Modular switch
Modular switches allow you to add expansion modules as needed, providing greater flexibility as the network grows. The extension modules for wireless connectivity, firewall, and network analysis are some examples of application specific extension options.
Additional connections, power supply, and cooling fans are possible. However, these switches are much more expensive than fixed switches and are typically used for large-scale networks. In most cases, they also include Layer 3 functionality (in addition to Layer 2), allowing them to operate as network routers.
Fixed configuration switch
Fixed configuration switches have a fixed number of ports and are usually not scalable, making them affordable over time. The most common switches in the market are these. They have a predetermined number of Ethernet ports, such as 8 Gigabit ports, 16 ports, 24 ports, 48 ports, and so on. They can have multiple ports (in terms of speed and connectivity). However, the port speed is usually 1 gbps (at least), and the connection choice is either a wired port (RJ45) or a fiber optic port.
Stackable switches
Stackable switches allow you to optimize your network while improving its reliability. For actual stackable switches, these network switch clusters act as a single switch, supported by a single SNMP/RMON agent, a domain, a command-line interface (CLI), or a web interface.
The ability to create a link aggregation group that covers multiple units in the stack, transfer mirror traffic from one component to another in the stack, and configure the quality of service (QoS) of all units are the advantages of using these types of switches for connection.
Three layer switch
Network switches are part of the second layer of the OSI model. They work at the data network layer, mainly to forward Ethernet frames from one port to another as quickly as possible. Because they work at the network layer of the OSI model, these switches are called layer three switches. A three-layer switch is a mixture of two-layer devices and three-layer devices. Their software is more complex than traditional layer 2 switches, and they can run dynamic routing protocols.
Data center switch
In recent years, data centers have shown explosive growth. Almost all major organizations integrate their IT assets and networks into several large data centers for ease of management and management. Therefore, data center switches must have characteristics such as high-speed performance, large port capacity, low latency, virtualization support, security, and QoS.
The Cisco Nexus series of devices is a great example of a data center switch. These switches are ideal choices for implementing software defined network (SDN) concepts and providing virtualization and programmability.
Fiber optic switch
The RJ45 connector connects to standard Ethernet cables and is the most commonly used interface for switches. In many cases, you need to use fiber optic connections to extend the connection beyond the 100 meter limit of standard Ethernet cables. Switches with fiber optic ports typically have RJ45 ports and additional fiber optic ports for connecting fiber optic connections.
They are referred to as small-sized pluggable fiber optic ports. In most cases, fiber optic ports are used to connect to other remote switches, whether within the same building or between facilities located several kilometers apart.
KVM (Keyboard, video, and mouse) switch
This switch connects many computers to a keyboard, mouse, or monitor. These switches are often used to control server groups while removing wires from the desktop. For users who want to handle multiple machines from a single console, KVM switches are an excellent interface. These devices typically have keyboard hotkeys configured, allowing you to quickly switch between PCs. The KVM extender can expand the coverage of the switch by several hundred feet to transmit DVI, VGA, or HDMI video transmission.
