Help! need router recommendation

Thank you very much for the advice sir. You have given me a good
starting point. I have been browsing the newsgroups for the past
several days. Although i found terms like SOHO, and Enterprise routers,
i didnt have an idea which of them would fit my needs. So i decided the
post to this and other newsgroups. Your advice is very helpful to me.
Thanks again
 >> Stay informed about: Help! need router recommendation 

Yousuf Khan wrote:

> citylight104 RemoveThis @yahoo.com wrote:
>
>> right now im using dlink di-604. but it keeps losing internet
>> connection. unplugging and replugging the power cord restores
>> connection. i have 19 pc's and im also using a dlink 24 port switch
>> and a cable modem (512kbps).
>>
>> i suspect the problem is that the router cant handle this number of
>> pc's. im planning to add more pc's in the future. about 40 pc's all in
>> all.
>>
>> Can anyone recommend a router that can handle this number of pc's?
>> thanks in advance.
>
>
> You're going to have to leave the world of home routers and go into the
> world of expensive office routers. A cheaper alternative would be to
> setup a Linux PC and have it act as your Internet gateway. These home
> routers are barely able to handle one machine connected to it, let alone
> 19, let alone 40. Their poor little internal processors are cheap and
> underpowered.
>
> Yousuf Khan

I think that's a bit overstated. The SOHO (Small Office, Home Office,
for the benefit of the other poster) routers I've encountered are quite
capable of handling a half dozen or so machines, even at fairly high
load. Remember that, other than acting as a switch, their throughput
will be limited by the WAN side.

But I've never tried one with dozens of active machines. I suspect
they'd overflow their NAT table before long.

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 >> Stay informed about: Help! need router recommendation 

Thanks for that sir
 >> Stay informed about: Help! need router recommendation 

You need a switch, not a router. (You might need a router too.) A
switch does the processing a lot faster.

How does your network operate? Do the computers connect to each other
to share files or do they just connect to the Internet.
For mostly file sharing, a managed switch would help. I would recommend
2 switches with a gigabit uplink between them. I am not sure how much a
difference layer 2 switches would make as opposed to just managed
switches.

If all the machines mostly connect to the Internet, then you need a
router capable of that many connections (but you don't need a router
with that many ports.) It would be helpful (essential?) that you have a
gigabit connection between the switch and the router.

Randy R
 >> Stay informed about: Help! need router recommendation 

All machines share files and connect to the internet. The LAN is fine.
Its the internet that keeps disconnecting. And it affects all computers
at the same time.
I think your advice about the gigabit connection between the switch and
the router is very good. I will look into that. Thanks
 >> Stay informed about: Help! need router recommendation