Chapter 1: Product Overview
Introduction to Fast Ethernet
Standard 10 Mbps Ethernet has served well for past generations of 80286 and 80386 machines performing simple file transfers. However, with the inevitable growth in corporate network size and the introduction of fully-functional 32-bit PC architectures, and operating systems running complex applications, 10 Mbps Ethernet has become a serious bottleneck.
With the recent flood of choices for upgrading media bandwidth, 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet has become the most popular choice because of its low cost, compatibility with existing Ethernet applications, and the fact that it can run on top of an installed base of twisted-pair cabling.
Moreover, by using a dual-speed switch (10 or 100 Mbps), Fast Ethernet can be easily integrated into an existing 10 Mbps Ethernet environment with no need for protocol translation or changes to network software. It also includes specifications for a media-independent interface (MII), which permits a switched connection to any of the 100BASE-T sublayers; i.e., 100BASE- TX (10BASE-T), 100BASE-FX or 100BASE-T4.
Brief Description of the Fast EtherHub 3500 System
The EtherHub 3500 System is a powerful and innovative LAN network enhancement and management product series. Each component in the system supports a Fast Ethernet multi-segment bus architecture that enhances traffic management and network bandwidth utilization. This system offers the network manager a wide range of flexible configuration options, allowing you to increase your network’s bandwidth tenfold or more. In addition, the entire installation can be monitored and controlled via SNMP protocol through any network management station.
