KVM Model:
4-Port KM Switch USB 3.2 Gen 1 Analog Audio
Problem:
My KM Setup is:
PC1 connected to Desktop PC running Linux
PC2 connected to Macbook Pro M1 running MacOS
PC2 works when connected directly to the Macbook. When I try to connect the KM to a Thunderbolt 4 Kensington SD5700T dock instead, PC2 does not work. The KM is connected through a USBC to USB-B 3.0
Not sure if anyone has experience with this. Is there something about the dock that prevents it working here? Maybe a different dock would work? Does anyone have a setup similar to this that works?
I don’t know if it’s applicable here, but I had a similar issue with my Anker TB5 dock. The input devices connected via the KM switch didn’t work when connected to the rear USB-A port, but did work when connected to the front ports on the dock.
Anker support explained that it was because how their ports were configured within the different USB tiers, and the rear ports were too far down in the chain to properly utilize/recognize devices extended via another hub. In other words - it already had too many chained hubs internally to support another hub (ie KM switch) being connected externally.
I wonder if it could be a similar situation for your Kensington dock?
Macs, especially M1 macs have all kinds of different quirks. Can you better explain the flow of cables? What port do you have the KM plugged into on the dock? Ar you getting a “USB depth” error when you try to use the KM?
So I ran into this same problem using a Calidigit TB4+, and it is not unique to Level1Techs, or even a KVM issue in general.
You have to waste a Thunderbolt port on your Dock and plug the USB from the KVM/KM into a USB-C Thunderbolt Port on the dock.
This requires a standard USB-to-USBC adapter.
Thankfully on the Caldigit TB5+ this is not an issue [getting this the TB5+ was a really difficult, and expensive process. I needed 10GbE LAN.