What Is The Difference between ONU, Router And Switch?

The Internet has become an indispensable thing in our lives. As the carrier of the network, what are the differences between ONUs, routers, and switches? How do we differentiate between them? In this article we will answer these questions.

First, let us understand what ONUs, routers and switches are.

一、What are ONUs, routers and switches?

1. ONU

ONU (Optical Network Unit), also known as optical modem, is a device similar to a baseband modem. But the difference is that the ONU is connected to optical fiber. It converts digital signals into analog signals through modulation at the sending end, and converts analog signals into digital signals for transmission.

Electronic signals are divided into analog signals and digital signals. The telephone transmits analog signals, and the PC transmits digital signals. So, if a computer is connected to the Internet via a phone line, an ONU is used to modulate the signal.

                                                    hs8546v5-onu

2. Router

A router is a gateway that connects two or more networks, reading the address in each packet and deciding how to transmit it. Routers can understand different protocols, such as the Ethernet protocol used by local area networks or the TCP/IP protocol used by the Internet. In this way, the router can convert the addresses of non-TCP/IP networks into TCP/IP addresses by analyzing the destination addresses of data packets from various networks. It will then send the packet to the specified location based on the best route chosen. Therefore, the router can connect non-TCP/IP networks to the Internet.

3. Switch

A switch is a device used to transmit electrical or optical signals. It can provide a dedicated electrical signal path for any two network nodes connected to the switch. There are Ethernet switches, telephone voice switches, fiber optic switches, etc.

                                                            ma5608t-olt

2. The difference between ONU, router and switch

Although ONUs, routers, and switches are all used to access the Internet, their application fields are different. Generally, the analog signals transmitted by the network cable are converted into digital signals through the ONU. The router then forwards the signal to the PC. When the number of PCs exceeds the number of routers that can be connected, a switch needs to be added to expand the interface

The relationship diagram between the three

– ONU is generally used in FTTH. It mainly converts the signal of the telephone line into the signal of the network cable to help the computer access the Internet.

– Routers work at the network layer of the LAN. You can connect multiple computers through one network cable and access the Internet through virtual dial-up. All computers share a broadband account and influence each other when surfing the Internet.

– Switch connects multiple computers through one network cable to access the Internet at the same time. Each computer has its own broadband account and has no influence on each other.