LevelOne GSW-0506, GSW-0806 User Manual

LevelOne

GSW-0506
GSW-0806

5/8-Port Gigabit Switch

User Manual

Benutzerhandbuch

Version 1.0-0603

FCC Warning

This equipment has been tested and found to comply
with the regulations for a Class B digital device, pursuant
to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to
provide reasonable protection against harmful
interference when the equipment is operated in a
commercial environment. This equipment generates,
uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with this user’s guide,
may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely
to cause harmful interference, in which case the user will
be required to correct the interference at his own
expense.

CE Mark Warning

This is a Class B product. In a domestic environment, this
product may cause radio interference, in which case the
user may be required to take adequate measures.

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BOUT THIS MANUAL

This user manual tells you how to install your

GSW-

0506/0806

5/8-Port Gigabit Switch, how to connect it to

your Gigabit Ethernet network.

Terms

For simplicity, this documentation uses the terms
“Switch” (first letter upper case) to refer to the GSW­0506/0806 5/8-Port Gigabit Switch, and “switch” (first
letter lower case) to refer to all Ethernet switches,
including the GSW-0506/0806 5/8-Port Gigabit Switch.

Overview of this User Manual

Introduction.

Describes the Switch and its features.

Unpacking and Setup.

Helps you get started with the

basic installation of the Switch.

Identifying External Components.

Describes the front

panel, rear panel and LED indicators of the Switch.

Technical Specifications.

Lists all the technical

specifications of the Switch.

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I

NTRODUCTION

This section describes the features of the Switch, as well
as providing some background information about Gigabit
Ethernet and switching technology.

Gigabit Ethernet Technology

Gigabit Ethernet is an extension of IEEE 802.3 Ethernet
utilizing the same packet structure, format, and support
for CSMA/CD protocol, full duplex, flow control, and
management objects, but with a tenfold increase in
theoretical throughput over 100-Mbps Fast Ethernet and
a hundredfold increase over 10-Mbps Ethernet. Since it is
compatible with all 10-Mbps and 100-Mbps Ethernet
environments, Gigabit Ethernet provides a
straightforward upgrade without wasting a company’s
existing investment in hardware, software, and trained
personnel.

The increased speed and extra bandwidth offered by
Gigabit Ethernet is essential to coping with the network
bottlenecks that frequently develop as computers and
their busses get faster and more users use applications
that generate more traffic. Upgrading key components,
such as your backbone and servers to Gigabit Ethernet
can greatly improve network response times as well as
significantly speed up the traffic between your subnets.

Gigabit Ethernet supports video conferencing, complex
imaging, and similar data-intensive applications. Likewise,
since data transfers occur 10 times faster than Fast
Ethernet, servers outfitted with Gigabit Ethernet NIC’s are

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able to perform 10 times the number of operations in the
same amount of time.

Switching Technology

Another key development pushing the limits of Ethernet
technology is in the field of switching technology. A
switch bridges Ethernet packets at the MAC address
level of the Ethernet protocol transmitting among
connected Ethernet or fast Ethernet LAN segments.

Switching is a cost-effective way of increasing the total
network capacity available to users on a local area
network. A switch increases capacity and decreases
network loading by making it possible for a local area
network to be divided into different segments which don’t
compete with each other for network transmission
capacity, giving a decreased load on each.

The switch acts as a high-speed selective bridge
between the individual segments. Traffic that needs to go
from one segment to another is automatically forwarded
by the switch, without inte rfer ing with any other segments.
This allows the total network capacity to be multiplied,
while still maintaining the same network cabling and
adapter cards.

Switching LAN technology is a marked improvement over
the previous generation of network bridges, which were
characterized by higher latencies. Routers have also
been used to segment local area networks, but the cost
of a router and the setup and maintenance required
make routers relatively impractical. Today’s switches are

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