Here are the details needed to share a smart card reader
using USB Network Gate:
Step1
Download the application and install it on the computer that has the USB smart card reader attached to it. This will be known as the server. The app also needs to be installed on each client machine that will remotely access the peripheral device. The program will display two tabs once it’s installed: Share Local USB Devices and Remote USB Devices. Clicking the gearwheel icon next to Share enables you to modify the port number being used, implement encryption, and make other configuration changes for the connection.
Step 2
When the installation is completed you are ready to share devices. You need an external IP address if you plan on sharing the equipment over the Internet. On the server machine, select the ‘Share Local USB Devices’ tab and locate the device you want to access. Immediately upon clicking the Share button the card reader will be recognized across the network and be made available to the remote client computers.
USB Network Gate can be used to enable a user in an RDP session to access the shared smart card reader. Since you are sharing the USB port and not the actual device, any peripheral attached to the interface can be used in the Remote Desktop session. Usually, when you connect to an RDP session you lose connectivity to the USB devices connected to the local machine. You can solve this problem with USB Network Gate.
The application needs to be installed on the two machines that will be sharing the device. The local machine which has the Microsoft RDP client protocol needs the server portion of USB Network Gate installed. The Remote Desktop connection acts as the client for the RDP protocol. The server component is Terminal Server which should be active on the remote machine that will share the card reader. The USB Network Gate client component needs to be installed on this computer. Connectivity can now be established from within the RDP session to access the shared USB port.
Sharing the smart card reader from within a virtual machine is also easily accomplished using USB over Ethernet app. This can be very helpful when you run into limitations in the number of USB ports available to the VM. The host machine’s USB interfaces are made available to the virtual session with USB Network Gate.
All you need to do is download and install USB Network Gate with the server portion on the physical host machine and the client in the virtual session. Then, simply share the device from the server and use the client to establish a remote connection.
Pros:
- Windows, Mac, and Linux versions offer a true cross-platform solution for sharing USB devices remotely.
- Easily access USB devices remotely over a network or from within RDP or virtual sessions.
- Excellent customer support.
Cons:
USB Network Gate is a paid solution. You can take advantage of a 14-day trial version that lets you determine if the app’s functionality is what you need before committing to purchasing the product.
