VGA/PS2 build project for Media Smart EX and H340 Home Servers.

Hi ya folks,

I’m looking at starting a project on building a VGA/PS2 interface for the HP MediaSmart and the Acer H340 EasyStore servers.

HP has come out with their 3rd generation home servers, the EX49x and I know Microsoft prefers WHS boxes to be headless. But with the recent changes to the EX49x boxes, reinstalling the server software has become more difficult and is a shot in the dark process.

So I figured I’ll try and build a printed circuit board to make this process more bearable.

What’s nice is that the Acer home server are built using the same internal connector, so this PCB will work on those boxes also.

Parts List from Digikey ;

CONN HOUSING PHD 26POS 2MM DUAL , CONN HD15 FEMALE OVER DUAL PS/2

CONN HEADER PHD TOP 26POS 2MM, CONN TERM PHD CRIMP 22-26AWG TIN

Printed Circuit Board Software ;

I’ll be using ExpressPCB to design the printed circuit board. You can find the software here ; http://www.expresspcb.com/ExpressPCBHtm/Free_cad_software.htm

I plan on making the PCB parts template and PCB design available for download. So anyone can tweak it for themselves. I have to purchase a minimum number of PCB’s to place an order so I’ll end up with extras.

Next I will have to build a cable to connect the two. I’m hoping to find a straight thru design. I’ll update this blog post as things develop.

Join me in the forums where we can discuss it .

John.

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