Knowing how to manage your network is crucial to businesses of all sizes. When you’re planning to retrofit your network facility, consider implementing a managed PoE switch to meet the growing needs of intelligent network management. The managed PoE switch is fully configurable, which gives you more control in network building to ensure each connected PD can deliver its optimal performance. It provides an effective and affordable solution for homes and SMBs to prioritize the traffic that is forwarding to each PD, monitor the status of each PoE port and supervise the data flow through your network.
Everything You Need to Know About Managed PoE Switch
The managed PoE switch is a managed network switch that has PoE capabilities built into it. Apart from some basic features like delivering data and power simultaneously to the PD via the same Ethernet cable, it also supports various configuration options, advanced security settings, VLAN functions, Quality of Services (QoS) and other network protocols like SNMP. It’s a centralized ‘data+power’ management center where you can configure the network speed and amount of power on each port. The managed PoE switch configures each port to low priority during low activity periods to reduce power consumption. FASTCABLING has launched a whole collection of managed PoE switches, such as 8-Port L2+ PoE Managed Switch with 2 Gigabit SFP and 8 Port 60W Visual PoE Managed Switch with 2 Gigabit SFP, and we’ve summarized some basic features shared by these products:
1.Layer 2+ Network Protocol
Layer 2, also known as Data Link layer, is the second of the seven-layer OSI model designed for error-free data transmission in the same network and provides methods to detect and correct the errors that occur in the physical layer (Layer 1). It helps to forward the packet on MAC addressing and encapsulate data packets into frames. Layer 2+ network protocol comes with improved security capabilities to avoid any direct tempering on the device and fend off cyberattacks. The layer 2+ managed PoE switches provide a simple way to create a data link between two geographically isolated locations without latency.
2.User-Friendly Management with VLAN, QoS, etc.
FASTCABLING managed PoE switches with full layer 2+ functions provide direct and visual network management on a web browser. These managed PoE switches allow you to create VLANs on the switch to help you segment the network without installing separate equipment. You just need to create a VLAN ID on the switching tab, assign it to the ports you select, and then create a PVID to isolate it from other VLANs. And you can also configure the features of QoS by setting the desired CoS, Queue scheduling, bandwidth control, etc., to prioritize critical traffic for your business.
3.Gigabit Switch with High-Speed Uplink Ports
These layer 2+ managed PoE switches support Gigabit Ethernet at each PoE port, ideal for applications at every scale, small networks like home and SMBs or large-scale networks on campus or governmental projects, to help you create a high-performance and future-proof network in any scenario. Gigabit Internet is normally available in FTTX applications, but these Gigabit managed PoE switches offer a network speed ten times faster than the average broadband network (Fast Ethernet) and ensure you can get plenty of spare bandwidth for 4K streaming, video conferencing, online gaming, etc. Each managed switch is also equipped with one or two Gigabit uplink port(s) to provide a reliable backbone of your network.
4.Auto-Sensing PoE Ports and SFP Interfaces
All layer 2+ managed PoE switches are built with auto-sensing ports that automatically detect the compatibility of the connected devices so it won’t forward PoE power to the incompatible device by mistake. Before the managed PoE switch sends any power to a connected PD, it will initiate a procedure called ‘power handshake’ to verify if the PD is PoE-compatible, decide how much power the connected device requires, and reallocate surplus power to high-power devices when needed. Moreover, they’re also built with SFP interfaces to help you set up a high-speed fiber link over longer distances to overcome the limitations of standard PoE. With fiber cabling, you can install the PDs miles away from the server and control center.
5.Improved Security and Enhanced Surge Protection
Monitoring network performance is critical to mitigating network downtime. Compared with the unmanaged PoE switch, the managed PoE switches have some major security benefits to keep out unauthorized access and shut down active cyber threats. For example, VLANs can be created to only allow temporary and limited access to your network. Additionally, to safeguard the network in case a connection or device goes down in the lightning storms, all our managed PoE switches are manufactured with carrier-grade surge protection (6kV) to prevent power failures and safety hazards.
Applications of Managed PoE Switches
• Smart home automation: security cameras and sensors at the main entrances and driveway; voice command devices like Amazon Alexa and Google Home; remote lighting control, etc.
• Smart offices: smart building access control; security camera systems; video conferencing; centralized management of lighting, humidity, temperature; computer monitors, etc.
• Small and medium-sized businesses: security cameras; digital signage displays; point-of-sale systems; the expansion of WiFi networks and the addition of thin clients, etc.
• Industrial automation: smart sensors and IP cameras to monitor manufacturing floors, etc.
Managed PoE Switch Setup Guide
The very first step before you mount the switch on any server is to configure its setting. For the first time usage, you must activate the device and reset the password on the web. After the switch is activated, you can configure the switch for further network management. You can change the IP address and gateway address as needed. When you log in, go to the configuration or switching tab for port configuration, VLAN setting, Trunk management, SNMP setting, IGMP snooping, etc., to configure your managed PoE switch as required.
The managed PoE switch should work in an indoor environment, and extra surge protection is suggested to ensure the continuous operation of the device. Use electromagnetic shielding if possible to reduce external interference. There are mainly three ways of installation: rack-mounted, wall-mounted and desk-mounted. For rack-mounting, you only need to attach two L-shaped brackets to both sides of the switch and fix it on the rack but check the grounding and the stability of the rack first. For wall mounting, you need to attach the screw template to the wall and tighten the screws to secure the mount. Place the managed PoE switch onto the mounting screws, and slide it down until it locks in place. For desk mounting, you only need to place it on a table and remember to attach four rubber pads on the bottom to avoid any scratches on the table. Use a chassis if available.
Lastly, let’s make the connection. To set up the managed PoE switch, you’ll need a router, a short patch cord, some Ethernet cables, and PoE splitters if you want to connect PoE and non-PoE devices on the same switch. First, plug the managed PoE switch into a wall outlet (100-240V AC). Second, take a short patch cord to connect the switch to the router. Then, connect the PoE switch with the PD with a long Ethernet cable, and check if the LED indicator is on. If so, the connection is successfully made. If you want to connect a non-PoE device like a computer, then you will need to add a PoE splitter between them. The splitter will isolate the power from data and feed it into a separate output that the non-PoE device can use.
