good reason to get a used mac monitor instead of the KVM switch?

 

THANKS

Mac Pro, OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Dec 28, 2014 4:35 PM

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Q: 2006/2012 mac pro KVM switch?

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  • by dot.com,Helpful

    dot.com dot.com Dec 28, 2014 4:49 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 2 (434 points)
    Dec 28, 2014 4:49 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    If I were you I would much rather have two monitors than just one so you can see both systems at the same time or have both monitors on one system - whichever makes your life the easiest.

  • by hotwheels 22,

    hotwheels 22 hotwheels 22 Dec 28, 2014 5:10 PM in response to dot.com
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 28, 2014 5:10 PM in response to dot.com

    yeah, i just sort of thought of that. the switch is $200+. presumably a used monitor would not be a whole lot more but who knows.

  • by dot.com,Helpful

    dot.com dot.com Dec 28, 2014 5:49 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 2 (434 points)
    Dec 28, 2014 5:49 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    Sometimes you can find a newer flat screen TV that has a VGA connection and can run up to 1920x1080 (Full HD) and looks pretty good. Good deals on Craigslist or ???

     

    good luck.....

  • by hotwheels 22,

    hotwheels 22 hotwheels 22 Dec 28, 2014 5:55 PM in response to dot.com
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 28, 2014 5:55 PM in response to dot.com

    thanks. just found one.

     

    any thoughts on what i should look out for on a 30" cinema display? presumably this will work on a newer mac pro?

     

    i guess i have to make sure it turns on and there are no dead pixels? do i look for pixels with a magnifying glass or something...?

     

    THANKS

  • by kaz-k,

    kaz-k kaz-k Dec 28, 2014 6:04 PM in response to dot.com
    Level 5 (5,850 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 28, 2014 6:04 PM in response to dot.com

    Also you can get more clear screen by DVI to HDMI cable with TV set which has HDMI ports.

  • by FishingAddict,

    FishingAddict FishingAddict Dec 28, 2014 6:11 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 4 (1,586 points)
    Mac OS X
    Dec 28, 2014 6:11 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    Just one other suggestion is to have a great monitor for your newer Mac, and just remote desktop into your older Mac.  No need for anything connected to the old Mac.  You an even put it somewhere out of the way in a closet as long as it has power and a network connection.

  • by hotwheels 22,

    hotwheels 22 hotwheels 22 Dec 28, 2014 6:15 PM in response to FishingAddict
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 28, 2014 6:15 PM in response to FishingAddict

    hi tim. this is a great idea and grant has been telling me the same thing.

     

    i think because i will want to get into boot camp that this is not an option but it may be for my old mac OS.

     

    can you just give me the quick step version of how this gets set up and how i work in it?

     

    presumably i turn on some kind of access settings on the "destination" mac pro and then i pull up some software that let's me see and work on the desktop of the destination mac pro while sitting in front of my new computer and looking at the computer screen of the new mac pro? is this a native mac app?

  • by dot.com,

    dot.com dot.com Dec 28, 2014 6:29 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 2 (434 points)
    Dec 28, 2014 6:29 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    I think the Apple "Cinema" type displays can run up to 2560x1600 which is even better than Full HD, but you need to make sure the video card in the Mac Pro's can run at that resolution and also that they will support the scan rates that the monitors do. Most good newer video cards should support the Cinema type displays, but make sure to check before buying the monitor. Doesn't make sense to spend the money on a nice cinema type display if the graphics card you have won't support it at it's best. If you're not sure what the graphics board is use the "System Information" utility and look at the Hardware section then under "Graphics" to see what they list as the graphics board(s) - you might have more than one graphics board, so make sure you plug the monitor into the board that supports it.

     

    Also to check for "dead" pixels here is what I do - create three images of a size to match the display's maximum resolution (e.g. 2560x1600 for your cinema display) in Photoshop or GIMP or some other good graphics app - one red, one green and one blue. Then display them on the monitor in full screen mode and look for "black spots" - those are dead pixels.

     

    good luck...

  • by hotwheels 22,

    hotwheels 22 hotwheels 22 Dec 28, 2014 6:46 PM in response to dot.com
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 28, 2014 6:46 PM in response to dot.com

    THANKS. so this monitor looks like a pretty good deal but i am not sure how old it is.

     

    can i please ask you what the reference to DUAL LINK DVI port is? http://www.everymac.com/monitors/apple/studio_cinema/specs/apple_cinema_display_ 30.html

     

    i have a 2012 mac pro nehalem processor that i upgraded to so i am pretty sure it can handle the monitor. not totally sure what kind of deal it is but if i have to buy a 200 dollar switch the price gets better.

     

    also, can you explain you dead pixel detection method again? you basically create a document that has the same pixel width as the monitor and you make one red one green and one blue and you just open them in preview basically? then a black spot on either represents a dead pixel? if so, in this case i can just create three png's with 2560x1600 pixels and put them on a usb stick is that right...?!

  • by dot.com,

    dot.com dot.com Dec 29, 2014 3:38 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 2 (434 points)
    Dec 29, 2014 3:38 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    Correct about creating the 3 png's - make sure they are "pure" red, green and blue - by pure I mean the red, green and blue is full on maximum. Since most full color images use 24 bits of RGB (8 bits for each red green or blue pixel) the most any single color can be is 255 which is all bits on in an 8-bit value. Depending on the software it might want you to specify them in hex (which would be 0xFF) or 255. Have to be able to view these screen size images in "full screen mode" so that you can light up all the pixels in the screen. Preview in Yosemite does have full-screen  mode (use Control-Command-F). When viewing the screen when it's displaying one of the png files, you should not see any "black" pixels at all and the color should be equally bright everywhere (no dim spots or bright spots). Also I think you should make a "black" png file as well and display it too - this will show if there are any "ghost" image effects or problems with the backlight part of the screen. There is sometimes a few dead pixels in any screen, so don't be surprised if you see a couple, but depending on what you're doing a couple of bad pixels out of 4 million (2560x1600=4,096,000) is still pretty good.

     

    These Cinema type Apple displays, to run at the highest resolution of 2560x1600, need graphics cards that have the dual-link DVI feature -- so it's important to know if your current graphics card can do this - if it doesn't you won't be able to run the display at it's highest resolution (1280x1024 will be the max without dual-link DVI). This is a function of the graphics card installed in the mac pro - nothing to do with the nehalem cpu's. So like I said, use System Information app to see what graphics card you have installed in the Mac Pro's and make sure at least one of them is dual-link DVI capable. You won't be able to attach the Cinema display to both Mac Pro's at the same time, like some other monitors are capable of (but those other monitors don't run at 2560x1600 resolution).

     

    Take a look at Apple Cinema Display (30-inch DVI) might show 1280 x 800 as maximum resolution - Apple Support for some more info about the cinema 30" displays

  • by hotwheels 22,

    hotwheels 22 hotwheels 22 Dec 29, 2014 5:30 PM in response to dot.com
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 29, 2014 5:30 PM in response to dot.com

    OK. so it looks like i have a ATI Radeon HD 5770 1024 MB card. and your link seems to show:

     

    Mac Pro (Mid 2012 and older)
    Power Mac G5 (all models)

    NVIDIA GeForce GT 120
    ATI Radeon HD 4870
    ATI Radeon HD 5770
    ATI Radeon HD 5870

    DVI port or Mini DisplayPort to Dual-Link DVI adapter

     

    does that mean i can use a DVI OUT from the display and the DVI IN port /or/ get a Dual Link DVI adapter to get this at full res??

     

    this is the back of the mac pro but i forget what the cord on the right hand side is:

     

     

    macpro graphics card.jpg

  • by dot.com,Solvedanswer

    dot.com dot.com Dec 29, 2014 6:40 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 2 (434 points)
    Dec 29, 2014 6:40 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    The photo shows a dual-link DVI port on the left and the other two are "MIniDisplay Port" connectors. With this setup you should be able to use two monitors or even three monitors after all  -- the 30" Cinema display on the dual-link DVI port and two other monitors (1980x1080 or less) on the Mini DisplayPort connectors (or another dual-link DVI type monitor with a "Mini DisplayPort to DVI dual-link compatible adapter").

     

    So to make it more explicit - you can attach these Cinema type super-high res (2560x1600) monitor to either the DVI port (with a dual-link DVI to dual-link DVI cable to the monitor) and/or a "Mini DisplayPort to dual-link DVI adapter" cable (the two Mini DisplayPort connectors on the MacPro side and the DVI connector on the monitor side).

     

    Do you have a local Apple store to go talk to someone in person so that there is no confusion about the cable you need for your MacPro and whatever monitors you end up using? It sounds like you're trying to be absolutely certain this is gonna work (and I don't blame you), but I'm just going by what I read and my experience with monitors and computers. I've never personally had this sort of set up with a Cinema type monitor runnning in 2560x1600 mode, so that's why I'm suggesting this so you feel good about whatever way you decide to go.

     

    good luck...

  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder Dec 29, 2014 9:19 PM in response to hotwheels 22
    Level 9 (61,130 points)
    Desktops
    Dec 29, 2014 9:19 PM in response to hotwheels 22

    Nothing to add, it's already in there.


    System preferences > Sharing > Screen Sharing


    OS X Yosemite: Share your screen