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Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
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2012-12-06
01:13 PM
2012-12-06
01:13 PM
Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
Hi,
We are replacing an older, sparc-based NV+ on our network. Here's what I'm considering:
(1) ReadyNAS Pro 6 diskless
(4) WD RE4 WD2003FYYS 2 TB hard drives
(2) Netgear GS116 (to replace current FS116 switches … not all devices on our network are gigabit, but my understanding is that the gigabit clients can talk to each other at high speed?)
(1) Apple Airport Extreme
---
Do you see any obvious problems with this setup?
The biggest problem we have with our current NV+ is that it is slow. We do a lot of design work in CorelDRAW, and as files are ballooning in size, file operations are too slow.
Thank you,
Stephen
We are replacing an older, sparc-based NV+ on our network. Here's what I'm considering:
(1) ReadyNAS Pro 6 diskless
(4) WD RE4 WD2003FYYS 2 TB hard drives
(2) Netgear GS116 (to replace current FS116 switches … not all devices on our network are gigabit, but my understanding is that the gigabit clients can talk to each other at high speed?)
(1) Apple Airport Extreme
---
Do you see any obvious problems with this setup?
The biggest problem we have with our current NV+ is that it is slow. We do a lot of design work in CorelDRAW, and as files are ballooning in size, file operations are too slow.
Thank you,
Stephen
Message 1 of 7
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2012-12-06
01:25 PM
2012-12-06
01:25 PM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
Since you have a mixed gigabit/fast ethernet environment, it would be better if the switches supported 802.3x. The GS116T-200 switches do that, but I believe the GS116 does not.
The NAS and disks look fine. One option with the Pro-6 is dual-redundancy - which does slow down performance a bit, but gives you protection against 2 drive failures.
I suggest that you retain your old NV+ and use it to back up the Pro-6. [EDIT- looks like you are already thinking to do that...]
The NAS and disks look fine. One option with the Pro-6 is dual-redundancy - which does slow down performance a bit, but gives you protection against 2 drive failures.
I suggest that you retain your old NV+ and use it to back up the Pro-6. [EDIT- looks like you are already thinking to do that...]
Message 2 of 7
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2012-12-06
01:41 PM
2012-12-06
01:41 PM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
Thanks for your help!
My biggest concern was the GS116 out of my list -- are you saying that without 802.3x support, everything will run at the speed of the slowest connected device? (So if I had any fast devices connected, everything would slow down to be compatible with them)?
[EDIT: My concern is that I have never administered a managed switch before. So I was leaning toward an unmanaged solution if possible.]
Thank you again.
My biggest concern was the GS116 out of my list -- are you saying that without 802.3x support, everything will run at the speed of the slowest connected device? (So if I had any fast devices connected, everything would slow down to be compatible with them)?
[EDIT: My concern is that I have never administered a managed switch before. So I was leaning toward an unmanaged solution if possible.]
Thank you again.
Message 3 of 7
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2012-12-06
06:29 PM
2012-12-06
06:29 PM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
No - the gigabit devices can run at gigabit, even with fast ethernet devices connected to the switches. But if you have a gigabit device sending data to a 100 mbit device, then the switch has to handle the downspeed. For some 100 mbit devices, the speed mismatch creates issues - this is generally a fault in the 100 mbit device, not the switch. But 802.3x can help overcome the problem - it allows the switch to briefly "pause" the faster device if that is needed to prevent data loss on the network.
thebusdet wrote: are you saying that without 802.3x support, everything will run at the speed of the slowest connected device?
The good news is that it will work like a normal GS116 out of the box (with no setup needed to get it running). I use the GS724T (which is similar) on my network, and it works well with my Pro. I ran into the need for 802.3x flow control with some of my media players - it is possible that you won't run into the issue. But if you do you can connect to the switch with your web browser and turn on "global flow control", which is pretty easy.
thebusdet wrote: My concern is that I have never administered a managed switch before.
You also have control over the MTU size (e.g., jumbo frames) - which btw should be off if you have a mixed 100 mbit/gigabit network. The switch has stats can also be helpful when you are troubleshooting.
There are some complicated settings, particularly around VLANs and link aggregation. But you can simply ignore the complicated stuff if you want.
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2012-12-07
10:05 AM
2012-12-07
10:05 AM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
I have had a GS108 on my network for over two years with a mixed speed devices for over two years with never a problem. However, the only FS devices I have are printers. All the desktop PC's (2) are gigabit and of course the ReadyNAS units (2) are as well. The printers are connected to the router, which was initially had only fast ethernet ports, but it was replaced by a newer router with 802.11n and gigabit ports as well. Of course the one laptop connects to the router and only interacts with the NAS units if I need to save or work on a file from them. It normally is used to browse the internet.
Message 5 of 7
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2012-12-07
12:00 PM
2012-12-07
12:00 PM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
I ran into the flow control problem most recently with my NTV550 media player. Like many media players, it uses 100 mbit ethernet (more than fast enough for BluRay). Without flow control, there is stuttering and outright playback failure when I play multimedia hosted on any of my ReadyNAS. Turning on flow control resulted in smooth playback (This was originally diagnosed with my GS108T). Flow control in the player wouldn't help, the packets are dropped in the switch (the queue overflows there, because of the downspeeding).
BTW, my older EVA9150 doesn't have this problem. So I suspect that the TCP stack in the NTV550 is set too aggressively. However, this is hard to confirm (and there are no user-visible settings anyway).
So I want 802.3x on all my gigabit switches, just in case I need it. There are several unmanaged switches that do it (including the GS608). Though I like the flexibility of having a managed switch.
BTW, my older EVA9150 doesn't have this problem. So I suspect that the TCP stack in the NTV550 is set too aggressively. However, this is hard to confirm (and there are no user-visible settings anyway).
So I want 802.3x on all my gigabit switches, just in case I need it. There are several unmanaged switches that do it (including the GS608). Though I like the flexibility of having a managed switch.
Message 6 of 7
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2012-12-07
03:38 PM
2012-12-07
03:38 PM
Re: Is this a good setup? [Pro 6 + drives + switches]
I went over the network today and think all items except 2 are gigabit, and we can unplug & retire the 2 old devices. I may stick with the GS116 in this case, as having one more device with settings is kind of nerve-wracking!
Although, the price between the managed and unmanaged switches are very similar. I'll do some more reading… perhaps a managed switch is a smart move for us even with all gigabit clients
Thank for your helpful posts!
Although, the price between the managed and unmanaged switches are very similar. I'll do some more reading… perhaps a managed switch is a smart move for us even with all gigabit clients
Thank for your helpful posts!
Message 7 of 7