Debate about the best VLAN/Switch Configurations for Beyond Software on Managed Switches

Kristey

New Member
Hello everyone,

I am setting up a network to operate lasers using the Beyond software. Until now, we have just 8 lases, but I want get better my network configurations.
I want to ensure that the network traffic flows without any bottlenecks. I am using managed switches and I segment the traffic through VLANs.
I would like your debate in defining the best configurations for Beyond protocol/software!

Questions on VLAN Configurations:​

  1. Quality of Service (QoS):
    • What are the best practices for configuring QoS to prioritize Beyond VLAN traffic?
    • Which QoS policies should I implement (e.g., traffic classification and marking, output queues, traffic shaping)?
    • Should the switches support CoS (Class of Service) and DSCP (Differentiated Services Code Point) to optimize Beyond traffic?
  2. Ports and Trunks:
    • If multiple VLANs need to pass between switches, what are the best practices for configuring the trunks and tagging the relevant VLANs?
  3. Spanning Tree Protocol (STP):
    • What is the best STP configuration to prevent network loops without impacting Beyond VLAN performance?
    • Should I use Rapid Spanning Tree Protocol (RSTP) or other variants to ensure fast convergence?
  4. Multicast:
    • Is it advisable to enable IGMP Snooping for the Beyond VLAN? How should this be configured?
    • Are PIM (Protocol Independent Multicast) configurations necessary? What are the best practices?
  5. Security:
    • Which security services you recommend that I need to worry about disabling so that there is no waste of time in encryption and decryption.
  6. Monitoring and Maintenance:
    • What monitoring protocols should I enable on the switches to track Beyond VLAN performance?
    • Is it important to configure alerts to quickly detect and resolve performance or security issues? How should I do this?
    • Can I have a second computer with Beyond, monitoring the delivery of packages and all Network?
Any help or suggestions on best practices for these configurations would be greatly appreciated. I want to ensure that the Beyond software operates as efficiently as possible on my network.

Thank you!
 
Just keep Beyond and FB4's on a completely separate network, no managed switches, vlan stuff. If you need, put ARTNET on there too as it's pretty light, but that's it. PC -> regular 1gig unmanaged switch -> FB4(s). If you need the PC to hook onto all your other things on the managed network, add a second ethernet port.

Watching all your lasers start disconnecting just before a show when they've been solid all day isn't much fun at all. Even using nice clever switches that can do all the vlan stuff but configured as a regular switch isn't a good idea as they take so long to boot up in my opinion.
 
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