suggestions for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports?

Hi all,
I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation in a
laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers in one
room.

The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
only 4 LAN ports. I have only found one affordable model that has 8
ports, the Netgear FVG318 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
Item=N82E16833122087 for $125).

Does anyone know how good this thing is? It gets very mixed reviews on
Newegg. I'm not too concerned about wireless range (we don't need more
than about 50 feet) but it does need to be very reliable for wired use.
And this model seems kind of slow with only 12.5 Mbps LAN-to-WAN... is
there a way to turn off the firewalling and crank it up to line speed?

Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port LAN
in <$200 range?? I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.

Thanks!

Dan Lenski

In news:Tz%Rk.7890$YU2.3723@nlpi066.nbdc.sbc.com Dan Lenski
<dlenski@gmail.com> wrote:

> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation
> in a laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers
> in one room.
>
> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
> only 4 LAN ports.

How about adding an 8-port switch?

--
Bert Hyman St. Paul, MN bert@iphouse.com

On 10 Nov 2008 20:57:18 GMT, Bert Hyman <bert@iphouse.com> wrotd:

>In news:Tz%Rk.7890$YU2.3723@nlpi066.nbdc.sbc.com Dan Lenski
><dlenski@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation
>> in a laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers
>> in one room.
>>
>> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
>> only 4 LAN ports.
>
>How about adding an 8-port switch?

....and he can use his very favorite 1-<n> port router for the rest of the
function. You'll probably find it much cheaper than looking for an 8-port
combined switch/router.

Dan Lenski wrote:
> Hi all,
> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation in a
> laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers in one
> room.
>
> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
> only 4 LAN ports.

My suggestion would be to buy a 4-port router and an 8-port switch,
thereby getting a whole extra two ports 'for free'.... :-)

> Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port LAN
> in <$200 range? I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
> and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.

IME its exactly the reverse - cheap dedicated units beat expensive
all-in-one gizmos any day. Bear in mind that every time your wireless
router craps out, you'll lose the entire network /and/ have to replace
it with yet another expensive 8-port jobby.

If it were me, I'd go the next step and get separate AP, router and
switch.... I'm on my 5th router but the under-a-tenner switch I bought a
while back is still humming away.

On Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:03:15 GMT, Dan Lenski <dlenski@gmail.com>
wrote:

>I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation in a
>laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers in one
>room.
>
>The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
>only 4 LAN ports. I have only found one affordable model that has 8
>ports, the Netgear FVG318 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
>Item=N82E16833122087 for $125).

There are some others, but you don't really need the 8 ports in the
same box. Simply adding an 8 or preferably 16 port ethernet switch to
one of the wireless router ports is sufficient. There's no effect on
performance.

>Does anyone know how good this thing is? It gets very mixed reviews on
>Newegg.

I have one sitting on the shelf. I've had very little experience with
it as it was "retired" from a customers system due to constant
lockups, lousy range, VPN weirdness, and an inability to stay
connected permanently (for wireless printers). I have a bad attitude
about having the router and the wireless access point in the same box.
I also managed to "brick" the router thanks to Netgears goofy firmware
update procedure. NOT recommended.

>I'm not too concerned about wireless range (we don't need more
>than about 50 feet)

You will be concerned if you're going to go through a wall or two.

>but it does need to be very reliable for wired use.

If you want reliability, get Cisco, Sonicwall, or 3com. Linksys,
Belkin, Netgear and DLink are much cheaper, but far from reliable.

>And this model seems kind of slow with only 12.5 Mbps LAN-to-WAN... is
>there a way to turn off the firewalling and crank it up to line speed?

No. However your question implies that you don't need a router, only
a wireless access point (also known as a wireless bridge). Perhaps it
would be helpful if you describe what you're trying to accomplish so
at least you purchase the correct devices?

>Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port LAN
>in <$200 range??

Good, fast, cheap. Pick two.

>I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
>and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.

No they're not. They're actually easier to deal with than an
intergrated conglomeration of functions in one box. You can isolate
problems by simply replacing the router, ethernet switch, or wireless
access point. If it were all in one, you would end up replacing
everything.

--
# Jeff Liebermann 150 Felker St #D Santa Cruz CA 95060
# 831-336-2558 jeffl@comix.santa-cruz.ca.us
# http://802.11junk.com jeffl@cruzio.com
# http://www.LearnByDestroying.com AE6KS

> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports

Don't bother. Hang a separate switch off of it. Use a 10/100/1000 switch,
they're CHEAP these days and you get between 'in-switch' transfer speed.
That is, multiple devices cranking along at 100mbps will work faster going
through a gig switch. Granted, they'd have to be actually speaking to
separate devices, not all trying to get to one server. But if that's the
case then putting a gigE card in the server, tied into the gigE switch will
certainly help.

> I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
> and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.

What's your definition of maintenance hassle? Are there some complex
networking access list, vlans or other configuration issues you haven't
mentioned? If all you're talking about is typical network traffic in a
responsible work environment then there's absolutely no 'hassles' I can
think of using a combination of devices. Certainly not enough to make it
worth spending all the extra money to get a combined device.

-Bill Kearney

It would be cheaper to use a gigabit switch and then dangle the wireless box
as a peripheral. Then your wired servers and workstations will be fast, and
notebooks will be somewhat slower.

Gigabit switches are low cost and 10x faster than the common 100 megabit
found on cheap wireless boxes.

--
We hate vista -> http://contract-developer.dyndns.biz

"Dan Lenski" <dlenski@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:Tz%Rk.7890$YU2.3723@nlpi066.nbdc.sbc.com...
> Hi all,
> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation in a
> laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers in one
> room.
>
> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
> only 4 LAN ports. I have only found one affordable model that has 8
> ports, the Netgear FVG318 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
> Item=N82E16833122087 for $125).
>
> Does anyone know how good this thing is? It gets very mixed reviews on
> Newegg. I'm not too concerned about wireless range (we don't need more
> than about 50 feet) but it does need to be very reliable for wired use.
> And this model seems kind of slow with only 12.5 Mbps LAN-to-WAN... is
> there a way to turn off the firewalling and crank it up to line speed?
>
> Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port LAN
> in <$200 range?? I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
> and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Dan Lenski
>

"Dan Lenski" <dlenski@gmail.com> wrote in message
> Hi all,
> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation in a
> laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers in one
> room.
>
> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
> only 4 LAN ports. I have only found one affordable model that has 8
> ports, the Netgear FVG318 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
> Item=N82E16833122087 for $125).
>
> Does anyone know how good this thing is? It gets very mixed reviews on
> Newegg. I'm not too concerned about wireless range (we don't need more
> than about 50 feet) but it does need to be very reliable for wired use.
> And this model seems kind of slow with only 12.5 Mbps LAN-to-WAN... is
> there a way to turn off the firewalling and crank it up to line speed?
>
> Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port LAN
> in <$200 range?? I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired switch
> and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance hassle.

Do you really need a firewall/router or do you need a switch and wireless
access point?
Really in either case you would be better off going with two seperate units.
Buy a wireless router like a Linksys WRT54GL ($65) which will give you your
access point and or router if you need (with 25Mbps LAN to WAN) and 54Mbps
wireless.
Buy a 8 port Gigbit switch for anywhere between $50 and $80 from Linksys,
Dlink, Netgear or whoever.
This would be slightly more expensive (depending on actual equipment
purchased) than the netgear FVG318 but will give you loads more reliability,
fast speeds, more ports (7 Gigabit and 3 10/100) and the ability to replace
a single part in case of a failure. If you do need the router portion, flash
the GL with DD-WRT firmware and you'll have one killer setup.


Adair

Dan Lenski wrote:
> Hi all,
> I'm looking for a wireless router with 8 LAN ports, for installation
> in a laboratory environment where we have a whole bunch of computers
> in one room.
>
> The issue is that nearly all consumer wireless routers ($50-$200) have
> only 4 LAN ports. I have only found one affordable model that has 8
> ports, the Netgear FVG318 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?
> Item=N82E16833122087 for $125).
>
> Does anyone know how good this thing is? It gets very mixed reviews
> on Newegg. I'm not too concerned about wireless range (we don't need
> more than about 50 feet) but it does need to be very reliable for
> wired use. And this model seems kind of slow with only 12.5 Mbps
> LAN-to-WAN... is there a way to turn off the firewalling and crank it
> up to line speed?
>
> Can anyone recommend any other models of wireless router with 8-port
> LAN in <$200 range?? I'm reluctant to go with a combination of wired
> switch and wireless router, just because it tends to be a maintenance
> hassle.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Dan Lenski

I'll ask the general question -
how will these computers be using the network,
and if your main concern is "wired",
then what does the "wifi" side handle ??

Next - are the computer talking to each other,
or a server on the same local segment/network,
or will they ALL be going out the single WAN interface ?

Lastly - what will the WAN interface be connected to ?
ie - a local Ethernet jack in the room,
or an actual connection to some Internet carrier ?

Just looking for the network traffic, where it's going,
and the highway vs sidewalk it might be using...

PS - I'm running separate components.... networking vs wifi

Dan -
are you @ UMD.EDU ??

On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:41:12 -0600, "ps56k"
<pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in
<5BLSk.7617$be.5342@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com>:

>I'll ask the general question -
>how will these computers be using the network,
>and if your main concern is "wired",
>then what does the "wifi" side handle ??
>
>Next - are the computer talking to each other,
>or a server on the same local segment/network,
>or will they ALL be going out the single WAN interface ?
>
>Lastly - what will the WAN interface be connected to ?
>ie - a local Ethernet jack in the room,
>or an actual connection to some Internet carrier ?
>
>Just looking for the network traffic, where it's going,
>and the highway vs sidewalk it might be using...
>
>PS - I'm running separate components.... networking vs wifi

The answers to those questions do not matter in this context -- hanging
a switch off a 4-port router works just the same as an 8-port router.
--
Best regards, FAQ for Wireless Internet: <http://wireless.navas.us>
John Navas FAQ for Wi-Fi: <http://wireless.navas.us/wiki/Wi-Fi>
Wi-Fi How To: <http://wireless.navas.us/wiki/Wi-Fi_HowTo>
Fixes to Wi-Fi Problems: <http://wireless.navas.us/wiki/Wi-Fi_Fixes>