Date: Wed, 7 May 1997 20:42:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Charles Owens <owensc@enc.edu> To: Mike Nowlin <mike@r2d2.smlab.com> Cc: "Michael L. VanLoon -- HeadCandy.com" <michaelv@MindBender.serv.net>, freebsd-stable@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: frozen virtual terminals on Dell system Message-ID: <Pine.FBS.3.93.970507203640.22577A-100000@dingo.its.enc.edu> In-Reply-To: <Pine.LNX.3.96.970507131107.5232D-100000@r2d2.smlab.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Wed, 7 May 1997, Mike Nowlin wrote:
>
>
> On Wed, 7 May 1997, Michael L. VanLoon -- HeadCandy.com wrote:
>
> > I have seen exactly this same problem under NetBSD. I was going
> > through a switch-box, however, and just assumed the switch-box was to
> > blame. Now, I suspect that it's actually the Dell keyboard hardware.
>
> We have a single keyboard connected via switch box to a FreeBSD 2.1.7
> machine, two Linux boxes, and a Win95 box... If you flip the switch too
> fast, the keyboard locks up. But if you "pause" between the switch
> positions (halfway between A and B), it works fine... Has something to do
> with the keyboard power being cut off and the sync pulses from the CPUs...
>
> --mike
Some switch boxes have diodes on the keyboard power lines that are
supposed to maintain constant power to the keyboard while switching. My
friend found that this was actually causing some kind of spike that was
blowing the keyboard power fuse on the motherboard. He blew two of these
fuses and then decided to remove the diodes and wire the power lines the
same as all other lines. Now when the switch is flipped power the
keyboard gets power cycled. He's not had any more trouble.
To be safe, when I bought my switchbox (from JDR) I rewired it in the same
manner and have had no problems in over a year and a half of frequent
switching.
(I don't have a Dell, BTW...)
---
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Charles N. Owens Email: owensc@enc.edu
http://www.enc.edu/~owensc
Network & Systems Administrator
Information Technology Services "Outside of a dog, a book is a man's
Eastern Nazarene College best friend. Inside of a dog it's
too dark to read." - Groucho Marx
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?Pine.FBS.3.93.970507203640.22577A-100000>