Manuals/System Hardware Guide

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System Hardware Guide



Copyright © 2013 Userful Corporation. All rights reserved.
(Updated 2013.5.16)


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Contents

Introduction

As with any multiseat computer configuration, more powerful systems (faster processors, more cores, more RAM) can support more seats with better performance.

The guidelines below are just that: guidelines. Userful recommends testing software with the intended target hardware before deploying in a production setting.

Recommended PC Specifications

The following are the recommended system requirements for Userful MultiSeat.

For 6 Stations USB Zero Client
 		USB Zero Client
(VDI) 		Network Zero Client
Network Zero Client
(VDI)
ProcessorDual Core Quad Core Dual Core Quad Core
RAM 8GB 16GB 8GB 16GB
USB Controller Interfaces 1 High-Speed 2 High-Speed N/A N/A
Upto 11 Stations USB Zero Client
 		USB Zero Client
(VDI) 		Network Zero Client
 		Network Zero Client
(VDI)
Processor Quad Core Quad Core Quad Core Quad Core
RAM 16 GB 32 GB 16 GB 24+ GB
USB Controller Interfaces 2 High-Speed 2 High-Speed N/A N/A
11-15 Stations USB Zero Client
USB Zero Client
(VDI) 		Network Zero Client
 		Network Zero Client
(VDI)
Processor Quad Core N/A Quad Core Quad Core
RAM 16 GB N/A 16 GB 32 GB
USB Controller Interfaces 3 High-Speed N/A N/A N/A
15-20 Stations USB Zero Client
USB Zero Client
(VDI) 		Network Zero Client
 		Network Zero Client
(VDI)
Processor N/A N/A Quad Core Quad Core
RAM N/A N/A 16 GB 32 GB
20+ Stations USB Zero Client
USB Zero Client
(VDI) 		Network Zero Client
Network Zero Client
(VDI)
Processor N/A N/A Quad Core (Xeon or i7 class) N/A
RAM N/A N/A 32 GB N/A

For network zero client stations, PCs must have a non-wireless network card.

Please Note: PCI-E (PCI Express) USB expansion cards are not supported with Userful.

Graphics Cards

When using USB or network zero client devices, only one video card is used per system. This is called the "onboard" video card and may either be integrated into the motherboard or added via PCI expansion slot.

For onboard video only, Userful is compatible with any video card supported by the underlying Linux distribution. (Note: If using video card zero clients for multiseat, the onboard video card must either be nVIDIA or be disabled.)

Information on video cards supported by the underlying Linux distribution can be difficult to find; the most reliable sources of information are the README files or Linux "man pages" for the driver that will be used in the system.

  • If considering an nVIDIA graphics card for onboard or multiseat video, bear in mind that the open source drivers nv and nouveau are not compatible with Userful. To get information on the proprietary nVIDIA drivers for Linux, go to http://www.nvidia.com and search for the video card or driver you wish to use.

It is important to remember that Linux operating systems often don't support "bleeding edge" graphics cards, so it's worthwhile to research the options carefully, or contact your Userful representative for advice.

Please Note: Only one video output head of motherboards with dual-head radeon graphics is supported.

If the host PC system has a motherboard with integrated Radeon graphics, and also has two video output heads, only one output head will be usable with Userful MultiSeat enabled. The system will crash after reboot until a system administrator manually edits the /etc/userful/extra_devices.db to select either the VGA (D-sub) or DVI output head. To do so:

  1. Find the graphic card model used in the PC.
  2. Start the computer in single-user mode (with Userful MultiSeat disabled). Alternatively, if MultiSeat is enabled and the system has been started, wait three minutes and MultiSeat will automatically turn off, returning the system to single-user mode.
  3. Open a terminal and either log in as root or use sudo throughout this procedure.
  4. Open the /etc/userful/extra_devices.db file in a text editor.
  5. Find the # VGA devices list within that file and update it so that only one port is listed, either 'DVI' or 'D-sub' (VGA), after MainPorts.
Example: The original entry... 
('video', 0x1002, 0x5b63, any, any): dict(
       Model = 'Radeon X550 (0xPCIE)',  MainPorts =  ['DVI', 'D-sub']),
Should be changed to (for DVI output): 
('video', 0x1002, 0x5b63, any, any): dict(
       Model = 'Radeon X550 (0xPCIE)',  MainPorts =  ['DVI']),
Should be changed to (for VGA output): 
('video', 0x1002, 0x5b63, any, any): dict(
       Model = 'Radeon X550 (0xPCIE)',  MainPorts =  ['D-sub']),


DisplayPort

Some motherboards and/or video cards have DisplayPort connections instead of, or in addition to, VGA or DVI connections.

These devices can work with Userful, but require manual configuration to add the device to the database.

To add a DisplayPort video device to the Userful device database:

  1. Find the graphic card model used in the PC. To add the DisplayPort or Mini DisplayPort, the entry for this graphic card will be edited.
  2. Start the computer in single-user mode (with Userful MultiSeat disabled).
  3. Open a terminal and either log in as root or use sudo throughout this procedure.
  4. Open the /etc/userful/extra_devices.db file in a text editor.
  5. Find the # VGA devices list within that file. Find the video card used in the system and add either 'Display Port' or 'Mini Display Port' to the appropriate sub-section as follows: 
 ('video', 0x10de, 0x0659, any, any): dict(
      Model = '<VIDEO CARD>', MainPorts =  ['DVI', 'D-sub', 'Mini Display Port']),
Example: For an nVIDIA Quadro FX 580 card, add the following line to the # NVIDIA sub-section of the # VGA devices section: 
 'video', 0x10de, 0x0659, any, any): dict(
      Model = 'Quadro FX 580', MainPorts =  ['DVI', 'D-sub', 'Mini Display Port']),


































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