Advise and recommend a router for office phones/PC's

[JeepinEd]

Here is my current set up:
I have two internet providers and two networks - Time Warner Cable and AT&T DSL.

On the Time Warner network, I am connecting our VOIP phones (6 phones) via an old Netgear FVS318 Router.

On the DSL network, I have connected our computers & printers (9 units) via a Netgear FS726T switch connected to a Netgear FVS338 router.

If one of the internet lines goes down, I physically reconnect the phones or the switch from one router to the other.

I would like to be able to have a router that will provide load balancing/failover between the two internet connections. Obviously QOS is important, since now the computers will be sharing the connection with the phones. The other important piece is that it needs to have enough ethernet ports to connect all the phones directly to it, since connecting them to a switch will cause too many problems. The last bit is that I have a very limited budget ($500).

Does this sound like a good idea, and if so can anyone recommend a router that would fit the criteria? Or would it be better to stick with the current set up of two routers and just upgrade the routers?

Thanks for the help.

 

[drebo]

A Juniper SRX100B can do what you want on your budget.

 

[kevnich2]

Most business routers can handle dual or triple wan's. I highly disagree with purchasing a router with as many lan ports as you say. You need a robust switch that is then connected to the router. Keep them both separate. The router/firewall shouldn't be used as a primary switch. Connect all your phones and devices to one big switch that will serve your purpose then connect it to your firewall/router.

 

[JeepinEd]

Most business routers can handle dual or triple wan's. I highly disagree with purchasing a router with as many lan ports as you say. You need a robust switch that is then connected to the router. Keep them both separate. The router/firewall shouldn't be used as a primary switch. Connect all your phones and devices to one big switch that will serve your purpose then connect it to your firewall/router.

I tried connecting the phones to my current switch and had a lot of problems. For example, some phones would keep ringing even after the line had been picked up. Other times, people would hear you, but you can't hear them or you simply can't pick up the line. Our VOIP service provider advised against using a switch with the phones. I do use a switch for all the computers, printers, etc.

 

[nsafreak]

Sounds like you have a poor quality switch. The setup kevnich2 recommended should do the job just fine. For specific parts I would consider:

* A 16 port managed switch like this TP-Link TL-SG2216. You might be able to pick up a HP ProCurve 16 port cheaply as well as I've seen a number of companies offloading out of warranty units, not sure if you'd want to deal with a used part for a business enviroment though.

* A dual WAN capable router such as this Cisco RV042G-NA

 

[kevnich2]

Sounds like you need a completely new network setup. For your firewall, I've had good experience with SonicWall series and these play well with VoIP with the right timeout settings. For a switch, get one managed switch large enough to handle all your devices, Poe if need be depending on business. Even a refurbished dell 3548p off eBay should work but Poe are louder because of the fans.

 

[JeepinEd]

Just for my own education, what is the downside of just using a router with enough ports?

 

[kevnich2]

First, no business class firewall/router can be expected to be built with as many interfaces as actually needed to support an entire LAN. Most only have four ports. A device built with the intention of being a firewall/router won't handle a LAN load as well as a switch. Business router's are usually built so each interface handles a specific IP subnet for routing and you can designate which port is a WAN facing port that needs firewall and which one is your LAN port that connects to your switch.

I'm actually VERY surprised your voip provider even suggested to do that. But any business class switch should be able to handle your needs but also, in my experience, VOIP issues are 90% of the time caused by the firewall itself. Not that your firewall is bad but that there may be some rules or time out's that need tweaked to accommodate the UDP time sensitive voip traffic.

 

[JeepinEd]

Thanks for the clarification.
From what I gather, I'll be looking into a new firewall/router and a new switch.