Need advice on a good switch

[hansbroken]

I need a good quality 8 port network switch. It needs to be "configurable" (or at least , have some options available to work with the settings).

I have looked at these 4 models:

Netgear:

1) FS108
2) FS608NA

Linksys:

1) EZXS88W
2) SD208

I am leaning more towards the FS108, as the FS608NA seems like there are less options to customize the configuration.

Any input on these -- or other models -- would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[TOAD6147]

I know most all routers are configurable but I don't know of any
configurable SOHO switches which I believe are called "unmanaged" and can be had for as little as $25 or less these days. However, the "managed" or configurable switches are quite expensive and probably not worth the expense for a home network, IMHO.

[jkrohn]

Unless I am missing something, none of those switches are managed switches.

Exactly what you are looking to configure in the switch?

Jkrohn

[John Prophet]

Basically you need to do a search for "managed switches" and maybe for "vlan switches".

such as http://www.milan.com/managed_switches/sm800p.html

Vlan is "virtual lan"..that is basically where you can subdivide the switch into smaller sections....like have 4 ports on one network and 4 on another...where they cant "see" the other 4 ports etc.

There is also a function on some of them called "trunking" but I cant remember what it is exactly, lol.

I saw a cool one a while back but I cant think of the brand etc.

------------

Basically, any of the cheap home type switches...like all those you listed....they arent gojng to have any configurations at all....they are just "hook it up and forget it" type deals.



-=--------------

Ok, here is the one I was looking at a while back.

The "Compex PS2216"...it has vlan and "trunking". Configurable by dip switches.

http://www.techwarelabs.com/reviews/...compex_ps2216/

http://www.tweak3d.net/reviews/compex/ps2216/2.shtml

I think its usually priced at $60ish. Its not perfect but it could be a cool way to play around with some management features at a low price.

JP

[John Prophet]

Taken from one of the links above-------

-------

Port Trunking
This is one of the high end features on the PS2216. On most regular switches, if you want to daisy chain multiple switches together, you have to use an uplink port, which basically is just a port configured to communicate with another switch. In the scenario, the communication between the switches is only limited to 200Mbps (as it's full duplex on a 100Mbps port). On expensive switches, this is usually implemented via a gigabit port (usually fiber, but gigabit Ethernet is also used. The PS2216 can use the regular uplink method (200Mbps) or it can use port trunking with four 100Mbps ports (giving a max bandwidth of 800Mbps between the switches). Although in this case, it ties up four ports on each switch, this is a very low cost performance solution for interconnecting two switches.
The PS2216 allows for two groups of four ports for Port Trunking if you want to connect a series of switches.

--------------

Virtual VLAN
VLAN functionality is another one of those high end features primarily found on higher-cost business switch. VLANs restrict the size of a broadcast domain (basically it segments groups of computers into virtual LANs (or virtual workgroups). Broadcasts are only contained with each VLAN, cutting down on the excess traffic transmitted to each node (which also is something that slows down networks when they're too large). Essentially, it's like if each VLAN were all connected to different routers and couldn't directly interface with each other.
The VLAN implementation on the PS2216 is port based VLAN. Basically each port is on it's own VLAN, and Port 1 is the common port (the port which all broadcasts get sent to, no matter which VLAN). In a typical setup, another switch or hub would be connected to each port to form their own VLAN (and in a way, the switch works as a router in certain functions).

[hansbroken]

Toad, jkrohn & JP -- Thank you very much for your input. You all are very helpful.

I should have provided more information. The switch needed is for a small home network. My sister in-law needs to set up a remote workstation at home (I believe like a VPN over the internet). They already have a small network, but it is very basic -- Cable internet -> cable modem --> Netgear intergraded router & 4 port hub. And she wants to keep it a separate from the other computers as possible, while sharing the same internet connection.

She asked me to find her a "good" 8 port switch. She said that she does not want to use a hub. And JP gave me the link which explains why (the Techware article about hubs Vs switches). All she told me was that it has to do with the way the signal is treated -- the hub was more of a broadcast device whereas a switch manages the signals without just broadcasting to every computer on the network.

And she wanted a "good" switch -- and was not very specific. I guess one of her fellow workers had to do the same thing and this person purchased a really cheap like $9 no-name switch that caused her many headaches.

I will read through the articles more thoroughly and get a hold of her to find out exactly what she wants.

I am not well versed in networking. I can get two or three computers talking and all, but that is about it.

At this point, I'll assume that any of the switches listed in my original post are "good" switches that will function correctly for what they are designed for.

Thanks again

Edit: Actually, after reading the links, I think I'll go with the Compex. It looks like you can't go wrong with it - and it is about the same price as the others listed above (give or take $10). The only thing is finding one in stock. Only place so far is Tiger Direct, and I'm not nuts about them.