Hi @Tread 

Thanks for posting in our business forum.

Is the cable from the router to the switch prerouted in the wall? If so, can you move the switch to the router and test with a 3ft cable?

Tread wrote

I found thst if I switched the connectors around I could get more devices working. Has anyone got any ideas? I am a newbie when it comes to networking.

 

I'd recommend you check the interface LED. What's the status when your network is down?

When reading this, I am declined inclined to think this might be an issue with your connection. Do you verify that there is no loop in your switch?

Hi @Tread 

Thanks for posting in our business forum.

Tread wrote

  @Clive_A  Thank you for your reply. as I said I am a newbie when it comes to networking. I have never heard the term "loop"  when refering to switches.The interface lights tend to be on solidly until I turn the attached item then it starts to flash showing activity. There are some that just stay solidly lit and do nothing. The switch was working fine for the first few days but after that it's sort of hit & miss. Do all leads to the switch have to be of the same quality ie all CAT5E or all CAT7 as the main input lead is, I do have a mixture of cables.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Tread

I don't know how to explain the loop. In summary, it means that there is an Ethernet cable connected twice in the network causing the retransmit of traffic. Would be great for you to read Wikipedia which explains: Switching loop

If you don't know how to rule it out, start from the most basic, unplug everything, add the Ethernet cables one by one, and monitor the network traffic. When add this cable and the network shuts down, you should check the origin of this cable.