Finally got round to sorting out some network/adsl parts....

[blockers]

Hi guys.

I made a post ages ago about what parts i needed for ADSL, and to network 4 or 5 computers in my house. I now have finally got round to selecting parts for me to use. If some of you good fellows would check through, and make suggests/comments for items at about the same price i would be very pleased.

ADSL modem - Zoom-hayes (http://www.dabs.com/uk/channels/hard...quicklinx=2967) more info....http://www.zoom.com/graphics/datashe.../03735506S.pdf

Switch - NetGear 8port 10/100 (http://www.dabs.com/uk/channels/hard...quicklinx=22ZL)

NIC - NetGear 10/100 PCI (http://www.dabs.com/uk/channels/hard...?quicklinx=NSP)

I dont know where the best place to get cables is.....i guess i need at least 2 15m, 1 5m and 1 2m.

So how does that shape up? and i missing anything?
Thansk very much.
Will.

[Trash Man]

Why not get a ADSL router instead? Would save you having to buy a hub/switch.

[FordPrefect]

Afriad to say that wont work unless you are using ICS on one of the machines. Your best bet would be to get a cheap ADSL router from ebuyer, they do an origo (branded as there own) :-

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=48449

Might still need to get the switch tho. This way you dont need to leave one of the PCs on all the time.

[nichomach]

It strikes me as a seriously expensive way to go about it; I use separate routers and ADSL modems on some sites, but that's because I need to establish gateway to gateway VPNs. A router with integrated modem's going to be cheaper, easier to set up and easier in use as well. I take it that you've considered and rejected wireless?

[blockers]

How will it not work? I am going to put the modem in a server machine, then have that connected via LAN to the switch, then the rest of the computers networked to the switch. This means i can just leave the server computer on and any computer can access the net.

I want a modem and switch to give me the flexibility to use the LAN separate of the internet. And i have only seen 4 port routers.....!? where as we would need more.

Yeah, i have considered and rejected wireless...maybe in the future we may get a wireless access point for laptops.

[FordPrefect]

I'm not saying it wont work, but for the money you might as well get a router which means you dont have to have that server computer on 24/7. The only time I would bother with a server machine is if it was a dedicated machine, and I was planning on using QoS/Traffic shaping, or if I was routing realIP and was using the server machine with some sort of decent firewall software.

[blockers]

Basically the server will be used for downloads, game server hosting, website hosting and having the printers/scanners/digi cam connected to it.

[FordPrefect]

Basically the server will be used for downloads, game server hosting, website hosting and having the printers/scanners/digi cam connected to it.

Its upto you but I would get a router personally as if the server crashes or is under heavy load your network connection would also be affected.

[blockers]

Well all the aside.

Do those components get peoples recommendations?

[FordPrefect]

Should do the job

[blockers]

Thats what i was looking for.

Thanks

[Jiff Lemon]

Just to echo the above, a decent modem/router combo would be my choice.

Ever had to reinstall the os? ever had a hard drive go bad? Been infected with a virus? Got spyware?

All of the above could have the rest of the family/users asking when the internet will be back. A nice router/modem doesn't suffer any of the above.

My choice?

router

Why? Look at what it can do - Bandwidth throttling and content filtering Damn fine VPN and a superb firewall. We recommend these to all our clients. Sure it's not the cheapest thing on the market, but you get what you pay for. If you want trouble free and lots of functionality, this is your puppy.

Nic's

Why? Cheap and cheerfull - recognised by windows, causing minimum of fuss.

Switch

Why? Again, cheap and cheerfull - at the home user end of the market, you don't need to go for Gigabit switching or managed functionality. Does what it says on the tin.

Cables?

Yes, you could by a reel of cable and the tools to crimp your own, but save yourself much hair pulling and cursing. Get a ball of string and use it to measure the length you need. Add a metre or two onto your string measurement (too much cable is good just in case you decide to shift your PC).

I can't see how the prices compare overall (dabs was done when I tried) but one final thing to consider - Networking stuff is the sort of thing you to to plug in and forget about. Choose your components wisely!

[FordPrefect]

I agree with you on everything but the drautek router I have one not the plus just the vanilla Draytek Vigour 2600. It doesnt do half what it says on the tin. The firewall doesnt work properly, it starts dropping packets when under heavy load, as it loses the connection in the state table. The VPN IPSEC doesnt work properly as the router processor doesnt really have the power the do the job. I have also seen numerous reports of problems with the bandwidth throttling. If you dont have 300 quid for a cisco 837 then I would suggest the new linksys with built in QoS support

[Jiff Lemon]

I agree with you on everything but the drautek router I have one not the plus just the vanilla Draytek Vigour 2600. It doesnt do half what it says on the tin. The firewall doesnt work properly, it starts dropping packets when under heavy load, as it loses the connection in the state table. The VPN IPSEC doesnt work properly as the router processor doesnt really have the power the do the job. I have also seen numerous reports of problems with the bandwidth throttling. If you dont have 300 quid for a cisco 837 then I would suggest the new linksys with built in QoS support

You got the latest updates for it? We use them extensively and have no problems with them (two at work, sitting on the end of 2 VERY busy 2mb lines) - They're both vanilla 2600's.

[TeePee]

The components you list will function, but accept some advice:

The ebuyer router is less than half the price and will do a better job for what you want to do.
That Netgear hub is excellent and I have one myself, although ebuyer sell a cheap hub which does a simliar job for 1/3 the price.

[FordPrefect]

You got the latest updates for it? We use them extensively and have no problems with them (two at work, sitting on the end of 2 VERY busy 2mb lines) - They're both vanilla 2600's.

Yup latest updates. If the link is busy esp with P2P the state table starts dropping states and denying dns, http and just about anything else. I have spoken to draytek taiwan about it but after the 3rd email I heard nothing more. Considering picking up a cheap PIX off ebay to use as firewall, should do the job nicely