Would this work ?

[Stingreen]

I'm planning to implement the linksys BEFSR41 and protect the internal network by using its NAT feature. So, basicly it will be the DHCP server as well.

Cisco 2600 Router --> 3COM Switch -->"Linksys BEFSR41" -->WS

-- > : Straight thru cables
WS : Workstations.


Would that work ?

(I'm asking because this is basicly a cable/dsl router and the idea kinda confused me and couldn't be sure if it's going to work or not in this situation.

Thank you.

 

[ceh4702]

One might ask what is the incoming speed of your internet access. If it is faster than 10 mbps, then the Linksys Router will slow it down. On the WAN side the speed is limited to 10 mbps. I think Linksys makes a Gigabit router also. The Linksys firmware has a setting to make the router work as both a Gateway and a normal router. Lynksys also makes a firewall router that is just a little more expensive than the normal cable/dsl router.

I would have thought you could do the same thing on the Cisco 2600 by using the cisco Router OS??

You have a couple layers of complication. One might ask if the 3com switch is a layer 2 or 3 switch? If it is a layer 3 switch you should be able to manage the ports and apply restrictions to limit the allowed protocols on the switch ports.

Things you didn't inculed:
1. Speed/type of internet access you have?
(The 2600 can be configured for gigabit or
have other types of modules).

2. What type of Switch are you using?
Is it Gigabit?
Is it a managed Switch?
Is it using VLAN?

3. Number of workstations connected to the switch and number of worksation that will attach to the Linksys Router?

If there is a Forum for a wider range of netwroking topics like LAN management I would suggest you try a couple other forums. If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[Stingreen]

>One might ask what is the incoming speed of your internet >access. If it is faster than 10 mbps, then the Linksys
>Router will slow it down.

The main connection coming thru the cisco 2600 is T1 and yes it is much faster than 10 Mbit. Workstations are mostly developers working on the servers, therefore they don't be needing too much bandwidth.

>I would have thought you could do the same thing on the Cisco 2600 by using the cisco Router OS??

Yes, but the problem is that the cisco 2600 is not our router, it belongs to our isp. I just wanted to give a broader point of view what our network structure would look like.

>You have a couple layers of complication. One might ask >if the 3com switch is a layer 2 or 3 switch? If it is a >layer 3 switch you should be able to manage the ports and >apply restrictions to limit the allowed protocols on the switch ports.

It's unfortunately a layer 2 switch and that's it, so it comes up to the Linksys that it's the only solution I have.

>Things you didn't inculed:
>1. Speed/type of internet access you have?
> (The 2600 can be configured for gigabit or
> have other types of modules).

Like I mentioned above, it's a T1 connection and can be burst up 90 Mbits. Since I don't own the cisco 2600 I can't do any modifications on it.

> What type of Switch are you using?
> Is it Gigabit?
> Is it a managed Switch?
> Is it using VLAN?

The 3COM one is a Superstack II, a 100 megabit switch, and it's our core switch which supports VLAN's. And yes it can be managed but you can't route the packets nor can you define any IP addresses for a specific port. (you can set the switch's own ip addres though)

>3. Number of workstations connected to the switch and >number of worksation that will attach to the Linksys >Router?

There are 5 servers connected to the core switch. Server's won't need any dhcp'ing or firewalling or else, because they're all secured standalone servers and have all static IP's. I was thinking about getting the BEFSR41 and plug it into the core switch, seperate the WS network( which 15 Workstations will connect uplinked by other hubs or else.)

>If you do not like my post feel free to point out your >opinion or my errors.

I loved your post and help. Thank you for any other information provided.

 

[ceh4702]

I see you have 100mbps service that would be coming into the Linksys that is the main problem. If all of your workstations feed through that device it may cause a network traffic problem due to the Linksys having a WAN PORT with a 10Mbps port. It would be like using a 10Mbps Hub in the middle of a network with a gigabit switch. That is the only real problem. I am not sure a small device like the linksys BEFSR41 is up to the Job.

I think possibly an alternate device might be the Linksys
BEFSX41 which claims to be a Broadband Firewall Router, Which is designed for a 10/100 backbone. Having an option for a 100Mbps port for the Wan connection might be an improvement. If you already have the other one you can try it. I am unsure of the best way to implement it in the network infrastructure. I have on occassion looked at the website

http://www.homenethelp.com

for networking help. There seem to be more networking people that visit that site. Sometimes you can buy used Cisco Routers at some websites that sell Cisco and other networking eequipment. I think I have seen 2601's for sale for about $400.00 used. My son is taking a set of classes in the Cisco Academy (in high school) and we considered buying a small Cisco Router, but decided against it. The Used market is not to be underestimated. We purchased almost all of our mainframes used.

Ideally I would have thought of placing some kind of firewall between the 2600 router and the Switch with fiber in and fiber out to the switch if possible. That may add up to more money than you may want to spend. I have looked at the prices for some firewalls and the more users you have the more the prices climb faster and faster.

I have only used the BEFSR41 at home with a cable modem with 3 computers. One thing I noticed is when you switch it from Gateway to Router mode some of the filtering options may not be possible to use. I think Linksys always has an Uplink Port on their switches and they usually state they support up to 250 users or somewhere close to that. 15 workstations might be pushing a 10Mbps port just a bit if they are uploading and downloading huge files, but it is more than fast enough for email or similar things. If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.