Quick switch question

[MrBojangles]

I have a client that has connected his router to a switch. However, since the switch only has like 6 ports, it was not enough, so he connected the remaining devices to the free ports on the router.

Im just wondering if this setup is optimal? I thought that you should only have one cable to the switch?

 

[BlackLabTechs]

Many routers have switch ports build into them and sounds like the case here. Better routers, you can configure each of those ports to be in separate zones but doesn't sound like the case here.

Little confused by the sentence "Only have one cable to the switch?" - Do you mean between router and switch? Yes, for simple setups, only one cable between the 2.

 

[brandonkick]

All depending upon the network setup, this should work perfectly fine.

If this is a simple home / small business type setup where the only need is to supply network
access to each computer then what he is doing is just fine.

If you think of it in terms of doing this at your home, so that your buddies can plug into the network
when your having a lan party... then this works just fine. If it's an unmanaged switch, he can either
live happily with what he has done or pick up a switch with more ports.

I guess to specifically answer your question, the router itself should only have one line "feeding" to the
switch. You should not have more than one Ethernet cable going from the switch to the router. You can
use the other free ports on the router to go to whatever else you'd like, be it other switches, wireless access
points, other computers.... whatever they like.

 

[MrBojangles]

All depending upon the network setup, this should work perfectly fine.

If this is a simple home / small business type setup where the only need is to supply network
access to each computer then what he is doing is just fine.

If you think of it in terms of doing this at your home, so that your buddies can plug into the network
when your having a lan party... then this works just fine. If it's an unmanaged switch, he can either
live happily with what he has done or pick up a switch with more ports.

I guess to specifically answer your question, the router itself should only have one line "feeding" to the
switch. You should not have more than one Ethernet cable going from the switch to the router. You can
use the other free ports on the router to go to whatever else you'd like, be it other switches, wireless access
points, other computers.... whatever they like.

So if I connect 6 computers to the switch's 6 ports and 3 additional computer to the 3 remaining free ports on the router, thats completely fine? No risk of slower performance/ ip issues for example?

 

[brandonkick]

I'm not a networking expert by any means, but I think that's just fine.

The router itself does all the routing, the switch (in the case of an unmanaged switch) is just
a way to physically add more ports to the router. So the router handles all the DHCP stuff, it
takes care of assigning IP's and so on.

Performance shouldn't be any worse. Perhaps local traffic might suffer if the router is only 10/100
and the switch is gigabit but I highly doubt that is the case. If both your router and your switch are
gigabit, and connection distances are under the physical limit of the category of ethernet cable you are
using... then you will be just fine. Basically no difference.

 

[CompConfig]

If it is light traffic and not a business pulling large amounts of data to and from. Just make sure the router is GB and not just 10/100 as mentioned. If it is a business pulling a large amounts of data then you want everything on a good switch and if necessary a managed switch.

 

[MrBojangles]

Ok thanks guys