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SWITCHES.DOC -- 19961025 -- Email thread on Network Switches
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Date: Fri, 25 Oct 1996 18:50:24 +0100
From: Richard Letts <R.J.Letts@SALFORD.AC.UK>
Subject: Re: Ethernet Switches for workgroup

>Our hubs are full.  I am thinking of expanding our network with a Ethernet
>Switch.  Since I hadn't had any experience with Switches before, please tell
>me what to look for.  Any brand and model recommendations?  Any hints as to
>what to avoid?
>
>Forgetting our WAN, I have about 50 users.  So I am kind of thinking about
>the SuperStack II Switch 1000.  It has the right price and configuration
>seems okay.
>
>What does it mean when a switch can hold 500 number of MAC addresses?  Is it
>enough?  What effects does a switch has on a WAN?  What happens when the
>switch drop packets due to network packet overload?

One mac address per workstation -- plenty. one link can be designated as a
'downlink' and you can have any noumber of MACs on the downlink port.

It should be enough for small/medium networks. plugged together with a
LS3000 you can build larger networks, but then I'd be worried about
broadcast traffic.

You hope the upper layer protocols will retry, but if you've an overloaded
ethernet then the same is required anyway.

I have half a dozen of these on the campus network here, replacing shared
backbones with switched ones, and high-speed connections to fileservers.

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