Ideal Home Network (Hardware) Setup?
I am moving to a new house and I am planning to network all rooms. My plan at this point is to run Cat5e cables from every room to the garage, where I want to combine them in a patch rack. In the same vicinity, I want to place a router/switch to connect all rooms to a single modem. In addition, I would like to connect a dedicated server out there in the future.
Here are my questions:
- What is the CLEANEST way to accomplish the task. I am trying to avoid the “home-build” look and are planning on going for a (semi-)professional set-up.
- Once the cables come out of the wall, should I first feed them into their separate patch cabinet (in-wall? wall mounted?) or should I feed them straight into a small (wall mounted) server rack.
- What is the cleanest/safest/easiest way o run the cables through the wall/underneath the floor? Are racetracks the best way to go?
- Are there any good web tutorials?
- Where is the best place to purchase the equipment?
You’re probably going to hear a lot of people saying “go wireless.” It’s not a terrible option, but I’m not going to tell you to do that because I personally think that going wired is the best solution for home installations. In my own house, I ran all of the cabling myself. I also have a wireless connection, but that’s my “play network” where I mess around with war drivers…
You first need to ensure that you feel confident doing the installation. It’ll mean crawling around in your attic or being up on a ladder and peeking behind the walls in your house to get the wires installed. You should also ensure that you know how to punch down and test wires. Every manufacturer of equipment makes it rather easy for anyone to do, given you have the gumption and tools to do it. You will require a punch down tool, ladder, insulated staples, staple gun, a sharpie marker, a cable tester (optimally), and fish tape or fiberglass push rod. You’ll obviously need the cabling, face plates, RJ45 modules, a patch panel, and server to do the job as well.
Thus said, here’s what I recommend for running the cabling and I’ll say that it all depends on your house layout:
Whenever possible, run all cabling within the walls and use solid core wiring. Sometimes this may be hard to do because you’ll need to run horizontally because you don’t have access to get right where you want the connection. Obviously, going horizontal requires putting holes through studs in the walls… That cannot be done without either a super long bit or putting holes in the walls. I don’t recommend taking out parts of walls if you don’t have to. There may be other ways to get it where you need it.
I’ve found that using the basement is the best way to get to most of the walls in the house. The attic is the second option. Rooms without attics or basements above/below them are challenges. There may be a crawl space that you can use above or below it. Hopefully it’s big enough.
Get yourself a fiberglass push rod or metal fish tape to use to get the wires where you want them. You can also use the fish tape to get a good idea where to put the holes in the basement/attic by tapping it inside the wall and having a partner try to locate the exact location in the header/footers.
Because you are going to need to put outlets in the walls, you can locate those outlets and put the holes in the walls for the faceplates. The faceplates/openings in the walls are about 2×4″ so you have a place to either fish a pull tape down, or the wires through. When you are installing from the basement, you’ll probably want to use a fish tape and push it through from the basement and grab it at the hole in the wall. When you are going from the attic down, you start from the attic.
In the basement, you can use a staple gun with insulated staples to tack up the wires to the studs. I don’t recommend using a wire rack or raceway because I think it will draw more attention to the wiring than to simply have it hung with the staples. This way, it’ll look similar to your house wiring with the romex staples.
If you’re going to have a server, you may as well do a nice job and stick it and the patch panel in a cabinet. Ensure that it has proper ventilation for cooling. Your other option is to put a swing bracket for the patch panel and install the server anywhere you choose. See the link below: the swing bracket is at the bottom of the page.
You can get most of what you need at Lowes or Home Depot. They carry ladders, Cat5e cabling, punch down tools, face plates, RJ45 modules, fish tapes, pull cord, insulated staples, staple guns, possibly a cable tester, and may have a patch panel. I think they have 24 port panels. You can get the sharpie marker at any office supply store. That’s used to label all of the cables when you run them. Make sure that the patch panel and RJ45 are the same wiring configuration (TIA-568A or TIA-568B). 568B is the more popular and some panels and modules have both on them. Make sure you punch them down to the proper one.
I hope this doesn’t scare you off doing the job. It’s really not that tough to do and will give you better throughput than wireless, considering that the best wireless connection to date is 108Mbps. Remember, wireless connections achieve only half of their stated throughput, so 108Mbps will do the best of 54Mbps throughput… See third and fourth article below. You’ll hear differently, but it’s a fact. This is why wired is still your best option if throughput is your goal, especially considering that a 5 port 1Gbps wired switch is cheaper than it’s ~108 Mbps wireless competitor.
WG
3ft Wallmount Server Cabinet Enclosure – Plexiglass Door – Dual Fans.flv
|
|
Rubbermaid 7J93 Produce Saver Square Food Storage Containers Set of 8 $16.29 * Produce saver * Fresh vent and crisp tray keeps produce fresh and crisp longer * Lids and trays snap to bases and each other for easy and organized storage * Microwave, freezer, and dishwasher safe * Square design * 8-piece set includes: one 14-cup, one 5-cup, and two 2-cup food-storage containers, with four lids… |
|
|
Wooden Wine Rack-Holds 44 Bottles-Unfinished Pine (Unfinished Pine) (40.5h x 17w x 10.5d) $26.74 Serious wine lovers will appreciate this streamlined, freestanding winerack designed to safely store up to 44 wine bottles (This rack will hold bottles up to 3.25″ in diameter.) Whether you have an extensive wine cellar or a modest collection of your favorite vintages, you’ll enjoy having easy access to your wines; the tall pinewood rack makes the most of your storage space (measures 40.5″h x 17″w… |
|
|
115V AC Cooling Fan. 120mm x 38mm HS with Power Plug $15.99 Overview The high speed 120 by 120 by 38 millimeter 115V AC axial fan is housed in die cast aluminum with thermoplastic blades. Containing long life dual ball bearings, the fan can run continuously for 67,000 hours and be mounted in any direction. Includes a 4 foot power cord which allows the fan to be plugged into a standard outlet. Cooltron fans are certified by CE, UL, TUV, and RoHS; and found … |
|
|
Tripp Lite PS3612 Multiple Outlet Strip 15-Amp 12 outlets 15ft Cord $36.41 12 outlet 15 ampsMultiple outlets wherever neededDesigned for vertical or horizontal power distributionTransparent on/off switch cover prevents accidental shutoffLifetime product warranty… |
|
|
StarTech.com 50 Pkg M6 Mounting Screws and Cage Nuts for Server Rack Cabinet CABSCREWM6 $34.13 StarTech. M6 Cab screws and Cage nuts are used to mount rackmount puter equipment to a storage cabi or server rack. Coming in a plete package of 50 screws and 50 nuts there’s enough to setup any rack you might be working on.Primary InformationProduct Type : screws and nuts Product Material : Steel Features : Package of 50 Screws and 50 Nuts… |
|
|
Ambivalence $1.99 … |
|
|
Safe and Fit: Total Body Workout $16.00 An exhilarating workout that includes heart-healthy aerobics, strength training, balance training and flexibility training . . . all wrapped up into one easy to follow program. “Safe and Fit” is a high quality DVD production produced at Gin Miller Studios in Atlanta, GA. The exercises are designed for active seniors, or beginning and rehabilitating exercisers…. |
|
|
Brushed Rhinestone Cake Server Set $33.88 Our Brushed Rhinestone Champagne Flutes (Champagne Flutes sold separately) & Cake Server Set will bring the right amount of dazzle to your big day. Indulge in wedding cake and champagne in style with this shimmering duo. Featuring a brushed silver finish, the cake serving set is accented by a group of three sparkling rhinestones. The matching toasting flutes (sold separately) feature a glass tulip… |
|
|
Thermaltake Mobile Fan II External USB Cooling Fan – Us $11.00 THERMALTAKE A1888 THERMALTAKE 80MM MOBILE FAN II USB POWER EXTERNAL CASE FAN A1888… |
|
|
D-Link 24-Port Rackmountable Gigabit Switch DGS-1024D $199.99 Utilizing both Gigabit technology and D-Link Green technology the D-Link DGS-1024D is an ideal switch for the eco-minded and petitive small business.Primary InformationNetworking Type : Switch Form Factor : External Data Transfer Rate : 1 GBps Data Link Protocol : Ether; Fast Ether; Gigabit Ether Networking / Ports… |
