D-Link DGS-3324SR Product Manual - Page 16

xStack DGS/DXS-3300 Series Layer 3 Stackable Gigabit Ethernet Switch User Manual Introduction Ethernet Technology Switch Description Features Ports Front-Panel Components Side Panel Description Rear Panel Description Gigabit Combo Ports Ethernet Technology Fast Ethernet Technology Section 1 The DGS/DXS-3300 Layer 3 stackable Gigabit Ethernet switches are members of the D-Link xStack family. Ranging from 10/100Mbps edge switches to core gigabit switches, the xStack switch family has been future-proof designed to provide a stacking architecture with fault tolerance, flexibility, port density, robust security and maximum throughput with a userfriendly management interface for the networking professional. The following manual describes the installation, maintenance and configurations concerning members of the xStack DGS/DXS-3300 Switch Series. These four switches, the DGS-3324SRi, DGS-3324SR, DXS-3326GSR and the DXS3350SR are all very similar in configurations and basic hardware and consequentially, most of the information in this manual will be universal to the whole xStack DGS/DXS-3300 Switch Series. Corresponding screen pictures of the web manager may be taken from any one of these switches but the configuration will be identical, except for varying port counts. Ethernet Technology Fast Ethernet The growing importance of LANs and the increasing complexity of desktop computing applications are fueling the need for high performance networks. A number of high-speed LAN technologies are proposed to provide greater bandwidth and improve client/server response times. Among them, Fast Ethernet, or 100BASE-T, provides a non-disruptive, smooth evolution from 10BASE-T technology. 100Mbps Fast Ethernet is a standard specified by the IEEE 802.3 LAN committee. It is an extension of the 10Mbps Ethernet standard with the ability to transmit and receive data at 100Mbps, while maintaining the Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) Ethernet protocol. 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 100Mbps Fast Ethernet and a one hundred-fold increase over 10Mbps Ethernet. Since it is compatible with all 10Mbps and 100Mbps 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 are 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 the backbone and servers to Gigabit Ethernet can greatly improve network response times as well as significantly speed up the traffic between sub networks. 1