D-Link - DGS-1248T Gigabit Web Smart Switch review
Green, it seems, is the new black, with IT companies increasingly keen for their products to be seen as environmentally friendly. Some of the claims need to be taken with a pinch of salt, but D-Link's new Gigabit Web Smart Switch really can make a difference, and help save both the planet and your cash.
Here's the idea. Network switches are normally designed to run all of their ports on full power all of the time, regardless of whether there's anything attached or how far away an attached device actually is. The “Green Ethernet” technology in the D-Link switch, however, can put its ports into low power standby mode if there's nothing at the other end and, where there is, adjust the power level to suit the cable length involved.
The end result can be big savings in the amount of energy required. Up to 50 percent or more in some cases, it's claimed, depending on how the network is setup and used. You also gain from lower heat emissions, leading, according to D-Link, to longer product life compared to a standard switch.
It sounds impressive and it really does seem to work, although the hardware involved doesn't look any different from what you'd normally expect. Not all of D-Link's Web Smart Switches have the new Green Ethernet technology, but three do, all 19-inch rack-mountable and each with with a single built-in power supply.
We tested the top of the range, 48-port DGS-1248T, although for smaller companies there's a cheaper 24-port version (the DGS-1224T at £156.51 + VAT) and a 16-port model (the DGS-1216T at £104.33 + VAT). All are driven by low-power, 90nm processors while the 16- and 48-port switches are both fanless, further saving on the power needed to run them.
Build quality is top notch and there's no skimping in terms of functionality either. As the name implies, the ports are all Gigabit-capable, arranged in banks of auto-sensing 10/100/1000Mbps connectors with, alongside, a set of SFP (Small Form-factor Pluggable) slots to take fibre-optic adapters, should you need them.
Four SFP slots are provided on the 48-port model, with two on the others. Unfortunately the Green Ethernet features don't apply to fibre connections. Neither do the SFP slots add to the port count; plug in an SFP adapter and the associated UTP port will stop working.
Because it has extra functionality beyond basic Layer 2 switching, you need to be able to get inside and manage the Gigabit Web Smart Switch. This can be done using SNMP if you've got suitable software, but we used the built-in Web interface which needs nothing more than a browser.
Using this we found it easy to do things like manage the Green Ethernet technology although, in truth, it's either on or off and comes ready enabled, so under normal circumstances there's nothing to do. Even on a modest network, however, you may want to take advantage of the various other options, such as support for VLAN segmentation, port trunking and Quality of Service (QoS). You also get a number of integrated security tools worth turning on.
Priced to appeal to small companies, these new Gigabit Web Smart Switches are well worth considering just for their switching features alone. Add in the Green Ethernet technology and they're even more of a bargain
Green, it seems, is the new black, with IT companies increasingly keen for their products to be seen as environmentally friendly. Some of the claims need to be taken with a pinch of salt, but D-Link's new Gigabit Web Smart Switch really can make a difference, and help save both the planet and your cash.
Here's the idea. Network switches are normally designed to run all of their ports on full power all of the time, regardless of whether there's anything attached or how far away an attached device actually is. The “Green Ethernet” technology in the D-Link switch, however, can put its ports into low power standby mode if there's nothing at the other end and, where there is, adjust the power level to suit the cable length involved.
The end result can be big savings in the amount of energy required. Up to 50 percent or more in some cases, it's claimed, depending on how the network is setup and used. You also gain from lower heat emissions, leading, according to D-Link, to longer product life compared to a standard switch.
It sounds impressive and it really does seem to work, although the hardware involved doesn't look any different from what you'd normally expect. Not all of D-Link's Web Smart Switches have the new Green Ethernet technology, but three do, all 19-inch rack-mountable and each with with a single built-in power supply.
We tested the top of the range, 48-port DGS-1248T, although for smaller companies there's a cheaper 24-port version (the DGS-1224T at £156.51 + VAT) and a 16-port model (the DGS-1216T at £104.33 + VAT). All are driven by low-power, 90nm processors while the 16- and 48-port switches are both fanless, further saving on the power needed to run them.
Build quality is top notch and there's no skimping in terms of functionality either. As the name implies, the ports are all Gigabit-capable, arranged in banks of auto-sensing 10/100/1000Mbps connectors with, alongside, a set of SFP (Small Form-factor Pluggable) slots to take fibre-optic adapters, should you need them.
Four SFP slots are provided on the 48-port model, with two on the others. Unfortunately the Green Ethernet features don't apply to fibre connections. Neither do the SFP slots add to the port count; plug in an SFP adapter and the associated UTP port will stop working.
Because it has extra functionality beyond basic Layer 2 switching, you need to be able to get inside and manage the Gigabit Web Smart Switch. This can be done using SNMP if you've got suitable software, but we used the built-in Web interface which needs nothing more than a browser.
Using this we found it easy to do things like manage the Green Ethernet technology although, in truth, it's either on or off and comes ready enabled, so under normal circumstances there's nothing to do. Even on a modest network, however, you may want to take advantage of the various other options, such as support for VLAN segmentation, port trunking and Quality of Service (QoS). You also get a number of integrated security tools worth turning on.
Priced to appeal to small companies, these new Gigabit Web Smart Switches are well worth considering just for their switching features alone. Add in the Green Ethernet technology and they're even more of a bargain
No comments:
Post a Comment