The PS / 2 ports were formerly those that were used to connect the mouse and keyboard to the PC, prior to the arrival of the USB ports because it was then that they fell into disuse. Despite that, and almost 25 years have passed since then, why do some motherboards still have PS / 2 ports?
In many motherboards we can still see these ports, which are also indicated with color code and even with icons: purple is for the keyboard, and green is for the mouse. In fact, in many cases we can see PS / 2 combo ports that are compatible with both peripherals (and that a splitter was necessary to connect the two to the same port).
What features does the PS / 2 port have?
Peripherals with a PS / 2 connection have not been manufactured for more than ten years, and yet even modern motherboards still have this port. For example, the image below corresponds to the ports on an ASRock J5005-ITX motherboard that is equipped with an Intel Pentium Silver J5005 processor and that supports DDR4 RAM and even has an M.2 socket for storage.
The PS / 2 port has many disadvantages compared to USB, such as when you connect a device, it is not Plug & Play and it is necessary to restart the computer to detect it. But it also has many other advantages over USB, such as:
- It does not require drivers of any kind . When you connect a USB keyboard to the PC, for example, a driver must tell the computer what you are connecting to that port. However, when you connect a keyboard to a PS / 2 port the PC knows that it is a keyboard without needing to be told in any way. This means that a keyboard connected to this port will always work, regardless of whether you are in the BIOS or what operating system you are using.
- It always works . In addition to the above, when you boot the PC the PS / 2 port loads even before the BIOS or processor data, and it literally has the power to interrupt CPU instructions. This means that it always works, no matter what you do, until you turn off the power. For this reason it is ideal for BIOS updates, firmware loads and basically what you need.
- It is inviolable . All of the above also means that it is inviolable. You cannot remotely access a PS / 2 peripheral in any way as there is no firmware, driver, or software involved. It is pure and hard hardware.
- It has Full N-Key Rollover support . The famous feature of gaming keyboards that allows us to press as many keys simultaneously as we want without getting cluttered is inherent in PS / 2 ports. For this reason, many professional gamers prefer to use these types of ports instead of conventional USB. Surprising, but true.
Why do some motherboards still include this port?
If you have read the previous section of this article you can imagine it. Generally, modern motherboards and more high-end motherboards no longer include it because, precisely, it is complicated if not impossible to find peripherals that use this interface. However, it is easy to find adapters from PS / 2 to USB and vice versa, and as we have explained before, there are really many advantages of having a direct connection by PS / 2 to the PC, so even today Many people still demand it and it really costs manufacturers nothing to implement it on the motherboard.
So, you already know: PS / 2 ports can be old, slow and archaic. But there is nothing more reliable.
