Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Help and support for HDHomeRun Tuners, HDHomeRun DVR, and HDHomeRun software for Windows, Mac, Android, XBox, etc.
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Goodspike
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Joined: Sat Dec 02, 2006 11:36 am

Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Post by Goodspike »

Noticing my managed Ethernet switch was slowing my Internet speeds on my DVR server, I switched to an unmanaged "dumb" Ethernet switch. What I've noticed since then is I'm getting fewer signal glitches from multipath during windstorms, but also that Channel 9 Seattle now comes in well, where before it was so problematic I gave up on it and would just use their streaming service.

Is it possible that was due to the managed switch? If it matters I have two HDHR 4k devices connected, but seldom record more than two programs at once.

rikd
Silicondust
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Re: Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Post by rikd »

Goodspike wrote: Thu Jan 15, 2026 10:28 am Noticing my managed Ethernet switch was slowing my Internet speeds on my DVR server, I switched to an unmanaged "dumb" Ethernet switch. What I've noticed since then is I'm getting fewer signal glitches from multipath during windstorms, but also that Channel 9 Seattle now comes in well, where before it was so problematic I gave up on it and would just use their streaming service.

Is it possible that was due to the managed switch? If it matters I have two HDHR 4k devices connected, but seldom record more than two programs at once.
Managed switches themselves shouldn't have any impacts to HDHR.
Of course what a user does with a managed switch can (VLANs, ACLs, etc) ;)
If it was slowing access to internet - is likely a config issue, a bad port on the switch, or possibly a bad cable.

Generally, a managed switch won't have impact to tuning..
the HDHR tunes in the channel, extracts the channel from the datastream and sends packets to client devices..
The 'ethernet' switch can only impact that last part.
If swapping out the managed switch improved things in tuning - is likely a power supply issue for that switch causing some RF issue close to your tuner.
A bad power supply to a switch could cause all kinds of switching problems too - e.g. slowing down internet speed

Goodspike
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Joined: Sat Dec 02, 2006 11:36 am

Re: Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Post by Goodspike »

I'm not that familiar with Ethernet switches, but I think the speed problem was because I never set it up to be programmed on the same IP network address range as my router's network, so it was doing some sort of a translation of sorts with the traffic. The tuners were on my network address range and showed up as network devices. My understanding is that if I had set it up as such with my network IP information then that managed device would have shown up as a device on my network and possibly improved the speed, where an unmanaged device doesn't show up even though on the same network.

Edit: Doing some research on terminology I think I may have stumbled across the problem. The switch may have had Flow Control turned on. It wasn't showing up in setup of the HDHR, but maybe that just looks at the server's port????

KeithAbbott
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Re: Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Post by KeithAbbott »

Is there a reason why you are using a managed switch instead of just sticking with an unmanaged switch?

Goodspike
Posts: 267
Joined: Sat Dec 02, 2006 11:36 am

Re: Are Managed Ethernet Switches Bad For HDHR Devices?

Post by Goodspike »

It was my ignorance of switches. Managed sounded better and was only a bit more money. I've now switched to an unmanaged switch.

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