Mousewithoutborders, software KVM from Microsoft
- Mousewithoutborders, a free tool from Microsoft, allows you to control, from one keyboard and mouse two (or more) computers on the same network. These could be – as in my case – a laptop temporarily placed on the same desk as a desktop, or a desktop next to a server (if you do not run it headless anyway).
- Limitations
- Mousewithoutborders needs to control the Windows Firewall which is at work, in a domain administrator controlled windows network, disabled – so no luck getting it to work at the office desk, where it would be even more useful.
- For my Mousewithoutborders setup, to not exhibit connection issues, it seems crucial that both local and remote machine a checked in the matrix, and you even may have to type the network name of the remote computer.
- While initially, my network configuration was autodiscovered and the clients on the two computers that I try to control from one keyboard and mouse autoconnected, once I type the ID key into both installations
- Later, after I once used the “Clear”-button to cut the connection (when I temporarily had to physically reconfigure the arrangement of the two computers where the mouse movement across screens interrupted the new work flow)
- they lost their connection, and also could not discover the other client, when I requested reconnection (using the practical keyboard shortcut option form the “Other Options”tab: one client managed to remember the other, but “timed out”trying to connect; the other client I could not get to remember or autodiscover the other client), until I manually checked the checkbox next to the computer icon (screen icon turns blue) and typed the network name of the other computer into the textbox. Glad that I have the functionality back now…


Categories: e-infrastructure, mental-notes
kvm, utilities
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