What is possible, however, is running a single DisplayLink adapter, or several with a Xinerama or multiseat configuration — just as long as you don’t expect to use your main GPU at the same time.

The single-display case is relatively easy to set up, and we’ll cover that here.

First, make sure you’re running kernel version 2.6.35 or later (Ubuntu 10.10 or later). For older kernel versions, you’ll need to update udlfb and run a modified fbdev X server (not covered in this post). On these kernel versions, when you plug in your DisplayLink-based USB graphics device, you should get a green screen. This means that at the driver built into the Linux kernel is happy, healthy, and talking to the device.

Second, if you are running Unity Desktop in Ubuntu 11.04 or later, you’ll need to switch back to Classic Mode so you’re running straight X. Here’s how on Ubuntu:

Click on the power button in the upper right corner (mine looks like a light switch) and choose the last option, System Settings. Search for Login Screen, Double-click to display, Choose Unlock and enter your password, Select Ubuntu Classic as default session.

Third, if you’re running kernel versions between 2.6.35 to 3.1, enable the fb_defio option of udlfb. To do this, create or edit a file like
/etc/modprobe.d/50-displaylink.conf

and add the single line

options udlfb fb_defio=1

And reboot (or run “sudo depmod -a” and unplug/replug your adapter). This will turn on defio (page fault change detection) support. This option is already enabled by default in kernels 3.2+.

Lastly, create an X config file called 60-plugable.conf (or similar) with the following contents and place it in /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d (on recent distros; on older distros, make this your xorg.conf):

 
Section "Device" 
  Identifier "uga" 
  driver "fbdev" 
  Option "fbdev" "/dev/fb0" 
EndSection 
 
Section "Monitor" 
  Identifier "monitor" 
EndSection 
 
Section "Screen" 
  Identifier "screen" 
  Device "uga" 
  Monitor "monitor" 
EndSection 
 
Section "ServerLayout" 
  Identifier "default" 
  Screen 0 "screen" 0 0 
EndSection

Note: if your main GPU creates a /dev/fb0 even when the USB display is not attached, then your USB display is probably getting assigned to /dev/fb1. In that case, change /dev/fb0 in the “Device” section above to /dev/fb1

Now, on reboot, you should (hopefully!) see your login come up on your DisplayLink USB attached display!

This kind of simple setup is useful for:

• Testing or playing with your USB graphics adatper on Linux.
• Embedded systems with USB but no GPU.
• As a backup method when the main GPU or its driver isn’t available or working.
• Systems where a USB graphics adapter enables higher modes (up to 2048×1152) than the main GPU screen.

Please comment if you have any trouble with this single display case. See our past posts for additional information about the DisplayLink Linux kernel driver and some more involved setups.

The instructed here work on all Plugable USB 2.0 graphics adapters and Plugable USB 2.0 docking stations and thin clients (and should also generally work on all DisplayLink based products).

It’s amazing how few people know about the possibilities of turning one computer into many with simple USB terminals. We’re hoping more stories like this will get the word out!

To Whom It May Concern:

I want to take a second and thank you for the support you have given me. It is not often I find such good people that take time out of their busy day to help! Thank you so much!

I voluntarily single handedly support a small non-profit K-12 school. A little IT history on that school was that as of early 2009, I started getting involved with the IT Infrastructure. In reviewing their systems, I noted that they were running a Microsoft Small Business Server 2000 to which was only used to serve IP address and keep some files in a fileshare. The server had been installed in 2000 to which had not been maintained since then except for the occasional reboot and update.

In 2009, Microsoft announced that they would discontinue the support of Microsoft Server 2000 in July. Knowing this, I began having meetings communicating to the staff of the impacts of running a server without having support for major things like updates. I helped them decide that we should upgrade the infrastructure to Microsoft Small Business Server 2008 as well as source a new server to run the software.

While the server was on order, we began updating the entire wiring infrastructure of the network cabling to consistently possess at least Cat 5 cable.

I installed the new server as well as setup the ability to use Microsoft Exchange Server, Sharepoint Server, and a file Server. Also, I made sure to install a raid system as well as a nightly backup system. For the first time, the staff had email addresses with the school name! The staff we all very excited to use the new system.

Noting that there were many old computers that were at least 7-10 yrs old, we sourced and installed Microsoft Server 2008 in a Hyper-V session in order to use Terminal Server, now called Remote Desktop Services. On that Terminal Server, I installed all of Microsoft Office 2010 as well as other pertinent programs needed for the school. This allowed a repurposing of all the older computers as well as combining the old computers with new flatscreen monitors. The speed of the Terminal Server made the staff feel like they all had brand new computers!

I had been using the Comcast Modem as a firewall and knew that the firewall needed to be upgraded. The school needed a way to track everyone on the internet as well as the capability to filter the internet. I sourced a smaller used HP DL380 server to run an all-encompassing web filter, spam filter, firewall, routing, etc., named Untangle. This also sped up the internet experience as Untangle has the ability to cache websites.

Next on the list was to revive a computer lab that had not been run in over 2 years. There were several questions to be answered in order to ascertain how the lab was going to be built with these criteria in mind:

· Cost Effective

· Ease of maintenance

· As Energy Efficient as Possible(green)

· Reliable

· Ease of use

With that in mind, we came up with a few options. The first option was to utilize the computers from the old lab with a Terminal Server session. Because the base software of the computers was Windows 2000, they would have to at least be upgraded to Windows XP for security and Microsoft support reasons. Because of the expense and support needed, we decided against doing that option. Specifically we did not meet the goals of:

· Ease of maintenance

· Reliable

· Ease of use

The next option was to utilize “nettop” computers, specifically the Foxconn NetBox-nT525 nt525-0H0W-B-A-NA-BOX that we could mount to the back of a monitor. We then sourced 10 refurbished Dell 19″ monitors. I purchase one of the mini computers for test. I installed both Linux Edubuntu as well as Windows 7. The problems with this route are that it did not meet our objectives because:

· Not as cost effective because of the need for 10 computers

· Increased maintenance need

· Having to learn Linux by the staff therefore not easy to use

· No ability to use Remote Desktop into the computers (would have had to install VNC)

The third option was to install a dumb terminal system. Two systems were looked at including Linux Userful and Microsoft Multipoint Server 2011.

I admit that I am not near as intelligent on Linux as I am Microsoft products. For Linux, I know just enough to get me into trouble I think. I can do almost anything I want with any Microsoft OS and almost all software. With Linux, I have to struggle and look up internet blogs to help me with basic functionality. This is the second main reason I chose Microsoft over Linux.

We ultimately chose Microsoft Multipoint Server 2011 and here is why: I guess I could really boil it down to be selfish. Because I need to be able to support the school, I want the capability to remotely connect to any user computer either interfaced with the user or totally without the user in order to solve issues. Also would like to remote to apply updates and normal/general server maintenance.

The server we purchased to run the environment was a Dell R210. It is a 2.93 ghz Xeon Hyperthreaded Quad Core with 16 gb 1333mhz ram. It should be able to do whatever we want in this situation, right? Wrong. I also sourced 5 DC-125 units from Plugable to test the server for the needs of the school.

I then installed Microsoft Multipoint onto the server as well as all the displaylink software required. I tried plugging in a DC-125 to which did not work as expected. I then began troubleshooting.

After 3 weeks of troubleshooting with Dell and Microsoft, I got nowhere near making the system run. I then began consulting with Plugable. They had absolutely phenomenal support. Very quickly we determined the situation was caused by the 1998 technology used by Dell for the video card.

I then sourced an ATI 2270 video card and placed it in the only open slot. It worked! Yeah! If it wasn’t for Plugable’s awesome support, I would have had a very expensive paperweight as well as the need to go out an purchase 10 computers with Operating Systems!

Let’s talk about GREEN! The lab is only running one computer instead of 11. The server is running an LED monitor which is 1/10th the power requirements of LCD. The ATI 2270 video card only uses max 17.5 watts of power. All combined, the lab requires very little power requirements than what would have been.

As for the rest of the criteria, it was all met.

So, this is where we stand in the school, an operating lab based on Microsoft Multipoint OS connected to Active Directory and the internet. Have tested the system with 2 workstations running full screen Hulu and one running full screen YouTube and the frame rates never dropped as well as sound/video never got out of sync. I am extremely happy with this setup!

About me, I am an “old” computer guy I guess. Sometimes I still prefer DOS over windows. My favorite computer language is Assembler. 95% of everything I have learned has been on my own eventhough I do have a degree in CIS. I don’t admit readily to others that I know anything but I normally get tasked to fix everyone’s computer. (I gotta stop doing that or at least charge.) In my home, I am running a full server with exchange, IIS (I can run Apache just fine), and other network technologies which is where I have learned the most and have been doing this for more than 10 yrs. My entire family, internal and extended, all syncs their phones to my exchange server for email, for free.

As you can see, I love computing platforms as well as the social aspect. I also love to be on the bleeding edge. Companies like Plugable really go the extra mile to help everyone, especially to support the needs of a non-profit school. I love Plugable and their DC-125!

This update is compatible with and applies to all Plugable USB graphics adapters and docks.

This is great news, as this new version includes a few important fixes and features, and many small ones. Details below.

Notes

• Windows 7 makes Windows Update for hardware automatic, but it can be enabled for Vista and XP also
• The update will automatically be triggered by Windows when it sees a new device. Or for an existing device, you can trigger Windows Update manually, and look for DisplayLink’s drivers among the “Optional” updates.

Important Features/Fixes from 5.5 to 5.6 M1

• Fix for software-triggered screen freezes (which required system reboot or service restart)
• Support for Windows Server SKUs (with Aero installed and enabled)
• Better compatibility with nVidia and ATI GPUs
• Improved compatibility with newer DirectX apps

Full changelist from DisplayLink

C1. Fixed issues between R5.6 (5.6.31721.0) and R5.6 M1 (5.6.31854.0)
—————————————

If the reboot prompt after install is ignored on Windows XP, then the
DisplayLink monitor set to mirror may display corrupted data. (10953)

After installing DisplayLink software on some systems with switchable graphics
architectures, the main monitor may be dimmed and not responsive until reboot.
(10534)

Monitor details were not being updated in “Devices and Printers” folder when
changing the monitors connected to DisplayLink device. (9917)

DisplayLink monitors may flash occasionally when playing fullscreen videos on
several stations. (11173)

On Windows XP after installing DisplayLink drivers several reboot cycles may be
requested. (11079)

C1. Fixed issues between R5.5 (5.5.27797) and R5.6 (5.6.31721.0)
—————————————
DisplayLink Software upgraded through Windows Update will not work correctly
after rebooting the system (issue affecting releases R5.3 to R5.4 on Windows
update). (9658)

Blue screen on Windows 7 on some platforms when rebooting after having applied
layout changes. (9631)

The DisplayLink GUI stops functioning correctly after switching GPU on some
ATI/Intel hybrid systems. (10065, 10106)

Sometimes there are two DisplayLink icons present in the system tray. (9807)

Sometimes the DisplayLink icon is missing in the system tray. (9545, 9837)

Video in Basic Mode not working with the latest Windows updates on both Windows
Vista and Windows 7. (1609)

Video playback issues on Microsoft Windows 7 with the latest NVIDIA Drivers.
(10061)

A DisplayLink USB monitor could occasionally remain blank after a PC reboot.
(9622)

DirectX 9 games could crash when running on a primary, non DisplayLink, screen.
(10027)

DisplayLink software fails to install on NVidia Quadro FX 880M graphics card.
(9637)

On Windows 7 Windows Photo Viewer may show corruption when a DisplayLink
monitor is mirroring the main screen. (9612)

On some systems with switchable graphics architectures disconnecting
a DisplayLink monitor may cause main monitor to be switched off. (9750, 9747)

Screen corruption while performing the Aero 3D flip (Windows+tab) interface
effect. (10425)

Blue screen when restarting with a connected DisplayLink screen in Projector
Only mode. (10457)

After a series of layout changes the DisplayLink screens can sometimes freeze
while the DisplayLink GUI loses functionality. (10489)

2 DisplayLink GUIs are shown in the system tray after installation. (10504)

Blue screen when using a DisplayLink device for the first time on some Optimus
configurations. (10700)

On some Optimus configurations, rebooting with a DisplayLink device connected
causes the DisplayLink screens to remain black with a blinking mouse pointer.
(10701, 10702)

Screen corruption when using 3D GUI effects on DisplayLink screens in some
display configurations. (9611, 10425)

Screen corruption on DisplayLink screens while using some applications after a
transition from projector mode to duplicate. (9612)

Video in Basic Mode not working with the latest Windows updates on both Windows
Vista and Windows 7. (1609)

In rare scenarios a DisplayLink monitor may freeze. (10230)

DisplayLink USB monitor could occasionally remain blank after a PC reboot.
(9622)

Blue screen when playing video on multiple clients. (6309, 9442)

SRC Shell application crashed when playing video clip. (10212)

When the logon screen is displayed, occasionally the DisplayLink displays are
frozen and only updated by the mouse pointer. (10044)

On some switchable systems the main screen flashes continuously after
installing the DisplayLink driver or after connecting the DisplayLink device.
(10653)

Corruption is shown while moving the cursor near the edge of a window on top of
a Windows Media Player window. (10752)

Incorrect/missing Windows Update error reporting from the DisplayLink GUI.
(10523)

Sometimes a Windows XP computer with DisplayLink drivers installed will hang
while starting. (9607)

On some nVidia Optimus systems the DisplayLink display will remain black
immediately after installing the DisplayLink drivers. A reboot recovers from
this issue. (10785)

On some machines Windows falls into endless reboot loop after installation of
DisplayLink drivers. (10918)

Timing not compliant with the CEA861D specification. (10952)

Through July 4th 2011, we’re temporarily lowering the price of our Plugable UGA-2K-A USB Graphics Adapter to $57.50 (normally $64.50).

If you know how great 2 or 3 monitors are, and have wanted to add another (up to 6 on Windows; 4 on Mac), this is a great time to do it.

More independent USB-attached displays for Independence Day. Yea!

DisplayLink has released an updated Mac driver (1.7 beta 1) with support for Mac OX 10.7 “Lion” (both 32 and 64 bit kernels).

The driver is available for download now at http://displaylink.com/support/mac_downloads.php and is compatible with all Plugable USB graphics adapters and docking stations, such as the Plugable UGA-2K-A.

DisplayLink’s release coincided with Apple’s announcement today at WWDC that the Lion update will be available for purchase next month for $29. Driver updates from DisplayLink are free.

This new line of DisplayLink drivers (1.7 and later) is critical for all DisplayLink Mac users looking to upgrade to Lion, as the new OS release breaks all older USB graphics drivers.

The new DisplayLink driver release includes other fixes, but retains the same high-level characteristics and limitations of prior Mac driver versions (displays up to 2048×1152 on high-end USB adapters; limit of 4 additional displays via 4 USB adapters; no Quartz Extreme/OpenGL support).

The most significant feature in this release is Windows Server support:

• Windows Server 2003 (32-bit only – same as DisplayLink’s XP drivers)
• Windows Server 2008 (32/64-bit)
• Windows Server 2008 R2 and derivatives like Windows Multipoint Server 2011 (64-bit, since R2 is 64-bit only)

Prior to this release, DisplayLink drivers would refuse to install on these server platforms.

This is great news for several use cases, including:

• USB terminals in combination with Microsoft Multipoint Server 2011 Beta. We’ll have much more news on this in coming weeks.
• Anyone using Windows Server SKUs as a client PC (common among software developers)

On the bug fix side, DisplayLink reports improved stability with more than 3 DisplayLink screens.

This release is compatible with all Plugable USB graphics products, and can be downloaded from DisplayLink’s 5.6 Beta Forum. We consider the prior release (5.5 M1 dated Dec 3, 2010) to be a critical upgrade because of nVidia and other compatibility improvements. This one is more of an optional upgrade for the great majority of users on normal client copies of Windows.

We’re recommending that affected users download this latest DisplayLink 5.5 M1 (Dec 3, 2010) release or any later version, available at http://displaylink.com/support/downloads.php

Note a reboot may be required as the installer removes the prior version, and installs the new. Please feel free to comment with any experience reports or problems.

Here’s a rundown of important problems that are intended to be fixed from 5.5 (Sept 29, 2010) to 5.5 M1 (Dec 3, 2010) from the DisplayLink 5.5 M1 release notes. We have some notes from us [in brackets] based on what we’ve seen from Plugable customers.

These issues have complete or partial fixes in 5.5. M1:

• Video playback issues on Microsoft Windows 7 with the latest NVIDIA Drivers. [This is the big incompatibility where nVidia drivers after 258.96 broke DirectX functionality on systems with DisplayLink drivers installed]
• DisplayLink Software upgraded through Windows Update will not work correctly after rebooting the system (issue affecting releases R5.3 to R5.4 on Windows update). [This problem has kept the DisplayLink version on Microsoft's Windows Update system to the older version 5.2, meaning that users who simply plug in their device without a manual driver download have been missing fixes for a number of serious known issues. Now DisplayLink should be able to resume delivering the very latest drivers via Windows Update]
• DisplayLink USB monitor could occasionally remain blank after a PC reboot. [we've seen this problem intermittently from several customers. We suspect multiple causes, but hope this resolves most]
• Sometimes the DisplayLink icon is missing in the system tray. [this had previously been a sign of larger problems]

And other important problems DisplayLink reports fixed, that we haven’t specifically run across:

• Blue screen on Windows 7 on some platforms when rebooting after having applied layout changes.
• The DisplayLink GUI stops functioning correctly after switching GPU on some ATI/Intel hybrid systems.
• Sometimes there are two DisplayLink icons present in the system tray.
• Video in Basic Mode not working with the latest Windows updates on both Windows Vista and Windows 7.

5.5 M1 is compatible with all Plugable USB graphics devices. Generally DisplayLink does a good regression testing so we’ve generally had a good experience being aggressive about upgrading to get the latest fixes (when things break, they break more often between DisplayLink releases because of external OS or other main GPU driver changes). So we’re recommending this release to all Plugable users who are experiencing any of the problems above.

Source: DisplayLink

We’re filling out our line of DisplayLink USB graphics adapters with two new products that offer even better pricing, using DisplayLink’s most cost-effective mid-range DL-165 chip.

1) Our new UGA-165 completes our USB to VGA/DVI/HDMI family. There are all identical products other than the DisplayLink chip inside the unit: UGA-2K-A (DL-195 chip), UGA-165 (DL-165 chip), and UGA-125 (DL-125 chip).

2) Our new USB-VGA-165 is our most aggressively priced product, hitting the new price point of $44.95, while still being built on DisplayLink’s mid-range DL-165 chip. We pushed the price point down by supporting VGA connections only (no DVI or HDMI, and no extra converters needed in the box), and with simpler casing and packaging.

Now with this complete line, we’re covering the full line of DisplayLink chips, with options from $45-$65. And we hope to add a higher end option focused on HDMI in the coming months.

If you’re a current owner of one of our other DisplayLink products, you’re going to like these new adapters — same drivers, same performance, same simple setup experience, and new lower price points for connecting even more monitors to your PC!

Here’s a table with more detail to compare the four adapters head-to-head.

Model UGA-2K-A	Model UGA-165	Model UGA-125	Model USB-VGA-165
USB 2.0 to VGA, DVI, HDMI	USB 2.0 to VGA, DVI, HDMI	USB 2.0 to VGA, DVI, HDMI	USB 2.0 to VGA
DisplayLink DL-195 Chip	DisplayLink DL-165 Chip	DisplayLink DL-125 Chip	DisplayLink DL-165 Chip
Modes up to 1920×1200 or 2048×1152 (wide)	Modes up to 1600×1200 or 1920×1080 (wide)	Modes up to 1280×1024 or 1440×900 (wide)	Modes up to 1600×1200 or 1920×1080 (wide)
Power/Activity LED. Included DVI->VGA and DVI->HDMI Adapters	Power/Activity LED. Included DVI->VGA and DVI->HDMI Adapters	Power/Activity LED. Included DVI->VGA and DVI->HDMI Adapters	No LED. VGA Only. Simpler Packaging
Supported by latest DisplayLink drivers	Supported by latest DisplayLink drivers	Supported by latest DisplayLink drivers	Supported by latest DisplayLink drivers
More info …	More info …	More info …	More info …

]]> http://plugable.com/2010/12/02/plugable-adds-to-its-line-of-displaylink-usb-graphics-adapters/feed/ 2 http://plugable.com/2010/11/15/displaylink-and-nvidia-driver-compatibility-update/ http://plugable.com/2010/11/15/displaylink-and-nvidia-driver-compatibility-update/#comments Tue, 16 Nov 2010 01:55:09 +0000 Bernie Thompson http://plugable.com/?p=1582 [updated 12/3 - DisplayLink has released driver version 5.5 M1 (Dec 3, 2010) which appears to resolve all these outstanding nVidia issues. See details ... ]

nVidia’s latest Win7/Vista drivers (October 18, 2010 and later) conflict with existing DisplayLink drivers (version 5.5 Sept 29th and earlier), causing video playback and some 3D applications to not function. These problems apply to all DisplayLink-based USB graphics products, including ours.

DisplayLink is working to fix the conflicts. They’re trying to roll out updated drivers as quickly as possible, but have some work to do yet.

On Nov 15 they made available a maintenance release of the older DisplayLink driver version 5.4, called “5.4 M1″, which resolves some of the conflict, but not enough to make the solution workable.

Our recommended solution for now is to use the latest DisplayLink drivers, and stay on or move back to nVidia drivers version 258 or earlier. For Windows 7 and Vista 32-bit, you can find the nVidia drivers here. For 64-bit, find them here. These drivers do not have any of these these 3D & video playback conflicts.

Our apologies to users affected by these conflicting drivers. We hope this information helps. Feel free to email support@plugable.com or visit http://plugable.com/support/ and post a question if you have any remaining problems. Again, thank you!

[updated 11/23]

The UD-160-A and other powered CM-6300 devices can be configured in hardware to deliver high power audio output, so it’s great even with unpowered speakers. But for headsets and self-powered speakers, the defaults may be too loud.

For those cases and others, here are some details and tips for adjusting the volume in Windows 7 with USB audio.

First off, it helps to bring up some music in Windows Media player so you can hear the affect of your settings changes. Most Windows 7 installs will have some sample music to play in Libraries->Music->Sample Music

Then, go to where the settings are collected — in the “Sound” settings from the Windows 7 Control Panel.

This will bring up the list of available audio devices, one of which should be your USB audio device. By default, Windows 7 makes a new USB audio device the default — even if it doesn’t have any speakers attached! So this is also the place where, if you’re not actually using your USB or docking station audio, you can select a different audio output (e.g. your laptop’s built-in audio) and click “Set Default” to make it the default for new default sound output and/or for communications (messenger/skype/voip). Windows will persist this setting.

For adjusting the USB audio level, right click on the USB audio device to bring up the context menu and select “Properties”.

The main volume for the device is in the “Levels” tab. When this audio device is the default device, this level is the same as the Windows master audio volume controls (the one you adjust from the sound icon in the Windows system tray) — adjusting one will adjust the other. The default in Windows is a max volume of “100″.

For the high-power audio of the Plugable dock, combined with powered speakers, “100″ is often too loud, and you may find that even setting the level to “1″ is still too loud.

The solution is the “Custom” tab which has an optional “Loudness” checkbox (provided by the Microsoft USB audio class drivers). Windows 7 sets this on by default, but in most cases it should be unchecked. Then, go back to your levels tab and re-adjust the volume to the right and comfortable level.

For most speaker combinations, you should no longer be having to peg the volume down at “1″.

And once you have master volume at a comfortable level – you also have another means of control. Each application has its own volume, which acts in combination with the Windows master settings. So if system sounds or media playback are still to loud or not the right relative volume, look within the particular application for its own sound slider (and most applications will persist this setting).

We hope this helps for anyone experiencing audio which is too loud or too quiet with any Plugable or other USB audio devices on Win 7. Please feel free to comment with any questions or other suggestions.

[Update March 2, 2011]

If you’re on Windows, and the above steps don’t help enough, there is a Windows driver solution to bump the volume down further.

This driver replaces Windows’ default USB audio driver, it’s compatible with the CM6300 in the Plugable Universal Dock. Most functionality doesn’t apply to the CM6300, but the fine grained control over volume is better and helpful.

Here’s where you can download the lower-volume CM6300 driver. Please let us know in the comments if you have any problems or feedback. Thanks!