You may need access to a printer, scanner, webcam, or dongle connected to another computer. If that computer is within reach, reconnect the device to your machine. But what if you have to do this across multiple devices dozens of times a day, every day? This will be highly inconvenient, and the amount of wear and tear on your devices from constant reconnection will significantly reduce their service life. What if the other car is miles away, and you must drive back and forth for hours to reconnect the device? That’s when USB-sharing software comes in handy.
How to Share USB Devices Over a Network
You need to follow several steps to share USB devices over a network. Setting up access to a device depends on the device to which you want to open access. Here’s how to do it:
- Choose a server for USB devices that suits your requirements. These servers can be different, such as stand-alone hardware devices or software.
- Install a USB device server. If you choose a hardware server, connect it to the network and configure settings according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If you use the software, install it on the computers you want to connect to USB devices.
- Next, connect USB devices to the server’s ports and check that the server is correctly connected to the network (if you use a hardware server for USB devices).
- Configure the sharing settings for the USB device server that runs the software. To do this, create a list of devices that can be shared and configure security features such as encryption and authentication.
- Install drivers on the computers you will connect to USB devices. Check the manufacturer’s instructions for installing the correct drivers.
- Check connection and access to USB devices. You can test printing for printers, file transfer for storage devices, etc.
- If you find problems, you need to fix them. If using a software-based server, check your subconnection settings or connection configuration. If you have a hardware server, check whether you have connected the devices correctly. If you need help with these steps, contact technical customer support.
- After you configure USB devices, users can connect to them.
Following these steps correctly, you can use USB devices over the network.
What devices can you connect via USB over Ethernet technology?
Thanks to using USB over Ethernet technology, you can share many devices with a USB port. For example:
- Printers;
- Scanners;
- External hard drives and storage devices;
- Webcams and cameras;
- USB hubs;
- Audio devices (microphones and speakers);
- Barcode scanners and RFID readers;
- USB keys and security keys;
- Game controllers;
- Industrial control devices (sensors, actuators, PLCs (programmable logic controllers) and data acquisition modules).
As you can see, USB over Ethernet technology allows you to share many USB devices. This will enable companies to save significantly on equipment. This technology also increases productivity and allows for efficient data collection, gaming tournaments, and many other activities.
Key benefits of USB over Ethernet technology
USB over Ethernet technology has several significant advantages that can make life much easier for users and organizations.USB over Ethernet allows you to:
- connect remotely to any USB device over your network, regardless of location;
- centrally manage USB devices without connecting to computers or devices. Administrators can monitor and control shared USB devices from one location, simplifying device management tasks;
- share USB devices with several other users or computers simultaneously. This feature is useful in offices, laboratories, or classrooms;
- Use any operating system, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and Unix as it is platform-independent;
- have built-in security features to protect sensitive data and prevent unauthorized access to shared devices. Encryption, authentication, and access control mechanisms ensure the confidentiality and integrity of data transmitted over the network;
- provides high-performance data transfer. This ensures smooth and fast operation even when accessing USB devices remotely.
- allows you to expand your network infrastructure and add new USB devices if needed as it is very flexible and scalable;
- integrate with virtualization platforms, allowing users to share USB devices among virtual machines (VMs) in virtualized environments.
- intuitively and efficiently operate and configure, which reduces the time and effort required to perform routine equipment maintenance tasks.
USB over Ethernet technology has several features and benefits, making it an excellent solution for sharing and accessing USB devices over a network infrastructure. This improves performance, efficiency, and flexibility across various applications and environments.