Tech Forum

The easiest way to get more ports is to just buy a new router or switch with more ports than the one you currently have! It sounds like you have a 5-port router driving your Entertainment Center, so I suggest replacing the 5-port router with an 8-port Router (i.e., https://www.amazon.com/D-Link-Gigabit-Dynamic-Filtering-DSR-250/dp/B008021NSI/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=8+port+internet+router&qid=1566511970&s=gateway&sr=8-5). Because routers intelligently manage the output ports to ensure that each port will have maximum bandwidth and manage Network addressing (via DHCP, etc.), they’re always more expensive than unmanaged switches.

Unmanaged Switches, OTOH, simply connect to a source port (i.e., one network address) and simply devide the incoming bandwidth to each active device on the other ports, depending on how many connected devices are active, relying on the source port (usually a modem) to do all the port management (DHCP routing). In other words, if you have a 1000 megabit source (i.e., cable modem feed) connected to one port of a 5-port switch and 4 output (i.e., smart TV, game console) devices connected to the other 4 ports, each output port will only see a maximum of 250 megabits of bandwidth (1000 megabits/4 active outputs) IF all 4 output devices are simultaneously active. As the number of active devices decreases, the per-port bandwidth naturally increases. Only ONE active output device will receive full bandwidth from the input source. This is why unmanaged switches are much cheaper than routers, because they use something else to take care of address, etc. management.

Therefore, these are your choices:

1. If you want maximum throughput to all your internet devices, invest in a router that has lots of output ports. This is the mo$t expen$ive option as more ports = more $$$. However each active output port will see a pretty high bandwidth due to the router’s intelligence.
2. If per-device throughput isn’t an issue, invest in HIgh-Bandwidth (Gigabit) unmanaged switches that have more than five ports each (i.e., 8-port, 16-port, 24-port). While the more ports = more $$$ formula still applies, their cost is still proportionately lower than routers with similar port configurations.

When dealing with Area Networks (home or business), It’s always wise to have more available ports (router and/or switch) at all stations (Home Office, Entertainment Center, etc.) than there are active network devices so you have expansion capability if you desire (i.e., extra printer, extra computer, etc.).

Adding a switch to a router port is OK. The router will only send the packets that are addressed to the devices on the switch. The negative is that the devices on the switch have to share the bandwith of that one port. Put devices that have low usage or not used at the same time on the switch. The alternative (better way) is buy an eight port router. The switches also come in larger number of ports.

Let's take you questions one at a time.

1. Can I add another switch at the router to expand the number of ports? — Yes, up to the theoretical maximum of 254 ports.
2. What are the limitations/drawbacks on adding more switches to the network? — I've experienced no problems. I have about 45 Ethernet devices and 22 WiFi devices in my home. I have both 8 port and 24 port gigabit switches plugged into the router plus two 8 port switches plugged into the 24 port one. Additionally, I have 5 port and 8 port switches located in several rooms that go back to the 24 port one as well. With 9 HD IP cameras and streaming services running I found that using gigabit switches (10/100/1000) eliminated any issues.
3. Is there a better way to do this? — With gigabit switches costing as little as $10 you'd be hard pressed to find an easier or more economical solution. With a total of seven switches in service I have a highly reliable network.

The main limit with today's switches, even the cheapest, will be the total number of IPs used on your local network. This sets a practical limit to about 240 ports less the number of WiFi connected devices. I would consider an inexpensive Dlink / Netgear / TPLink / TrendNet "Green" 8 port gigabit switch at the router; this will give you five empty ports when finished. I'd also move all the connections off the router for the inside (the four you've got plugged in now) and run this switch off one of the router ports, and the two remote switches off of two of the other ports, leaving the non-switch items on the new switch.

1. Yes. I have the exact same problem, so I plugged a small 8-port Cisco switch (SG110D-08) into one of the ports on my router, and it works great.
2. There may be a practical limit to how many switches you can cascade, but I have another switch plugged into the first one to service some equipment in another location, and it works just fine. Ideally, to avoid any latency when going through multiple switches, you may want to plug all switches directly into the router if it has enough ports, but it will work fine if the switches are cascaded.
3. Replacing your router with one that has more ports would probably be the ideal solution, but the above is cheaper and works well.

Yes, just add another ethernet switch with a short cat5/6 jumper to the switch on the back of the router to which you wish to expand the ports. The ports on the back of a router are really "switch" input/outputs.