Is a gigabit switch worth it for my network?

rpeters83

rpeters83

Gawd
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Jan 11, 2009
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513
Here is my current setup: http://imgur.com/a/IqOGQ

I feel like there are too many switches and possibilities of bottlenecks. I do transfer a bit amount of files and have a Plex server. I found a front-facing 16-port gigabit switch for about $75 and am thinking of getting it and adding a couple more Ethernet drops. The Wii is highlighted in the 2nd picture because I actually don't have an extra port available for it. BTW, the "Server" is one machine with two NICs.

So far I'm leaning towards it, but wanted to get some feedback. Thanks.
 
Probably not worth it, but are you actually saturating any of your current network nodes?

Best upgrade, in my opinion, would probably be going from that POS Actiontec to the Quantum one. I would say use your own but Verizon no longer allows using your own router (which in my mind should be considered vendor lockin and should be illegal, but that's a different discussion).
 
dandragonrage said:
Probably not worth it, but are you actually saturating any of your current network nodes?

Best upgrade, in my opinion, would probably be going from that POS Actiontec to the Quantum one. I would say use your own but Verizon no longer allows using your own router (which in my mind should be considered vendor lockin and should be illegal, but that's a different discussion).
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When I transfer a large file, it usually takes up the entire bandwidth. I figured there won't be huge improvements day-to-day, but when moving large files around, my thought was it would help. Plus, if I need to mess with my N66U (like I typically like to do), it won't bring down the entire network since it's also being used as a switch.
 
Which machines do you transfer large files between, and are you trying to transfer multiple large files at a time between different machines? If you're only transferring one large file at a time, then you would benefit from replacing any 100Mbps switches with gigabit ones, but wouldn't have much if any benefit from consolidating if you already have gigabit switches. You might gain a little bit of speed if someone is downloading files from the internet at say 50Mbps while you transfer a large file on other machines, but that would only increase your transfer speed up to that 50Mbps which is minor compared to gigabit.

The only way you'd have a large benefit is if you're transferring large files from multiple machines on secondary switches at the same time (and not just between themselves). For example if you are transferring large files from one of your servers to your wife's desktop and your son's desktop at the same time. In that case, your idea would probably increase your transfer rates reasonably significantly if your server itself isn't maxed out on disk speed already.

If you have 100Mbps switches now then yes, do upgrade them, and you might as well consolidate at the same time.
 
rpeters83 said:
Here is my current setup: http://imgur.com/a/IqOGQ

I feel like there are too many switches and possibilities of bottlenecks. I do transfer a bit amount of files and have a Plex server. I found a front-facing 16-port gigabit switch for about $75 and am thinking of getting it and adding a couple more Ethernet drops. The Wii is highlighted in the 2nd picture because I actually don't have an extra port available for it.
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The Wii doesn't have an Ethernet port on it anyway. Wireless or nothing when it comes to Wii connectivity.

Just put the switch in your network. It certainly sounds like you want to and it will be fun to setup, plus you won't be using your Asus router as a switch so you can mess with it all you want. I replaced all my wiring with Cat6 over the holiday break, and got every device with a RJ45 port connected to a Gigabit switch now. Does it make a difference in my typical use? No. Did it keep me busy for a few hours and am I happy with it now? Hell yes.
 
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FWIW, here at work, when we used to be on 100Mb... we were able to transfer files at 10-11MB/sec MAX. When we switched that went to 60-80MB/sec. Not even in the same ballpark. Gigabit is well worth it for file transfers.

P.S. We never changed wires or anything... just installed gigabit switches where the old 100Mb ones were.
 
ocellaris said:
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The Wii doesn't have an Ethernet port on it anyway. Wireless or nothing when it comes to Wii connectivity.

Just put the switch in your network. It certainly sounds like you want to and it will be fun to setup, plus you won't be using your Asus router as a switch so you can mess with it all you want. I replaced all my wiring with Cat6 over the holiday break, and got every device with a RJ45 port connected to a Gigabit switch now. Does it make a difference in my typical use? No. Did it keep me busy for a few hours and am I happy with it now? Hell yes.
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The Wii actually does allow for ethernet through a USB adapter. The wireless is also G-only and my N66U is set to N-only.
 
My hope for the improvement would be that having everything running through one backplane would help things a bit, instead of split among a couple switches. I can only imagine it would.
 
Just an FYI (not related to your question), you can use another router instead of the FiOS router. You can run Ethernet from the MOCA WAN bridge in your ONT to your own router (of your choice). If you have FiOS TV you need to keep the router plugged in, in order to update your TV guide (I used a different network and disabled WIFI).

Regarding the switch, I'm doubtful you'll see much of an upgrade. Also, I noticed that you set the N66U beneath the switch, what's your intent in doing so?

I also feel like you may be able to get away with an 8-port Gigabit switch for the devices you need to transfer larger/more files to/from. Then keep the remaining devices on the N66U.
 
No bro, a gigabit switch isn't appropriate for your network.. you need a 10Gbit switch. :D

EDIT: consumer-grade full gigabit switches aren't that expensive anymore. ;o
 
mghazal said:
Just an FYI (not related to your question), you can use another router instead of the FiOS router. You can run Ethernet from the MOCA WAN bridge in your ONT to your own router (of your choice). If you have FiOS TV you need to keep the router plugged in, in order to update your TV guide (I used a different network and disabled WIFI).
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As of recently new installs won't allow you to use your own router (except bridged through theirs). I assume this also means they won't switch existing installations using their router to your own anymore, either, but good luck.
 
dandragonrage said:
As of recently new installs won't allow you to use your own router (except bridged through theirs). I assume this also means they won't switch existing installations using their router to your own anymore, either, but good luck.
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That's incredibly disappointing. I guess I'm lucky that I still have mine set up and functioning properly.
 
You can get 8 port SMB Cisco gb switches off of Amazon for $50. Not sure how many ports you need, but I have been strategically placing those everywhere in my house so I don't have to run a ton of ethernet.
 
Master_Pain said:
You can get 8 port SMB Cisco gb switches off of Amazon for $50. Not sure how many ports you need, but I have been strategically placing those everywhere in my house so I don't have to run a ton of ethernet.
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Not to say that these are crap, but don't consider any low-priced Cisco stuff as "Cisco." It's just Linksys with a Cisco badge. It's no better than Linksys has ever been. Fine for a home network (though not as reliable as spending 3x as much on a HP switch with a lifetime warranty) I suppose, but I would also say they are still not the best option for what they cost.
 
dandragonrage said:
Not to say that these are crap, but don't consider any low-priced Cisco stuff as "Cisco." It's just Linksys with a Cisco badge. It's no better than Linksys has ever been. Fine for a home network (though not as reliable as spending 3x as much on a HP switch with a lifetime warranty) I suppose, but I would also say they are still not the best option for what they cost.
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I'll double check when I get home, but I don't think they are rebranded from Linksys. They don't use Linksys at all for business side do they?
 
Master_Pain said:
I'll double check when I get home, but I don't think they are rebranded from Linksys. They don't use Linksys at all for business side do they?
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Their SMB stuff - or at least some of it - is indeed just rebadged Linksys. It might be possible that some of their lower-end switches are really Cisco-designed but I know at least some of them are Linksys. Doesn't mean it's terrible, but I wouldn't use it in anything other than a home network where reliability isn't super important.
 
dandragonrage said:
Their SMB stuff - or at least some of it - is indeed just rebadged Linksys. It might be possible that some of their lower-end switches are really Cisco-designed but I know at least some of them are Linksys. Doesn't mean it's terrible, but I wouldn't use it in anything other than a home network where reliability isn't super important.
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I finally got off my ass and looked at the back of the switch. It looks like straight Cisco, it doesn't have the typical "Cisco-Linksys" branding like the Linksys shit all does.
 
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