Phoenix Contact / Factoryline networking

Managed and unmanaged switches are not interchangeable, and the difference does not show up until the network is under load.

Factoryline is the Phoenix Contact industrial networking range: DIN rail Ethernet switches, media converters, wireless and security appliances.

Do not swap a managed switch for an unmanaged one

The most expensive mistake in this range, because an unmanaged switch will appear to work.

Plug an unmanaged switch into a redundant ring and the ring is gone. The network still passes traffic, so nothing looks wrong until the day the redundant path is needed and there is not one.

And on a network carrying multicast traffic, an unmanaged switch forwards it to every port. On a quiet network that is invisible. On a busy one it loads every device on the segment, and the symptom is intermittent comms faults that are very hard to trace back to a switch someone changed months earlier.

If you are replacing a switch, find out which it was before ordering. If you are not sure, tell us what the network does and we will ask the right questions.

How the designation decodes

Take FL SWITCH SFNB 5TX.

Port type codes

The fibre connector type is part of the order. An FX port with an ST connector will not accept an SC patch lead. If you are replacing a switch with fibre uplinks, check the connector on the existing patch leads before ordering.

Confirmed order numbers

SFNB series, unmanaged

Confirmed specification for the 2891001: 5 twisted pair RJ45 ports, automatic detection of 10 or 100 Mbps, and an autocrossing function. Supply 12 to 48 V DC. Dimensions 28 mm wide, 110 mm high, 70 mm deep.

Autocrossing means you do not need crossover cables. The switch sorts out the wiring regardless of whether the lead is straight-through or crossover, which removes a whole class of commissioning problem.

The 2891001 carries UL and cUL listing including Class I Division 2, which matters if it is going into a classified area.

FL SWITCH 1000 series

Reading the 1000 series numbers: the digits give the port count. A 1005 has 5 ports, a 1116 has 16. The 1004N-FX ST has 4 copper ports plus a fibre port with an ST connector.

Power over Ethernet needs a power budget

Worth planning rather than discovering. A PoE switch supplies power to connected devices over the same cable, and the switch has a total power budget shared across ports.

Eight PoE ports does not mean eight devices at full power. Add up what the cameras, access points or IO-Link masters actually draw before assuming the switch will carry them.

Confirmed PoE models include the FL SWITCH 1000-8POE-GT and the FL SWITCH 1701 7POE.

The wider Factoryline range

mGuard is a firewall, not a switch

The FL MGUARD range does security: firewalling, VPN and network segmentation between a machine and a plant network.

It is frequently the device sitting between an OEM machine and the site network, and it usually holds a configuration that matters. A replacement arrives without it. If you have mGuard devices, knowing where the configuration backups are is worth checking before one fails.

Same point as the PNOZmulti configuration on our Pilz page: the hardware is replaceable, the configuration is the thing you cannot buy.

Fibre in New Zealand plant

Two practical notes.

Fibre solves earth potential problems between buildings. A copper Ethernet run between separately earthed buildings can carry damaging potential differences. Fibre is galvanically isolated and removes the problem entirely. Same reasoning as the isolators on our signal conditioner page.

Multimode and singlemode are different. As are the connector types. When ordering a media converter or a switch with fibre ports, we need the fibre type and connector, not just the port count.

What to check when replacing a switch

Managed or unmanaged. The one that matters most.

Port count and type. Copper, fibre, and the fibre connector.

Supply voltage. Usually 24 V DC, but the SFNB range accepts 12 to 48 V DC.

Whether it was doing PoE. A non-PoE replacement leaves powered devices dead.

Whether it holds a configuration. Managed switches, mGuards and routers do.

Hazardous area rating if it is in a classified location.

What we can supply

Current production. The FL SWITCH range managed and unmanaged, mGuard security appliances, wireless, media converters and gateways. Quoted with a delivered lead time.

Discontinued. Earlier SFN, SMCS and MCS switches. Surplus and tested used, which is often the only like-for-like option for an installed managed network.

Related

Phoenix Contact overview. Axioline I/O for the PROFINET stations these switches connect.

For industrial switches from other brands see Allen-Bradley Stratix.

Send us your order numbers

Tell us whether the switch you are replacing is managed, because an unmanaged one will look like it works and quietly remove your redundancy. Include the fibre connector type if there are fibre ports. Quotes in NZD including GST.

Request a quote

Industech is an independent supplier of new, surplus and used industrial automation equipment. We are not an authorised distributor of, approved by, sanctioned by, or affiliated with Phoenix Contact GmbH & Co. KG. Phoenix Contact, Factoryline and mGuard are trademarks of Phoenix Contact. All trademarks, brand names and order numbers are the property of their respective owners and are used here for identification purposes only.