NETGEAR manual Model FS518T Switch Overview

FS518T.Manual.FINAL 5/19/00 12:55 PM Page 11

Model FS518T Switch Overview

The NETGEAR Model FS518T Fast Ethernet Switch with Gigabit uplinks is an auto-sensing 10/100 Mbps switch with two 100/1000 Gigabit uplink interfaces. This high-performance switch is developed primarily to be used either as a segment switch or a desktop switch.

The Gigabit Ethernet uplink ports on the Model FS518T switch can be used to connect to the network backbone and shared network resources, such as servers, at 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, or 1000 Mbps. The full-duplex 1000BASE-T ports allow users to connect at high speed to a wiring closet or server located up to 100 meters away, on existing Category 5 unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cable.

All of the network ports on the Model FS518T switch can adapt automatically to the speed of the connected network or the PC, and the ports can operate at either

10 Mbps or 100 Mbps. In addition, each port can automatically negotiate with the connected device to operate in full-duplex mode. If the connected device is operating in half-duplex mode only, or does not have the capability to participate in the negoti- ation process, the port will default to half-duplex mode.

The Model FS518T switch can be used to partition a 10 Mbps or 100 Mbps net- work to enhance the capacity of the network to support advanced applications. In addition, the switch provides a link between traditional 10 Mbps networks and faster 100 Mbps networks. By installing a Model FS518T switch, a user can connect any 10 Mbps or 100 Mbps device to the switch. The Model FS518T switch provides a built-in upgrade path; you can remove a 10 Mbps connection and replace the connec- tion with a 100 Mbps connection with little or no change to the rest of the network.

The Model FS518T switch can be effectively used to join multiple 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet segments and to extend the reach of the network. Copper-based Fast Ethernet networks have a network diameter of up to 200 meters. The Model FS518T switch can be used to join these 200-meter segments to enable them to function

as a single logical network. With one Model FS518T switch, the reach extends to 400 meters.

All 10/100 ports can auto negotiate the duplex mode with the connected device.

If the other link partner does not support negotiation, the ports default to half-duplex

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