Black Box Peripheral Sharer 2 to 1, PI140A, Peripheral Sharer 4 to 1, PI140AE, PI138A User Manual

1000 Park Drive • Lawrence, PA 15055-1018 • 724-746-5500 • Fax [phone]

© Copyright 2000. Black Box Corporation. All rights reserved.

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INFORMATION

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SEPTEMBER 2000

PI138A

PI138AE

PI140A

PI140AE

Peripheral Sharer 2 to 1
Peripheral Sharer 4 to 1

STATUS

PERIPHERAL SHARER

SELECT

4

3

1

2

STATUS

PERIPHERAL SHARER

SELECT

2

1

3

FCC STATEMENT

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

AND

INDUSTRY CANADA

RADIO FREQUENCY INTERFERENCE STATEMENTS

This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy
and if not installed and used properly, that is, in strict accordance with the
manufacturer’s instructions, may cause interference to radio communication.
It has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A
computing device in accordance with the specifications in Subpart J of
Part 15 of FCC rules, which are designed to provide reasonable protection
against such interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial
environment. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to
cause interference, in which case the user at his own expense will be required
to take whatever measures may be necessary to correct the interference.

Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible
for compliance could void the user’s authority to operate the equipment.

This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class A limits for radio noise emission from
digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulation of Industry Canada.

Le présent appareil numérique n’émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant les limites
applicables aux appareils numériques de classe A prescrites dans le Règlement sur le
brouillage radioélectrique publié par Industrie Canada.

This unit is CE certified.

4

INSTRUCCIONES DE SEGURIDAD

NORMAS OFICIALES MEXICANAS (NOM)

ELECTRICAL SAFETY STATEMENT

INSTRUCCIONES DE SEGURIDAD

1. Todas las instrucciones de seguridad y operación deberán ser leídas antes
de que el aparato eléctrico sea operado.

2. Las instrucciones de seguridad y operación deberán ser guardadas para
referencia futura.

3. Todas las advertencias en el aparato eléctrico y en sus instrucciones de
operación deben ser respetadas.

4. Todas las instrucciones de operación y uso deben ser seguidas.

5. El aparato eléctrico no deberá ser usado cerca del agua—por ejemplo,
cerca de la tina de baño, lavabo, sótano mojado o cerca de una alberca,
etc..

6. El aparato eléctrico debe ser usado únicamente con carritos o pedestales
que sean recomendados por el fabricante.

7. El aparato eléctrico debe ser montado a la pared o al techo sólo como
sea recomendado por el fabricante.

8. Servicio—El usuario no debe intentar dar servicio al equipo eléctrico más
allá a lo descrito en las instrucciones de operación. Todo otro servicio
deberá ser referido a personal de servicio calificado.

9. El aparato eléctrico debe ser situado de tal manera que su posición no
interfiera su uso. La colocación del aparato eléctrico sobre una cama,
sofá, alfombra o superficie similar puede bloquea la ventilación, no se
debe colocar en libreros o gabinetes que impidan el flujo de aire por los
orificios de ventilación.

10. El equipo eléctrico deber ser situado fuera del alcance de fuentes de
calor como radiadores, registros de calor, estufas u otros aparatos
(incluyendo amplificadores) que producen calor.

5

INSTRUCCIONES DE SEGURIDAD

11. El aparato eléctrico deberá ser connectado a una fuente de poder sólo
del tipo descrito en el instructivo de operación, o como se indique en
el aparato.

12. Precaución debe ser tomada de tal manera que la tierra fisica y la
polarización del equipo no sea eliminada.

13. Los cables de la fuente de poder deben ser guiados de tal manera que no
sean pisados ni pellizcados por objetos colocados sobre o contra ellos,
poniendo particular atención a los contactos y receptáculos donde salen
del aparato.

14. El equipo eléctrico debe ser limpiado únicamente de acuerdo
a las recomendaciones del fabricante.

15. En caso de existir, una antena externa deberá ser localizada lejos
de las lineas de energia.

16. El cable de corriente deberá ser desconectado del cuando el equipo
no sea usado por un largo periodo de tiempo.

17. Cuidado debe ser tomado de tal manera que objectos liquidos no sean
derramados sobre la cubierta u orificios de ventilación.

18. Servicio por personal calificado deberá ser provisto cuando:

A: El cable de poder o el contacto ha sido dañado; u

B: Objectos han caído o líquido ha sido derramado dentro del

aparato; o

C: El aparato ha sido expuesto a la lluvia; o

D: El aparato parece no operar normalmente o muestra un cambio

en su desempeño; o

E: El aparato ha sido tirado o su cubierta ha sido dañada.

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Peripheral Sharer

TRADEMARKS

Hewlett-Packard®, HP®, and LaserJet®are registered trademarks
of Hewlett-Packard.

Lexmark™is a trademark of Lexmark International.

Velcro®is a registered trademark of Velcro USA Inc.

Microsoft®and Windows®are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

All applied-for and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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Peripheral Sharer

Contents

1. Specifications ....................................................................................................8

2. Introduction....................................................................................................10

2.1 Key Features............................................................................................10

2.2 Package Contents ...................................................................................10

3. Installation ......................................................................................................12

3.1 Cables ......................................................................................................12

3.2 Mounting the Peripheral Sharer ...........................................................12

3.3 Connecting Your Devices .......................................................................12

3.4 Configuring the Peripheral Sharer .......................................................12

3.5 Configuring Your PC..............................................................................13

3.6 Installing the Software............................................................................13

4. Using the Peripheral Sharer ...........................................................................14

4.1 Power-On Status......................................................................................14

4.2 Front-Panel Key ......................................................................................14

4.3 Modes of Operation ...............................................................................15

4.4 Status Display ..........................................................................................15

5. Application-Specific Instructions...................................................................17

5.1 Printer Sharing .......................................................................................17

5.2 Sharing Parallel Port Tape Backup Drives............................................18

5.3 Sharing a Printer and a Tape Backup Drive .........................................19

5.4 Sharing a Parallel Port CD-ROM Drive .................................................19

6. Software Utilities.............................................................................................22

6.1 SMART.EXE............................................................................................22

6.2 SMARTCON.EXE...................................................................................23

6.3 DOWNLOAD.EXE .................................................................................24

Appendix A: Cables .............................................................................................25

A.1 PC To Peripheral Sharer Cable.............................................................25

A.2 Peripheral Sharer to Printer Cable.......................................................25

A.3 IEEE 1284 Compliant Cables ................................................................25

A.4 Data Boosters..........................................................................................25

Appendix B: HP LaserJet 4 Series Printers .......................................................26

B.1 Operation Under DOS ..........................................................................26

B.2 Operation Under Windows ...................................................................27

Appendix C: Lexmark 4039 Printer ..................................................................29

Appendix D: Lexmark WinWriter 600 ..............................................................30

Appendix E: HP LaserJet 5 Printers ..................................................................31

Appendix F: HP DeskJet 600 and 800 Printers .................................................33

Appendix G: Troubleshooting...........................................................................35

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Peripheral Sharer

exceeding 500,000 characters per
second (4 Mbps) are supported.

Connectors—PI138A, PI138AE:

(3) DB25 female: (2) bidirectional
parallel ports for connection to
PCs, (1) bidirectional parallel port
for connection to peripherals;
PI140A, PI140AE: (5) DB25
female: (4) bidirectional parallel
ports for connection to PCs,
(1) bidirectional parallel port for
connection to peripherals.

Operation —Can be used in auto-

scan mode, manual select mode,
or software-controlled mode.

Keypad — Used to select auto-scan

mode, destination or toggle
between manually selected ports.

Status Display — 7-segment display

shows auto-scan mode, auto­matically selected port, manually
selected port and data flow. LED
indicates output channel A/B
selected.

Options — Timeout options of 20

seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes, or
4 minutes. Normal or high scan
rates. Stored in EEPROM and
retained when power is off. Can
be changed using download
program provided. Default
options can be selected by

1. Specifications

General Compatibility — Can be

used with most devices that attach
to PC parallel ports (with the aid
of the SMARTLOG program
supplied). Only one user has
access to the shared peripheral at
a time. Dongles may only be
shared in strict accordance with
software license agreements.

Printer Compatibility — DOS,

Windows®, and graphics printing
from all types of PCs; all printers
with unidirectional (Centronics

®

compatible) parallel ports;
printers with bidirectional and
BOISE parallel ports; GDI
printers.

Tape-Drive Compatibility — Tape

drives that attach to PC parallel
ports; tape-drive macros and
scheduled macros that run from
the DOS prompt.

CD-ROM Compatibility — CD-

ROM drives that attach to PC
parallel ports with drivers that
can be loaded from the DOS
prompt.

Performance — Data-transfer rates

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Peripheral Sharer

holding down key when
powering on the unit.

Software — Supplied on a 3.5" PC

disk (virus-checked). Contains
the following software utilities:
SMARTKEY: DOS and Windows
peripheral-selection software.
SMARTLOG: Windows CD­ROM/tape-drive selection
software.
DOWNLOAD: Used to update
the unit’s EEPROM options.

Cable Types —

PC to Peripheral Sharer: DB25
male connectors on both ends,
shielded, pinned straight­through (part number EQN200).
Peripheral Sharer to Printer: DB25
male to 36-pin male printer cable,
shielded, all ground lines
connected (part number
EQN202).
Peripheral Sharer to Other Devices:

Use PC to Peripheral Sharer
cable.

Cable Lengths — Lengths supported

vary considerably with cable type
and PC/peripheral specifications.
IEEE 1284 twisted-pair cables
and high-quality cables generally
support longer distances.
Maximum recommended cable
lengths are:
PC to Peripheral Sharer: 32.8 ft.
(10 m) for printers, 22.9 ft.
(7 m) for tapes/CD-ROMs.
Peripheral Sharer to Peripheral:

6.5 ft. (2 m)

Power — 115 or 230-VAC, 5 VDC,

500 mA

Size — 3.7"H x 8.5"W x 1"D

(9.5 x 21.5 x 2.5 cm)

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Peripheral Sharer

Weight — 1.2 lb. (0.5 kg)

global timeout and scan-rate
options.

2.2 Package Contents

• Peripheral Sharer 2 to 1
or Peripheral Sharer 4 to 1

• 115 VAC (PI140A) or 230-VAC
(PI140AE) power supply

• Software disk (3.5" format,
virus-checked)

• This user manual

2. Introduction

The Peripheral Sharer is a high­performance parallel-device sharer
suitable for sharing printers, tape
backups, certain CD-ROMs, and
other devices that attach to PC
parallel ports.

2.1 Key Features

• High-performance fully bi­directional parallel ports.

• Automatic printer sharing and
tape-backup sharing.

• Data-transfer speeds in excess of
500,000 cps are supported.

• Automatic (auto-scan) or manual
port selection.

• Exclusive peripheral use can be
selected via DOS or Windows
software.

• Status indicator shows data flow
and port status.

• Download program for changing

2

1

STATUS

SELECT

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Peripheral Sharer

Figure 2-2. Peripheral Sharer 4 to 1.

4

3

2

1

STATUS

SELECT

Parallel ports for

connection to PCs

Parallel port for

connection to PC

Parallel port for

connection to

peripheral

Parallel port for

connection to

peripheral

Power supply

connector

(5 VDC, 200 mA)

Power supply

connector

(5 VDC, 200 mA)

Mode/port

selection key

Mode/port

selection key

Port status and

data activity

display

Port status and

data activity

display

Figure 2-1. Peripheral Sharer 2 to 1.