I have a 21.5" iMac from late 2009 that runs great. For work I have a Dell Latitude E7250 that has a mini display port. The mini-display port cable fits into the iMac but is this a "Thunderbolt" port and not really a mini-display port at all?? Are they the same thing?
If a had a mini display port to mini display port cable would I be able to use the iMac as the second monitor?
Is that the correct cable?
What keystrokes would I need to get this going?
Thanks in advance for your consideration of my question.
Best Answer
The Thunderbolt port can be used for Mini-DisplayPort. In theory, you should be able to use Target Display Mode because you are using a Windows machine as your primary display. [See Use your iMac as a display with Target Display Mode and How to transmit my PC onto my iMac?. However, as mentioned in the latter link, you can use Microsoft Remote Desktop. Therefore, you could try using a Mini-DisplayPort to Mini-DisplayPort cable, but Microsoft Remote Desktop would be a safer bet.
Instructions for Target Display Mode:
Update: the Late '09 iMac can accept Mini-DisplayPort connections, so you should be able to use a Mini-DisplayPort cable.
(from https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204592)
Instructions for Microsoft Remote Desktop:
(from https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dn473012(v=ws.11).aspx)