Collection: Ethernet Switch

Managed and unmanaged Ethernet switches from 8-port desktop to 48-port rack-mount for offices, warehouses, and server rooms. Unmanaged switches are plug-and-play for simple single-segment networks. Managed switches add VLAN, QoS, SNMP, port mirroring, and link aggregation — required when mixing device types (scanners, VoIP phones, cameras, APs) that need traffic isolation. PoE switches power access points, VoIP phones, and cameras over the data cable. Layer 3 managed switches route between VLANs without a separate router. Pair with Routers & Wireless. Net-30 terms available.

Frequently Asked Questions

Unmanaged switches are plug-and-play with no configuration interface. Smart (web-managed) switches add a basic browser GUI for VLAN and QoS settings — simpler than fully managed but limited in advanced features. Fully managed switches add CLI, SNMP v2/v3, advanced ACLs, port mirroring, dynamic routing (Layer 3), and full VLAN flexibility. Choose based on how much network control and visibility your IT team needs.

PoE budget is the total wattage the switch can deliver across all PoE ports simultaneously. A 24-port PoE switch with 185W budget cannot power all 24 ports at maximum draw at once. Add up the power draw of each planned PoE device — access points (15–25W), IP cameras (7–15W), VoIP phones (3–6W) — and choose a switch whose PoE budget exceeds your total by at least 20%.

A VLAN (Virtual LAN) divides one physical switch into isolated broadcast domains. Example: barcode scanners on VLAN 10 (WMS traffic only), VoIP phones on VLAN 20 (SIP and RTP only), IP cameras on VLAN 30 (NVR only). Each VLAN is isolated from the others — a scanner can't reach the phone or camera network. Benefits: security, reduced broadcast congestion, simplified troubleshooting, and compliance with segmentation requirements.

Layer 2 switches forward Ethernet frames by MAC address within a single VLAN — they cannot route IP traffic between VLANs. Layer 3 switches add IP routing capability, allowing inter-VLAN communication without a separate router at each layer. For networks with three or more VLANs that need to communicate (scanners reaching a WMS server on a different VLAN), a Layer 3 switch simplifies the architecture.

Link aggregation (IEEE 802.3ad / LACP) bonds two or more physical ports into a single logical uplink, increasing bandwidth and providing redundancy if one cable or port fails. Useful when a single 1Gbps uplink between your access switch and core switch or NAS is a throughput bottleneck. Not needed for most small office deployments where traffic volumes are moderate.