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PS2 Mouse disconnect

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by hereinoz 1 view

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Hi All,

Hopefully you can assist. I am contemplating connecting up a data switch, one of the old manual types, so that I can use the same monitor, keyboard, and mouse, with 2 separate computers that I may be working on at the time.

I have in the back of my mind that unplugging and re-plugging a PS2 Mouse plug from a computer while it is powered up will damage the PS2 circuitry on the motherboard.

Firstly, is this the case, or is it not, and secondly, if I connect the PS2 mouse through the data switch, will switching from computer to computer be the same as unplugging and re-plugging the mouse with the machines powered up.

In other words, do I stand a chance of damaging 2 machines in one go, by disconnecting and reconnecting the mouse via the data switch.

I really appreciate your opinions, and I emphasise that whatever you say, the final decision is mine, and if I decide to give it a go, even if you say it should be OK, and it causes a problem, the responsibility is entirely mine. No hard feelings!!

Look forward to hearing from you.

Alan

7 replies

by hereinoz

Hi bigkenny,

Good morning to you in the UK. I have a daughter living in London, so I hope the weather is not being too unkind today

I don't actually want to unplug anything, that is the point. What I want to do is connect the PS2 mouse through a switch, but I am concerned that by disconnecting the PS2 mouse using the switch, I may be replicating the situation of an "unplugging" by virtue of the disconnection, and I am wondering whether this will damage the PS2 port in the same way as I have been told that physically unplugging and reconnecting the PS2 mouse does. I have never been game to try it - unplugging & re-plugging that is - so I don't know what will happen.

Hence the request for opinions. I already have the switch -just want to know if I am going to damage anything.

by cptomlly

I beleive what you are calling a data switch is actually a KVM (keyboard/video/mouse) switch. I've been using a rather cheap one in my testing lab for several months now, and I've seen no adverse effects. We also use a more sophisticated rackmounted unit on several servers at the office and it works great.

I think the possible damage you are referring to was connecting a SERIAL port mouse, not a PS2 mouse. The only issue that I see switching back and forth on mine is that sometimes Windows "loses" the mouse, and I have to reboot the machine to get the mouse moving again. This could however be the rather cheap KVM I purchased (I was bargain-hunting).

Just make sure that your hardware is supported by the switch you have You should be able to find monitor resolution/refresh rates, supported mice/keyboards). I made the mistake of buying one that doesn't support anything but Microsoft 2-button mice, which are hard to find now! So it malfunctions sometimes, but there are plenty of models that support optical and/or multi-button mice.

Hope this helps.

by hereinoz

Thank you for your response. I did get hold of an old manual type of KVM switch, for it is indeed what I am using. Gave it a shot and all works fine. Many thanks to you and Chas for your input on this one. I don't know whether the switch was a "quality" one or not - it was the only one in the shop apart from the automatic types, but I went for the manual one.

Again, many thanks.

Alan

by thechas

Yes, there is an issue when you hot plug and un-plug PS/2 devices from the ports.

The port or the hardware in the device can be damaged.

This happens mainly when 1 line connects or disconnects before the other lines.
I believe the "worst" case is loosing ground with power and signal still connected.

If you are using a quality KVM switch specifically designed for use with PS/2 devices, you should not have any problems as all the lines will be switched simultaneously.

The newer auto KVM switches are even safer as they perform all switching electronically.

Chas

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