[RESOLVED] Best NICs for small LAN

What is the best NIC for a small LAN (T1, Cisco Router, 3 24 port SMC 10/100 Hubs, 2 8 port Hubs, CAT 5, all stations WIN98se PII-PIII, and a few Duron's tossed around)? Most of the machines have Realte *GASP* or 3com 905b(or c's) that gimme nuthin' but trouble. some work beautifully...others I just want to pop in a toaster or send though an ICOP. Any favorite cards? Most dependable? etc? Just wondering...

I like anything with a TI chipset. They're usually inexpensive and work very Well.

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You can't triple-snap a double-snap!! You can't triple-snap a duoble-snap!!

have a small network at home of 3 machines
2 have netgear fa311 cards and the third has a linksys card
all are 10/100
also using a netgear router
and having no trouble with any of it

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"May the force be with you ." Obi-Wan Kenobi

[This message has been edited by Mustang (edited January 30, 2001).]

I never had any serious problems with 3Com 90x cards but If you like something else I would highly recommend the Intel 55x based cards (I love the Intel Pro 10/100+ )



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Computers do exactly what you tell them to do - not exactly what you want them to do ...

I agree with Condor, if you don't want problems go with an Intel Pro 100+, there are a few different models. I can not stand anything 3Com. I know everyone has their opinions but I've seen enough 3Com crap to know to stay away.

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Born to Network

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by iamtheman:
I can not stand anything 3Com. I know everyone has their opinions but I've seen enough 3Com crap to know to stay away.</font>

I've had just the opposite experience. Chevy or Ford? Ford or Chevy? It's interesting how a bad experience skews our thinking forever.

I just installed four D-Link DFE-530TX+ into both Win98SE and W2K computers without any problem. I picked up those little suckers for only $15 each at Office Depot about a month ago. They're just giving them away...



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Sometimes computer problems require extreme measures. Our hero, the Intrepid Spaceman Spiff, sets his blaster on "deep fat fry..."

I would AVOID ANY REALTEK BASED CARD under windows 2000 - they have lots of problems working in 100Mbit Full duplex !

I had a problem with about 15 cards that didn't work on full duplex in windows 2000 (not in auto negotiation or manual) finally I switched them manually to half duplex and voila - they were working.

we tried the built in drivers as well as d-link and realtek reference drivers (that just messed up the systems).

If you buy any just use the built in win2000 driver and use half-duplex

We ended up replacing all the realteks to 3Com 905b tx-nm and 905c - without any problems.



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Computers do exactly what you tell them to do - not exactly what you want them to do ...

[Tech Head]

Agreed

We use Intel Pro Management 10/100+ for quality/performance

D-Link DFE-530TX Rev A3 or 3COM 90X for performance

or Realtek for cheapskates.

Martin

I would highly recomend Netgear FX310 or Fx311 cards for economy. I like Netgear cause they are a bay networks company. I have never had any problems with the 3com 3c905x series I personally like them alot jsut dont install all that diagnostic junk that comes with them. If you are having problems with the 3coms I would have to agree with the guys above about the Intel cards being a great highend card.
I would rather use a cut to fit isa than a Linksys but thats just my opinon. X



[This message has been edited by x_789 (edited February 06, 2001).]

[underfunded]

The D-Link DFE-530TX or TX+ cards are awesome.... I've installed them in dozens of machines with little to no problems. I haven't used them under win2k so i'm not sure about that but in any 9x they are flawless. Good Luck, Ian.

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You make me com...
You make me complete...
You make me completely miserable.
--Lit, Miserable.

[scutterboy]

I use 3com 905xx and DFE530TX.. they work fine in 2000 btw. I prefer the few Intel cards we use, they are really good. I recommend Intel pro 100 cards, the drivers are really good. You can team them etc.. Really solid.



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And Control Enter STILL wont let me post a reply.

[Eagle PC Diagnostech]

Intel, D-Link, Kingston

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An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off your goal.

For personal use the DLINK 530 mentioned above is great. It does the job and won't clean out your bank account if you need three or four of them!

For business use or mission critical applications, I'd pick a 3com 905 series card any day. Just make sure you get the latest drivers.

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sHIFT hAPPENS11

[Gabriel]

It is quite personal Opinion BUT
I like 3Com 90xx Series NICs
they have the best Price/Performance/Troubleshooting Ratio

But other will argue

One thing for sure - Don't buy a cheap LAZY card - cause it will drive you crazy ( ) @ the end of the Day.

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It Works Better if you Plug it in, It Works far better if you Turn it ON!

My real world experience with NIC's is this.

Realtek, DLink, any cheap cards are most likely made by a company called Accton, an OEM manufacturer. Have you heard a saying, "You get what you pay for"?

I actually use a Realtek at home, but in a work environment no way. One reason only, they tend to do a little too much broadcasting.

I myself have had issues with 3Com products, so I switched to Intel cards. The main reason i use Intel is administrative, one floppy disk for the driver, lets see 3COM do that with all the 3C90x models.

Thats my 2 cents (Canadian money not worth much).