3COM Switches-Hub User Manual
DATA SHEET
OfficeConnect®Switches and Hubs
Key Benefits
Easy to Install and Use
Enjoy plug-and-play simplicity.
Simple Troubleshooting
Get at-a-glance network status information from front-panel diagnostic
LEDs, including a unique Alert LED.
Compact Design
Save valuable small-office space with
compact, ergonomic, and clippable
design.
Lifetime Limited Warranty
Ensures peace of mind when purchasing OfficeConnect products; includes
power adapters.
Free Telephone Support
3Com offers telephone assistance during the first 90 days, including installation and general troubleshooting.
Engineered for Small-Business Needs
The OfficeConnect family is the first
solution designed specifically for
small-office operations—often imitated but never equaled by other
network vendors.
Specifically designed for small businesses and offices, 3Com®OfficeConnect
®
switches and hubs provide businesses
with an integrated system of smalloffice networking. By installing a
LAN, users can work more effectively
with file and print sharing and reduce
costs by sharing expensive resources
as printers.
OfficeConnect products provide connectivity for every business need. For
the value-conscious user, standard
Ethernet hubs are ideal, while Fast
Ethernet switches and hubs provide
additional speed for high-volume
traffic. OfficeConnect Dual Speed
Ethernet switches and hubs feature
autosensing technology, allowing
users to migrate to higher speeds
when needed. They are available in a
variety of port densities—from 4 to
16 ports.
OfficeConnect switches and hubs are a
core part of the OfficeConnect family,
providing small businesses with the
power to share information, set up
powerful, comprehensive servers,
connect remote offices, and access
the Internet.
Ethernet technology
Using twisted-pair cables, you can
connect a maximum of four Ethernet
(10 Mbps) hubs in series between
workstations, or between a workstation
and a nonrepeater piece of equipment
(such as a switch). Each cable must
not exceed 100 m (328 ft).
Since its inception, Ethernet has become
the most popular topology in LANs.
Based on the IEEE 802.3 standard,
Ethernet has evolved over the years
and now supports a range of media
and significant enhancements that
the original standard never did. The
10 Mbps available bandwidth can be
either shared across a number of users
using hubs or dedicated to workstations using switched technology.
Technology Explained
OFFICECONNECT®SWITCHES AND HUBS
OfficeConnect Family
The 3Com OfficeConnect family offers
the most flexible, expandable, and
integrated networking solutions for
small businesses.
OfficeConnect products include:
LAN connectivity
• Network interface cards
• Switches and hubs
• Networking kits
• HP JetDirect print servers
Remote access and Internet connectivity
• LAN modems
• Cable modems
• Internet firewalls
Network server family
• Network storage servers
• 3Com Internet server
Switch or Hub?
With a hub, all users share the same
bandwidth. This works well with a few
users and low traffic requirements, but
as you add users or implement more
bandwidth-hungry software applications, competition for bandwidth can
start to slow down traffic on the LAN.
Switches are more appropriate when
you need greater network performance
of a high-speed server uplink, such as
when connecting users to a few hubs
or servers, or when connecting many
power users. A switch improves performance and shortens network response
times by reducing the number of
users per segment. A switch does that
by providing dedicated bandwidth to
every device—server, PC, or hub—
connected to one of its ports.
2
Example:
Switch
Workstation
10 Mbps
hub
Dual Speed
Hub 8
10 Mbps
hub
10 Mbps
hub
10 Mbps link
Workstation
Fast Ethernet
Fast Ethernet is based on the Ethernet
standard yet runs at 10 times the speed
(100 Mbps). It is now one of the most
popular high-speed technologies because
of its cost effectiveness, stability, and
compatibility with existing Ethernet
LAN environments. Fast Ethernet
switching allows dedicated performance
between two devices.
The total length of cable (A+B+C
below) between two workstations
and a nonrepeater piece of equipment
(such as a switch) must not exceed
205 m (672 ft). Each cable (A, B, or C)
must not exceed 100 m (328 ft).
3Com recommends using Category 5
cables and that the cable (B) between
the Fast Ethernet hub is not longer
than 5 m (16.4 ft). This allows the
maximum hub-to-workstation cable
length (A or C) of 100 m (328 ft) to be
used, as shown.
OFFICECONNECT
®
SWITCHES AND HUBS
These rules do not
apply to Fast
Ethernet switches.
You can connect
as many
OfficeConnect
switches together
as your business
requires.
3
Sw
itch
Workstation
ub
A
H
B
ub
H
Example:
C
Workstation
ual Speed
D
ub 8
H
100 Mbps link
100 m
(328 ft)
100 Mbps
hub
5 m
(16.4 ft)
100 m
(328 ft)
Workstation
Workstation
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