[Solved] Lan equipment

[Devine.Insanity]

Greetings I want to buy a lan hub, but i have no idea where to start or what to look for, I just want it for home but fast enough to play latest games, Is there a hub that automatically assigns a Ip address? I am not very familiar with lan equipment. Please help!

[RaptoR]

Any hub with ethernet ports on it can be used...eg a wireless hub with ethernet ports. How many ports will you need? If its for home use i gather you will probably only need a max of 4 right? Unless you are gonna organize a massive LAN or summin lol?

[Devine.Insanity]

Lol, no just a little home lan 4 or 5 should be fine, Do you know how much they normally go for?

[Azraphael]

In the region of R200 for an el cheapo and increasing in price according to make and features.

[Squid]

Just for the record, there is quite a difference between a hub and a switch. A switch is what you want.

[01DT!m3r]

For home ,a hub should be fine,if you need high speed then go for a switch.

[Devine.Insanity]

thanks I'll look for the best one that suits what i want to use it for, thanks for the help all, Now i at least know what I'm looking for, Will prob be getting it next month, will do some research and come back to you before I buy, patience is the key Lol.

[Squid]

For home ,a hub should be fine,if you need high speed then go for a switch.

Do they even sell hubs anymore? Seriously, a switch is what you want. Buying a hub is like buying a black and white TV.

[hawk]

Do they even sell hubs anymore? Seriously, a switch is what you want. Buying a hub is like buying a black and white TV.

Or a radio when you actually need satellite TV.

[N3G4T1v3]

I didn't even know they made hubs anymore.
I've had an asus 8port switch that i picked up for R140 from a pc shop in pe, it's set up in my flat with my 3 other roommates, really awesome little thing, works perfectly.

[Signor 65]

Yeah, get a switch if you can, I am using a nice little D-Link 8 port switch that is cheap, compact and perfect for home use and small LANs.

[RaptoR]

Although hubs and switches both glue the PCs in a network together, a switch is more expensive and a network built with switches is generally considered faster than one built with hubs. Why?

When a hub receives a packet (chunk) of data (a frame in Ethernet lingo) at one of its ports from a PC on the network, it transmits (repeats) the packet to all of its ports and, thus, to all of the other PCs on the network. If two or more PCs on the network try to send packets at the same time a collision is said to occur. When that happens all of the PCs have to go though a routine to resolve the conflict. The process is prescribed in the Ethernet Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) protocol. Each Ethernet Adapter has both a receiver and a transmitter. If the adapters didn't have to listen with their receivers for collisions they would be able to send data at the same time they are receiving it (full duplex). Because they have to operate at half duplex (data flows one way at a time) and a hub retransmits data from one PC to all of the PCs, the maximum bandwidth is 100 Mhz and that bandwidth is shared by all of the PC's connected to the hub. The result is when a person using a computer on a hub downloads a large file or group of files from another computer the network becomes congested. In a 10 Mhz 10Base-T network the affect is to slow the network to nearly a crawl. The affect on a small, 100 Mbps (million bits per scond), 5-port network is not as significant.





Two computers can be connected directly together in an Ethernet with a crossover cable. A crossover cable doesn't have a collision problem. It hardwires the Ethernet transmitter on one computer to the receiver on the other. Most 100BASE-TX Ethernet Adapters can detect when listening for collisions is not required with a process known as auto-negotiation and will operate in a full duplex mode when it is permitted. The result is a crossover cable doesn't have delays caused by collisions, data can be sent in both directions simultaneously, the maximum available bandwidth is 200 Mbps, 100 Mbps each way, and there are no other PC's with which the bandwidth must be shared.

An Ethernet switch automatically divides the network into multiple segments, acts as a high-speed, selective bridge between the segments, and supports simultaneous connections of multiple pairs of computers which don't compete with other pairs of computers for network bandwidth. It accomplishes this by maintaining a table of each destination address and its port. When the switch receives a packet, it reads the destination address from the header information in the packet, establishes a temporary connection between the source and destination ports, sends the packet on its way, and then terminates the connection.

Picture a switch as making multiple temporary crossover cable connections between pairs of computers (the cables are actually straight-thru cables; the crossover function is done inside the switch). High-speed electronics in the switch automatically connect the end of one cable (source port) from a sending computer to the end of another cable (destination port) going to the receiving computer on a per packet basis. Multiple connections like this can occur simultaneously. It's as simple as that. And like a crossover cable between two PCs, PC's on an Ethernet switch do not share the transmission media, do not experience collisions or have to listen for them, can operate in a full-duplex mode, have bandwidth as high as 200 Mbps, 100 Mbps each way, and do not share this bandwidth with other PCs on the switch. In short, a switch is "more better."

That said, a hub will be perfect for a home network, you wont need to worry about needing high speed etc with only a few PC's on the network. I have held many a LAN on an old 4 port hub and had no probs :}

[Signor 65]

I know where you got that from RaptoR!
I was reading up on it yesterday, and I only realised then exactly how much of a difference they make.
So in short, get a switch.

[RaptoR]

lol it was like first on the google thingy ;} switch is better but if you are not really gonna take advantage of it then a hub is fine. (btw i have no clue on prices of either so if a switch is same price then it would make sense to get a switch)

[Signor 65]

Yeah, switches don't cost that much really. Picked up mine for R150-R250, actually a really good price.

[Aesir]

I would rather suggest you go for something a bit more reliable, those R200 switches are stuck together with gum, they break so easily it's not even funny. I suggest if you have a bit more money to spend rather look at something better it will be safer in the long run.

http://www.netgear.com/Products/Swit...pSwitches.aspx

I have a netgear router and it has never let me down, unlike those cheap ****s .

[Graal]

Yeah, switches don't cost that much really. Picked up mine for R150-R250, actually a really good price.

Yeah, a switch is definitely the way to go. Bought my Intellinet switch for R190 last year. 8 ports and 100mb/s. Served me fine so far.

As for the R200 switches breaking... Where do you buy those crap switches? My trusty Intellinet has fallen on several occasions, once from the top of my desktop stand, which is about 1.5 metres high. It doesn't even have a scratch on it. Just make sure to buy one that has a metal casing.

[Shadow_Con]

Do hubs and switches have any difference in the amount of ports they get.

[Azimuth]

Although hubs and switches both glue the PCs in a network together, a switch is more expensive and a network built with switches is generally considered faster than one built with hubs. Why?

When a hub receives a packet (chunk) of data (a frame in Ethernet lingo) at one of its ports from a PC on the network, it transmits (repeats) the packet to all of its ports and, thus, to all of the other PCs on the network. If two or more PCs on the network try to send packets at the same time a collision is said to occur. When that happens all of the PCs have to go though a routine to resolve the conflict. The process is prescribed in the Ethernet Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) protocol. Each Ethernet Adapter has both a receiver and a transmitter. If the adapters didn't have to listen with their receivers for collisions they would be able to send data at the same time they are receiving it (full duplex). Because they have to operate at half duplex (data flows one way at a time) and a hub retransmits data from one PC to all of the PCs, the maximum bandwidth is 100 Mhz and that bandwidth is shared by all of the PC's connected to the hub. The result is when a person using a computer on a hub downloads a large file or group of files from another computer the network becomes congested. In a 10 Mhz 10Base-T network the affect is to slow the network to nearly a crawl. The affect on a small, 100 Mbps (million bits per scond), 5-port network is not as significant.





Two computers can be connected directly together in an Ethernet with a crossover cable. A crossover cable doesn't have a collision problem. It hardwires the Ethernet transmitter on one computer to the receiver on the other. Most 100BASE-TX Ethernet Adapters can detect when listening for collisions is not required with a process known as auto-negotiation and will operate in a full duplex mode when it is permitted. The result is a crossover cable doesn't have delays caused by collisions, data can be sent in both directions simultaneously, the maximum available bandwidth is 200 Mbps, 100 Mbps each way, and there are no other PC's with which the bandwidth must be shared.

An Ethernet switch automatically divides the network into multiple segments, acts as a high-speed, selective bridge between the segments, and supports simultaneous connections of multiple pairs of computers which don't compete with other pairs of computers for network bandwidth. It accomplishes this by maintaining a table of each destination address and its port. When the switch receives a packet, it reads the destination address from the header information in the packet, establishes a temporary connection between the source and destination ports, sends the packet on its way, and then terminates the connection.

Picture a switch as making multiple temporary crossover cable connections between pairs of computers (the cables are actually straight-thru cables; the crossover function is done inside the switch). High-speed electronics in the switch automatically connect the end of one cable (source port) from a sending computer to the end of another cable (destination port) going to the receiving computer on a per packet basis. Multiple connections like this can occur simultaneously. It's as simple as that. And like a crossover cable between two PCs, PC's on an Ethernet switch do not share the transmission media, do not experience collisions or have to listen for them, can operate in a full-duplex mode, have bandwidth as high as 200 Mbps, 100 Mbps each way, and do not share this bandwidth with other PCs on the switch. In short, a switch is "more better."

That said, a hub will be perfect for a home network, you wont need to worry about needing high speed etc with only a few PC's on the network. I have held many a LAN on an old 4 port hub and had no probs :}

I know where you got that from RaptoR!

Lol.

[Devine.Insanity]

thanks a lot all for all the info, Gonna go look at switches today, Raptor thanks for finding all that info & Unknown & everyone else, Helped alot