USB Ethernet for dual NIC?

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wwseb72

n3wb
Jan 23, 2025
12
10
Alabama
Hey has anyone used one of the USB/Ethernet converters to get dual NIC for their Blue Iris setup? I've been looking at some Dell optiplex SFF computers over a more conventional tower to save space, but it looks like getting a second Ethernet port in them isn't exactly straightforward due to the smaller size. Is there any real downside to plugging in one of those adapters to get dual NIC?
 
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wwseb72 said:
Hey has anyone used one of the USB/Ethernet converters to get dual NIC for their Blue Iris setup? I've been looking at some Dell optiplex SFF computers over a more conventional tower to save space, but it looks like getting a second Ethernet port in them isn't exactly straightforward due to the smaller size. Is there any real downside to plugging in one of those adapters to get dual NIC?
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No, a USB NIC works fine.
But most quality companies (Netgear, Intel, TP-LINK) supply a low profile bracket with their PCIe cards, you just swap it with the in-place full-height bracket...easy peasy.

The TP-LINK TG-3468 is one such example and is gigabit.
 
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TonyR said:
No, a USB NIC works fine.
But most quality companies (Netgear, Intel, TP-LINK) supply a low profile bracket with their PCIe cards, you just swap it with the in-place full-height bracket...easy peasy.

The TP-LINK TG-3468 is one such example and is gigabit.
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Oh okay thanks for that information. When I googled "dual NIC Dell optiplex SFF" I got a lot of results showing some janky mods involving cutting holes in the case and having cables hanging out. Led me to believe it wasn't exactly plug and play.

Looks like I can indeed get a sff pc and have all the power and connections I need. Hopefully if I follow the guide here on selecting and setting up the PC for Blue Iris overheating won't be an issue.
 
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Yeah, adding a 2nd ethernet port is not that hard - literally plug-n-play. Shows you can't trust Google for everything LOL.

With substreams, it would be rare for you to overheat a computer.

People are running 50 cameras on a SFF 4th gen without issue, so I suspect you will be buying newer than a 4th gen so you won't have an issue!
 
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wittaj said:
Yeah the second NIC is an easy replacement.

But if you use a USB NIC, use it for the internet not the cameras and put the cameras on the ethernet port the computer came with.
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Sounds good thank you for that. I think I will go with a sff pc then. I assume putting the cameras on the internal port is because that would be more data going through than the Internet would be? Hopefully overheating won't be an issue as long as I set it up correctly.
 
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Yeah, we have seen issues with people using USB for the cameras or as external storage - even though theoretical speeds say it is more than enough, many have seen that it is unable to keep up with sustained speeds, but some don't have an issue. But using the one in the computer would be the better choice even if you dual NIC.

Keep in mind Microsoft recently came out and screwed over computers under 11th gen for Windows 11.

J

Thread 'New (higher spec) CPU requirements for Windows 11 24H2'

Well, Microsoft just changed the CPU requirements to run Windows 11 24H2, which will be the only "supported" version by the end of this year (given the concurrent "retirement" or EOL of Windows 10 at about the same time). Those of us that bought 8th gen Intel machines in the last couple of years with an eye towards this moment when we would be transitioning from Windows 10 to 11 are effectively screwed. I just installed Win11 23H2 onto my (previously Win10) BI I5-8500 about a month ago, believing I was golden for continuing with Win11 for some time, but maybe not. Yeah, I know, plenty of...
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wittaj said:
Keep in mind Microsoft recently came out and screwed over computers under 11th gen for Windows 11.
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Thanks, I will definitely keep that in mind about using the USB ports.

I believe the 11th gen requirement applies only to OEM manufacturers. What I've been able to tell 8th-10th gen will continue to be supported for users as always. Leave it to Microsoft to change the rules though.:smash:

No, Microsoft is NOT dropping Windows 11 support for Intel 8th, 9th, and 10th Gen chips
 
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