Commercial and Industrial Ethernet Switches
One of the great innovations of Ethernet is the switch. It's nothing new, now, but the intelligence and handling of a switch makes many advanced LANs possible, not just a few computers in a small location. Switches come with a large host of features, so it helps if you know what you need before you go shopping for a switch. One of those features is the commercial grade vs. industrial grade. Generally speaking, a normal, clean (-ish) home or office with fairly moderated temperatures and normal electrical distribution can use a commercial Ethernet switch. Most of the other applications, including outdoors, dirty or wet locations, busy foot-traffic locations (like a busy factory floor or behind the counter at a busy retail outlet), and locations with unusual electrical swings and spikes usually require industrial Ethernet switches. Industrial switches come with many features to continue operation in more punishing environments. L-com has a few good examples here.
