KVM switch, FC3, mouse issues

[dmcantrell]

Hello,

I have been having trouble with my mouse and my KVM switch. Basically -- when I boot up the FC3 box -- everything is OK. When I use the KVM switch to get to my winXP box, then back to FC3 box -- the mouse is all crazy and erratic (skipping all over the screen, opening dialog boxes and clicking things).

I have searched and found lots of information on this subject -- most seem to point to 'changing/updating the mouse driver'

Here are my questions:

1.) How does one 'change the mouse driver' ?

2.) Where is the mouse driver located?

3.) How can I tell what mouse driver I am using now?

4.) Is there a log file somewhere that shows details of the mouse, the driver. and what is going on with it?

I guess I am basically looking for a debug procedure.

Regards,

--dc.

[jimithang3]

dc,
I had the same issue. Fortunately with my workstation the kvm is directly infront of me and all i have to do is unplug the mouse from the master port on the front of the kvm and plug it back in and it gets back to normal on the fd3 box.

The log you want is in /var/log/messages just grep for the word mouse and you'll see that its throwing bytes away.

[dmcantrell]

so -- do you know how to fix it -- or how to 'update drivers' ??

[drpt]

the mouse driver is in /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse0"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "yes"
EndSection

I had a similar problem with debian and xp, but the kvm seems to work with fedora for me

[dmcantrell]

does anyone know the procedure to 'update the driver' ??

Where do I go to get new drivers? etc...

[MrMoke]

I had an old Belkin Omniview that was doing exactly the same thing. It caused quite a bit of havoc on my FC3 desktop, as well as any open files. I spent a lot of time looking for the proper way to install the imwheel drivers, but it turned out that the problem was not with the mouse as much as with the KVM switch.
I gave up and purchased a IOGear Miniview SE 4-port KVM, and all the problems disappeared. IOGear is SO much better than Belkin.

If you really think that it's the mouse, then look to the manufacturers web site first for Linux drivers and documentation.

Next, find the KVM manufacturer's web site and look for known problems and fixes.

Extra Info:

If it is a wheel mouse then you might want to look here.

http://imwheel.sourceforge.net/

[tashirosgt]

I'm curious how the KV switch operates On most machines if you disconnect the mouse or keyboard and try to reconnect it, you find it doesn't work. All KV switches I have used don't have any problems when you switch to and from another machine. So the switch must somehow fool the machine into thinking the keyboard and mouse are connected even when the users commands are not being sent. Is that what the switches electronics do?

It would be nice to answer the poster's original questions even if a new switch is practical solution. Trying to do so in a orderly fashion is the usual ordeal. One tries:
man xorg.con
This indeed says that drivers are named, such as
Driver "mouse"
but it doesn't say how that name corresponds to any file. For example, on a system, the entry for the video driver is "r128". The FC3 machine has various r128 files in /usr/X11R6/lib/Server/drivers and also in /lib/modules/2.6-10-1.741_Fc3/kernel/drivers/char/drm. If you do
locate mouse
you certainly get a large number of files.
I don't know of any fancy gui that does the "update driver" function available in Windows Device Manager.

[dmcantrell]

hmm -- thanks for the replies guys -- sorry I haven't responded earlier...

I think the problem is in my KVM switch...

this is the one I have (http://www.microinv.com/compaq/details.cfm?id=CPQ10KVM) Compaq CPQ10KVM -- I got it at Office Depot...

Perhaps I'll look into a fancier one -- this one is just a passive switch that sits under my desk...

edit: I tried unplugging the mouse from the KVM switch itself, then plugging it back in -- and this seems to be a viable workaround until I get my lazy butt down to the store to get a nicer KVM switch. This will have to do for now.

Thanks!

[lobotomy]

Something else to try: I switch to a text console (Ctrl-Alt-F1) and then restart the mouse service:

service gpm restart

This fixes the mouse on all of my servers except for the two newest ones. (Hit Alt-F7 to get back to X).

[MrMoke]

My new IOGear has worked on everything I've plugged into it so far, and it comes with a complete cable set. They also have a model that handles both USB and PS/2 connections (for more money).

Price shop on-line and wait for a sale.

[dmcantrell]

Something else to try: I switch to a text console (Ctrl-Alt-F1) and then restart the mouse service:

service gpm restart

This fixes the mouse on all of my servers except for the two newest ones. (Hit Alt-F7 to get back to X).

this does *not* work for me :(

but thanks for the advice -- it sounded so promising!

[dmcantrell]

My new IOGear has worked on everything I've plugged into it so far, and it comes with a complete cable set. They also have a model that handles both USB and PS/2 connections (for more money).

Price shop on-line and wait for a sale.

which model do you have?

[Brian1]

One idea is to change the mouse driver used in Windows. Change it to use a default PS/2 mouse. See if that works. You may lose some of the extra buttons on the mouse if you have them in windows.

Brian1

[MrMoke]

I have the GSC84B (http://www.iogear.com/main.php?loc=product&Item=GCS84B) 4-port Miniview SE. It's all PS/2. I bought it on sale at Newegg, and it had an additional mail-in rebate at the time.

The first two ports hold Windows 2000 AS and Windows XP Desktop. Ports 3 and 4 switch between my Windows XP Laptop Docking station and development systems using Fedora 3, Red Hat ES, Debian, Knoppix, etc.

[Nighthawk4]

I use a KVM switch between two PCs - one Linux and one XP.

The only problem I have is that the Linux box has to be started first, or the XP box does not find a mouse. The Linux box works without any problems and the XP box works correctly if the Linux one is up and running first.

As I use the Linux box far more often than the XP one, this does not cause any real problems.

This is a 2-port Belkin switch, which changes over using a keyboard code. The mouse is a Logitech Marble Mouse Trackball.

[MrMoke]

I think a characteristic of KVM switches in general is that they have to keep the circuit alive so that the attached compies think the equipment is still there, but they can't let any real communicaton through except on the selected node. So, during the boot process the KVM should be latched to the booting PC at least through the hardware ID (HAL) phase.

The mouse problems are more related to how the KVM treats the lines when a PC is "not" selected. If there is any random static present on the mouse line, then Linux may misinterpret the static as random mouse clicks. This problem was "very" much more pronounced with my old Belkin KVM, and more than once completely trashed my desktop. :eek:

As an experiment, you might try cold booting the XP box when "not" selected, then switch over to it and check to see which mouse driver is being used. Now reboot the XP box while still selected, and check to see if the driver has changed. Mine would switch between 3-button and Intellimouse drivers depending on how it was booted.

[dmcantrell]

Well -- I picked up a Belkin 2-Port KVM switch (F1DL102P) and everything works just fine. I can switch back and forth from XP to linux machines with the greatest of ease. Just wanted to add this comment in case someone searches the archives before asking (as I did :P )

[crondaily]

This is something I like to call "Mouse Spaz". I was going to start a whole new thread, but I decided to search first and found this thread already open. I have a Eusso PS/2 KVM Switch, and when I switch from Fedora Core 3 to Windows 2000, and then back to Fedora, the mouse randomly jumps around the screen and clicks things when it is moved, even just a bit. This problem also occurs if I boot the Linux box without the KVM switched over to it.

At first, this problem only occured if I booted with the KVM switch pointed at the Windows box, so I just remembered to always switch to the Linux box before booting it up.

However, I have recently upgraded to the 2.6.12-1.1372_FC3 kernel, and I found that the switching from Linux to Windows then back to Linux problem started up as well. At first, I thought that the only way to solve the problem was to reboot, but thanks to this thread, I now know I can just unplug and then re-plug-in the mouse to the KVM switch.

Anyway, it is worth noting that I don't encounter "Mouse Spaz" with the 2.6.10-1.741_FC3 kernel unless I boot it with the KVM switch pointed at Windows. The problem switching back and fourth didn't appear until later kernels. Does anybody know why this is?

Thanks.