connecting 4 monitors keyboards and mice on 1 Pc

[musamanyama]

Hello Guys,
am not a really computer hardware expert but i really wish to know if i can connect
4 monitors  mice and keyboards under 1 Pc. I already tested doing that but it makes
some really mouse weird confusion that the same mouse can control all the monitors
but what i really need is for all the (dumb terminals) to work independently!..
How can i do this please!?
what OS to use and how to configure it!?,...
Please i need your help i can't afford buying 4 Pc's 4 a small office!..

[soybean]

can't afford buying 4 Pc's 4 a small office!..

Do you have 4 users sharing that computer?  Connecting multiple monitors to one computer is usually done where a single user needs extra screens to be more productive in what they do with the computer.  I think we need some clarification on your situation and what you're trying to accomplish.

[Geek-9pm]

What I think the OP wants is what he can not get.
He will not save money doing four workstations from  one computer.
Windows is normally a single-user solution.

OP  needs four cheap computers.
He can buy cheap PCs for $140 each. Refurbished.

[musamanyama]

please isn't there any way of pursuing this task!?... i can change the OS
if its possible.. i only need multiple users to perform under one Pc's ..!

[patio]

No...at least not at the same time.
To prove this try listening to 4 redheads all at once for example...it doesn't work.

[lightmaster]

You can connect 4 PCs to 1 mouse, keyboard, and monitor pretty easily, but I've never heard of doing the opposite. I'm pretty sure it's impossible on any computer and even if you could get it to work, I don't think you'd like the results. You'd be splitting a single computer's processing power into a quarter of what it's capable of. So a computer original clocked at 3GHz would only be giving each user about 750 MHz each. That would be pretty slow for everybody. But like everyone's said, is really impossible, so that's a moot point.

[Geek-9pm]

... I'm pretty sure it's impossible on any computer and even if you could get it to work, I don't think you'd like the results. You'd be splitting a single computer's processing power into a quarter of what it's capable of. So a computer original clocked at 3GHz would only be giving each user about 750 MHz each. That would be pretty slow...

Yes, Noways a 'dumb' terminal costs about the same as a low end PC..
If you do NOT need graphic programming, you can tie a bunch of consoles to a Linux-base server PC and get fair performance as a console only system. No mice. Mice are for graphical systems. To use mice, each console would have to be promote red a workstation. The OP said four mice, so that means he does not want dumb terminals.

It used to be that dumb terminals were the way to save money. But everybody wants a pretty graphical interface with lots of visual feedback. It comes with a prices. The bandwidth to run four or more independent VGA devices on a single PC is very high. The cost will go through the roof.

Yes, it can be done. It has been done. Shell out $13500 for the box and four monitors monitors and a bunch of cable.

[camerongray]

You certainly can do this, it's called a "Multiseat" setup.  I've looked into doing it in the past but never actually deployed it.

As far as Windows goes, you can use software like this: http://www.miniframe.com/ and there are also other ways to do it on Linux (Both with software and manually configuring settings).

As far as connecting the terminals to the PC you can either just hook up keyboards, mice and monitors directly to the PC, but another option to consider are USB docking stations where you would connect each to the main PC with a USB cable and then hook up the monitor, keyboard and mouse directly to the dock.

Just remember in a system like this you need to plan carefully as if the single PC fails, everything will go down and get a system that is sufficiently powerful, especially with a decent amount of RAM.

[lightmaster]

You certainly can do this, it's called a "Multiseat" setup.  I've looked into doing it in the past but never actually deployed it.

As far as Windows goes, you can use software like this: http://www.miniframe.com/ and there are also other ways to do it on Linux (Both with software and manually configuring settings).

As far as connecting the terminals to the PC you can either just hook up keyboards, mice and monitors directly to the PC, but another option to consider are USB docking stations where you would connect each to the main PC with a USB cable and then hook up the monitor, keyboard and mouse directly to the dock.

Just remember in a system like this you need to plan carefully as if the single PC fails, everything will go down and get a system that is sufficiently powerful, especially with a decent amount of RAM.

This is the first I've heard of using multiseat with Windows, I knew you could do it with Linux, but not Windows. I'm guessing the OP would have to have a pretty fast computer to be able to handle 4 graphic interfaces simultaniously, and the cost of a fast enough computer probably defeats the purpose of using one computer instead of biting the bullet and buying 4.

[patio]

Multi-seat is Linux...i think it was premature to state it would work in a Win enviornment.

[camerongray]

This is the first I've heard of using multiseat with Windows, I knew you could do it with Linux, but not Windows. I'm guessing the OP would have to have a pretty fast computer to be able to handle 4 graphic interfaces simultaniously, and the cost of a fast enough computer probably defeats the purpose of using one computer instead of biting the bullet and buying 4.

When I played with it I was actually surprised with the performance, ran at a usable speed for web browsing and office tasks on an old Pentium 4 2.66GHz with 2gb RAM running XP Pro (Yeah, no budget at all!).  Obviously if you start to run anything more intensive than that it will struggle.

Multi-seat is Linux...i think it was premature to state it would work in a Win enviornment.

That 'SoftXpand' software I linked in my previous post is designed to run a multiseat setup under Windows, it's not free which isn't ideal and ultimately put me off due to having absolutely no budget for the setup.  Microsoft also released "Windows Multipoint Server" which is designed just for this however as far as I can tell it's only available on certain machines such as the MultiSeat machines from HP.  So while multiseat started on Linux, Windows is certainly catching up.

[musamanyama]

Wow man thank u...!!
it worked!... i lost hope and thought it is impossible..
really man..
    u saved me!

[patio]

Wow man thank u...!!
it worked!... i lost hope and thought it is impossible..
really man..
    u saved me!

HuH ? ?...what worked ? ?

[samlacz]

there is other way to use 1computer unit into multiple users. The workstation "Ncomputing", you have to buy that things and you can create 4-5 clients and your computer desktop unit will be the server of Ncomputing.

to set up Ncomputing click here: http://www.ncomputing.com/kb/121/

[Geek-9pm]

In broad terms, what the OP wants is Time Sharing.
Here is a link that explains what multiseat does.

A multiseat, multi-station or multiterminal configuration is a single computer which supports multiple independent local users at the same time. In modern usage the terms refer to multiple users using one personal computer, each with their own console, consisting of a keyboard a mouse, a monitor, and possibly headphones.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiseat_configuration

Here is a picture:

Yes, Linux only. For now.