The testing of the ISB Pro800 Turbo was done
in the PCStats labs, but as we are not rich enough to warrant dual internet
connections in the lab we tried something else. We set up a network using
static IP's and plugged two ethernet cables into the two ports of the ISB
Pro800 Turbo. Each port was assigned a different IP address essentially making the ISB
Pro800 Turbo think it had two internet connections.
We tested the unit for
several hours with just regular web surfing (daily work) and did some file transfer
tests. During the testing, we repeatedly pulled out one of the two connections from
the ISB Pro800 Turbo to see if the net connection was indeed kept alive. Web
surfing was not affected one bit, either connection could be severed without any
problems. File transfers however were different. When one of the net connections
is cut, often the file transfer would stop all together and time out.
Since the unit is a
switch also we decided to test that part of the ISB Pro800 Turbo as well to see
how it would perform.
Simple HDD Data Transfer |
Source: PCStats |
|
We created two 512MB dummy files and used Windows
Explorer to drag and drop the two files from one computer to the other. The IDE
controllers on both computers ran at Ultra/100 with DMA enabled.
| 1 GB File Transfer |
|
Drives |
Time |
| 1. |
10Mbps |
1003 sec |
| 2. |
100Mbps |
114 sec |
The ISB
Pro800 Turbo performs about the same as the COMPEX DSR2216 Switch we tested recently which performed very
well.
Conclusion:
With a price tag of
$629 CDN, the Nexland ISB Pro800 Turbo is not a router for everyone. In fact, the
average user really doesn't need the features that make this a very secure networking
product. Small or medium business that need 100% internet up time, coupled with effective redundancy
and security features are bound to see the usefulness of the NexLand ISBPro800
Turbo.
We were impressed with the overall build quality of the ISB Pro800 Turbo, right from the get go we got the impression that it was a well thought out product - the detail in the manual and quick start guide are excellent. Administrating the ISB Pro800 Turbo is very straight forward and detailed help files and an intuitive GUI ensure little confusion as possible. The
overall performance of the unit was very good, with web surfing, we could disconnect one internet source from the unit with no interruptions however file transfers however would often time out.
If you're a business that needs 100% up time, the Nexland ISB Pro800 Turbo is a solid piece of networking hardware that can fulfill almost all your needs as a router, switch and VPN device. About the only thing we are disappointed at
is the fact that we have to send the ISB Pro800 Turbo back!
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