Routers & Switches...

[Arman]

Hello.

A few days ago I finally put my NAS together and i'm proud to say for my first ever computer build; it was very successful.

However, at first I panicked a lot when I tried to transfer files over to it via WIFI (CIFS) and I got around 2-3Mb/s...

To diagnose the problem I connected my laptop to my NAS directly via ethernet and the speeds increased significantly. Therefor the router must be the problem. The thing I cannot figure out is what is causing it to be so slow. Could it be the wireless transfer speed itself? (Laptop was beside router at the time of test.) Or is the wireless transfer speed fine and the problem lies with the processing speed on the router? Is it slow at *reordering packets* and rerouting them?

I then connected my laptop to my router via ethernet and tested it that way. I got around 12Mb/s...

I understand that wired connections are much more reliable than wireless... But I might not always be able to use a wired connection. I would like to find a way to increase my wireless transfer speeds. (~20Mb/s would be sufficient)

Yes... I need a switch. I've been looking at switches on amazon a lot lately however i'm still struggling to pick the best choice. I'd like a recommendation.

If I also have to change my router. what router would you recommend?

 

[INCSlayer]

well first of all you dont say what router you have or what type of wifi your using 2.4Ghz vs 5Ghz or N, A or AC standards. your distance to the router has most likely very little todo with your speeds.
and i would say that if your in a situation where you need to move big and or a lot of files you should use wired for that you will never get as good speeds with wireless as you get with wired.
If your using wireless then introducing a switch wont help you (it shouldnt hurt the performance either though). if you really want to add a switch then almost anything thats gigabit works im using some old TP-Link ones i got cheap a few years ago and they put through the traffic fast enough
You say that your getting 12Mb/s if your writing that properly your getting are not using a router with Gigabit ports so your limited to 100megabits/s
so yes a new router is probably recommended. Im currently using a Asus RT-N66U (im waiting for my turris omnia to arrive) at my home and i get 100Mb/s wired and about 10Mb/s wireless. so if its at home and you dont need the coolest stuff i would say get that or a Asus RT-AC66U for higher wireless speeds.

 

[Arman]

well first of all you dont say what router you have or what type of wifi your using 2.4Ghz vs 5Ghz or N, A or AC standards. your distance to the router has most likely very little todo with your speeds.
and i would say that if your in a situation where you need to move big and or a lot of files you should use wired for that you will never get as good speeds with wireless as you get with wired.
If your using wireless then introducing a switch wont help you (it shouldnt hurt the performance either though).
You say that your getting 12Mb/s if your writing that properly your getting are not using a router with Gigabit ports so your limited to 100megabits/s
so yes a new router is probably recommended. Im currently using a Asus RT-N66U (im waiting for my turris omnia to arrive) at my home and i get 100Mb/s wired and about 10Mb/s wireless. so if its at home and you dont need the coolest stuff i would say get that or a Asus RT-AC66U for higher wireless speeds

Sorry, I forgot to mention. I have a "DSL-3780 Broadband Wireless N ADSL2+ Router".
Oh, really? I read that the further away you are and the more obstruction is in the way it reduces speed. Is that incorrect?

I will not always be using wireless. Yes, I will use wired for transferring large files and backing up. However, i'd like to use wireless for streaming HD video...

Thanks for your recommendation.
What switch do you use?

I checked out Turris Omnia. I see it's coming out in October. It looks quite promising... Will it be able to do the work of a switch?


Alright. So lets say I buy a gigabit switch. Will the following setup work out well both for wired and wireless? Will my wireless speeds improve by any chance?

 

[gpsguy]

As I said in the other thread your ports are 10/100. At best, you will only get 1/10 the performance of a gigabit connection. As I recall your router is old, I believe it mentioned operating systems like Win 98...

The gigabit switch I mentioned would only help your wired connection. You could look at a new gigabit wireless router. It would probably support newer wireless standards. But, at the end of the day, you'll get much better performance on a wired gigabit connection, than using wifi.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[danb35]

Oh, really? I read that the further away you are and the more obstruction is in the way it reduces speed.

That is true, but it's also possible to overdrive the receivers in the laptop and in the router, which can result in poor performance. It's a balancing act with many factors, some of which are unknown.

There are a total of three functions you're likely to need on your network. Many consumer-grade "WiFi routers" combine them into the same box, but they are distinct functions and should be viewed that way: (1) route traffic from your LAN to the Internet and back, usually doing NAT on the traffic so that all your devices appear as the same public IP address to the Internet; (2) provide WiFi connection to devices at your location; and (3) provide ports for wired connections. (1) is the job of a router, (2) is the job of a WiFi Access Point, and (3) is the job of a switch.

As I said, a lot of consumer-grade gear combines those functions into a single device. If you're using a reasonably modern, decent quality device, that isn't a terrible thing. But since we tend to be hardcore geeks here, a lot of us prefer to separate those functions, having a single device do each one. That way, we can optimize each device for our needs, and upgrade/repair/replace only the parts that are necessary, when it becomes necessary.

For the router, there are tons of options. I run SME Server 9.1 (www.contribs.org), a customized CentOS Linux distribution which acts as a router/firewall and mail/web/FTP/file server. I've been using it for about 15 years now, and it's met my needs very well. A number of folks here run Sophos UTM or pfSense--both of these, unlike FreeNAS, can be run on pretty much whatever old hardware you have laying around. I've seen some recommendations lately for the Ubiquiti EdgeRouter Lite, which sounds like a pretty nice box for $100 or so.

For a WiFi access point, there's kind of a dearth of consumer gear that's sold specifically as a WAP, but any "WiFi router" can be used as a WAP by only using the LAN ports on it, and disabling the DHCP server. Or you can step up to "prosumer" gear like one of the Ubiquiti UniFi access points--teh hawtness right now would probably be the AC Pro, but there are a number of other devices at varying performance levels and price points. I'm using one of their older model access points, and it does quite a nice job.

On switches, there are more options than can be counted. It's unlikely that you'll have any need for a managed switch, so really what you're looking for is a Gigabit switch with the appropriate number of ports. These are pretty inexpensive.

 

[Arman]

As I said in the other thread your ports are 10/100. At best, you will only get 1/10 the performance of a gigabit connection. As I recall your router is old, I believe it mentioned operating systems like Win 98...

The gigabit switch I mentioned would only help your wired connection. You could look at a new gigabit wireless router. It would probably support newer wireless standards. But, at the end of the day, you'll get much better performance on a wired gigabit connection, than using wifi.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry, i'm still new to these stuff and so I get confused easily.

I will use a wired connection for big file transfers. However, I will want to use wireless for things like streaming movies and stuff. Therefor I need an upgrade to my wireless system as well as my wired. What will be the most efficient solution to this? Will buying a modern gigabit router do the trick for both? Or do I still need to buy a switch? Yes I understand a switch doesn't have anything to do with wireless...

 

[danb35]

Will buying a modern gigabit router do the trick for both?

Most likely--most modern gigabit routers have (small, usually no more than 4 ports) switches built in, and they're usually gigabit switches. You should confirm that about any device you're looking to buy, though.

 

[Arman]

Most likely--most modern gigabit routers have (small, usually no more than 4 ports) switches built in, and they're usually gigabit switches. You should confirm that about any device you're looking to buy, though.

I will not be needing anything with more than 4 ports. If I later need more I'll just buy a switch.
I have looked around for gigabit routers for a while now. The following one seems to be good. People seem to like this one more than other routers. https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-Mbps-...d=1464262919&sr=8-1&keywords=Asus+RT-N66U#Ask

 

[Arman]

I will not be needing anything with more than 4 ports. If I later need more I'll just buy a switch.
I have looked around for gigabit routers for a while now. The following one seems to be good. People seem to like this one more than other routers. https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-Mbps-...d=1464262919&sr=8-1&keywords=Asus+RT-N66U#Ask

And while we're at it, I currently have Cat.5 cables. Should I buy Cat.6 or Cat.5e? Will a Cat.6 benefit my setup more?

 

[danb35]

I don't have any experience with that model, but I understand it to be well-regarded.

 

[INCSlayer]

And while we're at it, I currently have Cat.5 cables. Should I buy Cat.6 or Cat.5e? Will a Cat.6 benefit my setup more?

for most users and "home" use scenarios you wont see a real difference between cat5e or cat6 however since cat5e is older than cat6 if your going to be buying cables anyway i would get the cat6 cables.

 

[depasseg]

And while we're at it, I currently have Cat.5 cables. Should I buy Cat.6 or Cat.5e? Will a Cat.6 benefit my setup more?

Cat5 is limited to 100Mbps. Cat5e will get you 1Gbps. And if you are buying new, might as well get Cat6.

 

[nightshade00013]

One of the other issues that you guys have missed is that "router" is a modem. It's one of the cheap combo's that the telco's use to put DSL in and keep everything onboard. He will likely be double NAT'ed with it and another router or not figure out where to plug the phone line into on a new one. Otherwise he will need to put the new "router" into AP mode.

As far as access goes most anything that you go down to the store and buy brand new which also supports 802.11AC will support gigabit wired and have better WiFi range. If you go that route you will probably want to get a regular dumb modem to connect to the internet with. You also need to realize that if your laptop only supports 802.11B the best router in the world that hits the shelf next year will not do a whole lot for your speed but will increase the range of coverage and the distance away from the AP that you will receive the fastest capable speed.

If you can not seem to get your head wrapped around all this call up your DSL provider and ask for an upgraded version of your modem that has 802.11AC. They probably have one and will be more than happy to sell it to you. It's going to put you at the same point for future upgrades as you are now a few years down the road but it should work in the meantime.

 

[INCSlayer]

One of the other issues that you guys have missed is that "router" is a modem. It's one of the cheap combo's that the telco's use to put DSL in and keep everything onboard. He will likely be double NAT'ed with it and another router or not figure out where to plug the phone line into on a new one. Otherwise he will need to put the new "router" into AP mode.

As far as access goes most anything that you go down to the store and buy brand new which also supports 802.11AC will support gigabit wired and have better WiFi range. If you go that route you will probably want to get a regular dumb modem to connect to the internet with. You also need to realize that if your laptop only supports 802.11B the best router in the world that hits the shelf next year will not do a whole lot for your speed but will increase the range of coverage and the distance away from the AP that you will receive the fastest capable speed.

If you can not seem to get your head wrapped around all this call up your DSL provider and ask for an upgraded version of your modem that has 802.11AC. They probably have one and will be more than happy to sell it to you. It's going to put you at the same point for future upgrades as you are now a few years down the road but it should work in the meantime.

you are right i missed that part of his post yea the simplest solution would be for him to talk to his DSL provider about them providing a better one or if they don't have a better one if they can provide a dumb modem that he can control from a newer router.

edit: im also stealing your Freenas Readme from your signature it seems nice

 

[Arman]

One of the other issues that you guys have missed is that "router" is a modem. It's one of the cheap combo's that the telco's use to put DSL in and keep everything onboard. He will likely be double NAT'ed with it and another router or not figure out where to plug the phone line into on a new one. Otherwise he will need to put the new "router" into AP mode.

As far as access goes most anything that you go down to the store and buy brand new which also supports 802.11AC will support gigabit wired and have better WiFi range. If you go that route you will probably want to get a regular dumb modem to connect to the internet with. You also need to realize that if your laptop only supports 802.11B the best router in the world that hits the shelf next year will not do a whole lot for your speed but will increase the range of coverage and the distance away from the AP that you will receive the fastest capable speed.

If you can not seem to get your head wrapped around all this call up your DSL provider and ask for an upgraded version of your modem that has 802.11AC. They probably have one and will be more than happy to sell it to you. It's going to put you at the same point for future upgrades as you are now a few years down the road but it should work in the meantime.

I actually thought of that :D I looked on amazon for a modem but it seems they all have a built in router! That's why I thought I should just buy a new router (The one I mentioned above doesn't have a DSL input) and plug a cable from my old router's LAN port into the new one's WAN port. Would that not work?
You mentioned that I would get double NAT'ed... What does NAT stand for?

My provider probably wouldn't have any dumb modems to sell me. It's not like in the 90's... They have everything built into one product these days >_<

 

[INCSlayer]

I actually thought of that :D I looked on amazon for a modem but it seems they all have a built in router! That's why I thought I should just buy a new router (The one I mentioned above doesn't have a DSL input) and plug a cable from my old router's LAN port into the new one's WAN port. Would that not work?
You mentioned that I would get double NAT'ed... What does NAT stand for?

My provider probably wouldn't have any dumb modems to sell me. It's not like in the 90's... They have everything built into one product these days >_<

Here is a short explanation to what NAT means.
and i dont know how they do it in britain but here in sweden atleast the ISPs provide dumb modems but you have to ask for it. The reason for that is simply that there are enthusiasts like say members of this forum that have and would like to use their own equipment. During my 2 years in Bulgaria the ISPs down there had the same solution as long as you asked for it they provided it... ofc they prefered it if they could get you to rent one of their shitty all in one systems

 

[nightshade00013]

NAT = Network Address Translation. If you want to forward a port it will be nothing but an issue.

INCSlayer beat me to it though

And you could just buy one outright, search for a D-Link DSL-2320B, then pair it with a router like the ASUS N66U

 

[depasseg]

My provider probably wouldn't have any dumb modems to sell me. It's not like in the 90's... They have everything built into one product these days >_<

True, but you can likely call them and convince them to put your modem/router in bridge mode so you can use your own router/firewall.

 

[Arman]

True, but you can likely call them and convince them to put your modem/router in bridge mode so you can use your own router/firewall.

I just figured I can use "DMZ" to resolve the double NAT problem. http://inmethod.com/forum/posts/list/908.page;jsessionid=148EF5CCA2BE38F00BC0449E3199C360

 

[INCSlayer]

the DMZ only works for one ip address so that doesnt really solve the issue especially if you use multiple jails