Using an Ethernet Network on a Smart Hub 2

[harleydee]

Hi, has anyone any experience of running an Ethernet network from the Smart Hub 2 ?

Due to issues with wifi speeds on my Full Fibre 500, which I have discussed in a previous post, I am thinking of distributing the internet around the house on Cat 6 Ethernet. I did this in the 90s in my last house but in those days we didn’t have the speed we have today.

I was wondering what sort of speed drop I would get over a 30m cat6 cable from the SM2 to my router. The starting speed is around 400mbps at the SH2. Has anyone any experience of this sort of length on a SM2, I have been told theoretically it should be OK, what ever that means.

Many Thanks

[rbz5416 · Accepted solution]

Cat5e/6 is good for 100m without loss.

[harleydee]

Great, many thanks !

[WSH]

The speed doesn’t depend on the speed of your internet connection.

Your internal speed depends on the speed of the network card at the either end and what they negotiate.  A faulty/inadequate cable could reduce the speed by throwing too many errors and causing the network cards to negotiate to use a lower speed to compensate but, beyond that, the cable does not determine the speed.

The ports on the SH2 are max 1Gb/s.  As rbz5416 says, both cat 5e and cat 6 are rated for 1Gb/s at up to 100m.  (That is lab test conditions and requires good quality cable and a perfect install.  Most working techs don’t push beyond 85m).

[harleydee]

Thats useful, I will be 40m tops, Thank You .

[harleydee]

Thanks for the information. I have now cabled Ethernet to routers in the rooms which need the speed and I am getting an incredible 512Mbs on all PCs and laptops that are on the Ethernet and unexpectedly I am getting more than 500mbs on my VPN to which ever part of Europe it has connected to !

[WSH]

I take it that is the broadband connection rather than the speed across your network?

I get 850-950 Mb/s when I backup from the machine downstairs to the machine upstairs.  (About 30m).

[harleydee]

Yes, the internal LAN is giving just short of 1Gbs. 40m max run.

[WSH]

Good.

I was going to say the internal ethernet should be able to do a lot better than 500Mb/s.  Of course, if it's coming over the internet then it's only as fast as the slowest link.

Grasp the nettle, the rest of you, and put cables in.  You won't regret it.