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 If you've been using your home network primarily to access the Internet, there's a good chance your current wired connections won't be adequate when you want to begin sharing files around your house, or to stream media to a computer connected to your TV.
Our recent article, Help, My Hard Drive is Full! highlights the benefit of using a NAS. However, if your home network isn't up-to-speed, adding that NAS without upgrading your network will just leave you wanting. Read more for TechDigs.net upgrade tips.
Most home networks have been set up to use a router with a built-in switch connected to a cable or DSL modem. When you're only concerned with connecting to the Internet, this works well. However, when you want to move large files around your home network, you'll need more speed. The way to improve your home network speed is with a dedicated gigabit Ethernet switch. You might ask, what's the difference between a built-in switch and a dedicated switch. In theory, nothing. However, in practice most switches built into routers are sub-par.  Your Old Network - Using the Router as your Switch While a few new routers (however, not the new Apple Airport Extreme) include gigabit (1000 megabits) Ethernet ports in their switches, most switches included in routers top out at 100 megabits, and the older routers at 10 megabits. If you want to move files around your home network, especially media files such video, gigabit Ethernet is crucial. In most cases, there's no reason to replace your router because its primary purpose is to connect to the Internet which is generally no faster than 10 megabits. The most efficient solution to get the speed you need is to add a gigabit Ethernet switch to your home network. Key steps in upgrading to a gigabit Ethernet switch: - Purchase a gigabit Ethernet switch. Industry leaders D-Link, Linksys, Belkin make excellent gigabit Ethernet switches. Our favorite balance of quality and price are the metal-cased Netgear GS line of switches (5-port
 , 8-port and 16-port). - To get the benefit of the new switch, assure that the devices you want to connect are capable of 1000 megabits or gigabit Ethernet. This includes desktop computers, notebooks, servers and NAS (network attached storage) devices.
- Replace older Ethernet cables with Cat 5e or Cat 6 cables. Generally, Cat 5 Ethernet cables won't support gigabit connections. While a Cat 5 may appear to be working, it's unlikely to support the same speeds that a Cat 5e or Cat 6 cable will. If you can, just get Cat 6 cables and be done with it. These cables should be connected to any gigabit Ethernet device. See the drawing below.
- Connect the devices using the new cables.
 Your New Network - Using a Gigabit Switch Now you're ready to realize the maximum transfer speeds between devices on your home network.
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