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Router, Switch or Hub?
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| Our school is looking to get news hubs. There are appoximately 100 computers in the school. Should we be looking for a Hub Router or a Switch?
We currently have:
1 3 COM SuperStack Hub (40)
2 Bay Stack 102 10 Base T hubs
Any recommendations? Something good but not the best. | |
| CyberDude 2002-06-18, 12:58 pm |
| Go for the switch. If you want more subnets then a router.  | |
| jeff_j_black 2002-06-18, 8:19 pm |
| Good call! VLAN's rule! | |
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| any workgroup switch is fine. you should check with your solution provider.
3com's superstack 3 switches are fine, they are like $1.6k for 24 ports.
you can then just put the servers/heavy workstations on their own port and then uplink the existing hubs to it for average/light users/stations. cheap fast solution to improve performance unless you really want to move all to fastether.
100 nodes, you don't have to worry about vlans, routers etc... my numbers may be (prolly a little) off but I am pretty sure the recommended max nodes in a ether broadcast domain is 500-700 so you are fine in that respect.
edit: I should add, this of course assume there is no consideration for creation of vlans for security/role etc and the existing/planned network is just one lump. | |
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| Thanks for the responses. I seem to be missing out on the VLAN joke?? So we don't really need a router unless we are breaking up the network into different segments?
Thanks. | |
| jeff_j_black 2002-06-19, 9:45 am |
| VLAN's are a way to configure individual ports to belong to certain subnets, in a sense using a switch to divide broadcast domains. This is done in conjuction with a router, but VLANs can minimized the number of interfaces required on the router. (One interface could service several VLANs as opposed to having an interface per subnet.) | |
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| Thanks for the reply. Ah, I think I got some studying to do. | |
| jeff_j_black 2002-06-19, 10:44 am |
| Don't worry, VLANs wont come up on 216, nor will switching. Just make sure to review the Microsoft Objectives for the exam! | |
| necrophantasm 2002-06-19, 11:17 am |
| What kind of internet connection do you have now? Do you have a router at all for it, if so, what kind? Do the students have internet access, and if so, how restrictive is it?
Just a couple of other considerations for you. If it turns out that you need to get a newer, more secure router as well.. you could get some cheap 24 port linksys switches for about 5-600 bucks each (instead of 1.6k), and then do your subnetting on the router. It might be a bit more secure too, if you want to have all the office people off one subnet, the students off another, etc.. (VLans are ok, dont get me wrong.. but if I can do all the configuring on just a few ports instead more than 10-20 I will). | |
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| nay, you aren't missing anything.
it all depend on your need. I assumed that since you guys are using a 3com hub, you guys may want to stick with 3com products in case if you are using any 3com's management product so I just took that price off 3com's site.
since you aren't doing much wiht a switch, that product is fine. price disparity is mostly due to the *added* feature and other crap that you are not gonna use. | |
| necrophantasm 2002-06-20, 5:59 am |
| Looks good to me. I have never heard of Compex, so I can't help you much on features or reliability. |
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