FAQ

Ethernet Connectivity FAQ

1) What's the speed of the Servo Controller ethernet interface?

The servo controller's optional ethernet network interface is 10Base-T, which operates at 10 Mbps using twisted pair cabling.

2) Will 10Base-T run with my 100Base-T network?

That depends on your network. If your network hub or switch supports autosensing, then it will work fine. If your hub or switch does not support autosensing then it will not work.

Many switches and hubs manufactured in the last 3 or 4 years are equipped with autosensing, which will connect each port of the hub or switch at the correct speed, independently of the other ports. Older hubs and switches may lack this feature and will not support a mix of different speeds.

Hubs such as LinkSys EFAH08W or Netgear DS108, and switches such as LinkSys EZXS55W, LinkSysy SD208 or Netgear FS108, support autosensing and will happily adapt the speed of each port to either 10 or 100 Mbps as required.
 

3) What's the difference between a hub and a switch?

In simple terms, a hub divides the available bandwidth among all of the active ports. A switch is much smarter and can deliver the full rated bandwidth to each and every  port simultaneously.

Additionally, a hub-to-hub connection at 100 Mbps is limited to 5 meters (16 feet) or less, while a switch-to-switch connection will happily run at 100 Mbps at 100 meters (330 feet).

With the advent of highly integrated circuitry, the price of a switch is about the same as the price of a hub. Therefore, we generally recommend the use of a switch rather than a hub.

4) Can you recommend a switch for my system?

We highly recommend the LinkSys SD205, SD208 or SD216 switch which includes autosensing of speed on each port, autosensing of direct or crossover cables, and autosensing of uplink connection to another switch or a hub. The fully automatic autosensing features make this switch extremely easy to use and very versatile.