SERVSWITCH™ FAMILY
1
Welcome to the ServSwitch™ Family!
Thank you for purchasing a BLACK BOX
®
Octopus! We appreciate your business,
and we think you’ll appreciate the many ways that your new Octopus will save you
money, time, and effort.
That’s because our ServSwitch family is all about breaking away from the traditional,
expensive model of computer management. You know, the one-size-fits-all-even-if-it-
doesn’t model that says, “One computer gets one user station, no more, no less.” Why
not a single user station (monitor, keyboard, and mouse) for multiple computers—even
computers of different platforms? Why not a pair of user stations, each of which can
control multiple computers? Why not multiple user stations for the same computer?
With our ServSwitch products, there’s no reason why not. We carry a broad line of
robust solutions for all these applications. Do you have just two PCs, and need an
economical alternative to keeping two monitors, keyboards, and mice on your desk?
Or do you need to share dozens of computers, including a mix of IBM
®
PC,
RS/6000
®
, Apple
®
Macintosh
®
, Sun Microsystems
®
, and SGI™ compatibles among
multiple users with different access levels? Does your switch have to sit solidly on a
worktable and use regular everyday cables? Or does it have to be mounted in an
equipment rack and use convenient many-to-one cables? No matter how large or
small your setup is, no matter how simple or how complex, we’re confident we have
a ServSwitch system that’s just right for you.
The ServSwitch™ family from BLACK BOX—the one-stop answer for all your
KVM switching needs!
*
This manual will tell you all about your new ServSwitch Octopus, including how to
install, operate, and troubleshoot it. For an introduction to the ServSwitch Octopus,
see Chapter 2. The ServSwitch Octopus product codes covered in this manual are:
KV1701E KV1702E KV1710E
This manual also includes information about the ServSwitch Octopus software and
the Server Access Modules (SAM), which have their own manuals or installation
guides:
KV1720A KV1721A KV1722A
