BT Home Hub or Switch

[xwb]

Is the BT Home Hub a hub or a switch? Nowadays when they say hub they could mean hub or switch but normally it means switch. I'm quite sure V2.0 is a switch but I don't know about V1.0. The technical specs cover everything else except whether it is a hub or a switch. Is there any way of finding out - I've got both versions 1.0 and 2.0?

It is amazing how all the technical reviews look almost identical, and none of them mention whether it is a switch or a (misnamed) hub.

 

[vacunita]

Its neither, its a Router.

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Phil AKA Vacunita
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Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

 

[xwb]

Any idea what it is on the LAN side? How do I find out?

 

[vacunita]

The LAN side is your local network, the WAN side is usually the Internet, unless you are connected to another larger network.

To find out what devices are connected to the router, I would assume you would need to log onto the routers Control Panel, and one of the options there should tell you.

http://www.filesaveas.com/bthomehub_login.html

----------------------------------
Phil AKA Vacunita
----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

Behind the Web, Tips and Tricks for Web Development.

http://behindtheweb.blogspot.com/

 

[xwb]

I tried that, been in and out of all the menus and options before I first posted. The user interface hides a lot. I couldn't figure it out from the control panel. It isn't like some routers where the underlying language is well known and you can do things to it.

Just a thought - if I wireshark it and I can see another PCs traffic, then it probably is a hub. If I can't then it probably is a switch.

Have to wait for a Windows PC to come free first - I'm on Linux and don't want to go through the process of building wireshark from source. The exes are only provided for Windows and Macs: not for Linux.

 

[vacunita]

ust a thought - if I wireshark it and I can see another PCs traffic, then it probably is a hub. If I can't then it probably is a switch.

Again, its neither. Since its a Router, for all intents and purposes its has the capabilities of a switch. Under all the other things a router can do. but its not technically a switch nor a hub.


Here, perhaops BT's own broadband desktop utility can help you out. Seems it can tell you what is attached to the device amongst many other things.

http://bt.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/12941/c/346,401

----------------------------------
Phil AKA Vacunita
----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

Behind the Web, Tips and Tricks for Web Development.

http://behindtheweb.blogspot.com/

 

[vacunita]

Configuring the BT Home Hub:
Listen to our audio guide to the BT Home Hub, where we walk through the Home Hub's software!

We thought that some of our visitors might like a little more detail on what configuration options are supported by the Home Hub, so we've had a stroll through the user interface:

You can connect to your Home Hub to check status and alter settings via your PC's web browser - Go to

http://bthomehub.home/.

Once you've logged in to the BT Home Hub, you need to go to the 'Advanced' section. Here, you'll find the following sections:

Configuration: Contains the following:

* Wireless - Set up the Hub's wireless settings : SSID , speed, channel, encryption (WEP, WPA-PSK or WPA)
* Telephony - BT Broadband Talk settings
* Internet - Info on your Internet connectivity. This includes your username and password - note that be default this is "bthomehub@btbroadband.com" (with no password) - these details aren't actually needed as authentication is done using your phone number
* IP Addresses - Here you can enable/disable DHCP, define a DHCP pool, and set the Hub's IP addresses and subnet mask.
* Devices - Shows the status of connected devices
* Application sharing - Allows you to assign port mappings (translation of incoming packets for a port range, to a local port range). Home Hub Port Forwarding help
* Firewall - Allows you to select levels of protection. Home Hub security
* Dynamic DNS - Allows you to use a service such as DYNDNS so that machines outside your network can get your IP address

http://www.frequencycast.co.uk/homehub.html

----------------------------------
Phil AKA Vacunita
----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

Behind the Web, Tips and Tricks for Web Development.

http://behindtheweb.blogspot.com/

 

[xwb]

Thanks for the info.

 

[Sympology]

Think your being Waaaaaaayyyyy to techy.

Home Hub.

Hub: centre of a of a (usually circular) device, an area of activity or a collection.

i.e. Home hub, centre of your home.....

Marketing name, not technical name.

Robert Wilensky:
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.

 

[kmcferrin]

Not to be a picky snit, but it was actually an "infinite number of monkeys," not a million monkeys. Although if the million monkeys were permitted an infinite amount of time then it would probably have the same eventual result, the thought experiment still wouldn't work because you would never know when the experiment was over unless the monkeys had actually reproduced Shakespeare.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Windows 7
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Server Administrator
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator
MCITP:Virtualization Administrator 2008 R2
Certified Quest vWorkspace Administrator

 

[guitarzan]

kmcferrin: Sympology is quoting Robert Wilensky; and this quote has been around since the '90s

 

[Sympology]

Being picky the "infinite" version is flawed.

You cannot have an infinite quantity producing a finite result. By the very nature of the statement, once the works of Shakespear have been completed, then a finite number of monkeys have produced those works.



Robert Wilensky:
We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.

 

[Nelviticus]

Ford? There's an infinite number of monkeys outside who want to talk to us about this script for 'Hamlet' they've worked out.

Nelviticus

 

[kmcferrin]

Good point, Sympology.

And that's still one of my favorite books.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCTS:Windows 7
MCSE:Security 2003
MCITP:Server Administrator
MCITP:Enterprise Administrator
MCITP:Virtualization Administrator 2008 R2
Certified Quest vWorkspace Administrator