I have a laptop connected to one monitor and a desktop PC connected to a second monitor. Both computers and displays should remain active on their own screens, but I want to quickly switch the mouse and keyboard between the laptop and the PC without changing which monitor each computer is using. What hardware or software would work best for this?
4 Answers
A multi-device keyboard and mouse set is another simple option. Many models can pair with a USB receiver and several Bluetooth devices, then switch between computers using a dedicated button.
A KVM switch should handle this. Look for a model that supports switching the USB keyboard and mouse independently or without requiring the video outputs to change. You can leave each computer connected to its own monitor and use the switch just for the peripherals.
Software such as Synergy lets one keyboard and mouse move between computers over the network. You can move the pointer across the edge of one screen to control the other computer, while both monitors continue showing their respective computers. Both machines need to be connected to the same network.
That’s essentially a software KVM and works well when you don’t need the lowest possible input latency, such as for gaming.
If both computers run Windows, Microsoft’s Mouse Without Borders, included with the PowerToys tools, can share a mouse and keyboard between them. It’s free and works similarly to Synergy, with the pointer moving between the two screens.
I had assumed a KVM would always switch the monitor too, but I’ll look for one that supports sharing only the keyboard and mouse.