Cheapest 2.5GbE switches
Switch to use for Nimbustor 2 AS5202T
Greetings! I just ordered a Nimbustor 2 AS5202T. I will primarily use it as a media server, but I also have a gaming PC with a 10gb Ethernet port and would like to connect the PC to the NAS to store my Steam game library on it. Which would be the cheapest link aggregation switch you would recommend (If cheap is even an option) to connect both 2.5gbe ports to the switch and then use the switch to connect to the 10Gbe Ethernet on the PC Thanks!
The cheapest 2.5GbE switch with link aggregation and 10GbE support is Netgear MS510TXPP with POE (Available in UK and USA ) .
NETGEAR 10-Port Multi-Gigabit/10G Smart Managed Pro PoE Switch (MS510TXPP) – with 8 x PoE+ @ 180W, 1 x 10G SFP+, Desktop/Rackmount, and ProSAFE Lifetime Protection
You will get things like:
- ETHERNET PORT CONFIGURATION: 4 Gigabit ports and 2 1G/2.5G ports and 2 1G/2.5G/5G ports and 1 10G port
- POWER-OVER-ETHERNET: 8 PoE+ ports with 180W total power budget
- FLEXIBILITY FROM UPLINK PORTS: 1 x 1G/10G SFP+ port
- ADVANCED CONFIGURATION & CONTROL: Management software with easy-to-use GUI interface offers refined control for secure setup, access, and SNMP (NMS 300) management.
- VERSATILE MOUNTING OPTIONS: Supports desktop or rackmount placement, and includes all the necessary mounting hardware in the box
- ENERGY EFFICIENT: Designed to optimize power usage lowering its cost to operate. Most models are compliant with IEEE802.3az Energy Efficient Ethernet mode.
There is also non-POE version MS510TX (UK USA )
NETGEAR 10-Port Multi-Gigabit/10G Smart Managed Pro Switch (MS510TX) – with 1 x 10G SFP+, Desktop/Rackmount, and ProSAFE Lifetime Protection
TRENDnet 10-Port 2.5GBASE-T Web Smart Switch TEG-30102WS – £312.64
- 8 x 2.5GBASE-T RJ-45 Ports,
- 2 x 10G SFP+ Slots,
Available UK USA
TRENDnet 10-Port 2.5GBASE-T TPE-30102WS – £604.70
- Web Smart PoE+ Switch,
- 8 x 2.5GBASE-T RJ-45 PoE+ Ports,
- 2 x 10G SFP+ Slots,
- 240W PoE Power Budget
D-Link Smart Managed 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet Switch (DMS-1100-10TS)
- Eight (8) multi-speed RJ45 ports automatically detect speed needed by end device and support 2. 5Gbps, 1000Mbps, and 100Mbps
- Doubles network bandwidth while leveraging existing Cat-5E cabling – No need to upgrade cabling infrastructure
- Two (2) multi-speed SFP+ ports support 10Gbps/1000Mbps Optical transceivers
- Management via intuitive web-based GUI
- Support for 802. 1Q VLANs for secure traffic or network segmentation
- Advanced features include QoS, Bandwidth Limiting, Link Aggregation and IGMP Snooping
- IEEE 802.3az compliant (Energy Efficient Ethernet)
- LIFETIME WARRANTY – Void when not purchased from Authorized US D-Link Reseller
ZyXEL XGS1210-12 12 Port Multi-Gigabit Unmanaged Switch – 2 Ports – 2.5G – 2 Ports – 10G SFP+ – Desktop/Wall-Mounted
- 2x 10G SFP+ Ultra Speed Uplink
- 10G/2.5G/1G Multi-Gigabit Ports Speed Support
- QoS for better traffic control
- Plug and Play design
- Advanced energy-saving at work
- Fanless, noiseless design
What is Link aggregation?
Link aggregation will combine 2 or more Ethernet ports into a one logical link between two network devices like computers or NAS. This will mean doubled or quadrupled bandwidth to use for super fast data transfer. What we care about is which switch is smart enough to be able to manage link aggregation and also which one is the cheapest. Link aggregation or NIC Teaming is also called by other names like:
- Port aggregation
- Port trunking
- NIC teaming
- Ethernet teaming
- Ethernet bonding
- Link teaming
- Link bonding
- Link bundling
- Port channeling
- Network interface controller (NIC) bonding
What are the benefits of link aggregation?
- Increased bandwidth
- Better use of hardware – balancing the load
- Increased reliability and availability
- Cost effective – don’t need to upgrade network
Can I connect 2.5GbE and 5GbE devices to 10GbE switch
Yes, most of the time 10GbE will be backwards compatible. But it is still recomended to check this on spec sheet.
Here is the list of some cheapest 10GbE switches.
NetGear 1GbE+10GbE Smart Managed Plus Switch GS110EMX-100UKS 8-Port RJ45, 2x RJ45 10GbE
ex.VAT £196.00
£235.20
ex.VAT £246.00
£295.20
ex.VAT £291.80
£350.16
NetGear Insight Managed Cloud Switch GC728X-100EUS 24-Port with 2x SFP, 2x 10GbE SFP
ex.VAT £294.00
£352.80
Qnap Switch QSW-804-4C 10GbE Switch, 4x combo SFP+ / RJ45, 4x SFP+
ex.VAT £359.00
£430.80
NetGear Insight Managed Cloud Switch GC752X-100EUS 48-Port with 2x SFP, 2x 10GbE SFP
ex.VAT £383.90
£460.68
Qnap Switch QSW-1208-8C 10GbE Switch, 8x combo SFP+ / RJ45, 4x SFP+
ex.VAT £435.00
£522.00
NetGear 10GbE Smart Switch XS712T-200NES 12-Port RJ45, 2x Shared SFP+
ex.VAT £948.60
£1,138.32
NetGear 10GbE Plus Switch XS716E-100NES 16-Port RJ45, 1x Shared SFP+
ex.VAT £1,000.80
£1,200.96
NetGear 10GbE Smart Switch XS716T-100NES 16-Port RJ45, 2x Shared SFP+
ex.VAT £1,188.60
£1,426.32
NetGear 10GbE Plus Switch XS724EM-100EUS 24-Port RJ45, 2x Shared SFP+
ex.VAT £1,468.20
£1,761.84
NetGear 10GbE Managed Switch XSM4316S-100NES M4300-8X8F – 8x RJ45, 8x SFP+
ex.VAT £1,542.80
£1,851.36
NetGear 10GbE Smart Switch XS728T-100NES 24-Port RJ45, 4x SFP+
ex.VAT £1,719.60
£2,063.52
NetGear 10GbE Managed Switch XSM4348S-100NES M4300-24X24F – 24x RJ45, 24x SFP+
ex.VAT £4,008.90
£4,810.68
More info and full list
What is the use case for a switch with link aggregation?
Bandwidth demanding users like video editors will see similar bandwidth like Thunderbolt 3. With a multi-array storage device connected they might see even better use of the bandwidth compared with other Thunderbolt3 attachable desktop raid systems. Here is a sample of NIC teaming on a Windows Server:
