Experience with USB 3.0 docking stations

[jhsachs]

I'm shopping for a new laptop, and I've found that many brands, including my preferred one (Asus), now use docking stations with a USB 3.0 connector instead of a bus connector. That means that compatibility depends on a driver -- one that works well.

I know that recent Linux distributions support USB 3.0 out of the box. It's not clear whether that means they automatically support these docking stations. And if they do, it's not clear how good the user experience is likely to be.

I've read plenty of horror stories from people who tried to use USB 3.0 docking stations with Linux and encountered problems. But I know the sample is skewed; very few people are likely to bother posting that they tried a new gadget and it worked perfectly.

If you have any definite knowledge about this, from personal experience or otherwise, please share.

 

[edward_haigh]

This is quite a late reply so I hope it still helps jhsachs!

I have used some docking stations fine with a Linux distro, but I guess it depends on which one we are both using. I have used it fine on Ubunutu, Mint, Fedora and Debian OS's.

Would it be possible to post what USB docking station it is you plan on getting and with which laptop/OS and I can research it's compatibility for any issues you may get?

There are normally drivers available anyway to improve compatibility if needed. Like you said, the only posts you tend to find online are when things go wrong!

 

[David Raymond]

Hi Edward, Could you give details of what you are using? I researched this quite a lot on-line and it seemed to me that all USB 3.0 docking stations use displaylink chips for the video and that there is no support for them on linux - see http://www.linux.org/threads/experience-with-usb-3-0-docking-stations.5762/ for example. So I'm working without a docking station at present, but would love to use one.

 

[edward_haigh]

What laptop is the docking station for?

I will research it for you and try find a suitable one that will work.

Kind regards

Edward

 

[David Raymond]

Sorry for the delayed response - I remember writing a reply so don't know what happened there. I'm using a PC Specialist Ultranote II running Ubuntu 14.04. I'm looking to use a docking station to connect monitor(s) and several USB devices via a single USB 3.0 port.

Please also give details of what you are currently using since lots of people are looking for docking stations that actually work with Linux.

 

[Karl Pearson]

So true. I used a Toshiba Dynadock for a couple years at one employer, who provided it. Since I had both a desktop and a laptop, and added one monitor to each, having the dock not supportable for using the display ports wasn't critical for me. Then when I used the Pluggable at another job, who furnished me with a MacBook Pro (no option for Linux), I found I really liked using the option so I wasn't continuously unplugging more than just the one USB plug when I took my laptop home, which I did every night.

Now I have a better job and using Linux as my primary OS again, and one laptop using the Lenovo T430 docking station. It is supported by Linux, but the display port LCD lagged slightly behind, which is annoying and causing typos now and then when I forget to wait for it to update.

Having good drivers will be wonderful.

Let us know if and when you find something.

Thank you!

Karl Pearson
Registered Linux User #424918
at linuxcounter dot net