3Com Superstack 3870

Gigabit Ethernet moves to the desktop.

Price: £1821.25

Manufacturer: 3Com

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Verdict

Pros:
Auto-sensing ports; high-speed stacking interface.

Cons:
Price; no Power over Ethernet.

Overall:
Good for growing networks or those with bandwidth problems.

Alan Stevens, Personal Computer World 15 Sep 2004

With the release of the Superstack Switch 3870, 3Com is hoping companies will start to look seriously at deploying Gigabit Ethernet to the desktop. To this end the new switches come with either 24 or 48 auto-sensing 10/100/1,000Mbits/sec copper ports making it easy to upgrade - simply by changing the Lan adapter at the workstation or server end. Four of the ports also support fibre connections, added to which the 3870 is the first modular switch to include 10Gbits/sec upgrade facilities.

The 3870 has three 10Gbits/sec interfaces, two of which are used to stack switches together. Up to eight can be stacked, supporting up to 384 ports, managed via a single IP address. And, because the links are full duplex, a total of 40Gbits/sec is available across the stacking backplane. The third interface is then connected to an expansion slot and can be used to uplink to a high-speed backbone. Modules to support this are expected later in the year. With a switching capacity of 108Gbits/sec (156Gbits/sec on the 48-port model) the 3870 is primarily a Layer 2 device but it does have Layer 3 capabilities.

There's support too for 802.1Q Virtual Lans, link aggregation and Layer 3 address filtering. It's conceivable that 3Com could upgrade the firmware to provide greater Layer 3 functionality in the future.

A web interface provides for straightforward management of all the supported features with SNMP and Rmon (remote monitoring) capabilities also built in. Redundant power is another option and, like all 3Com networking products, 3870 switches are covered by a lifetime warranty.

Contact: 3Com 01442 438 000
www.3com.com

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