If I have one PC on the network (teenager) that is always doing something that hogs the bandwidth and slows Internet access to a crawl, will a "router with a built-in switch" allocate bandwidth to the proper port/PC while the rest would not even notice it and keep the Internet access speed more equalized throughout the network?

Do these routers have firewall protection built in? How much do they cost and do you have any recommendations as to what brand I should purchase?

No, the router/switch will only distribute the bandwidth between the computers. If one computer is using more bandwidth than the others it will just take theirs. I'm not sure how you would go about throttling the bandwidth to a computer- maybe one of the network guru's could help you better.

It would help if you could supply some more details for us to work with :)

What opeating system are you using, your presnt connection method etc

/Daft admin see's irj's post count and removes the welcome to BetaONE message :P

"What opeating system are you using, your presnt connection method etc"

1. Windows XP on 3 networked computers (3 different rooms).
2. Microsoft Internet Connection Sharing through a hub
3. Motorola Surfboard Cable modem attached to P4 2.4ghz computer with 2 nics

Thanks !

www.practicallynetworked.com

Go find some router software to install at the PC with two nics (one of them connected to the net I understand). There are several and for the moment I don't recall which one, but you should be able to find one that also throttles the bandwidth. Then my memory have failed me before...

_http://www.clarkconnect.org

it will do what you want and more. you'll need another pc to run it on tho.
:)

Thabks for the information