With Multiplicity, the controlling PC is the ‘Primary' and its connected keyboard and mouse will control it and its connected 'Secondary’ PCs. Primary and Secondary designations are selected by the user during the initial configuration process. They can, however, be changed at any time thereafter.
There are two ways to connect Primary PCs to Secondary PCs: Seamless mode and KVM mode:
Seamless mode is used when the Secondary PCs have their own monitors and can be seen by the operator (on the same desk for example).
KVM mode is used to connect to remote computers that may, or may not, have mice, keyboards, or monitors attached to them. The display from KVM connected Secondary PC will be shown on the Primary computer's monitor.
With this in mind, some level of planning would be prudent when considering what you want as your Primary and Secondary computers and how you want to connect to them.
Secondary PCs cannot control Primary PCs.
During the installation process, a keyboard, mouse, and monitor must be connected to each computer. Seamless-connected Secondaries will still need a monitor connected after installation and setup. The KVM-connected computers will not require a monitor, keyboard, or mouse after installation and setup.
Downloading and installing Multiplicity
To start, you will install and configure Multiplicity on a computer you want as a Secondary in either Seamless or KVM mode. Please click here to download the most recent version of Multiplicity.
When the download is complete on the PC you want as a Secondary, run the install file accepting the license agreement and selecting 'Next' through the default settings. Click 'Finish' when complete.
After the installation is complete, you may be prompted with a Windows Security Alert. Check 'Domain' and 'Private' networks leaving 'Public' unchecked. Click 'Allow access' to continue.
Note: Make sure you are not connected to a network that is designated as 'Public'. Click here to check what type of network you are connected to.
Configuring Multiplicity to be a Secondary PC
After the installation is complete, choose 'Be a Secondary computer':
The next window details the default settings after installation:
Take note of the following information as it will be required when configuring the Primary computer:
Computer name
The IP address of your Secondary (located in the lower left of the window)
The Passcode (case sensitive)
This completes installing and configuration of a Secondary computer.
Configuring Multiplicity to be a Primary PC
Follow the steps above for downloading and installing Multiplicity on the computer you want as your Primary. After the installation is complete, select 'Be a Primary computer'.
The activation menu will appear with options for starting a trial, purchasing Multiplicity, or entering details to activate the product. Click here if you need more information on what you choose.
Activating Multiplicity
After installing Multiplicity as a Primary for the first time, you will be prompted with the following choices (Secondary computers do not require activation)
As of version 3.01, this is the new style of activation. If you see any other activation menu type, please update to the to the current version.
To activate a trial select "Start 30-Day Trial". The trial is a fully functional version of KVM Pro.
Select "Purchase Product Key" to purchase a Multiplicity license.
Select "Enter Product Key" if you have purchased a license and are ready to activate it.
If you are still in a 30-day trial period but have since purchased a license, right-click on the Multiplicity icon in the system tray located on the taskbar on the Primary computer and select 'Configure Multiplicity'.
Select the "About" tab and press the 'Change License' button.
After selecting 'Enter Product Key' you will be prompted with the following menu:
Enter the product key and email address associated with the product. Alternatively, if you created an account when purchasing the product, you can use the 'Stardock account' link to just use your email address and password to activate.
Note: If you have an Stardock account, and multiple multi-key licenses of Multiplicity associated with it, it would be prudent to use the Product Key activation method. Doing so would use that specific license opposed to a round robin method (cycle through registration) used when you use the Stardock account method.
Clicking 'Activate' will activate the product on this machine.
If you have trouble with the in-application activation or are trying to activate it on a PC that does not have Internet access, you will be provided with instructions for activating offline.