Not sure which switch?
Please download the attached guide to help make your switch selection clearer and easier. The guide has helpful network diagrams covering PoE, PoE+, PoE injectors and splitters, how to's and some handy do's and donts.
Below are some hints and tips to help you further in your switch selection.
Things to take in to consideration when selecting the correct network switch:
1) Amount of Ports
The most importing thing is to check the amount of ports on the switch are enough to connect all your network devices. LILIN has a range of PoE and PoE+ network switches ranging up to 24 ports. If you require more than one switch it is heavily advised to choose switches with gigabit uplink ports. These ports allow a smooth transmission of data between the switches allowing them to operate at maximum effectiveness. Switches without uplink ports can still be linked together but you may experience bandwidth issues with switch to switch data flow.
2) Power Requirements – PoE or PoE+, Injectors and Splitters
Review the data sheets of the camera’s you have specified on the installation to see if any have higher power requires known as PoE+. If you have 1 or more camera’s requiring PoE+ power you will need to heavily consider this when choosing your switch. (Please note PoE+ switches will happily power standard PoE devices but a standard PoE switch cannot power any PoE+ device, regardless of the amount of wattage unused by the other connected equipment). However some switches are designed to power both PoE and PoE+ devices, please check the specification sheet of that exact switch model to see if this is possible on your selection. If this is the case you will usually find a the switch will handle half the PoE+ devices it will PoE e.g. An 8 port switch can power 8 standard PoE devices or 4 PoE+ devices.
A real world example
If you have a 10 camera system and only 1 camera requires PoE+ there is yet another alternative. PoE+ switches can cost considerably more than standard PoE switches, to combat this the alternative is to use PoE+ injectors and splitters. These are products designed specifically to power a single device and can be purchased to meet a range of different higher power requirements. To see our range of PoE devices please click here. So with PoE injectors and splitters you could choose a standard 16 port PoE switch and power the PoE+ device independently, don’t worry, PoE injectors and splitters can still be plugged in to PoE or PoE+ switches. PoE switches have smart sensing to see if the device require power, if the devices doesn’t it will simply transmit data only. This way you can save on not installing a PoE+ switch for just one camera, but still meet the customers requires for higher power camera.
3) Cable Run Length
Make sure when planning your network you do not have cable runs longer than 90 meters. This is particularly important when using PoE due to voltage drop. PoE is particularly hard to measure voltage on so if you break the 90 meter cable rule you could be in for a world of pain if devices do not operate correctly.
4) Enough Gigabit Ports for Recording Equipment
When specifying a network switch for HD IP video always make sure you allow enough gigabit (Uplink) ports to connect your NVR’s to your network. Your NVR recording device MUST be plugged in to a gigabit (Uplink) port on the switch. Failure to do so can result in erratic/jittery video, pixelated video or even total video loss on some channels. This means considering: If you have multiple NVR’s and you need to link multiple switches you will need to check you have enough gigabit ports for both switch linking and connecting the NVR’s.
We hope these tips help. If you require further help, please contact your LILIN account manager and they will assist you with your requirements.
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