I am new in understanding how to setup a network.... Here is my scenario: Comcast cable ---> Linksys BEFCMU10 cable modem ---> Linksys WRT54GS router ---> hub ---> 4 PC's I will adding a VoIP phone adapter to the router toward the end of March... My problem is that my speed drops to a snail pace but when I remove the hub and just have one PC to the router my speed is back to normal... I have searched and read many posts in all of the forums but I can't find a clear and easy to use guide in setting up a simple network... Eventually I will add wireless PC's to the network but first I want to get my network stable... I know to someone of who this is a no brainer but for me it's confusing... Is there anyone who can help a newbie in resolving this problem??? Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks - Bill
hey i was wondering why you were using a hub, if the wrt54g alrady has 4 ethernet ports on the back anyway.
As I stated early I will be adding a VoIP phone adapter to the router and this will use one of the four lan ports... Here is my NEW scenario: Comcast cable ---> Linksys BEFCMU10 cable modem ---> Linksys WRT54GS router -----> VoIP phone adapter |-------> hub ---> 4 PC's I am looking for is simple steps that explain the router and PC configurations.... Are there instructions in setting up, or troubleshooting, a network within these forums????
here is question #2 why not wire the comptuers to the back of the wrt54g. and use the hub for the voip adapter. like this Comcast cable ---> Linksys BEFCMU10 cable modem ---> Linksys WRT54GS router -----> 3 PC's |-------> hub ---> 1 pc>voip adapter
are you using dhcp? and it is a Hub not a switch? if so then i have had sort of the same prob. hubs are slow anyways because they broadcast traffic to the entire network where as a switch only broadcasts to the computer the packet is addressed to . you might try using a switch. they are almost as cheap as a hub so that shouldnt be much of a problem. use dhcp if at all possible because then the router has to know where everyone is and you wont have to set hosts or anything. try new firmware for the router. that has helped me a great deal. also i recently ditched my switch for an Almost wireless network. i have 5 comps that are wireless and 2 that are wired in. although i dont have cable or any high speed net. it all works seemlessly even wandering in the yard with my laptop. hope im not just rambling and that actualy helped you some.
To answer JAGBOY question on where to put voip adapter; it is recommended for best performance the voip adapter must be attached to the rooter. T4THFAVOR - can you suggest a switch??? I am using the latest Sveasoft Alchemy firmware. Can you give me an example of the dhcp setting??? Thank you both for helping me in my confusion... Bill
i dunno any switch will work as long as it is a decent i have a linksys 5 port that is good for what i need. netgear makes a solid product also. the voip adapter needs to plug directly into the router fyi
I would recommend attaching one of the PCs wirelessly; a 54Mb USB adapter would save you buying a hub, switch or another router and simplify your network set up. Cheers
I doubt this!! At least not recently. Spend some time at NetGear forum before buying any NetGear products.... http://forum1.netgear.com/support/ Cheers
i have a good netgear 10/100 switch it seems to be a good solid product but it may be old so i am not sure. the linksys switches i have work use them they are just more $$$
I agree with everyone else here. Any switch is fine (so long as it's a switch and not a hub). There are so many entry level networking device manufacturers it's difficult to name something. As long as it's built well, that's more what you should be looking at. As for the VoIP adaptor, it depends on which adaptor and which service you're using. If it's Vonage, there are three adaptors in use (Cisco, Motorola and Linksys). I believe that they are only providing the Motorola and Cisco units now. There are two ways to setup your VoIP adaptor: 1. In directly behind modem, in front of router. This is how Vonage recommends attaching for one adaptor for your whole network. The Vonage adaptor has QoS functionality and will prioritize VoIP traffic with no problem (you'll be able to use "Bandwidth Saver" feature as well). 2. Behind the router. Since you're using a WRT54GS router (which has built-in QoS abilities), you could also wire it up this way. You may find difficulty using the "Bandwidth Saver" feature, and you may have to open ports on the router or enable port forwarding to get the adaptor to work. Either way works, but you might want to check out this article from Tom's Networking (of Tom's Hardware). The author is describing a similar situation that you describe. http://www.tomsnetworking.com/Sections-article107.php
