I want it all :)

[pricklypunter]

Ok, so having spent a couple of days trawling, and dreaming, my head is swimming.

I'm planning on upgrading my network to 10Gbps, needing some advice...

I will need a new switch, the quieter the better, or at least can be modded to something reasonable. A decent gui in addition to CLI would be nice too, but CLI is normally where I live. It needs to tick at least these boxes:

4 SFP+ ports, more is good
POE+ on at least 8 ports
Layer-3 or better
At least 24 x 1Gbps Ports

I will also need some NIC cards, 1 or 2 ports on each. These need to tick at least these boxes:

Need these to run cool, or at least be relatively easy to cool.
Wide module compatibility
Relatively inexpensive DAC cables if I use those
Be fully M$ and Linux compatible

I'm not made of money, but I am looking for decent bang for buck. I will stretch if I have to in order to get what I need.

Throw your recommendations my way please

 

[T_Minus]

Use another for POE and just get a Brocade switch ??? There's a thread with 100+ pages of replies of info, and how to utilize them, and comparing the different variations\versions....

Patrick reviwed 10gig NICs on the homepage\site years ago too... not much new in 10gig since everyone is doing 2.5 and 25+ now. The newer-gen 10gig save 2-4w of power iirc, and that's what I'd go for if you care about heat\power usage... not as cheap as the older gen.

 

[BoredSysadmin]

Based on that long thread, I've bought and "fixed" Brocade ICX6610-24p. It has your asks covered nearly perfectly, except it's quite loud. Some people modded them, but I don't care, as it sits in my basement. I used various 10gig DAC cables without any issues.

 

[TonyArrr]

An ICX7150-24P would fit for your core switch. Have 4x SFP+ ports, so no extra 10Gbe expandability, but 24x 1GBe ports, all with POE, and is one of the quieter ones. If your POE load is low enough, you can enable “fanless” mode where it doesn’t run the fans at all, you’d need to check the docs in the Brocade thread for what power level though.

The ICX7250-24P is also a good choice. No fanless mode but 8x SFP+.
A lot of options for fan modding it too, I’ve done so myself and got it very quiet, though I’ve also vented my cupboard with an exhaust fan into the roof to help keep its temps down (since I could use larger and slower fans for the vent to move the same amount of air quietly)

Finally a ICX7150-24 (note the lack of a P on it) doesn’t come with fans at all, if you were to follow @T_Minus’s advice and use a separate switch for POE. Would mean you can have fanless versions of both switches and if POE dies you don’t have to replace the entire core switch.

Enterprise switches are good for this because they are designed to operate in racks full of equipment generating heat, so they have high temperature tolerances compared to consumer/prosumer gear, so since in a home/lab you have far less other equipment heating them, you can do less cooling to reduce noise without killing them.
Worth learning about SNMP traps as a way to monitor them so once you’re set up you can be alerted if they start crossing any thresholds later on. I set up in the cooler months and so as we get into summer here I’ve been adjusting the exhaust fan operation based on the temp readings I’ve logged into influxdb each day

 

[TonyArrr]

Oh, and if you can use fibre for your 10Gbe links, that will same you some heat. Copper transceivers are toasty compared to fibre

 

[pricklypunter]

Thanks chaps, I had sort of shortlisted the 7150P in my head as a possible candidate

 

[TonyArrr]

When I get home I’ll get some links to the posts I used as inspiration for fan modding my 7250, so you can decide if it’s an option too

 

[Matta]

As for switch, Mikrotik CRS328-24P-4S+RM ticks all the boxes.

CRS328-24P-4S+RM | MikroTik

24 port Gigabit Ethernet router/switch with four 10Gbps SFP+ ports in 1U rackmount case, Dual Boot and PoE output, 500W

mikrotik.com

 

[pricklypunter]

Our guys grabbed a few Mikrotik switches for some of our cabinets, but they became unreliable when temperatures fluctuated, so they ripped them all out again. I don't know what model it was though