Aten KE8952 [11/17] Choosing a network switch

4.3. Choosing a Network Switch

The Basics

In general, the network switches deployed in a KVM over IP Matrix System installation must support the following:

 A dedicated non-blocking switch is preferred in order to prevent congestion, especially when more than 10

KVM over IP Extenders are being deployed

 Gigabit (or faster) Ethernet port

 Multicast forwarding or filtering

 Flow Control Functions

 IGMP Snooping Fast Leave

 IGMP v2 or v3 Snooping (multicast)

 IGMP Querier (on the L3 Switch)

 High bandwidth connection between switches (preferably 10GB fiber)

 Throughput of at least 1GB per port

If the Ethernet switches are to be cascaded, they also need to support the following further functions:

 Dynamic multicast router port

 Forwarding unknown multicast to multicast router only

Types of High Performance Switch

A high performance network switch is the means of a successful KVM over IP Extender setup. When

choosing a network switch, first select the type:

Layer 2 or Layer 3 Switches

You will need to determine whether you need a layer 2 or a layer 3 switch for your KVM over IP Extender network.

Layer 3 switches cost more than layer 2 switches because they are more complex and handle more network

traffic. The best way to calculate which type of switch you need is to first determine if you will have a dedicated

network for the KVM over IP Extenders. If the KE devices will be on different subnet with other KVM over IP

Extenders, it’s best to consider a layer 3 switch if they are on different subnet.

The major differences are:

Layer 3 Switch: A key component of subnets used for multicast distribution is the multicast router. This device

plays a vital coordinating role in ensuring that network traffic is delivered to the correct Layer 2 switches and the

hosts connected to them. Increasingly, the role of router is being fulfilled by Layer 3 switches, particularly for

private networks that do not require links to wider external networks. When selecting a Layer 3 switch for your

network, ensure that it can operate as an IGMP Querier and also has sufficient capacity for the size of your subnet.

Layer 2 Switch: Packets are examined and forwarded using only the MAC address. If you have a small central

network, a layer 2 switch should do the job. If the network is exclusive and will only transmit the bandwidth of KVM

over IP Extenders, layer 2 switches with the correct settings can get the job done effectively.