@reflection when you state the above I am taking it to mean that all the NICs from my PC will connect to regular ethernet ports on the switch for the respective VLAN port ranges and I won't use the uplink ports at all. Is this correct?On your switch, create four VLANs, 10, 20, 30, 40 for the ones above. Set the interface connected to your ESXi machine to be a trunk port. Set the interface connected to your provider's modem to be on access VLAN 10.
And if so does that mean I am OK to just buy one of the Cisco switches with a blank uplink module? I see some that come with blanks and then a lot with 1G x 4. And I think there is 10G x2. Think I'll ever use uplink ports? If all the normal ports are 1G I'm trying to understand when I might want them (uplink ports). (If I never go to 10G)