Can I daisy chain two mac pros so that I'm using one monitor and keyboard

Can I use two mac pro's with one monitor, keyboard & mouse? The two different machines have two different operating systems (Snow Leopard / Lion). One machine is brand new and the other is 5 or 6 years old.
I want to use both machines in tandem so that I can leave something to render while I work on something else.

KVM is an answer -- maybe. I use one for two machines to share one of my monitors (a VGA) and my keyboard (the second older machine seems to have sleep problems if I share a usb mouse on the kvm however).
The trickiest part of choosing a kvm is trying to find one that can handle the video; one that can handle the required bandwidth, and the connections. If one computer uses, say DVI, and the other mini-displayport, then you need to figure out which kvm can handle that with one (or both) of the machines using adapter(s).
You said one of the machines is brand new. Then it probably has thunderbolt. So you would need a mini-displayport, dvi, or vga adapter depending on the monitor. That means the older machine will need a similar connection since whatever kvm you get will have the same kind of ports for both inputs and its output.
A wild card here (at least in my mind) is if the newer machine has thunderbolt. While a mini-displayport display can be plugged into a TB connection, it is not clear that such a thing will work through a kvm. That is unknown territory I think at this point.

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Can I daisy chain two Thunderbolt displays to the new MacBook Airs (July 2011)?

I have last year's MacBook Air -- probably the best Mac I've ever had and I've had a few. I looked at using multiple displays last year, but the reviews for the major 3rd-party solutions really demonstrate how little is possible.
I see Apple says you can double up on displays for the MacBook Pro (I have a pre-Thunderbolt one unfortunately), what about the new (July 2011) MacBook Airs?
Anyone tried? Anyone know?
(I have a 30" Dell display, but it is, and always has been, very flakey when it comes to connecting to a Mac laptop).

You can thank Intel for that.
The sandy bridge chips all have integrated graphics, and before they were released -- they took nvidia to court claiming they didn't have a "license" to make GPU chipsets for the sandy bridge line. Intel won, and consumers lost.
The solution most manufacturers are using for notebooks is graphics switching (nvidia optimus like technology) -- which basically uses a discreet GPU along side the intel integrated GPU, and switches between the two instantaenously based on the workload and \ or battery life -- this is how the macbook pro's with the ATI gpus work.
Since there isn't enough space physically inside a macbook air for a discreet GPU, and since no company in the world is allowed to make a shared GPU for intel's sandy bridge chipsets -- the only solution is to use the integrated graphics that is in the processors -- Intel HD 3000. Intel basically has the monopoly here...there is no legal solution in the world another company can provide thanks to our wonderful court system
Wanna know the really sad part about the Intel HD 3000 GPU? The Nvidia 320M (the GPU used in the previous model 2010 macbook air -- chip was released to the market in April of last year) actually out performs it in some benchmarks -- that's right, a 1+ year old shared gpu from nvidia outperforms Intel's 2011 integrated graphics.
Intel ***** at graphics, period.
The only other solution I can think of is for you to get the "Echo Express" product from Sonnet:
http://www.sonnettech.com/product/thunderbolt/index.html
It's basically an external bay that will allow you to put a PCIe GPU inside it, and it would then connect via thunderbolt to the macbook air.
You would then use the minidisplayport connectors on the PCIe GPU to connect to the apple displays -- I believe any modern ATI or Nvidia GPU can support up to 3 or 4 external displays.
Unfortunately, sonnet's bay is not released yet, and you'd also have to make sure the PCIe GPU you get supports both thunderbolt AND os x....so yeah, kind of slim pickens right now
EDIT:
So apparently the macbook pros can daisy chain two thunderbolt displays -- Apple has a picture of it on their site:
http://storeimages.apple.com/1867/as-images.apple.com/is/image/AppleInc/MC914_AV 7?wid=1200&hei=1200&fmt=jpeg&qlt=95&op_sharpen=0&resMode=bicub&op_usm=0.5,0.5,0, 0&iccEmbed=0&layer=comp
I just bought a new mac air too...I was gonna get a mbpro but they are just too expensive -- the one I configured was at around 3000$
Wanna know what's lame about using the thunderbolt display with the mac air? So the new mac air has the magsafe connector on one side and the thunderbolt connector on the other -- they're not on the same side like the macbook pro is (see picture) -- so basically the cable is going to have to slack around the back of the macbook air -- who designed that? Must have been smoking some good meth ;p
Message was edited by: NiqueXyZ

Mac Mini 2009 - Can't daisy chain two FW800 drives

I have two FW800 enclosures with 3.5-inch drives and external power.
Each one mounts individually when connected to the Mini FW800 port but when I daisy-chain them the second one in the chain doesn't mount and is not seen by disk utility.
Those enclosures use an Oxford UF934DSB chipset.
What's ironic that I had a FW400 enclosure daisy chained to one FW800 enclosure until this afternoon and that daisy-chain worked fine.
Somewhere on the net there was an article that the daisy-chaining had to be done in a certain sequence, ie Mac FW to top FW port on first external, then from bottom of first FW enclosure to top of second and so forth.
I always though the FW ports were just wired in parallel.
Well, this is interesting - since these new FW800 enclosures also have one FW400 port as well, I just connected the second one using the FW400 ports and now they both mount.
But now the whole chain only runs at FW400 speeds.
Anyone else come across this problem or better yet, what is the solution to get both daisy-chained FW800 drives to mount.
The enclosures are Rosewell, the drive in each a 1.5 TB WD green.

I don't think it has anything to do with the power supply.
The two enclosures are identical and react (work or not) exactly the same when I interchange them or the FW cable.
They also work flawlessly if I connect the second one using FW400 instead of FW800. Would just trying to get the enclosure to mount with FW800 draw more current than when mounting with FW400 to put the power brick over the edge? I doubt it.
A few other things I'm going to try - I do this when I have a few extra minutes since I can't afford to spend my time on this continuously.
1. See if there is a F'W update for the enclosure and/or the Oxford chip.
2. Talk to the Oxford and enclosure support people
3. Update to 10.6.4, I'm on 10.6.2 right now
4. Do a bit more digging on the net to see how others got the FW800 daisy-chaining working.
The two enclosures react the same when I try each one separately and also when I switch them around. Whatever the problem is, it affects both equally so it's not some defect on one of them.
With the rest of the testing I have done, I'm now pretty sure it's a Mac software problem.
Although I would have thought someone else would have this problem as well but I can't even find any discussion on daisy-chaining with this chipset when running OS 10.6.
There is a 15-digit number in disk utility called connection ID.
I assume that is the Firewire ID number that some threads I read refer to.
That ID is the same for the two FW800 ports and the FW400 port on each enclosure but it's different for the two enclosures, so some conflict there is definitely not the issue.
So far I couldn't find what the latest issue of firmware is for the Oxford chip set, but I copied all the information that comes up with the firewire hardware listing so when I find the information I can check it against the firmware issue on my two units.
Now, another interesting tidbit - some people say they had to power up the enclosure a few times occasionally to get a single drive to mount.
I never had that problem, a single FW800 drive always mounted right away, but I decided to try that with the daisy-chained drive.
So I turned the power switch on that second drive off and then on again...and lo and behold - doesn't it mount now........
But that is not the interesting tidbit........the tidbit is when I check back in the Mini Firewire hardware listing.
Whereas before it showed all the expected detail with either drive when connected individually via FW800, now with both FW800 drives connected I get this:
*FireWire Bus:*
*Warning: Unable to list FireWire devices.*
*Maximum Speed: Up to 800 Mb/sec*
....and oooops - both FW800 drives just disconnected by themselves.
Sure seems to point to a Mac software issue.
And if you google for "Warning: Unable to list FireWire devices." you get pages of hits - many on Leopard but also a fair share on SL.
I updated the software to 10.6.4 - still the same problem.
Daisy-chain with FW400 is fine, with FW800 the second drive in the chain - doesn't matter which one it is, won't mount.

How can I set up my Mac Pro so that my wife and I can use our separate iTunes accounts? I keep getting an error message that the computer is already associated with an Apple ID even though the two accounts are associated with separate log ins!

I'm getting very confused with setting up multiple user accounts on my Mac Pro for my wife and I. We each have a separate iTunes account, and we want to keep our music libraries seaprate. I've set up two user accounts on the Mac Pro and I have my iTunes authorised and logged into my user account on my user account. Under my wifes user account (i.e. a separate log in on the computer) I'm trying to set up her iTunes account, but I can't download or play anything from the cloud - it just says "This computer is already associated with another iTunes Account" and tells me that if I 'transfer' then I won't be able to use the other one for 90 days! This is really annoying as my wife can't access music she has purchased on her iTunes account on the home machine. We're not trying to do anything dodgy, just access our music on our own accounts on separate log ins on the same machine. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks!

Hi Allan, thanks for that. I've already set up a log in for my wife and that is all working fine. The problem is that when she logs in and opens iTunes and trys to associate her library with her iTunes account she gets the error message "This computer is already associated with another iTunes account". Whilst this is true, the computer is associated with my iTunes account under my separate log in, which should have nothing to do with hers. If she transfers the association to her account it will lock me out of my content on my log in for 90 days - I'm trying to work out how to associate each of the log in accounts with a separate iTunes account so we can access our music independently of one another without locking each other out. Hope that makes sense!

Can you daisy chain two Compact DAQ systems together?

Greetings everyone,
I have a signal conditioning application and I have been looking at the Compact DAQ Platform as a solution.
I have a total of 16 TC's channels, a few DIO and a few Analog Out requirements.
I can basicly meet these needs with a single cDAQ system but I would like to have room to expand more in the future.
Does anyone know if it is possible daisy chain more than one cDAQ system together or if it woudl be very difficult to program and run two seperate DAQ systems from my computer.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Thomas

alkaline3mc wrote:
NI, the home of dead links....
You probably noticed that these posts were written 9 years ago...
LabVIEW Champion . Do more with less code and in less time .

Sharing one monitor and keyboard with two Macs

Hi,
I have two Macs - one Pro and one G5. I want to be able to use both easily, using just one keyboard and monitor. Can anyone recommend the best way of doing this, and what splitter I should buy?
Thanks!

Hi
I like the Belkin Flip - it's really simple for a 2-computer setup and works well with the Mac.
Matt

Using a Mac Pro, how do I play only one playlist and use shuffle?

How do I play a specific playlist in itunes and use shuffle?

Go to the playlist. You'll see the intersected lines (shown below). Click on that and press play.

Harnessing the power of two Mac Pro's

Is it possible to daisy chain two Mac Pro's and use as one machine ?

<http://www.apple.com/server/macosx/technology/xgrid.html>

I have a Mac Pro tower with two internal Hard Discs, each one 2TB. I purchased a 3TB Time Capsule. But it does not allow me to back up because it says there is not enough back up space available. Between the two HDs there are 3.3TBs. Can I daisy chain TC?

I have a Mac Pro tower (OSX version 10.6.3) with two internal Hard Drives, each one 2TB.
I purchased a 3TB Time Capsule. But cannot back up because it tells me there is not enough space.
I have more than 3Tbs to store to the new TC.
Can I daisy chain two TCs to store the 4TBs?
How can I back up only the internal HD that is already full, without backing up the other one?
How can I do back up using Time Machine to back up the 3.5Tbs?
Do I need to purchase another external HD (that is not TC) to be able to back up all of my photos?

Can I daisy chain two TCs to store the 4TBs?
No, you cannot link to produce a single large partition.
But you can have two separate backup jobs.. and use each partition. That is hard on TM but you can easily get a different backup software for it.
How can I back up only the internal HD that is already full, without backing up the other one?
In TM you do a different setup and exclude the other drive.
But it is better to use an alternative software IMHO.
How can I do back up using Time Machine to back up the 3.5Tbs?
You would need to use a network drive of more than 4TB .. it would also take forever. This is just wrong way to do it. Although you can buy a NAS that will work with Time Machine and load it with disks 16TB is possible.. if you can get a second mortgage.. the fragile nature of TM on 3rd party devices.. would leave me in cold sweat if anything went wrong.
TM is excellent at keeping incremental backups of files that keep changing.. as such you should use TM to backup your OS disk and main user directory.. exclude all files and directories that never change. Back them up separately.
Do I need to purchase another external HD (that is not TC) to be able to back up all of my photos?
Yes, that is a much better idea. You want to store photos safely and you want to store them in multiple places. If you have multiple TB of photos, dedicate a couple of disks to the backup. ie have at least two copies.. not in backup format.. in straight copy format if possible.. so you can keep one of the disks offsite.
I would be using your MacPro internal disk access, to place the disk onto sata bus and do the copy disk to disk direct. Or even buy esata card.. or sata to esata converter cable so you can use esata box. That will beat any other transfer speed except thunderbolt for which you would need third mortgage. (The MORT in mortgage is significant).
The great jurist Sir Edward Coke, who lived from 1552 to 1634, has explained why the term mortgage comes from the Old French words mort, "dead," and gage, "pledge." It seemed to him that it had to do with the doubtfulness of whether or not the mortgagor will pay the debt.

Daisy chain two La Cie hard drives through time capsule usb

my time capsule runs oNe la cie 350GB through the usb great
can i daisy chain (firewire a 1 TB d2 la cie through the 350) and still see both and access from network in finder???

can i daisy chain (firewire a 1 TB d2 la cie through the 350) and still see both and access from network in finder???
Sorry, but I really don't think this is something that the TC's USB port & File Sharing function would be able to support.
Have you tried this combination connected directly to your computer? ... and did it work?

Can I daisy chain airport extremes, Can I daisy chain airport extremes

Can I daisy chain 2 airport extremes?

If you mean plug one into the other by ethernet and use both in roaming network.. absolutely.. it is the best way.
If you want some specific functionality tell us what it is you are after.

How many photos can i download on a mac pro?

how many photos can i download on a mac pro?

That's like asking how many cows can I get into a field. It depends on the size of the field, size of the cows, the terrain of the field, etc. We could use a bit more information on what you're trying to accommplish:
1 - where are the photos being downloaded from.
2 - how big are the photos?
3 - where are you going to put the photos, i.e. into folders, into an iPhoto library?
4 - how big is the hard drive in the Mac Pro and how much free space do you have on it?
etc., etc, etc......

Mac Pro 3,1 Early 2008 andAplle 27inch Monitor

I have a Mac Pro model 3,1 (Early 2008) with a ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphics card.
I would like to use one of the new Apple 27inch displays - however they are either connected with the Thunderbolt connector or the Mini Display Port.
Which models of the various Graphics cards would enable me to use such a display with my Mac Pro.
The machine is used for Aperture and Photoshop type work plus general use.
Thanks for any suggestions.

Apologies for false statement - I have now fitted the card and have it working. The power sockects are on the early 2008 Mac Pro are on the upper left of the main board where as the instruction book (for the later Mac Pro has them on the lower edge (ish) of the main board. The number 2 drive had to be removed to get easy access to the power socket (this gives a further clue as to where to look for the socket)
Appologies for false comment earlier

Daisy chain two display port monitors (Dell U2913WM) to new Mac mini Thunderbolt?

Everything I read said that I could hook up a display port monitor to a Thunderbolt port on the mac mini. I purchased two display port monitors (Dell U2913WM) that can be daisy chained, and hooked them up. All I get is mirroring. Does anyone know how to turn off mirroring with this setup? I did not get the "uncheck mirroring" option in preferences until I hooked up the second via the HDMI port instead of a daisy chain. The problem with that is, I cannot take advantage of the full resolution through the HDMI. It seems I have wasted my money on two monitors.
Looking for advice on:
1) How to daisy chain these two Dell monitors to the mac mini and turn off mirroring and use an extended desktop, or
2) How to take advantage of the full resolution through HDMI port?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

So re-reading this thread, I now realize you did exactly what I wanted to do but your issue was having a cloned vs. extended desktop. Oops!
I believe your "nothing plugged in" issue is the cable. I'm not sure that TB cables are backwards compatible with DP - I think it's only the ports. Do you see multiple monitors in "System Preferences > Displays" if you hook the monitors up like you described in your OP?
My Dell U2713H arrived today and it works like a charm with the supplied Mini-DP to DP cable. The built-in display on my 13" mid 2009 MBP still works if not in clamshell mode, although I will mostly use mine in my HengeDock. In the OSD of the monitor, you can access "Display Settings > Display Info" and it will show you the DP capability. Mine is only DP 1.1a and I believe to run 2 of these at full resolution you will need the bandwidth in DP 1.2 which includes MST (daisy-chaining). This could be your problem.
Can you access the same menu in your OSD and report back what your DP compatability is?
Thanks!
mgb

How many firewire drives can I daisy chain on the mac mini

How many firewire g-drives can I daisy chain on my mac mini

edalexjr wrote:
How many firewire g-drives can I daisy chain on my mac mini
From personal experience, if they are bus powered portable drives,
the answer is none. For what ever reason, they are draw a lot of
power and are probably near the edge of the bus powering specs.
Then again, these were the fastest of all the portable FW drives that
I have (Iomega and Seagate being the others), which may have
something to do with it.
I had also noticed an issue with them even with USB. Plugging one
into the Mini or even a powered USB hub would be fine, but 2 would cause
both to be inaccessible, unless I used a couple of USB "Y" cables
that would distribute the power across other ports.
If they are externally powered, you could string a bunch.

Can I daisy chain two mac pros so that I'm using one monitor and keyboard

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