Routers and network switches aren't the same hardware—depending on your setup, you may need both.

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Technology journalist specializing in audio, computing and Apple Macs. If you’ve got a mesh Wi-Fi network set up in your home, you ...

More features and purpose-built hardware almost always wins ...

In the computer networking world, the three most ubiquitous pieces of equipment are modems, routers, and switches. These are used everywhere from the datacenter hosting Google to the internet ...

The three devices commonly used for linking components together on a network are hubs, switches and routers. Though similar in function they differ in capability and utilization. Hubs and switches ...

Emily Long is a freelance writer based in Salt Lake City. After graduating from Duke University, she spent several years reporting on the federal workforce for Government Executive, a publication of ...

A modem and router work in tandem to deliver you an internet connection. Even if the modem and router are combined in the same hardware, they serve distinct functions. The modem communicates with the ...

If you work in a home office or have a small business with multiple remote locations, you've probably encountered scenarios when a power disruption or a system fault at the provider occurs, and then ...

This morning a really strange issue cropped up. All devices on my network that are connected to a switch (just your standard SOHO switch) cannot see the router anymore. My setup is Cable Modem -> ...

When it comes to complexity of network connectors, you have got multiple levels, with a switch (hub) at the bottom and a router at the top. A hub is an astonishingly dumb gadget. It accepts a packet ...