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Expand Home Network

mhibberd
Newbie
Posts: 8
Registered: ‎18-03-2014

Expand Home Network

Hi,
I am wanting to expand my home network beyond the 3 ports that the standard Technicolour router from PN provides. I plan to have upto 20 ports available throughout the house. Would the following switch provide internet and networking connectivity to each port? Would I simply connect 1 of the ports from the Technicolour router to a port on the switch?
http://www.ebuyer.com/194778-netgear-prosafe-gs724t-gigabit-smart-switch-gs724t-300eus
5 REPLIES 5
HPsauce
Pro
Posts: 6,998
Thanks: 146
Fixes: 2
Registered: ‎02-02-2008

Re: Expand Home Network

Possibly even a bit OTT, it would depend on how you plan to do the wiring; that would determine the equipment requirements.
For a "casual" home installation distributed small switches and/or wireless access points might be easier (and cheaper).
MauriceC
Resting Legend
Posts: 4,085
Thanks: 929
Fixes: 17
Registered: ‎10-04-2007

Re: Expand Home Network

Fundamentally agree with HPsauce but would also be concerned by the requirement this solution has for radial wiring from the switch to the end points.  Quite a bulky and inflexible solution these days.  I'd look at a mix of Ethernet over mains; WiFi access points and a limited amount of cable.
Rational:  
1)  The rule of 'Sod' may apply and your carefully selected Head End location may need to move to meet other domestic requirements.
2)  An extrapolation of the above.  The initially selected end points are rarely in the right place for long.
I got 'bit' by both of these at work and in a previous home environment.   Currently I use a mix of Solwise products at home (there are other well respected suppliers)  plus a few permanent cables at home.  In my case,  2) became true within weeks of initial completion of the new network, but moving the dongles only took minutes.
This unit in particular found favour with SWMBO in minimising the cable mess.
The Solwise site is worth a browse if only for a vision of what can be done.
Maurice

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gary42
Grafter
Posts: 94
Registered: ‎09-07-2012

Re: Expand Home Network

For 20 ports I would certainly recommend the direction you are thinking of.
It however depends on your requirements and how much of a project you want to undertake.
The gold standard is a central switch and patch panel running cable to each of your rooms. This will enable up to gigabit speeds for file transfer and minimal impact on your internet latency.
Cat 5e/6 is more reliable and consistent than wireless/mains solutions even ignoring the huge speed advantage.
It would look something like this:
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh169/gmoorc/P1010309.jpg
The switch is on top and is what you would connect your router to as you suggested.
On the bottom is the patch panel where the cables from each room would terminate.
You would then connect each patch panel port to a switch port with a short cat5e cable.
If gigabit LAN speeds aren't important to you and you don't want to run wires around your home then the solutions already suggested may be preferable.
I did something similar some time ago to wire in gigabit capable ports around the house.
Some detail here http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/multiuser/f/4011068-gigabit-install-questions.html?fpart=all&vc=1
Having done all that I'm now running a small switch in the living room as the 4 ports I installed there are no longer enough  Roll_eyes
dragon2611
Grafter
Posts: 283
Registered: ‎20-10-2013

Re: Expand Home Network

Just be aware that switch is actively cooled, (I.e it has a fan/fans in it) and those small fans often aren't the quietest things around.
Also you might want to look at Tp-link as looks like their smart switch is on offer at the moment cheaper than the netgear
http://www.ebuyer.com/407267-tp-link-24-port-gigabit-smart-switch-with-4-sfp-slots-tl-sg2424
If you just want a basic unmanaged switch (I.e don't plan to use Vlans or any of the smart features) this might even be an option
http://www.ebuyer.com/263573-tp-link-tl-sg1024d-24-port-desktop-gigabit-switch-tl-sg1024d
Champnet
Aspiring Hero
Posts: 2,587
Thanks: 971
Fixes: 11
Registered: ‎25-07-2007

Re: Expand Home Network

Switch & patch panel in loft. Cat 5/6  fed down cavity walls ........