Is it possible to just get a 4 port switch of some description and plug it into the router? will this make the nodes on the switch slower the more devices i plug into it because of the extra workload on that port? Do i have to just buy an 8 port router all together? But how will i get the wireless working? 8 port routers with wireless capabily are expensive. And now there are routers that have USB connectivty which can be usefull to plug some external HDs that can download shit to them without even having to have your computer on.... So yeah its all a little too confusing so i wonder if anyone has been faced with this before or knows the best setup.
You can plug a switch into one of the router ports.
Only thing with doing this is.. You are sharing bandwidth.
So say you have 3 people connected direct to the router.. then 1x 8 port switch... the people on the 8port switch will get full speed to each other.. but if 2 of those people try to send/receive data from one of the people directly connected to the router they will be sharing the uplink path.
Id probably connect everything to the 8 port switch... then just have the uplink to the router purely for internet traffic.. / talking to wireless shit.
Ok i think i got all that. Only question i have left is, will the computers on the switch have any more noticeable lag compared to a pc thats connected straight to the router? And also, instead of a switch, is it possible to use another router to perform the same function? Can 2 routers work side by side like that? Cause i have my eye on a new router with USB :)
Nah you wont get any noticable lag.. and yeah you could use a 2nd router. just pretend its another switch :p