Organizations frequently have a large number of endpoints connected to a network through an IT infrastructure of switches, routers, and other technology. IP phones, workstations, Wi-Fi access points, wireless clients, and IoT/smart devices all coming together on a single network can present several optimization and organization challenges if the backend is not equipped with the proper technology. The latest additions to Grandstream's networking solutions portfolio are the GWN7810 Series Layer 3 Switches and GWN7830 Series Layer 3 Aggregation Switches. These devices come with a variety of features to help medium-to-large businesses and enterprises build scalable, secure, high-performance, and smart business networks that are fully manageable. Within this blog post, you'll learn about our series of layer 3 switches and how they can be utilized in your deployments.
GWN Series Layer 3 Switches Overview
The GWN7810 Series and GWN7830 Series fall within the Layer 3 category of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI), capable of static, dynamic, and policy-based routing to optimize data communication between different network segments. In addition, features such as VLAN creation, advanced Quality of Service (QoS) configurations, IPv4 and IPv6 network support, and static/dynamic MAC tables for data transmission and MAC filtering allow these switches to both customize and optimize an entire IT infrastructure. Within a standard deployment, these layer 3 switches typically will connect to unmanaged or layer 2 switches that are lower within the OSI model and are directly connected to endpoints such as IP phones, Wi-Fi access points, workstations, and more. 
Grandstream GWN Layer 3 switches are divided into two product series, the GWN7810 and the GWN7830.
GWN7810 Series of Layer 3 Switches
The GWN7810 series are Gigabit Layer 3 switches with additional SFP+ ports depending on the model. These devices support up to 24 Gigabit Ethernet ports and up to 4 SFP+ ports, making them ideal for IT infrastructures where aggregation is needed but not widespread. Bandwidth-intensive nodes or Wi-Fi access points/endpoints can connect to the switch itself through the Gigabit ports, and larger groupings of devices that run through lower-level switches can aggregate and connect to the SFP+ ports. Additionally, each model within the series has a PoE variant, allowing a GWN7810 Series switch to power devices such as Wi-Fi access points, resulting in a reduction of the total wiring needed.
The GWN7810 Series of Layer 3 Switches feature:
- 8/16/24 Gigabit Ethernet ports and 2/4 10Gigabit SFP+ ports
- Smart power control to support dynamic PoE/PoE+ power allocation per port for PoE models
- Supports deployment in IPv6 and IPv4 networks
- Provides quaternary binding of IP, MAC, VLAN, and port; ARP Inspection, IP Source Guard, DoS protection, port security, and DHCP snooping
- Management through GUI or GWN.Cloud and GWN Manager, Grandstream's cloud and on-premise WiFi management platform
- Built-in QoS allows for the prioritization of network traffic
GWN7830 Series of Layer 3 Aggregation Switches
The GWN7830 Series supports several port configurations based on model, and are designed as aggregation devices for larger deployments of switches and endpoints that rely on a network connection. These devices support up to 12 SFP+ ports, enabling them to pass massive amounts of data and support high-density networks.
The GWN7830 Series of Layer 3 Aggregate Switches feature:
- 2/4 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 6/24 Gigabit SFP ports, and 4/12 Gigabit SFP+ ports
- Supports deployment in IPv6 and IPv4 networks
- Provides quaternary binding of IP, MAC, VLAN, and port; ARP Inspection, IP Source Guard, DoS protection, port security, and DHCP snooping
- Management through GUI or GWN.Cloud and GWN Manager, Grandstream's cloud and on-premise WiFi management platform
- Built-in QoS allows for the prioritization of network traffic
Want a complete technical document that covers the GWN Series? View our knowledge base article here.
GWN Deployment Scenario
Organizations can leverage a GWN layer 3 switch within their data center to create a network foundation for their Wi-Fi, IP endpoint, and workstation devices that are connected to lower-level switch networks. GWN layer 3 switches have a variety of features to better partition the deployment into manageable sub-networks. The GWN7810 and GWN7830 series provides advanced routing function with both static and dynamic routing, VLAN tagging based on IP addresses, and inter-VLAN, which is ideal for larger multi-level and multi-departmental offices. These networks can include static, dynamic, and filtering MAC addresses.
Most medium-to-large organizations have a great number of devices with a massive amount of data received and sent by them. The GWN7810 and GWN7830 series have comprehensive Quality of Service capabilities to ensure the data flow coming from and between nodes is of high quality. These QoS features are especially critical for office deployments due to their high data usage and data being a vital part of business operations. Computers, IP phones, and Wi-Fi access points all need to be fully functioning at all points of the day despite the level of data being transferred throughout the network, and between various other VLANs depending on the deployment. QoS features such as Port Priority, Queue Scheduling, Queue Shaping, and Rate Limits enable deployments of devices that are connected to lower-level switches, and then a GWN Layer 3 switch, to always experience high performance. These features ensure that high-priority device groups, such as workstations and Wi-Fi access points, always receive a stable and high-quality network connection despite network congestion.
QoS features are an incredibly important configuration to know about when setting up a switch deployment. To learn more about GWN QoS features and how to configure them, watch our video guide here.
In addition to the Quality of Service features, GWN Layer 3 switches have powerful processing and security capabilities that benefit offices and their large number of endpoint/workstation deployments. With two series of models, Grandstream's GWN series of Layer 3 switches can fit a wide variety of deployments. More in-depth switching and processing capabilities such as Port Auto Recovery and Link Aggregation can be fully customized to ensure device uptime. Together, these processing capabilities allow one or several GWN layer 3 switches to provide the rapid connection needed to support an office's various switch nodes of workstations, Wi-Fi access points, IP phones, IoT devices, and more. Lastly, comprehensive security mechanisms allow for secure offices. Static and dynamic MAC tables allow for specified data transmission, while a filter MAC table can help an office avoid network attacks. Packet filtering based on IP address, MAC address, VLAN, and port prevents any intrusive data. DoS Attack Defense, including Land Attack, Smurf Attack, TCP SYN Attack, Ping Flooding and more prevents the network from being taken down.
Choosing the Right GWN Series Switch
Grandstream's portfolio of switches encompasses unmanaged, Layer 2+, Layer 3, and Aggregation options. These devices provide flexibility to IT teams and network administrators, allowing them tocan construct an IT infrastructure backend. Grandstream's GWN Switches eBrochure is a comprehensive document that is ideal for learning about all of our switches. Within this document, you'll find a wide variety of informative materials including:
- Series highlights and model breakdowns
- Target deployment scenarios and use cases
- Processing capabilities, feature insights, and other highlights
- Overview of our free GWN management options and their capabilities
