Laptop Terminal Trickery

One of my onsite service contracts uses small Brick-type CPUs mounted in weathertight sealed enclosures as mini-servers for a security network. These CPUs are configured to be remotely managed for the most part and have no monitor or keyboard/mouse; when the IT guys can't get into them over the WAN connection, that's when I get called onsite.


Attached you can see a pic of a bit of hardware I've fabricated as a portable terminal for logging into these machines' local account; for security, there is no way to do many types of service EXCEPT by logging into the local account. As a result, the only way to do this is to physically connect a monitor, keyboard & mouse.

This setup works VERY well; it has a decent VGA/DVI input, the Mini-KB/TouchPoint has both PS/2 and USB connectivity, and it runs on a built-in battery for about 2 hours. When not in use, it closes up into an unassuming plain-Jane American Tourister briefcase that isn't a target for burglary.

The problem is this: Wherever I use this, I STILL have to have a laptop with me for other purposes. Said laptop of course ALREADY HAS everything I need this thing for; I just don't have an appropriate interface that would emulate, on a hardware level, the video INPUT and KB/Mouse OUTPUT this thing provides. I spent quite a while searching the WWW & calling equipment suppliers looking for such a device; all I ever got was the cyber-equivalent of the "dumb look". I simply CANNOT BELIEVE that I am the only person to ever desire such a thing; but still, 2 years later, I cannot find one.

I KNOW USB 2.0 provides more than enough data bandwidth; I've even puttered around with simple port transceivers to try & get the mouse/KB signal out of a serial port, so I KNOW it's possible. What I don't have is the programming knowledge; my Kung-fu is weak at best, and what I do have is very specialized.

Anyhow -

What I am looking for in a nutshell is this: a USB adapter & software product that will emulate, on a hardware level, the inputs & outputs of a Monitor, Keyboard & mouse such that XGA output from another computer's video shows on the laptop's screen, and output from the laptop's keyboard & mouse are sent out to discrete PS/2 connectors AS IF a real keyboard, monitor & mouse were connected to the external computer.

Does anyone know of such a product anywhere?

Thanks for your time,

mnem
I still think we can whip this whole entropy thing...

 

Two questions...how small would the device have to be in order to suit your needs? Secondly, would any type of a KVM switch work? I know the ones we have at work will accept inputs from three monitors and three cpu's along with the keyborard/mouse/etc. Thoughts?

 

http://www.grynx.com/projects/converted-laptop-keyboard/

You could try to rewire the inside keyboard connector of the laptop to also a keyboard controller and plug that into your box as mentioned in the above link. Then bring in the video output of the secure box through to the laptop by means of a usb video capture device dongle(cheap on ebay-used for video editing and video in). You might have to parse the signal of the boxes VGA output to svideo or composite for the dongle to except. It's doable. Be carefully when using the keyboard so as not to double up on the notebook connecting of its keyboard as to when used for the box. Assuming that if ur box has usb. You could try using a HP bluetooth printer dongle. They work bluetooth straight off the dongle without drivers under windows and buy a miniature buetooth keyboard(pocket sized) and use that to type with(has arrow keys for mouse movement). Getting the video output is a breeze as mentioned above

 

Trooper -

The issue is that there are no ports on a laptop to plug into the KVM; they don't do OUT, only IN (for the KB/Mouse - obviously, we need a IN for the monitor, which we also don't have). As far as size... I see no reason in the world why it would need to be any larger than a regular USB TV Tuner card or average-sized USB Hub. The device really isn't that complicated; it's more a matter of the software to pipe the signal where it needs to go.

Olej -

I've already spent plenty of time trying to hack one of my old laptops to do it; in fact, I've gotten a lot further along than this guy in terms of building a plug-n-play device. There's a reason I decided to frakk with it & just built my Briefcase Terminal; what I'm looking for is something ready to use. I simply cannot believe noone has developed a product this obvious.

mnem
"No need to point out the incredibly obvious, mnem - the merely obvious will do nicely."

 

Anyway you can load a VNC terminal program on the brick that only you have access to? All you would need is an ethernet port or with something like PCanywhere you can connect via a serial or parallel port. Of course this would depend on the OS that little computer runs and the availability of a VNC program for it.

 

mnem,
We use these little suckers on the dredge to send and receive RTK data and send video and serial data back and forth to the crane operator's cab and remote tide gauges and the like:
http://www.digi.com/technology/wireless/products.jsp
Everything runs through serial ports which we get a lot of with PCMCIA x 4 serial port cards. The stuff ain't cheap, but its good up to 16 miles in the 900mhz models. Feel free to tell me I'm an idiot if I have misunderstood what you want to do.
CAP

 

Tough2go, Cap'n -

We already HAVE secure VPN for general maintenance; the reason I get called in is for when that goes down - if the server crashes, or related hardware fails, I need to be able to get into the machine LOCALLY. At the HARDWARE LEVEL. I'm not trying to remote into the unit, or manage anything remotely. I just want a way to make my laptop take the place of a monitor, keyboard & mouse so I can stop carrying my Briefcase Terminal AND a laptop all over a site the size of a small city. Because I'm doing failure-mode operation, we CANNOT count on ANY software solution on the subject computer; I need to be able to get into the BIOS & troubleshoot as I said, at the hardware level.

mnem
Why does hardware always seem to turn into HARDER-ware?

 

So, in essence, you want your laptop to become a docking station for the brick?

Allowing video in from the brick making your laptop act as the monitor, but also allowing your laptop to act as keyboard/mouse for the said brick. Is that correct?

 

IF, and that's a big IF, I understand what you are trying to do...

Then BAM!

A KVM, in essence, allows you to hook up 2 or more PC's to one Monitor/Mouse/Keyboard. Using your "Laptop" as the VGA, and mouse/keyboard (You can get the cables that go from usb to 2 ps/2, or 1 ps/2 to two, whichever you fancy) and then hooking up the brick as 1 of the two PC's and you should be GTG

See Picture

 

That woun't work because the Toughbook can't take a VGA input to become a monitor for another computer and with your setup you would still need an external keyboard monitor and mouse which is what he is trying to avoid. I am afraid what he wants does not exist. So get hacking and invent it and become rich.

 

Doobi -

See my earlier response to Trooper -

The inputs need to be outputs & vicey-versey for that to work. No workey.

mnem
Innies vs outies? When did we start talking about belly buttons?

 

years ago when I was playing with the sharp zaurus, I found a vidio in AND out CF card, that could be adapted to PCMCIA. It was extremely expensive (for video out on a Z anyway, I think it was over $500) , but would solve your video problem. I also play with microcontrollers a lot, and it would be no problem to set up a chip to do usb to kbd/mouse. Then what would be left would be an application to display the video and send mouse movements and keycodes to the usb micro when the mouse was bound to that window. It shouldn't be too hard at all.

 

Looks like this might work for what you want to do:
http://www.epiphan.com/products/frame-grabbers/kvm2usb/

 

Good Info
Yes it's not cheap but that will work
Rep to you DiscoPanda



Alex

 

Nice work... I hope it works for Nmem! It looks like it should!

 

This is only slightly off subject, but check this one out...Makes you wonder just how small we can go and how soon they will do it!

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2009/02/marvell-offers.html

 

Huge. Try http://www.picotux.com/producte.html (and before you say the power brick would make it bigger than shown, remember they make a PoE version also.

 

Hmmmm.... Smaller = Harder to modify!


Pretty soon we'll need microscopes and Nano-workers!

 

Is that a KVM switch? Isn't that what I posted about, though not that particular one? Man I amaze me sometimes.. I was stabbing in the dark on that one. But nice come back with the correct one Disco.

Rep to you!!

 

YUP!

That's EXACTLY what I've been looking for.... now if I can just get my client to spring for it. I mean, I'd prolly spend as much as a hundred out of pocket for that convenience... but $400 plus S/H?

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

I'd have to do a lot x alot of service calls for them to make that cost effective.

mnem
Of course, we could just bill it to the Alaska Wildlife Management Bureau...

 

Meh.... by the time you plug in a hard drive to act as storage, you might as well just get a network storage Hard Drive... I mean, what useful work is the average user gonna put this thing to? Have it process the SETI streams or do folding so his regular PC can printspool all the pron he's downloading?

mnem
3.5 Words: Wall-Wart Beowulf Cluster!!!

 

Doobi -

No, sorry... absolutely NOT a KVM; kindof like the inverse function of a KVM, actually. Completely different concept - A KVM lets you switch between inputs that already exist. This thing makes them where they DON'T EXIST.

mnem
So... if you plug this thing into a KVM, could you hack 4 computers at once with the same laptop?

 

mnem,
That gizmo is comparatively cheap compared to these which I have to buy several of per year as the dredgemen find ways to break them!
http://www.psism.com/sl0751-161.htm
They run between $3-400 depending on whose got them when you need them. Needed for all those 900mhz modems.
CAP

 

DAMMUUUUUTTTTT!! Y you always spoiling my High Dwagon!!????!! I guess I got excited when I saw the KVM 2 USB name on the adapter....

*sulks back off defeated yet again* Maybe I should just buy a Dell and be done with it..... :-(

 

Cap
Let me know when you need more of those 4port serial adapters
This is the one that I use QSP-100

http://www.quatech.com/catalog/rs232_pcmcia.php

I have 3 in stock you could have for ½ of list price

Alex