Connecting two computers with a USB cable.

• What to choose?
• How does it work?
• What to do?

If you have to transfer huge files from one PC to another, using a flash disk or burning a CD-ROM can seem like a waste of time. One wise way to transfer these files quickly between two computers would be to use a USB-USB cable.

What to choose?

To be able to make the transfer, you will need:
1. An Ethernet crossover cable
2. A null modem serial cable. If you don’t have one, you can use a parallel peripheral cable.
3. And finally special-purpose USB cables.

How does it work?

The Ethernet network will allow you to transfer data between more than two PCs. One of the computers must have an Ethernet adapter, even if the others have a USB port as you can make use of the crossover cable. You can do this by plugging a USB-to-Ethernet converter device in the other computers that possess a USB port.

The cable that you should use to connect two PCs together is called a “USB networking cable”. A tiny electronic circuit is used in the middle of the connection to allow the two PC to send data to one another. You should bear in mind that if you are using serial or parallel cables, you will not be able to transfer data between more than two computers. Hence, I will suggest you to use a Direct Cable Connection to be able to get the same specifications as an Ethernet cable.

You can make use of a USB 1.1 or USB 2.0 bridge chip to enhance the speed of your transfer. You must also bear in mind that you need an Ethernet network that works at least at 100 Mps to ease your transfers.

What to do?

1. Both computers should be switched on and logged in into “Administrator” account.
2. On the USB port computer, plug in the USB bridge in the USB slot and the end bridge in the other computer.
3. You must now install the USB bridge cable driver software when you are asked to. Remember to install it as a link adapter or a network adapter.
4. If you choose to install a link adapter, you will be allowed to transfer files from one PC to another but if you choose to install a network adapter, you will be able to access the whole network’s PCs.
5. When installation is complete, you should be able to start the data transfers between the computers connected.