Help with ethernet connections please!

I have my HH5 connected to an 8 way switch, this switch connects printer, iMac, a feed to a 4 way switch upstairs connects NAS, Mu-So and a computer and a feed to another 4 way for the AV stuff. 

I'd go with option 1, on the assumption that the 272 is the only thing using the powerline.

For sure option 1.      Just think of the switch as the network hub (centre)  before you had the BT HH4 as the hub,  the BT HH4 is now on a branch off the switch. It doesn't matter which of the BT HH4 ethernet ports you use as the 272 is 100MHz anyway,  but no harm to have the switch connected to the GigiBit port.  

The heavy data stream is NAS - Switch - (BTPL ~~ BTPL) - 272  .............  the BT HH4 branch is light traffic web radio & UPnP communications. 

What is the Apple Time Capsule for ???   If its not part of the audio system & it reduces disruption,  its OK to run that from the router.   ................  & no we are not powerline adapter fans & shame of BT for pushing these things,  but if its means to an end ..... sobeit. 

Thanks so much. Very helpful.

I will stick with my option1, then!  

The timecapsule backs up my iMac........and isn't anything to do with the audio system. So, you seem to suggest it might be better going straight into the router and bypassing the switch?

I wish I didn't need to use the power line - but I assume it's better than using the wifi to and from the nac 272 and the router? 

I do understand a permanent/fixed Ethernet cable from the switch to the nac 272 would be better but the layout of the house make it tricky - at least for diy. Perhaps I should ask an electrician (?) just not sure, if they  are the right people, though?

Time Capsule is OK to go anywhere,  my point was if its more convenient connecting to the router its OK.

I tend to agree powerlines might be more robust than a wireless connection thats overstretched & maybe unable to stream >24/96. 

An electrician can run the wire,  but is he/she trained to correctly install the cable to wall sockets or RJ45 plugs if required.  Obviously some electricians will be,  but might be few & far between.  I would expect better luck with IT installers especially & also satellite/TV installers.   I guess yellow pages & www search are your friends   

Rjt36 posted:

Hello all,

I have taken the advice of the forum and have purchased a Netgear switch to sit between my bthomehub 4 and nas drive. I'm hoping it might stabilise the bthomehub as I have been having quite a number of occasions with the home hub going off line since adding a nas drive.

But I'm just a bit confused as to how to connect everything together! 

My set up is bthomehub, Synology nas drive, Apple time capsule, btpowerline (with nac n 272 plugged into another power line in another room) and now the Netgear switch.

I know the forum isn't a big fan of power lines - but I don't have the ability at the moment to run wired Ethernet and I hope the power line is a better choice than using wifi for the nac n 272?!

So, could you please help with the connection?

1.I'm assuming I take an Ethernet cable from the btpowerline to the switch, Ethernet from the nas drive to the switch, Ethernet from the time capsule to the switch and then Ethernet from the switch back to the GiGe port 4 (?) on the bthomehub? 

Would that be right?

2. Or should the Ethernet cable from the btpowerline go directly into the router (if so, which port) and then take Ethernet from the router to the switch and then from the switch to the nas drive and time capsule?

thank you so much for your help.

Hi - either would be fine for most situations. However you might want to go with 1) when using a simple switch as that reduces some potential interoperability issues with streaming applications and some domestic network equipment.

However for the same reasons and others you might want to use wiring between the 272, NAS/media server etc and use ethernet over power line  for the link back to the router... see how you get on first.. irrespective of the RF noise issue - ethernet over power line is not that a reliable connect - and how you propose in 1) all the media is being transferred across from your NAS.

S

Option 1 and Option 2 should be the same - but as I say Option 1 reduces some potential interoperability issues with multicast (a type of addressing used by some parts of streaming).

However my other point is that you might want to move the NAS / media server closer to the Streamer (272) as I describe above

I too have been having numerous problems with BTHH5. I was previously using PowerLines and one day my switch failed.  I bought another and then a month or so later the PowerLine failed. 

I completely reconfigured my network connection to make do with out PowerLines.  I connected the items that I wanted high internet speed directly to my HH5:

NAIM UQ2, NAIM US, BT Vision, (The fourth socket previously went to PowerLine)

I then installed an Apple Airport Express in my spare room, which I linked wirelessly to the Router via wifi in bridge mode.  I take a feed from this into a Switch, and into the switch I connect:

Airport Express, QNAP Backup NAS (x2 ports), iMac, WD MyCloud Photo Backup 

In my experience, the HH5 struggles with volume of items connected to it, coupled with bandwidth.  Putting the bulk of the hi drain NAS drives, that backup over night when other traffic is low, seems to have solved my problem.

I appreciate not everyone has the luxury of being able to connect their NAIM into the Modem Router, but adopting a more managed philosophy to network devices certainly stabilised my dropouts

Mike

 

In my experience, the HH5 struggles with volume of items connected to it, coupled with bandwidth.  Putting the bulk of the hi drain NAS drives, that backup over night when other traffic is low, seems to have solved my problem.

That's exactly why a switch is recommended as the best option in a network  ............. 

Thanks Simon. Would you mind just explaining what you mean by moving the nas closer to the nac n 272? 

Does that mean I can physically relocate the nas - so that it connects via Ethernet into the spare powerline port where the nac n 272 is located with the other powerline port going via Ethernet into the nac n 272?? Or have I misunderstood how to do that? Thank you

As you have a Time Capsule, I'm going to suggest an alternative which has worked well for me for the last couple of years, until I finally pulled my finger out and started drilling holes in my walls. The TC includes a capable 802.11ac router. So on your BT router, turn off WiFi and ditch the power lines altogether, then connect the TC to the router.

At the other end, put your NAS close enough to the 272 that they can both have a wired connection to the switch. Also get an Airport Express and connect that to the switch too.

With this setup, the important NAS - Streamer connection is wired, and WiFi handles the rest. The Airport devices are much more capable than the ancient 802.11g WiFi modules used by Naim, and for me, streaming Tidal at 16/44 CD quality was no problem. You also eliminate the risk of polluting your mains with the powerlines.

Sorry to complicate things further for you with a third potential configuration, but it worked for me. Good luck.   

Rjt36 posted:

Thanks Simon. Would you mind just explaining what you mean by moving the nas closer to the nac n 272? 

Does that mean I can physically relocate the nas - so that it connects via Ethernet into the spare powerline port where the nac n 272 is located with the other powerline port going via Ethernet into the nac n 272?? Or have I misunderstood how to do that? Thank you

Hi - yes - i was meaning bring the NAS and its UPnP media server  if separate closer to the 272 so they can all be connected by ethernet patch leads via the switch. You can then use (if you have to   ) your ethernet over power line to connect the switch to your BT router. This should allow reliable ethernet connections for the media transfer to your streamer via the wired connection so you can play with very much reduced chance of dropouts especially on hidef.

Hopefully you can picture that ok?

Simon

Thanks Chrissu and Simon. 

I'm not sure I've got the energy at the moment to do the bigger move - utilising the timecapsule as my router - but really appreciate another option if I run into problems.

So to confirm my understanding, Simon (for the last time, I promise!). Move Nas and switch from current home hub location. Leaving just the home hub connected to time capsule and powerline. Then at the receiving end, connect switch via patch cable to the other powerline  and then into switch, connect nas drive and nac n 272. Hope that's right!

And then drink tea before working out how to possibly hard wire Ethernet cable from the home hub to the nac n 272!!

I can't tell you all how much I appreciate the time and care you give to the advice you generously share.

Yes, you've got it right. 

Phew!��

Neither option!

The whole reason for having an Apple Time Capsule is to use it's powerful and stable wifi router.

I would recommend the following:

BTHub > cable >Apple Time Capsule > cable > switch

Connect the rest to your switch.

This way Apple Time Capsule 'defines' your network, assigns IP addresses etc. The best thing about this setup is its stability.

Adam

Rjt36 posted:

 

And then drink tea before working out how to possibly hard wire Ethernet cable from the home hub to the nac n 272!!

Just do it!!! Although the setup I described above served me very well for a couple of years, the fully wired setup I've just installed is definitely better, and well worth the hassle. Getting cables through the thick walls of my house was messy, and I used thin fibre optic stuff so I could get away with drilling very small holes, but any wired connection is going to be an improvement. 

Adam Zielinski posted:

The whole reason for having an Apple Time Capsule is to use it's powerful and stable wifi router.  BTHub > cable >Apple Time Capsule > cable > switch.   Connect the rest to your switch.   This way Apple Time Capsule 'defines' your network, assigns IP addresses etc. The best thing about this setup is its stability.

Not disagreeing about the abilities of the Apple T.C. Adam & your suggestion will work,  but unnecessary complications for a very basic home network IMO.  The BT HH4 is very capable & stable w.r.t. DHCP management (IP addresses) & its dual-band wireless capabilities are certainly up to handling the lightweight UPnP communications.     

Mike-B posted:

Adam Zielinski posted:

The whole reason for having an Apple Time Capsule is to use it's powerful and stable wifi router.  BTHub > cable >Apple Time Capsule > cable > switch.   Connect the rest to your switch.   This way Apple Time Capsule 'defines' your network, assigns IP addresses etc. The best thing about this setup is its stability.

Not disagreeing about the abilities of the Apple T.C. Adam & your suggestion will work,  but unnecessary complications for a very basic home network IMO.  The BT HH4 is very capable & stable w.r.t. DHCP management (IP addresses) & its dual-band wireless capabilities are certainly up to handling the lightweight UPnP communications.     

You're right Mike - for a simple set up no need to over-engineer the network.

Mike-B posted:

Adam Zielinski posted:

The whole reason for having an Apple Time Capsule is to use it's powerful and stable wifi router.  BTHub > cable >Apple Time Capsule > cable > switch.   Connect the rest to your switch.   This way Apple Time Capsule 'defines' your network, assigns IP addresses etc. The best thing about this setup is its stability.

Not disagreeing about the abilities of the Apple T.C. Adam & your suggestion will work,  but unnecessary complications for a very basic home network IMO.  The BT HH4 is very capable & stable w.r.t. DHCP management (IP addresses) & its dual-band wireless capabilities are certainly up to handling the lightweight UPnP communications.     

I use an Airport Extreme (same as T.C. but without the hard drive) because in addition to taking over wireless duties from the router, it will talk to the 2 Airport Express I need to extend the network through my house. So even if my ISP gave me a better (802.11ac) router, I'd probably keep the Airport network as the devices work well together, and provide additional functions like Airplay. However, I do keep my ISP supplied router as DHCP server.

ChrisSU posted:

Mike-B posted:

Adam Zielinski posted:

The whole reason for having an Apple Time Capsule is to use it's powerful and stable wifi router.  BTHub > cable >Apple Time Capsule > cable > switch.   Connect the rest to your switch.   This way Apple Time Capsule 'defines' your network, assigns IP addresses etc. The best thing about this setup is its stability.

Not disagreeing about the abilities of the Apple T.C. Adam & your suggestion will work,  but unnecessary complications for a very basic home network IMO.  The BT HH4 is very capable & stable w.r.t. DHCP management (IP addresses) & its dual-band wireless capabilities are certainly up to handling the lightweight UPnP communications.     

I use an Airport Extreme (same as T.C. but without the hard drive) because in addition to taking over wireless duties from the router, it will talk to the 2 Airport Express I need to extend the network through my house. So even if my ISP gave me a better (802.11ac) router, I'd probably keep the Airport network as the devices work well together, and provide additional functions like Airplay. However, I do keep my ISP supplied router as DHCP server.

Similar set up to mine. Stable - that's the most important thing.

Adam Zielinski posted:

Similar set up to mine. Stable - that's the most important thing.

Same with mine - STABLE - nothing more than a simple BT HH5   ............  K.I.S.  adding another "S" is optional