I'm looking for a switch and budget is my main concern. I want as much bandwidth add I can get, but I can't afford 10g upgrades this year so I'm looking for gigabit speeds. I think 16 ports would be ideal but more are always good. I'd prefer a rackmount, but it's not required. I don't need any management features outside of vlans, but I highly favor any equipment where I can learn new job skills. Because of the learning potential, I'd like an enterprise grade switch that's old enough to be cheap and easy to find on eBay. Any suggestions of what to look for?
Gigabit switch recommendations
- Thread starter AlwaysLearning
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VLANs are only on Managed Switches, I'd strongly suggest picking up a Cisco Switch Maybe you can find an SG300 on ebay for low money. This would be best for learning and Cisco would give you enterprise level experience. Yes the SGs have a GUI but they also have the Cisco CLI which can be very valuable to learn as well.
If you aren't interested in going that route then you can look at some of the Home level switches like Netgear / TP Link, I know that Netgear has Managed Switches but I am not sure if TP Link does or not
If you aren't interested in going that route then you can look at some of the Home level switches like Netgear / TP Link, I know that Netgear has Managed Switches but I am not sure if TP Link does or not
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I purchased a Netgear ProSafe GS724Tv3 2 years ago and from day one I experienced issues.
Everything from plugging in a connection and it downgrading to 100Mbps even though it was a 1GB NIC to ports lighting up and then going down without reason. I reached out to Netgear and got recommendations to reflash the FW and reboot the switch which helped sometimes but that didn't make me happy.
I just purchased a Cisco WS-C4948-E with Dual AC Power, 48 1G ports, 4 SFP uplink ports, and and it came with the console cable and mounting brackets for $250 shipped.
I just got it up and running yesterday and the fun of learning how to do Layer 3 configuration is going to be really fun. Need to learn how to do routing and many other things with this device.
The great thing about this switch is that it is a Layer 2-4 switch and if you are not 100% comfortable with the CLI, you can use their GUI called Cisco Network Assistant to perform some of the configuration tasks and it will even show you the CLI commands it would use to perform those activities which is great for learning.
Everything from plugging in a connection and it downgrading to 100Mbps even though it was a 1GB NIC to ports lighting up and then going down without reason. I reached out to Netgear and got recommendations to reflash the FW and reboot the switch which helped sometimes but that didn't make me happy.
I just purchased a Cisco WS-C4948-E with Dual AC Power, 48 1G ports, 4 SFP uplink ports, and and it came with the console cable and mounting brackets for $250 shipped.
I just got it up and running yesterday and the fun of learning how to do Layer 3 configuration is going to be really fun. Need to learn how to do routing and many other things with this device.
The great thing about this switch is that it is a Layer 2-4 switch and if you are not 100% comfortable with the CLI, you can use their GUI called Cisco Network Assistant to perform some of the configuration tasks and it will even show you the CLI commands it would use to perform those activities which is great for learning.
Welcome to STH
I would be looking at either one of the smaller HP Procurve's, or the Cisco 3560G/ 3750G range. Look for Multi-Layer (layer 3 at least) with a couple of SFP ports and POE(+) at least
Thanks everyone, these look like some good suggestions.
Budget is hard to say. I could probably afford $50 today, but I don't like what I'm seeing in that price range. I'll likely keep an eye on the deals as I save up. I highly doubt I could go past $300 in the near future though.
The SG300 looks nice. I like the fanless idea. I'm concerned about the noise from the 3650/3750, but I do remember hearing it wasn't hard to swap the fans.
@pricklypunter
Why do you suggest POE?
Budget is hard to say. I could probably afford $50 today, but I don't like what I'm seeing in that price range. I'll likely keep an eye on the deals as I save up. I highly doubt I could go past $300 in the near future though.
The SG300 looks nice. I like the fanless idea. I'm concerned about the noise from the 3650/3750, but I do remember hearing it wasn't hard to swap the fans.
@pricklypunter
Why do you suggest POE?
i am going to assume the POE addition is just to have in case you want to add some POE Powered devices to your network in the future. It is very nice to have for sure, I have some Netgear Switches (GS108T) that are powered by POE from my main SG300-28P Switch as well as my Cisco Access Points and my Security Cameras. Of course in a business situation you will also have IP Phones that are POE Powered.
In the case of the 3560G/ 3750G Cisco, unless you are fully loading it, and sustaining traffic, it's unlikely that they will break enough sweat to warrant ramping the fan up, of course ambient temperatures play a part in that too. I have a 3560G sitting running beside me right now, it does run the fan full tilt at boot, which although louder, is not screaming loud, but as soon as it passes the ASIC tests, the fan returns to idle speeds, which is really very quiet. The smaller HP's are almost on a par, some of them are even fanless. The loudest thing I hear just now are my disks (7200RPM), and even then the whole setup sounds quieter than my last desktop PC. The reason I mention finding a deal on a POE(+) Switch, is that at some point you'll likely want to power something far end, like an AP, Camera's, Phones etc. While you can use mid-span injectors in singles, or a multi-port injector, it's additional cost and space you don't need to waste if you find the right deal
Older ones yes, newer ones not for me... been there / done that. I'd suggest avoiding the new "X" Series like the x4102 / x1052p they also have a 24 port version and maybe some others. I think they are crap but that is personal experience / preference.
I really like the Procurve switches for price / performance. I started with a pair of 1800's for my "core" with a few dlink switches in various rooms. I replaced the Dlinks with HP 1400's as they broke. I am up to three 1800-24g's along with a 1800-8g at my desk and a 2626PWR in the garage to run some POE cameras. I got the 2626 for 25 dollars. It is 24 ports of POE but is only 10/100, is loud and gobbles power.
You can get a 1800-24G for 50-75 on ebay. Make sure they have the rack ears if you are going to rack mount them. They are "web managed" but that's enough for vlans. I am using the last one I bought to replace a pair of 8 port switches, one handling the public IPs for my Cable connection and the other handling the public IPs for my older, now backup, DSL line. Each are on their own VLAN. It works great for that. I paid a lot more for the 8 port switches it is replacing and I am getting rid of the wall warts.
I would have considered Cisco if I was going for a cert or something but for me they are either too expensive or use too much power and make too much noise. The HP switches are up and going in half a minute after plugging them in. Much of the older Cisco gear I use at work is still booting when I get back from making coffee.
I can't recommend the HP 1800-24g more highly for as a cost effective 24 port web managed switch. The only drawback is it will never take a 10G uplink. But what do you expect for a sub 100 dollar 24 port switch.
You can get a 1800-24G for 50-75 on ebay. Make sure they have the rack ears if you are going to rack mount them. They are "web managed" but that's enough for vlans. I am using the last one I bought to replace a pair of 8 port switches, one handling the public IPs for my Cable connection and the other handling the public IPs for my older, now backup, DSL line. Each are on their own VLAN. It works great for that. I paid a lot more for the 8 port switches it is replacing and I am getting rid of the wall warts.
I would have considered Cisco if I was going for a cert or something but for me they are either too expensive or use too much power and make too much noise. The HP switches are up and going in half a minute after plugging them in. Much of the older Cisco gear I use at work is still booting when I get back from making coffee.
I can't recommend the HP 1800-24g more highly for as a cost effective 24 port web managed switch. The only drawback is it will never take a 10G uplink. But what do you expect for a sub 100 dollar 24 port switch.
HP 2810-24G are extremely cheap and outstanding pieces. You can get them for $50 on ebay pretty often, last I checked. Both web and serial managed.
I would say probably the best bang for buck on the HP front that I'm aware of would be the 2910-AL series. Real workhorse, multi-layer, does POE(+) and can take a 10G uplinks via SFP. It's a lot of switch for the money, although it is outside your current budget by a fair bit there are some good deals pop up on ebay for them from time to time. An alternative might be the little office-connect range (1820-24g-poe+) which is closer to your budget, although only web managed as I remember, but still a damned good little switch
I have an IBM/BNT G8000 that I like. I think it's up there with the HPs and Ciscos, the cli is Cisco-like but can be changed to be less Cisco-like. It's been pretty quiet for me after I replaced a busted fan, but you do need both power supplies plugged in. I haven't looked recently but they were going for around $50 on eBay without the 10Gb uplink module.
Lots of good ideas here I need to look into. I like the idea of Quanta, simply because I see a lot of them installed. Does anyone know if that switch can be quieted down? Is it a Cisco type of interface?
if low budget, low noise is an important priority, along with managed features, I recently got the Zyxel GS1910-24 for about $110. Ebay has a used one for $100 right now. I really also like that it has a serial console port so you can configure it without having to connect to a network. it is fanless and runs cool.
here's more info: XGS1910/GS1910 Series | ZyXEL
By the way, I believe it has limited lifetime warranty too...
here's more info: XGS1910/GS1910 Series | ZyXEL
By the way, I believe it has limited lifetime warranty too...
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there's a PoE version of the Zyxel GS1910-24 for $99 here: ZyXEL GS1910-24HP GbE 24-Port Smart Managed Switch
BTW, I think the PoE version *not* fanless... so might make some noise.
BTW, I think the PoE version *not* fanless... so might make some noise.
I've been mulling over this thread and researching as I have time. I'm about to pull the trigger on my switch purchase within the next week.
I really liked the thought of the Quanta LB4M, but I've ruled it out due to the sound level. At least for a while this switch will be sick in my bedroom and I haven't seen anyone reduce the sound enough.
I had pretty much decided on getting a Cisco SG300-28. I can get a new one for $250 which is the top of my budget now. I think there's a decent chance I'd like POE down the road. I'm thinking that if I can find a used SG300-28p or 28pp on eBay, I'll go with that and replace the fans with something quieter. One issue is being unsure of future requirements and what POE devices I'll want to play with. I'm wondering if the 28p would be insufficient because of needing POE+? If that happened I'd be stuck with using injectors and would be in the same situation as the switch without POE.
The other option I'm considering is a used Cisco WS3560G/3750G. I really like being able to learn IOS, but then I'm back to the sound issue. I see an eBay seller with "quiet" replacement blower fan. They're rated for 18db which would be great. However, I'm cautiously wondering if the noise reduction is as much as they say. Does anyone have experience in making these quiet?
I really liked the thought of the Quanta LB4M, but I've ruled it out due to the sound level. At least for a while this switch will be sick in my bedroom and I haven't seen anyone reduce the sound enough.
I had pretty much decided on getting a Cisco SG300-28. I can get a new one for $250 which is the top of my budget now. I think there's a decent chance I'd like POE down the road. I'm thinking that if I can find a used SG300-28p or 28pp on eBay, I'll go with that and replace the fans with something quieter. One issue is being unsure of future requirements and what POE devices I'll want to play with. I'm wondering if the 28p would be insufficient because of needing POE+? If that happened I'd be stuck with using injectors and would be in the same situation as the switch without POE.
The other option I'm considering is a used Cisco WS3560G/3750G. I really like being able to learn IOS, but then I'm back to the sound issue. I see an eBay seller with "quiet" replacement blower fan. They're rated for 18db which would be great. However, I'm cautiously wondering if the noise reduction is as much as they say. Does anyone have experience in making these quiet?
I am looking to upgrade to a 10GbE switch.
To do so, I am looking to sell my 2 x Cisco SG300-20 Switches.
If you are interested and live in the lower 48 states (CONUS), let me know.
To do so, I am looking to sell my 2 x Cisco SG300-20 Switches.
If you are interested and live in the lower 48 states (CONUS), let me know.