The FastHub 108T and the FastHub 104T (hereafter referred to as FastHub 108T/104T) are 100Base-T-compatible, standalone, unmanaged, Class II Fast Ethernet repeaters. The eight-port FastHub 108T and the four-port FastHub 104T both support the 100Base-TX physical layer.
Figure 1-1: FastHub 108T and FastHub 104T Repeaters
The FastHub 108T/104T provide standards-based, 100-Mbps Ethernet performance. Specific uses are:
- A 100Base-T evaluation system
- Fan-out from a 100Base-T switch for a power user with multiple workstations
- Power workgroups
- Server farms
The 100Base-TX ports provide connectivity to devices using Category 5 unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cabling.
The FastHub 108T/104T operates in a manner similar to that of a standard 10Base-T repeater. A packet received on any one of the 100Base-T ports is transmitted, or repeated, out all the other ports. Visual indicators show the FastHub 108T/104T collision rate and link, receive, and disabled status on a per port basis.
The features of the FastHub 108T/104T can be summarized as follows:
- Compatible with the 100Base-TX standard for interoperability with other 100Base-TX products.
- 100 megabits per second (Mbps) peak and aggregate throughput for high-performance data transfers.
- Low port-to-port latency (0.45 microseconds) minimizes delay during data transfers.
- 100Base-TX media interface for direct connection to two-pair, Category 5 UTP cabling.
- The four- and eight-port configurations meet node-number requirements for targeted applications.
- Each port is supported by two LEDs showing link integrity, receive activity, and whether the port is enabled or disabled. Collision and power indicators are also present for the entire hub.
- No software to load or configure simplifies installation.
- Extensive ASIC integration ensures reliability, affordability, and exceptional performance.
All network connectors and LEDs are on the FastHub 108T/104T front panel for easy access and viewing. FastHub 108T/104T ports and LEDs are described in the following sections.
The 100Base-T ports provide 100 Mbps of bandwidth for connection to servers, workstations, switches, routers or other 100Base-T devices.
Figure 1-2: The FastHub 108T/104T Ports
These ports support direct connection to any 100Base-TX compatible device using two pairs of Category 5 UTP cabling.
Note For simplicity, only the eight-port FastHub 108T is shown in
Figure 1-2 and subsequent figures in this chapter. The four-port FastHub 104T is identical in functionality and features, less four ports.
FastHub 108T/104T has a comprehensive set of LEDs that allow for easy visual management of the hub. The LEDs, shown in Figure 1-3, operate as follows:
Figure 1-3: FastHub 108T/104T LEDs
- The Power LED lights if the FastHub 108T/104T is turned on. If the LED does not light, refer to the "Troubleshooting" chapter.
- The Link/Receive LED indicates that the port is properly connected to a powered-on device. The LED is on when the link-integrity test passes and off when the link-integrity test fails.
- Receive activity on each port is also indicated by the Link/Receive LED. The Link/Receive LED blinks upon packet receipt regardless of the status of the port--even if the port is disabled. There is one Link/Receive LED per port. Link/Receive LED status indications are shown below.
|
| Link/Receive LED Status
| Indicates
|
|---|
|
| On
| Link
|
|
| Off
| No link
|
|
| Blinking
| Activity
|
- The Disabled LED is off unless a jabber or autopartition error is detected. These errors, as defined in the IEEE 802.3 100Base-T specification, cause the LED to blink on. There is one Disabled LED per port.
- The Collision LED provides a single visual indication of the frequency of collisions for all ports. Packets received simultaneously on two or more ports will result in a collision and light the LED. The LED is off when there are no collisions.
The FastHub 108T/104T power supply is an auto-ranging unit supporting input voltages between 100-240 VAC (universal input). The power cord plugs into the power receptacle located on the rear panel.
