What's the difference between a Hub, a Switch and a Router?

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hey leo
great site!
im currently in dubai,UAE and I know people have asked you this many times before but i need your help

i have 3 pc's all windows.
and i have a 1mb adsl connection with no static ip.
i want all the pc's to be connected and i don't want to switch on my main pc (pc1) just to give internet access to the other pcs
also i want to run a file and print server on pc2 and a webserver on pc 3
i also want them to be
what do you recommend I get? can you be specific, it will help :)
thanks
tom

I'd grab a router, probably one of the 4 port LinkSys devices. It should do everything you need.

By "webserver" - do you mean locally, or visible on the internet? You may want to consider a static IP to make that work cleanly on the internet.

hey thanks leo for the advice!
but theres a new problem
i went out to buy the router but forget to mention that i have a usb dsl modem given to me by my isp here.

and that the linksys router only has a port for ethernet modems!

is there anyway i can use the router by using a cable with one usb end and one ethernet end?
or do i have to get another model?

thanks for everything
tom

No USB and ethernet can't really be converted with just a cable. I would see if your ISP can provide you with a regular ethernet based DSL modem.

Surecom 8 port 10/100 switch (EP-808SX)
[1767-4712544003817] Any chance you can tell me if this hub is compatable with adsl or cable internet if it is compatable with cable than any info would be great.

kind regards

Peter Cookson

Hi Leo,

Thanks for your site. I have some questions. What do I need to do to transfer files from my old laptop to my new one. My old one don't have any USB and ethernet port, so I don't know if I can set up a network between my two laptops. I have big files store in it, it is just impossible to transfer it using diskette. It don't have a CD writer too. Please help me.

Thanks,
Del

You might check into a product called LapLink ... they used to have a technique using a special cable that connected two computers using thier printer or comm ports.

which one do i need? i have a home pc and a playstation 2. when i want to playthe ps2 i hae to, unplug the power to reset the isp from the pc, and visa versa. What can i do to sole this problem?

I typically recommend a router for these types of situations.

Hey,
I have 2 PC s in my home. I simply want to connect both of them for sharing files and printer, and playing multi player games.
And physical distance between both the PCs is approxily 25-30 metres.
I have on board Lan 10/100 mbps on one system motherboard but not on the other. But I recently purchased a Bluetooth Dongle which shows a network adapter(Bluetooth PAN network adapter) in another computer's device manager.
Could you tell me for connecting both the computer for the above purposes what necessary hardware should I purchase? Could i make use of ethernet of first PC and Bluetooth PAN Network Adapter of another one to make connection.....
Is there any device(like switch, routers) which supports wired and wireless connection at the same time.
If not then suggest me details for both the wired and wireless connection and details of initial investments too....
Thanks
Regards
Joysa

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