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itluzanky's avatar
itluzanky
Aspirant
Jan 26, 2022
Solved

LAG ports bandwidth - is it linear increase? 2xCat5e = 2Gbps? (link up two switches on 50m distance)

Hello,

I've got two old GS752TSB, I need to interconnect (link up) them, they will be some 50m (160 ft) apart. Now I'm trying to figure out how to make it in order to achieve fastest link up?

 

Originally, we've got them linked up via original AGC761 1m 1G/2.5G Direct Attach SFP Cable, but that is not possible any more, because from what I have known, this interconnection is possible only via passive DAC SFP cable, and their range is quite limited (some 15m max) - is that correct? I will have optic OM3 fibre (50/125 microm) there, but... I cannot use this with this switch, right? (since it requires SFP+ module, and only SFPs are present).

 

Second option is to use the AGM731F 1000BASE-SX SFP GBIC, but that is only 1Gbps, the same speed as if I used any of the other LAN ports via already-present Cat5e UTP. So, not really ideal.

 

Third option is to try LAG (link aggregation) - but I've never done that before. Set-up seems quite simple, but, I have several questions regarding linking up via LAG:

  1. what the bandwidth is going to be when aggregating two Cat5e's into LAG port? Is it 2Gbps? Is it less? How much less? (yes, currently they operate on 1Gbps each, separately)
  2. How many UTPs might be actually linked in such a way? If I link five, do I get 5Gbps?
  3. VLANs should work as long as I create LAGs first and setup VLANs on them aftewards - right?
  4. Are there any downsides of using LAGs?

Thanks a lot,
Martin

  • Hi itluzanky,

     

    Welcome to our community! :)

     

    what the bandwidth is going to be when aggregating two Cat5e's into LAG port? Is it 2Gbps? Is it less? How much less? (yes, currently they operate on 1Gbps each, separately)

    LAG allows a switch to treat multiple physical links between two end-points as a single logical link. That means if you assigned 2 ports on LAG, then that will be 2 Gb (if the port supports 1G each) but you can still add more depending on your needs. You may check the manual on page 107.

     

    How many UTPs might be actually linked in such a way? If I link five, do I get 5Gbps?

    Yes, definitely. You will get 5Gbps speed. Please make sure that the other switch also supports LAG/LACP.

     

    VLANs should work as long as I create LAGs first and setup VLANs on them aftewards - right?

    Yes, once you created the LAG it should also be assigned as a member of the VLANs. It is also considered that LAG is a trunk port.

     

    Are there any downsides of using LAGs?

    It would be best if you will read the benefits of LAG rather than thinking of the downsides. As far as I know, there was none.

     

    Regards,

     

    John

    NETGEAR Community Team

2 Replies

  • JohnC_V's avatar
    JohnC_V
    NETGEAR Moderator

    Hi itluzanky,

     

    Welcome to our community! :)

     

    what the bandwidth is going to be when aggregating two Cat5e's into LAG port? Is it 2Gbps? Is it less? How much less? (yes, currently they operate on 1Gbps each, separately)

    LAG allows a switch to treat multiple physical links between two end-points as a single logical link. That means if you assigned 2 ports on LAG, then that will be 2 Gb (if the port supports 1G each) but you can still add more depending on your needs. You may check the manual on page 107.

     

    How many UTPs might be actually linked in such a way? If I link five, do I get 5Gbps?

    Yes, definitely. You will get 5Gbps speed. Please make sure that the other switch also supports LAG/LACP.

     

    VLANs should work as long as I create LAGs first and setup VLANs on them aftewards - right?

    Yes, once you created the LAG it should also be assigned as a member of the VLANs. It is also considered that LAG is a trunk port.

     

    Are there any downsides of using LAGs?

    It would be best if you will read the benefits of LAG rather than thinking of the downsides. As far as I know, there was none.

     

    Regards,

     

    John

    NETGEAR Community Team

    • itluzanky's avatar
      itluzanky
      Aspirant

      Thanks a lot, I've marked your answer as solution. Martin

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