Gigabit Switch with Jumbo Frames

[lcdguy]

Basically i am looking to convert my home network over to gigabit ethernet and was wondering if you knew of any unmanaged gigabit switches that support Jumboframes and also have atleast 16 ports (24 ports is preferable). It would have to be available in canada since i don't want to get hit with import tarrifs and what not.

How the network is going to be set up

Cable Modem -> Netgear FVS318NA Firewall/VPN -> 16 or 24 port switch -> clients / Servers

 

[Madwand]

Linksys SRW2016, D-Link DGS-1216T fall around $250-350 USD, and are available in Canada. They're "smart" switches with jumbo frame support.

Both of them have 24-port and other big brothers.

Probably worth considering, but you should be able to dumb down further and still get jumbo frame support.

 

[riser]

Go to Tomsnetworking.com (Network in purple at top) and read up on Jumbo Frames.

The only reason to switch to this technology is if you're going to do heavy file transfers between local computers. As your frames get bigger, it congests your network longer meaning it can technically slow your network with the more computers in use.

 

[lcdguy]

ii was thinking of going to this so i can stream by dvd library to my HTPC if 10/100 can provide that bandwidth with 100% no hitches then i will have no need.

 

[mikeyp410]

In response to Madwands previous post you can get a D-Link DES-1226G for around $150 with 30 dollar rebate to boot. Best price you will find for smart switching.

Where are you streaming your files from? a NAS? If so just make sure it is connected to the same switch and you should have no issues streaming that kind of media at 10/100.

 

[lcdguy]

actually i am in the process of bulding a 2TB file server running on the following system.

A64 3000+
1GB Corsair XMS
MSI K8N Neo Platinum
Highpoint Rocketraid 464
320GBx8 IDE Seagate 7200.10
36GB Raptor Boot

OS: either Win2K3 ENT or FreeNAS (if it will see my hardware and array)

The onboard nic is the Nforce NIC for Nforce 3 250GB

 

[Madwand]

In response to Madwands previous post you can get a D-Link DES-1226G for around $150 with 30 dollar rebate to boot. Best price you will find for smart switching.

The catch with the above switch is that it's 24x 10/100 and only 2x 10/100/1000. There are other such switches available at around the same prices. I have no personal comments on which ones are better. Such switches are great if you have a lot of 10/100 equipment, but looking forward, more gigabit ports are better.

The ones I listed previously have all ports 10/100/1000, which is why they tend to cost more. I'll add to the list Netgear, SMC and Trendnet. Looks like everyone's making them, probably based on a small set of underlying chips.

 

[lcdguy]

most likely,

Now on the topic of netgear switches.

would it be better to go for a netgear switch since my firewall router/vpn is also a net gear ?

 

[Madwand]

actually i am in the process of bulding a 2TB file server running on the following system.

A64 3000+
1GB Corsair XMS
MSI K8N Neo Platinum
Highpoint Rocketraid 464
320GBx8 IDE Seagate 7200.10
36GB Raptor Boot

Is there any special reason for going PATA? I understand that the value/cost can seem high, but with 2 TB of data, you've got a potentially huge problem on your hands with data integrity and backups. I have heard some reports of RAID 5 failing with single PATA drive failures because the 2nd drive on the same channel was also deemed "failed". I don't mean to just alarm and scare you off here, I mean to advise checking on this point carefully, if you still can, before jumping in.

Broadcom has a semi-affordable PCI/PCI-X 8-port SATA RAID card as an alternative (which has worked fine for me so far). Many people recommend higher-end stuff like LSI/Areca/3ware though.

 

[Madwand]

Now on the topic of netgear switches.

would it be better to go for a netgear switch since my firewall router/vpn is also a net gear ?

If it has a good feature set, is priced well, then sure, why not? It's not a bad brand in the low to mid end. However, the best thing about networking stuff is that it's largely driven by standards, so compliant products tend to interoperate well.

(However, this is also why non-standard things like jumbo frames can be big headaches -- I have some gear which has jumbo frame on/off only, others with jumbo 4k/9k, other with jumbo 9012, others with no jumbo support, and atm, I have few clues as to how to get this stuff all working together, and find it much easier to live without jumbo frames.)

 

[mikeyp410]

This is true but that depends on how big your network will be. If it is not sepereated in VLans then you really can just get away will chaining workgroup 10/100/1000 switches to the 1000 ports. Although you are right and I would just spend the extra 100 and go with the netgear. dont mind me im thinking and typing at the same time.

 

[lcdguy]

A. Vlans - (Are evil vial little things)
B. my network i don't think will ever need them probably not have more than 10 computers.

 

[mikeyp410]

Pretty much depends on how much and what you want to spend and what you are wanting for scalabilty. Netgear makes good qaulity stuff and I like DLink too so whichever you pretty much prefer.

 

[lcdguy]

this is only going to be for a home lan so i don't see my self getting more than 16-24 nic devices sooo. any scability larger isn't really necessary.

 

[mikeyp410]

Then I would get the DLink. It is $150 with a $30 rebate. Should solve every encounter you will come across in your network and future expansion. I have not found a cheaper one myself. I am actually in the same boat and have been looking for a 24 port smart switch. that is the cheapest I have seen.

 

[lcdguy]

The reasoning for the PATA is that the mobo i have right now only has 32bit PCI slots no PCI-X or PCI Express. so my options are limited somewhat. Also i haven't found a supplier that has good selection in Canada. This is important as i could end up getting hit with import fees (not fun).

 

[Madwand]

Here's one from Dell for $305 CAD. 16 gigabit ports, smart - web managed, VLAN, 802.3ad, 9kB jumbo frames.

http://www1.ca.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/pwcnt_2716?c=ca&cs=CABSDT1&l=en&s=bsd&~tab=specstab#tabtop

I haven't tried any of these, so can't personally recommend them. Just FYI.

Here's another Canadian source, which has a similar Netgear among many others. Around $350 CAD.

http://www.netgear.com/products/details/GS716T.php
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=GS716TNA

The D-Link:
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=DGS%2D1216T&from_dist=X

Now, you could probably spend as little as 1/2 as much as give up the smart / web-managed, teaming, etc., and still get a fast, no-maintenance switch with jumbo frame support. Here's one from Netgear, with 9kB JF support, at $218.

http://www.netgear.com/products/details/GS116.php
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=GS116NA&from_dist=I

This site lists it a bit cheaper:

http://www.infonec.com/site/main.php?module=catalog&catID=125&ParcatID=11

This site has an interesting branding shopping experience, and lists the smart D-Link at $340 and the Netgear at $333.

http://www.directdial.com/ca/shopdlink/item/prod.asp?item=DGS%2D1216T
http://www.directdial.com/ca/shopnetgear/go/dd-netgear-network-switch.asp?menu=1,

 

[Madwand]

The reasoning for the PATA is that the mobo i have right now only has 32bit PCI slots no PCI-X or PCI Express. so my options are limited somewhat. Also i haven't found a supplier that has good selection in Canada. This is important as i could end up getting hit with import fees (not fun).

The good thing about PCI-X is that it's generally backwards compatible with PCI. The bad thing is that to get full PCI-X support, you'd have to get a server/workstation-class MB. So getting a PCI-X card is an option.

(However, if you're going to sink significant money into a storage controller, it might be worth looking ahead and getting it in a format that will serve you in the long run, and reconsidering the MB. In the consumer space, this would be either PCI or PCIe (PCIe for better performance). In the server space, it can be either PCI-X or PCIe. E.g. there are one or two 939 PCI-X MB's available. Many more PCIe of course. With a MB change, another alternative you might consider is built-in nForce 5, which have 6 SATA ports and support up to RAID 5.)

You can often get a better deal in Canada through the US, where the price difference makes up for the additional shipping, conversion, and brokerage fees. The biggest problem about customs is generally the processing delay -- they're mainly capturing taxes that you'd probably have to pay locally. The biggest problem about cross-border shopping is that few stores do that.

Storage controllers aren't as widespread in the mid-price class because people take advantage of built-in support. But you can still find plenty of them locally.

http://www.infonec.com/site/main.php?module=catalog&catID=102&ParcatID=408

 

[lcdguy]

now if i were to upgrade the board it would have to be S754 since my A64 is a First Generation A64.

 

[lcdguy]

Here's one from Dell for $305 CAD. 16 gigabit ports, smart - web managed, VLAN, 802.3ad, 9kB jumbo frames.

http://www1.ca.dell.com/content/products/productdetails.aspx/pwcnt_2716?c=ca&cs=CABSDT1&l=en&s=bsd&~tab=specstab#tabtop

I haven't tried any of these, so can't personally recommend them. Just FYI.

Here's another Canadian source, which has a similar Netgear among many others. Around $350 CAD.

http://www.netgear.com/products/details/GS716T.php
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=GS716TNA

The D-Link:
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=DGS%2D1216T&from_dist=X

Now, you could probably spend as little as 1/2 as much as give up the smart / web-managed, teaming, etc., and still get a fast, no-maintenance switch with jumbo frame support. Here's one from Netgear, with 9kB JF support, at $218.

http://www.netgear.com/products/details/GS116.php
http://www.1click2computers.com/product_details/detail.asp?prod_id=GS116NA&from_dist=I

This site lists it a bit cheaper:

http://www.infonec.com/site/main.php?module=catalog&catID=125&ParcatID=11

This site has an interesting branding shopping experience, and lists the smart D-Link at $340 and the Netgear at $333.

http://www.directdial.com/ca/shopdlink/item/prod.asp?item=DGS%2D1216T
http://www.directdial.com/ca/shopnetgear/go/dd-netgear-network-switch.asp?menu=1,

Thanks, Thats awesome work.

I actually found a local company that sells the G116 for around 221 so i am going to see they will honour a price match 😀 then ic an save on shipping 😀.

 

[jofficer]

When referencing managed switches versus unmanaged switches, can you configure the individual port to support jumbo frames or not, and at what size?

My concern is that my router/gateway device is currently 10/100. I've read over various forums that suggest numerous problems when intermixing 100mbit (obviously) without jumbo frame support and devices using jumbo frame support. Taking that a step further, I am reading about similar issues when a gigabit device doesn't support jumbo frames at all, attempting to talk to devices with jumbo frames.

So my question is this, currently my router is sporting 2 10/100 NIC interfaces, should I swap out 1 of the cards with a gigabit card that supports jumbo frames, and then routing in software between the 2? That would atleast allow me to support jumbo frames on the internal network, eth1, and dropping back down to standard 1500mtu frames.

Has anyone else tackled this and could offer some insight?

joey