Switches: Power over Ethernet (PoE)

Topic

This article describes how to configure Power over Ethernet (PoE) on Datto Switches.

Environment

  • Datto Switches

Overview

Power over Ethernet (PoE) allows you to pass electric power through Ethernet cables to other devices using your switch. This is useful for powering access points and other devices without the need to connect a power supply. Each Datto Switch model has its own defined total PoE budget. Review the hardware specifications of your switch prior to planning a network to ensure enough power is available for all of your devices.

Procedure

Navigation

1. Navigate to a device web session for your switch.

2. Click Port Settings, as seen in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Port settings

3. Select your desired port, then click Configure, as seen in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Selecting Ports

4. Click the dropdown for Power over Ethernet (PoE) to reveal its settings, as seen in Figure 3.

Configuration

The following Power over Ethernet settings are available:

Figure 3: Power over Ethernet (PoE)

  • Enable PoE: Selecting this will enable PoE for this port.
  • Budgeting: This controls how the switch will budget power to this power. There are two options for budgeting:
    • Priority-based: Allocates power to a port based on the Priority defined.
    • Manual: This limits how much power (in watts) will be sent to the port. If selected, the Priority setting will be replaced with a Power Limit setting, as seen in Figure 4.
  • Priority: This dropdown defines the priority of this port for PoE budgeting. Only available if Priority-based budgeting was selected.
  • Power Limit: This field allows you to limit how much power is available for this port to use in watts. Only available if Manual budgeting was selected.

Figure 4: Power Limit