SMC Networks Introduces Four Levels of Gigabit Switching; Each of SMC's 'Four Levels' -- Unmanaged Switches, Smart Switches, SMB Managed Switches and Enterprise Managed Switches -- Has the Feature/Function Mix to Meet Users' Specific Needs.

IRVINE, Calif. -- SMC(R) Networks Inc. (www.smc.com) today announced a complete line of gigabit switches providing four levels of features and functionality to better suit users' needs and market applications. SMC Networks is the only company to offer switches in all of the four levels to meet the varying needs of a vast array of network environments.

"We're introducing the four levels approach to make it easier for users to choose the network switching solution that is right for their networks," said Tom Rizol, SMC's general manager, Americas. "SMC is the only vendor with gigabit switch offerings in each of these four levels. We are committed to offering a full complement of network switches so that customers get the features that their networks need to meet current and emerging market applications."

SMC Networks, a long-time supplier of Ethernet switching technology, continues to bring leading-edge technology and products to its customers. In line with the company's strategic initiative to bring high-speed switching technology with the features that users need most to SMB and Enterprise applications, SMC has introduced several new Gigabit switch products over the last year to fill the growing demand for bandwidth and efficiency. As the market evolves and redistributes, SMC has the full breadth of products to address the ongoing changes in demand for all of the market segments it serves. SMC is committed to supporting its customers with the full range of options for switching technology -- from simple unmanaged Gigabit switches to fully managed L2/3/4 10Gigabit switches. SMC is also a leader in enterprise class wireless access points and bridges that deliver much-needed security and management, as well as Power over Ethernet switches for Voice over IP and wireless applications.

Unmanaged Switches

Home and SOHO users are looking for ways to open up bandwidth without a huge investment -- or dedicated IT resources. Perfect for simple networks where clear connections are the goal, unmanaged gigabit switches provide all of that, along with ease of use. A well-suited solution for straightforward, relatively small networks or for connecting networking peripherals such as printers, IP phones and storage devices, unmanaged switches facilitate low-cost, efficient networking that is easy to configure, for about $12 to $15 per port.

At a small company, the inventory systems are managed with a
    15-computer network connected with an SMCGS24 switch. Budgets are
    tight, and simple connections are all that the business requires,
    so they chose unmanaged switches for overall efficiency in
    communication among the 15 computers.

Smart Switches

Designed for users looking to migrate from unmanaged to managed switches without the extra costs and added complexity of fully-managed solutions, smart switches have the basic management features that users demand. Gigabit smart switches, like the SMCGS24-Smart, add key management features to make the network more efficient and secure: Port Trunking, for switch-to-switch connections that overcome bottlenecks by increasing overall bandwidth; DSCP-based QoS to manage office environments with demanding applications like VoIP; and VLANs to segment the network for enhanced security and privacy. Still easy to configure, smart switches are ideal in demanding small office environments and in Edge applications. Management features for better networking also include WRR and IEEE 802.1p (Class of Service); Broadcast Storm Control; Port Mirroring; Dual Firmware Images and Web management security. And, their easy-to-use Web interface enables users to configure the switches with ease -- the graphical menu makes configuring switch settings and viewing network activity and statistics simple and efficient. SMC's smart switches provide ultimate plug-n-play, with Auto-MDI/MDI-X on all ports, at $13 to $16 per port.

When a small and growing business expanded their network to 50+
    users, they started to experience network slowdowns due to
    bottlenecks. Lacking a dedicated MIS manager, they needed a simple
    solution for making their network run more smoothly to enhance
    overall productivity. By upgrading to still relatively simple
    smart switches, the small business gained critical management
    features -- for them, the most important being port-trunking to
    open bandwidth -- without the overhead of heavy-duty management.

SMB Managed Switches

SMB Managed Switches provide efficient Gigabit Ethernet switching for bandwidth-intensive networks, and include a targeted set of management features for true network management in a mid-sized network environment. SMC's new SMC8024L2 TigerSwitch 10/100/1000 Managed Switch is an example, with features to enable secure edge systems such as 802.1x and IP filtering, in addition to Quality of Service (QoS) with four levels of priority and weighted fair queuing to ensure smooth transmission of mission critical data. Full SNMP, VLANs based on frame tags or ports and spanning tree for loop detection and prevention are also featured in this class of switch. Ideally suited for offices, small to mid-sized education application environments, SMB managed switches are priced at about $30 per port, providing a robust subset of the management features found in an enterprise switch, at about half the cost.

Network expansion at a mid-sized company necessitated a
    multiple-switch network with protection against downtime and lost
    productivity.  Absent the budget for high-end enterprise managed
    switch products or for high-density features like stacking for the
    150-node network, the company was able to utilize SMB Managed
    Switches by installing seven SMC8024L2 switches.

Enterprise Switches

Enterprise-level managed switches, like SMC's SMC8824M and SMC8848M TigerStack Gigabit Stackable Managed Switches, deliver the ultimate in advanced features and performance for the most critical environments. Built for the larger enterprise network (300+ users), enterprise workgroup and backbone switching applications where advanced management and security are critical, these switches include features like ACLs, 802.1x for secure network access and SSH, SSL/HTTPS for secure management enabled by RADIUS and TACACS+. Traffic prioritization and rate limiting enable Quality of Service across the network, and network segmentation is provided by port and protocol-based VLANs. For more powerful management applications, switches in this class also offer Multiple Spanning Tree Protocol (802.1s), stack-wide link aggregation (LACP). At prices closer to $100 per port, these enterprise-level switches are well suited for data centers, school campuses and large office environments, with full management, advanced configuration and a host of features to support those large, mission-critical enterprise networks.

A large company with a dedicated and highly trained network
    management team occupies a multi-building campus and its network
    serves more than 300 users. The network is anchored by a data
    center with distributed wiring closets populated with stacked
    SMC8824M and SMC8848M Gigabit switches with advanced management
    features to keep overhead down. The company uses VLANs extensively
    to segment the network, with Multiple Spanning Tree protocol being
    an essential feature in managing the VLANs. Redundant power for
    the switches, in addition to the advanced security and management
    features, ensures maximum uptime.

For more information on the four levels of switching and the networking hardware that fits specific needs, visit www.smc.com, or call the company's headquarters at 800-SMC-4YOU.