[SOLVED] Switch or routers

[jarod]

Tried reading some things between switches and routers and practically got confused with these. I currently have these setup

2 modem > load balancer > switch > Access Points

I just don't understand where can the router come in. Is it able to replace the switch or load balancer.

Thanks

[bilbus]

waht are you trying to do?

Modems - router (that can NLB) - switch - aps

Most buisness level routers can NLB.

[jarod]

I am setting up a wireless network and i would like to know where does the router comes in. Does it act like a mini switch or what?

[bilbus]

the router seperates the external network from the internal network

aka your lan to the internet .. its the go between

[DavidHB]

Originally Posted by bilbus

the router separates the external network from the internal network

... by providing an external firewall behind which you can share files and folders on the local network. You cannot safely share files when only a switch connects your computers to the internet.

Essentially, a router is a collection of components and functions. It will contain a switch, possibly a wireless access point, a DHCP server for allocating IP addresses on the LAN, and either its own inbuilt (and firewalled) DSL or broadband modem, or a firewalled connection point to an external modem or a WAN, plus network address translation, so that connected computers access the net through the router's LAN IP address, but the internet 'sees' the router via the quite separate IP address allocated by the ISP, thereby hiding all the LAN addresses from the WAN/internet. There are other components as well, but those are the main ones of user concern.

Bottom line: a router is usually also a switch. But it's more than a switch. I'd guess that a setup that needs 2 modems needs a router even more.

Hope this helps.

David

[bilbus]

A real router is only a router, a home grade / very low end one can have a intergrated switch and / or wireless.

A real router is going to be a fixed multi interface box, or have expantion slots to add new functions.

[DavidHB]

Originally Posted by bilbus

A real router is only a router, a home grade / very low end one can have a integrated switch and / or wireless.

That's probably true, in the original meaning of the term. But the meaning of the term has expanded; most of the (no doubt) millions of devices sold as routers that are currently in use are multi-function as I described. Indeed, so far as I can tell from a quick scan of the Linksys and Netgear websites, all the devices they now sell as 'routers' have some form of switch built in.

There's no point in arguing about the meaning of words, but it's only fair to jarod to explain that the term 'router' can have a range of meanings. However, what is common to all these meanings is the idea of insulating the LAN from the WAN/internet, and of providing a controlled gateway between the two.

David

[jarod]

So a router is just a device to separate my intranet and extranet assuming i am having a single internet connection?

[bilbus]

Think of it like a doorman at a club. The router says who can enter the "club" and who can not.

Internet and Intranet is a better way of putting it. Extranet a sub section of a intranet.

[DavidHB]

And, leaving aside the question of what else might come in the package with a SOHO router, it's not "just" a separation device. Think of what your house (or bilbus' club) would be like without a front door. It's almost a case of no door, no house.

David

[jarod]

Well thanks for all the reply

[sankarreddyrami]

hot toconfigared cisco routers

[bilbus]

Originally Posted by sankarreddyrami

hot toconfigared cisco routers

What????