Cyclades ACS Console Servers

Joe Freeman

Terminal servers, network access servers, and console servers all come from similar roots. Although they were originally used to connect green-screen, dumb terminals to remote hosts, it didn't take long for people to realize that they could put a pair of modems and a phone line between the terminal and the terminal server. Once IP became the prevalent protocol, it was a fairly simple task to add an IP stack to the terminal server and create a device that allowed remote users to connect to the IP network from a remote location.

Once the IP stack was added, it was an even smaller jump to turn the connection around and use the terminal server to access serial console ports on remote equipment via IP. As time progressed, the market developed and different vendors added different features to support their customers. Today, IP Keyboard, Video, and Mouse (IP KVM) switches allow you to remote even the GUI interface on many of today's servers.

This article will focus on console servers -- the terminal server turned around so that you can access remote consoles via the IP network. With a console server, you can access all the management functions available on a server's console port just as if you were there. With high port capacity, clustering, and other features available today, you can access your whole data center remotely. This ability to virtualize the server's console port is a life saver when that Web server or database box dies in the middle of the night and you can't physically get to it.

Enter the Cyclades

Cyclades hit the market in 1991 as manufacturer of serial cards for Linux hosts.