switches

This IOGear KVM is great! It works flawlessly for my computers. I'm running a mixed windows/freebsd environment. One thing that I noticed is that the mouse picks up really fast, almost instantaneously. Can't say the same for the Belkin KVMs I have worked with. I'm running mine without the additional power supply, it works fine without it. It is also very compact. I have mine vertical using the provided stand. This is a great product!

I just want to correct the previous reviewer about the GCS14. He probably has a defective kvm. Mine works flawless. One, I can boot any OS I want in any order. Two, the keyboard key combo (ctrl + alt + shift + "ID") works for me.

You don't need to have to monitor set to the booting machine. I recommend however that you do so when using any kvm machine. It help the operating system detect the correct devices (monitor, keyboard, and mouse) attached. If you don't, they OS will load the generic drivers for mouse, keyboard, and plug'n play monitor. This is perfectly logical.

I believe this model is the GCS14. It's been working for me so far. However, I can't get the Hot Keys or Autoscan to work.

IO Gear's technical support is hopeless. They never reply to your emails.

Here's a tip you should remember when you first use it. Be sure to power off all computers first, then connect them onto the KVM. Start by powering on the computer connected to Port A and once you have booted into the OS, move to the next port and power up the next computer.

Be sure to wait till the computer has booted into the OS before moving on to the next. Most computer BIOSes don't like it if there are no input devices (especially keyboard) installed on the computer. So if you power on the computer without switching to the port the computer will think there are no input devices plugged in and may just halt at the BIOS without booting into the OS. You should be able to turn this off in your BIOS. Windows also doesn't boot properly without any input devices in my experience.

Once you boot into your OS, Windows for example, it won't matter since the OS will take over and should detect the keyboard and mice whenever, wherever...

And here's another tip. Never buy a USB KVM! Plug-n-play takes too long to detect your keyboard and mouse.