The hardest part of setting up your own network, is finding the right hardware to get the job done. That’s usually where switches and routers come in, but finding the right ones can be very difficult. Both speed and security for your network should be chief concerns. You don’t want your network to be easily hacked, and you also don’t want to suffer slow file transfer speeds because your switch can’t handle the workload. That’s where gigabit Ethernet switches come in nicely. They provide a massive amount of speed, so that your network will never be slow, no matter how many devices you include.
A gigabit Ethernet switch is just like any other standard model, but they provide much more power. There are several different models as well. Some featuring 1 gigabyte, and others as many as 10 gigabytes in order to provide enough speed to successfully transfer your files over the network. Because file sizes are ever increasing, just as hard drives have increased to accommodate this, you’ll need a network that runs as quickly as possible in order to stay on top of everything. So you’ll have to factor in how many computers will be on your network, and the average size of the files you’ll be sending or downloading to determine the right type for you.
The term gigabit refers to how many gigabytes per second can be transferred across the network. So obviously the higher gigabit number, the faster you’ll be able to transfer files. A small network will only need a 1 gigabit Ethernet switch, whereas a much larger network will require the use of an 8-10 gigabit model. So determine the size of your files, if you only want to set up a local communication network to send small text documents, you won’t need that fast of a switch. But if you have massive data files, you’ll want as fast of a switch as possible to ensure the process flows smoothly.
Also factor in how many ports, and what sort of security a particular gigabit Ethernet switch offers. You want to have a decent firewall, so that your network can’t be hacked from the outside, allowing someone to gain access to your network. Also, you’ll want to be sure that the switch has enough Ethernet ports to accommodate all the machines you’ll be placing on the network. So figure out how large a network you want to establish, so that you can narrow down which gigabit Ethernet switches will apply to you.
When you’re looking to purchase a gigabit Ethernet switch, you’ll have to be looking to spend a fair amount of money. This type of networking tool has really come down in price over the years, but still costs into the thousands for a good model. Usually electronics retailers are the best place to go, stores like Best Buy should have a few options. Otherwise you can also buy gigabit Ethernet switches online from websites like NewEgg.com. But make sure to double check the switch’s port count, so that you can be sure all your devices will be accommodated.