Screenanator
New Member
Guys...I'm trying to get my Roland VP 540 up before the tech gets here....all my ethernet plugs are full on the cpu....so...what do you guys use to solve the jumble mess?
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Router...hub...or switch??
- Thread starter Screenanator
- Start date
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ProWraps™
Guest
use a switch. a switch switches packets. a router routes them via IP address. think of a switch as a usb hub, but for ethernet. if you are using a print server that requires an IP to print to on your network, then you may need a router.
mbarden
New Member
Go out and get a Linksys 5 port 10/100/1000 switch. A switch is just a smart hub. A router can act as a switch but it's main job is to "route" a data stream, that data stream is usually an internet connection. Do you have a router? If you have high speed internet it is usually plugged into a router? Or a DSL/Cable Modem if you are only using internet on one PC.
Mike B
Big River Sign Co.
Mike B
Big River Sign Co.
Router or a swtich, you'll get collisions on a hub and your printhead will stop after every couple of passes to wait for the info.
(ask me how I know this)
In order of "usefulness".
Router > Switch > Hub
All routers as switches. Not all switches are router. Hub's are not switches.
(ask me how I know this)
In order of "usefulness".
Router > Switch > Hub
All routers as switches. Not all switches are router. Hub's are not switches.
P
ProWraps™
Guest
heh packet collisions... otherwise known as the light on a device that people stare at and go WTF is that. and why does it keep blinking..
hubs = packet smashers
Screenanator
New Member
Thanks guys....looks like a router/switcher...we have a wireless broadband router for the Laptops...but the PC's are hard wired...so looks like another box...plugged into another power strip...geez!
We got past the 10ft limit on USB's by going to USB/Cat 5 adapters....now we gotta deal with this.
We got past the 10ft limit on USB's by going to USB/Cat 5 adapters....now we gotta deal with this.
P
ProWraps™
Guest
we have usb's that are 10' with 25' extensions.. no problems here.
Screenanator
New Member
Man...you Sacramento guys must be lucky...our scanner wont work on anything longer that a 10ft cord.....
John M
New Member
Many devices are picky about USB extensions. Some work ok at 20+ feet; others refuse to do anything with a single 10ft extension.
I've got to put this part in bold because it's quite important:
Don't run your wide format printer on a SOHO switch!
The average $50ish "Small Office / Home Office" switch can't handle the sustained traffic required by a large print job and they have a tendency to overheat and/or fail without warning. Even if it just "hiccups" in the middle of a job, you've got to throw out that print and start over.
It's a larger investment but you really need a beefier switch, something like this one from NewEgg. It does Layer 2 routing onboard, meaning you get full gigabit speed to all ports simultaneously without involving your existing router at all. It's really the only way to reliably use a printer like that over the network. Plus, you get the added bonus of having true gigabit traffic in the entire office. I know you won't use most of the more advanced features it has but who knows what you may need in the future.
This is why most installers insist on adding a second network card to the computer and connecting it directly to the printer. If they're close to each other that might be the cheapest way to go. If the printer needs to be networked, you need the better switch.
I've got to put this part in bold because it's quite important:
Don't run your wide format printer on a SOHO switch!
The average $50ish "Small Office / Home Office" switch can't handle the sustained traffic required by a large print job and they have a tendency to overheat and/or fail without warning. Even if it just "hiccups" in the middle of a job, you've got to throw out that print and start over.
It's a larger investment but you really need a beefier switch, something like this one from NewEgg. It does Layer 2 routing onboard, meaning you get full gigabit speed to all ports simultaneously without involving your existing router at all. It's really the only way to reliably use a printer like that over the network. Plus, you get the added bonus of having true gigabit traffic in the entire office. I know you won't use most of the more advanced features it has but who knows what you may need in the future.
This is why most installers insist on adding a second network card to the computer and connecting it directly to the printer. If they're close to each other that might be the cheapest way to go. If the printer needs to be networked, you need the better switch.
John M
New Member
The fact that it's gigabit is not the reason I recommended it. It's just that you can't get a Layer 2 switch that isn't gigabit these days.
The key is to take the load off the typical cable/DSL router. You buy an expensive printer, print to it from an expensive computer, yet expect a disposable router to be enough to handle the traffic on a 24/7 basis? When a job is ruined because someone else on the network sent an email or started streaming audio, the better switch will look more appealing.
The key is to take the load off the typical cable/DSL router. You buy an expensive printer, print to it from an expensive computer, yet expect a disposable router to be enough to handle the traffic on a 24/7 basis? When a job is ruined because someone else on the network sent an email or started streaming audio, the better switch will look more appealing.
If you're running three or four printers around the clock, sure go balls out with your network.
This is the guy's first printer running at 100 mbps, on what I presume to be a pretty small and traffic-free network.
As for random cross traffic killing other traffic......I've never heard of that aside from collisions on hubs slowing down traffic.
Our 545 was running on a basic 10/100 router/hub setup for one year, then to a 10/100 router/gigabit switch, and thats been running on that for another year or so. Not one print had been "killed" by cross traffic. It's a pretty small network with 4 computers, a NAS, the 545, and two network printers.
The only problem I have is a slow connection from the crappy dsl.
The roland rips/printers don't use as much bandwidth as one would think. Say you have 4x8 file to print, the ripped file will be maybe 2 gigs(if that). On a 540 you're printing at 70 sq ft/hr (i think that's about right) on decent quality. That means you're gonna be moving 2 gigs of information over the span of 30 minutes. That's not an heavy network traffic situation.
This is the guy's first printer running at 100 mbps, on what I presume to be a pretty small and traffic-free network.
As for random cross traffic killing other traffic......I've never heard of that aside from collisions on hubs slowing down traffic.
Our 545 was running on a basic 10/100 router/hub setup for one year, then to a 10/100 router/gigabit switch, and thats been running on that for another year or so. Not one print had been "killed" by cross traffic. It's a pretty small network with 4 computers, a NAS, the 545, and two network printers.
The only problem I have is a slow connection from the crappy dsl.
The roland rips/printers don't use as much bandwidth as one would think. Say you have 4x8 file to print, the ripped file will be maybe 2 gigs(if that). On a 540 you're printing at 70 sq ft/hr (i think that's about right) on decent quality. That means you're gonna be moving 2 gigs of information over the span of 30 minutes. That's not an heavy network traffic situation.
SignBurst PCs
New Member
Buying a higher grade switch is a wise investent in my opinion. That siad, I have seen many a large format printer run flawlessly on the lesser grade switches and router without a hickup. I personally would rather spend a couple hundred bucks on a switch than loose a couple hundred in lost material and time, not to mention the added frustration. This is especially true if you are not comfortable with networking principles.