Ethernet Switch Types

Summary

There is no actual limitation to vendor supply for Ethernet Switches, nor the number of ports a switch can have. They are however, commonly dominated in the market by Cisco and Nexus.

Categories

• Unmanaged versus managed - Managed versus unmanaged switches differ in how they can be, or that they can be configured. Small Home, Small Office (SOHO) switches likely are unmanaged and simply just work on the network. Enterprise/Corporate Switches likely are managed and often need configuration.
• Stackable - Stacked units which can be combined to communicate together and function as a single unit.
• Moduler versus fixed - Fixed switches cannot be upgraded, or modified. Moduler switches can have additional ports or configurations added tothem.
• Desktop versus rack-mounted - Desktop switches commonly are 8 - 16 ports, while enterprise switches can be up to 100 ports and often should be stored in a network rack.