Network switches
- Thread starter lewisjd
- Start date
This is what I use at my home:
D-Link DGS-1016D 16-Port Rackmountable Gigabit Switch
You can find it at Newegg for $140.
Kevin
D-Link DGS-1016D 16-Port Rackmountable Gigabit Switch
You can find it at Newegg for $140.
Kevin
pete_c
Guru
Regarding the
Personally I just recently purchased a very cheap used Dell 8 port gigabyte switch for around $20 on ebay. Now thinking of more port capacity as I migrate devices over to gig. It does help some with moving larger files here and there.
you can download the latest firmware for the switch, ensure that you have the web gui enabled and pretty much set it up all via the web gui. Cisco has worked much in the last few years to make the switches more plug n play. For an "at home" network you will not need to utilize the enterprise features built into the switch.
Personally I just recently purchased a very cheap used Dell 8 port gigabyte switch for around $20 on ebay. Now thinking of more port capacity as I migrate devices over to gig. It does help some with moving larger files here and there.
KentDub
Active Member
Cisco switches are very powerful. They are in a class known as Managed switches. This means they can have user settings and even per-port settings. You get control over your network rather than the ulta-basic plug-and-play. You will want to get the password to it! Then you'll need a serial adapter to plug into it's admin port to get inside the thing to configure it. Configuration will be confusing, as with most Cisco gear; The first thing I would do is restore everything to factory default to wipe out the previous owner's configuration. Then go through the features the switch offers and google them to see if they offer something you're interested in. Be sure to turn them on one at a time and test them! Also, and this is easy to forget, there is a save command when you are editing the configuration, you must use it even after the most basic changes! (sometimes it appears to make the changes right away, but if the switch loses power the configuration will revert to its unsaved state).
FWIW I use the D-Link DGS-1224T at home, it's a bit bigger than the one Kevin uses, but I got it specifically because it is a low-cost managed switch. It has a very user-friendly web interface. This particular model can be had for about $225. The "current generation" of the model - which adds internal VLAN routing - is around $600.
D-Link DGS-1224T
How many devices do you have on your network? The only thing that is a huge downside of this switch is lack of gbit. It may be possible to throw an expansion module or two in to it, if so then you might be able to find them cheap off ebay. If you have a couple of computers and a bunch of other low-speed devices (i.e. <100mbps), then you can get a small MANAGED switch (4 or 8 port) and then create a highspeed (200mbps or 400mbps -- the D-Link mentioned and the Cisco will support combining multiple ports for >100mbps) link to the Cisco. Once you enter the realm of managed devices its a good idea to not mix them with unmanaged devices.
You went from an low end router to a king-of-the-hill switch. You'll have fun learning all of the new things you can do with it (and a day or two of being pissed off trying to access it's admin console). As I re-read your post, and this is important, you are going from a router to a switch -- you will still need a router! Unplug everything except the DSL from your router and put it all on the Cisco, then run a cat5 from the router into the Cisco (so you arn't using any of the switching on the dsl router). When you have some extra cash consider looking into an EOL Cisco router (I have three 2600 series myself). They can be found for cheap -- just know you have to buy at least one ethernet module for them (otherwise you're stuck at 10mbps for the 2600 series). Then your setup would look like (DSL Modem)->(Cisco Router)->(Cisco Switch)->[Rest of network]... Starting to look like a real high-quality network in the home!
Hope this helps,
Kent
FWIW I use the D-Link DGS-1224T at home, it's a bit bigger than the one Kevin uses, but I got it specifically because it is a low-cost managed switch. It has a very user-friendly web interface. This particular model can be had for about $225. The "current generation" of the model - which adds internal VLAN routing - is around $600.
D-Link DGS-1224T
How many devices do you have on your network? The only thing that is a huge downside of this switch is lack of gbit. It may be possible to throw an expansion module or two in to it, if so then you might be able to find them cheap off ebay. If you have a couple of computers and a bunch of other low-speed devices (i.e. <100mbps), then you can get a small MANAGED switch (4 or 8 port) and then create a highspeed (200mbps or 400mbps -- the D-Link mentioned and the Cisco will support combining multiple ports for >100mbps) link to the Cisco. Once you enter the realm of managed devices its a good idea to not mix them with unmanaged devices.
You went from an low end router to a king-of-the-hill switch. You'll have fun learning all of the new things you can do with it (and a day or two of being pissed off trying to access it's admin console). As I re-read your post, and this is important, you are going from a router to a switch -- you will still need a router! Unplug everything except the DSL from your router and put it all on the Cisco, then run a cat5 from the router into the Cisco (so you arn't using any of the switching on the dsl router). When you have some extra cash consider looking into an EOL Cisco router (I have three 2600 series myself). They can be found for cheap -- just know you have to buy at least one ethernet module for them (otherwise you're stuck at 10mbps for the 2600 series). Then your setup would look like (DSL Modem)->(Cisco Router)->(Cisco Switch)->[Rest of network]... Starting to look like a real high-quality network in the home!
Hope this helps,
Kent
KentDub
Active Member
I'm sure that the bulk of users never need or even want managed switches. However, for those of us who like control over things (which seems to be almost everyone who frequents these forums), this may be a subject that a lot aren’t aware of. I'll quickly go over some of the key features of the switch, what they do and how they can be used.
Some of the driving features that made me choose the managed switch is its VLAN capabilities. This allows me to logically segregate the network without the expensive of physically segregating it. I can keep my security system on one network, computers on another, storage (NAS) on yet another, and when I add the capability, video on even another. This lets me prevent communication between networks except between "approved" routes that I define. This means there is absolutely no way in heck that when I have a buddy over he can access my security system via WiFi on his cell phone or laptop. There are many other advantages to a VLAN infrastructure - it's worth a Google.
This particular managed switch allows for QoS tagging - so I can give my XBox360 and VoIP priority in the switching & routing. I can also tag devices that don't directly support QoS, or don't allow you to configure it on the device.
The Link Aggregation feature is very powerful. For larger homes you can have let's say three switches setup in a triangle, so all devices plug into the nearest switch. However, typically there is only 1000mbps over a single cat5E run, with this feature you can trunk multiple lines to get a 2000mbps link - while a single computer/device won't be able to utilize all of this, two concurrent maxed out gbit file transfers will be possible. This is also an awesome way to link an existing 100mbps switch into a gbit environment -- trunking it to 200mbps. Multiple switches linked together (the switch has fiber ports too!) arranged like this can cut latency in 1/3rd rather than running every cable to a central location -- longer cable runs = higher latency.
The Spanning Tree is an awesome feature as well. Take the previous example where the network is setup in a triangle. In a traditional network you can never create a loop; otherwise the network will crash and burn. This feature lets you, where it will send data to the correct switch based on rules -- so in a triangle you are always at most 2 hops away from the end device (local switch + 1 remote switch) -- rather than 3 hops. This also means that one leg of the network can go down (let's say cable gets cut from intruder) - the network will instantly start routing traffic over the working link.
Jumbo Frames seem to be a subject that’s floating around. Not all switches really support it. This switch supports it natively, where it doesn’t eat up internal switching cpu power. For comparison, a switch that doesn’t natively support it will take multiple clock cycles to process a jumbo frame - if the CPU isn't properly sized for the switch your limiting factor in speed could be the switch and not the end devices.
The last thing worth mentioning is the security features. Like WiFi routers let you restrict who can connect via MAC address - a managed switch will let you do the same for wired devices. This lets me prevent anyone from attaching a device I don't know about to my network -- in my case I have roommates and their friends to worry about. This is a stupidly simple thing to setup, and IMO worth it. With more and more people attaching security systems and automation equipment to their networks it is important that huge security holes aren’t left open.
Hope this helps,
Kent
WOW, thanks for the response Kent! I've been reading up on the VLAN capabilities of this switch as well as access control lists. (I have VERY basic Cisco knowledge) I am most definately going to have fun with this piece of hardware. 
That DLink 24port that you have is really nice. That might be my next purchase to keep the NAS and the HTPC's on GBit. Right now, most of my video is ran locally on my main PC, so I don't really need to worry about xfer speeds since the Xbox doesnt support GBit anyway. When I get my new ZOTAC, well, that will be a different story.
I'm still chewing this over on how I want to set everything up, but I think I am going to keep my VOIP plugged into the DSL router, since it supports GBit, but given the QOS capabilities of this switch, I may play around with that. Then from the router I will go to my psfense, then into the switch, which will in turn feed the rest of my network. I was able to get the 2 1000Base-FX GBICS for this particular switch thrown in as well. I dont have fiber, but at least I have them
For those of you interested in some gear like this, check out redrabbitt.com. That is where my employer sends their EOL equipment, and where I got this. Its a gold mine for old gear, PCs, everything.
That DLink 24port that you have is really nice. That might be my next purchase to keep the NAS and the HTPC's on GBit. Right now, most of my video is ran locally on my main PC, so I don't really need to worry about xfer speeds since the Xbox doesnt support GBit anyway. When I get my new ZOTAC, well, that will be a different story.
I'm still chewing this over on how I want to set everything up, but I think I am going to keep my VOIP plugged into the DSL router, since it supports GBit, but given the QOS capabilities of this switch, I may play around with that. Then from the router I will go to my psfense, then into the switch, which will in turn feed the rest of my network. I was able to get the 2 1000Base-FX GBICS for this particular switch thrown in as well. I dont have fiber, but at least I have them
For those of you interested in some gear like this, check out redrabbitt.com. That is where my employer sends their EOL equipment, and where I got this. Its a gold mine for old gear, PCs, everything.
KentDub
Active Member
Congrats! There's another feature that I used when I had a Windows 2003 server (I havn't set it back up since I upgraded to Windows 2008 server) -- is that you can use RADIUS authentication from your domain controller to authorize devices onto the network (which is a bit more maintainable than putting in MAC addresses, though more useful for larger networks where devices are constantly being added/removed). This also lets you use the quarantine features of Windows 2008 server (NAP I believe it is) so if a computer connects to the network and is approved (let's say a friends laptop) - but dosn't have all of the required security encryptions enabled, or all of the windows updates, it will be put into a quarantine network where it can only talk to the server (i.e. so it can get the updates) - and not allowed to talk to any other device (the idea is it prevents viruses/worms from spreading). This is a tricky thing to get setup but has a whole bunch of security advantages. At this point we're talking about a business-class network in the home. The DGS-1224T supports this.
Kent
Cool. I can see how that feature would really be good if you have roommates and friends that access your network with unknown equipment. I currently have a Windows 2003 Server environment but don't have any PCs that aren't known.
Thanks again for your help and info, Kent.
Kevin
Thanks again for your help and info, Kent.
Kevin
roussell
Active Member
I use a Cisco 2548 managed switch with two 1000Base-T copper GBICs for Gig connectivity to two 'servers'. Everything else is 100 but most everything else connects via wifi or is a low-speed device anyway so it doesn't really matter. Of the two servers, one is a SageTV box that retrieves ripped CDs and DVDs from the other (a linux virtual) so the gig connectivity comes in handy for that. I have three VLANS, one for SAGE communication between the HDHR, SAGE Server and Extenders, one that has the control devices on it for HA and one for General network usage.
Terry
Terry
You mean 3548XL?
