Switches and Hubs

[peternjuguna]

I manage a network of about 40 computers. am on broadband internet connection of 64 up link and 128 down link, shared at ration of 1:4. my problem is that the connection speed is very slow even when there are few hosts on the internet. i have several divices on the LAN. some of which are hubs (3COM). could they be contributing significantly to the slowness. somebody to assist before i invest in changing to switches.

Peter

[frupert]

Make sure that no computers have P2P or any from of downloading going first and then if its still slow disconnect 90% of you network and see how it runs with like 3 or 4 computers on it - if it runs fast then slowly add the switches and computers back online until you find the problem hardware/software...

[peternjuguna]

no p2p computers on the LAN. May be my cabling has a problem. the other thing is that am using a desktop computer as a server and it is the one that runs the server 2003. all the 40 host browse via that desktop "server". may be i need a server hardware. it is necessary for such a LAN of my magnitude.

[pushkin_singh]

Hi Peter

Its me again looking at the issue you are having on your network , seems like your network is in need of an overhaul...& all you need is a professional like me....Just kidding

First of all 128Kbps down-link speed is not a lot specially if you are going to share between 40 users but that again depends on your network traffic usage. you got to understand the fact that bandwidth is like a freebie nowadays & newly written applications hogs B.W like anything...so you won't go very far with 128K link if any of your user/users are using web applications, etc.

To begin with first Optimize your internal Network & then start looking at external links But to get most out of your link & Network, Stop un-necessary Internet access for user, Like P2P, MSN or Yahoo messenger, FTP, etc, etc.

1. Use a network sniffer(Like Ethereal Or Observer by Network instruments) to see what kind of traffic is really is going on your network.

2. Get rid of any Hubs if you can, they give rise to on going problem & even multiply it as they are act like a multiport repeaters (Use Switches instead)

3. Use online tools to check your network speed from diffrent webservers on Internet & compare results against others

4. Setup a monitoring system (like PRTG) in place on your server or a workstation to see what kind of bandwidth is been utilized & on what time of the day.


Hope this will help you & give you firm ground to start with, Best of luck anyways.hope things work out for you

Try these tricks & let me know how it all goes.

Pushkin.

[Bannerd]

Update to switches, also consider a firewall which will allow you to traffic shape. Cisco PIX or even ISA

If you don't have the money, I suggest m0n0wall or Pfsense. Both are liveCD's and run great.

[Cass]

Got to ask the question ... why dont you just upgrade the network link ? ADSL is cheap these days and putting a 1meg+ line in will vastly improve performance, even from your current setup, eben if it is dedicated ... save the cash from those switches and put a couple of ADSL lines in ... Failing that i dont think changing from hubs to switches will really help any external traffic bandwidth issues you have when going over an effective ISDN link ..... If you have internal LAN issues then yes removing the hubs wil help ..... whats the performance like server to server ?

Cass

[0ynas]

Have you guys noticed the OP's profile has his location as Kenya..?

I'm guessing that cheap high speed Internet connections aren't as abundant in East Africa as they are in Europe/America/Asia.

[peternjuguna]

I have replaced one hub with a switch. it seems improve. Am still monitoring it. Thanks a lot for the advice on using an observer tool or monitoring on my network to see what kind of traffic is there. But do you know of any specific software that I can use on my workstation other than on the server and monitor all the other work stations on the LAN? For now i have blocked messenger, and ftp and all unnecessary traffic.

On Cass issue yes i have a LAN and it the one contributing to slowness. Server to server is ok. Even one host on the LAN via the server is fine.


Peter

[pushkin_singh]

Nice one Peter, seems like you are going the right way & hopefully soon coming to a resolution.

For Server processes & general monitoring you can use Ip Check monitor along with PRTG (for BW monitoring) which comes with all kind of bells & whistles, very easy to setup & configure.

To monitor workstations & Pc's there are various things out there but to check just general state (Up, down or discovery) you can use Kaboodle(Freeware) or alternatively if you fancy spending some money...you can get H.P Openview to do Network management to higher & intense level.

Hope this helps.

Pushkin.

[peternjuguna]

thanks all is working out well.

[peternjuguna]

i use 3com swithes dual speed on my LAN. who knows if they are good enough

[pushkin_singh]

In any case they will be much better than using Hubs which flood your network like anything

3Com is so-so brand...obviously not top of the range but if your tight on money budget, its Ok. although look around on ebay & you should be able to get good second hand Cisco switches for good price, which will really scale your Network by all means.

[Bannerd]

Cisco is greatness, I hear procurves from HP are nice but I havn't got my hands on them.

For monitoring network traffic you could use knoppix-STD, it's a live cd and has some great stuff on it. You can actually pull up your network in a 3D enviroment and monitor what computer is talking to what...I forget the app name but it's on the CD.

[peternjuguna]

Am doing well with advice. Am using a Cisco router to connect from the VSAT terminal. Then it connects to my LAN switch where my server and other hosts connect from. my server is the gateway. I also have an iDirect modem which also connects to the LAN switch. What it does i don’t know.

Have i lost the road? Interesting. All works apart from the few issues of slowness i have shared here

[pushkin_singh]

Peter

Just a suggestion as per best practices

Why not use your Router as a Gateway on your network for network devices rather than your server, The reason I say this is because router will be much faster & is dedicated device in switching or routing your traffic compared to Server

Keep server for rest of function's .i.e. DNS, DHCP, etc.

This should fast things up for you even more.

[peternjuguna]

pushkin

What an idea that could bring a difference.

Just before i do anything, i agree and i can visualize this situation where if i kept of this big load from my already overwhelmed "server" which is actually a desktop what difference it would bring.

But before that will i be able to use my proxy when i make the router to be the gateway.

Am so grateful am starting to talk to my technician about this.

i hope to work out this with you as well.