Just wanted to share my experiences regarding my foray into switches.
Initially I used the switch that came with the router. However, since
getting my Windows Home Server, I now regularly transfer several hundred
gigabytes at a time. As you would imagine 10/100 just did not cut it
for me. I looked around and settled on a nice 3Com gigabit switch
(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000I1ZA0G/ref=ox_ya_oh_product) and
it served me quite well for almost 1 year. As my devices grew and my
server balooned to 8 TB of storage, I was abusing the little switch to
oblivion.
After doing a bit of searching around, I settled on
(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000I7SWLO/ref=ox_ya_oh_product) and
all I can say is that I am one happy camper! I know this seems odd, but
the performance change was quite noticeable. Before, I would feel the
3Com switch struggling during multi computer transfers (i.e copying
100GB from computer A -> B and simultaneously from C -> D). But now, I
feel that doing the same exercise on the ProCurve is much faster.
Also, having a metal case and a web UI also helps.
All-in-all, I am one happy camper!
Highly recommended for anyone out there!
