Is this plan for a home network ok?
August 1st, 2016
1) I’m going to upgrade to something like a Asus -ac66u, for ac speeds but mainly for better range even on just wifi n, compared to my huawei HG533 [is this a fair choice router?]
2) I’m going hard wired with cat6 cable throughout the house, unshielded. I’ll buy this bulk and put ends on properly. [unshielded ok? Cat6 reasonably future proof?]
3) I’m getting a gigabit 24 bit unmanaged switch (tp link for about �75 on amazon) [still learning about switches.. Is this reasonable?]
4) I’ll run two wires into each room, except the sitting room (which has skybox, Xbox, wdtv live in it all requiring connection) so I’ll have 4 in that room ( 1 spare) [im toying with the idea of running just one wire into the sitting room and getting a separate 4port switch there, but it doesn’t seem the proper thing to do somehow.. Ideas?]
5) I’ll put the router in the middle of the house so wifi will be most effective [in corner of house at the mo and some rooms the iPad is unusable]
6) I’ll hide the server (hp proliant) in a garage [i want easy access to it for pluggin in USB drives/maintenance etc, but don’t want it humming away keeping me awake as it currently is in a cupboard in my loft. Under stairs is an option but there’s no ventilation there. ]
Btw My internet connection is a 50 mbit connection.
Im sorry for such a long bit of drivel but I just thought I should run my plans by some people who may actually know what they’re doing. I’m well aware of the pitfalls of google research making me think im an ‘expert’ when I’m not!
Any comments appreciated thanks
Doc.
<3 proliant
1 if you can go for some Cisco gear its not that expensive compared to new consumer gear for what you get (infinitely more capable than any home router even with ddwrt)
2 Yeah just make sure you get solid cable not stranded its far far easier to work with and. As for being future proof you can always team it if you need mere bandwidth.
3 For the same price you could get a used dell[quote] managed switch like the 5024 no Brainer.
4 Its ridiculously inexpensive so just get a quad faceplate
5 attic is a good spot
6 might want to pick up a 42 u rack from a local auction or liquidator they can be picked up for feck all. Plus you can put your switch in there.
Finally in future you might want to look at getting another server so you can cluster roles between them like Forefront TMG
I'm going to upgrade to something like a Asus -ac66u, for ac speeds but mainly for better range even on just wifi n, compared to my huawei HG533 [is this a fair choice router?]
It’s a good choice, It’d definitely have much better transmission power than your current!
I'm going hard wired with cat6 cable throughout the house, unshielded. I'll buy this bulk and put ends on properly. [unshielded ok? Cat6 reasonably future proof?
Better go with shielded ones, Unshielded cables are much more prone to interference!
Also, Do keep in mind that using shielded cables alone doesn’t cut it, There are also
shielded and unshielded connectors! And you should buy connectors that are specifically intended
for CAT6 use, Better get two-piece connectors like these:
http://image.made-in-china.com/43f34j00neQTtAlCCjkG/Cat5-Cat6-UTP-FTP-Rg45-Plug-Connector.jpg
It makes the process much easier (You insert the wires into the loadbar [plastic piece] first and then put it into the connector and cramp it with a cramping tool, This is easier than arranging the wires properly in a one-piece connector)
As far as future proofing is concerned, CAT6 supports up to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (Which isn’t overly new, Just rarely used on the home front as consumer grade motherboards don’t support it, Not to mention that ISP’s don’t offer such high speeds to home users either) to be honest, You could settle with CAT5E (Which supports up to 1 Gigabit, Which is good enough for home use) CAT5E cables are also much thinner than CAT6 ones (So it’s easier to put em thru the wall piping)
Set all that aside, Do you have any prior experience with putting wires thru wall pips or cramping Ethernet cables? (You do realize that you’re gonna have to buy the wires & connectors in separate and manually hook em up, Right?) You’ll never be able to fit a whole Ethernet cables (Connectors included) thru the wall!
If you have no experience doing these things, You’d probably be best paying a pro to do it for you!
I'm getting a gigabit 24 bit unmanaged switch (tp link for about �75 on amazon) [still learning about switches.. Is this reasonable?
That’s 24 ports not bits and no I don’t find it reasonable at all, Why on earth do you need so many?
And just for the record, While a Gigabit switch can help a lot with file transfers/streaming on the local network (computer to computer etc) It’d have zero impact on your Internet speed (So what I’m saying is, If you are rarely gonna transfer files locally, You could save up some money and just go with a 100MBPS [Fast-Ethernet] switch)
I'll run two wires into each room
And how exactly do you plan on doing that? Do you actually have a fully available wall outlet for this use?
If you’re planning to put the wires thru the Phone/Cable socket (Just using the same pipes) it’s
simply not gonna fly! (From my experience, With a standard sized pipe and pre-existing phone/cable wires , You’re not gonna be able to fit more than one Ethernet cable thru it, Not easily at least!)
Massive thanks for the replies so far. Really appreciate your time and effort. Ed, I’ll look into Cisco and rack and dell pro switch thx but may still go with a newer less capable off the shelf stuff largely because I don’t need the complexity. This stuff is cheap enough to change if I need to later I guess. I can’t seem to find a used dell 5024 yet but I’m looking. As for quad faceplate you mean run 4 cables into that sitting room rather than 1 and another small switch at the end? Or are you even saying I should go quad in *every* room? What dies teaming mean btw? Google search doesn’t tell me *blush*
Roberto, I know shielded is better thanks mate, but no individual cable will run longer than about 10m. And it’s only a home thing, and I won’t be running alongside electrical wiring. Yeh good advice re: cat 5e or 6 thanks but 6 is so cheap I may as well go 6. At least I know it’s certainly not worth going 7 then! Btw yes I’ve done wires etc before and will get the right stuff. I’m buying 305m of bulk stuff and wiring it into faceplates and proper ends etc as your say. I should’ve made that clear but thanks for checking. Yeah I meant ports not bits my mistake. And yes just for transfers and streaming. Even my poor wifi n is enough for the 50mbps fibre internet. I need 24 as I have around 10 rooms and want at least 2 sockets in each room. I’m not sure what you mean by pipes etc. Are you English? Here we don’t have pipes to my knowledge or at least none of the houses I’ve worked on has. I’ll be going through floorboards and chiseling down lines for the wires separately for each room, then plastering over. Like how electrics are done. Hence completely different paths to the electric.
“As for quad faceplate you mean run 4 cables into that sitting room rather than 1”
Yeah with no switch if you have the space. 4 gigabit pipes for up to 4 different devices.
“What dies teaming mean btw”
Combine the capacity of multiple network adapters on devices. The poor mans 10G network
I know shielded is better thanks mate, but no individual cable will run longer than about 10m.
That’s utter nonsense, How on earth did you reach that conclusion?
I'm not sure what you mean by pipes etc
I was referring to conduits (Was just putting in in plain terms), As in inner-wall pre-existing pipes that are especially made
for carrying electrical wires of various kinds, Like this:
http://image.made-in-china.com/2f0j00AvKQOrBdyeoT/Double-Wall-Corrugated-Tube-Electrical-Flexible-Conduit-SL-LXG-001-.jpg
They usually go from the electricity cabinet to the wall sockets.
I was saying that if you have let’s say, A cable or a phone socket in each room, You could just open it up
and put the Ethernet cable thru the same conduit (Then just do a minor breakage underneath the inner plate so you’ll be able to close it down without having the wire bulging out) that’s how I did my own Ethernet wiring, Fiddling with special Ethernet sockets/Patch panels is just a PITA.
I'll be going through floorboards and chiseling down lines for the wires separately for each room, then plastering over.
That sounds a bit extreme!
Are you English?
Perhaps
Aha cheers
I got a feeling you’ve missed out my post^
Hey Roberto sorry buddy you must’ve posted that as I was replying to !! Hehe you must’ve thought I was a right rude so and so. 10m cable: I’m told its impossible to have a cable longer than 10m as after 10m the data gets garbled up with crosstalk, travels back up the wire and if you’re lucky erases all the data on the computer it left and but in many cases explodes it and in some cases can short out the entire neighbourhood’s electrical supply for at least a week. It may be possible but it’s extremely dangerous not to mention illegal. Couldn’t resist… But I see where my post was ambiguous – I meant *my* cable lengths wouldn’t go beyond 10m hehe Pipe: I guessed what you meant mate but I rarely see that in builds around here. Wires are chiseled in separately, and in any case as you say there’d be way too much interference running alongside an Electrical wire. You’re right doing separate conduits is a PITA but I’m having my house renovated/plastered/ rewired at the mo so it’s perfect timing
10m cable: I'm told its impossible to have a cable longer than 10m as after 10m the data gets garbled up with crosstalk, travels back up the wire and if you're lucky erases all the data on the computer it left and but in many cases explodes it and in some cases can short out the entire neighbourhood's electrical supply for at least a week. It may be possible but it's extremely dangerous not to mention illegal.
Whoever told you that needs to get his head examined! It’s a total lie, See this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category_6_cable#Maximum_length
And there’s ZERO correlation between Ethernet cables to Power lines & Data on the computer’s HDD.
And no, It CANNOT make your computer explode! What a load of bollocks, Seriously!
I guessed what you meant mate but I rarely see that in builds around here
I see.
Roberto!!!
It was a joke !
Which is why after I reached the zenith of total ridiculousness I went on to say “Couldn’t resist… But I see where my post was ambiguous – I meant *my* cable lengths wouldn’t go beyond 10m hehe “. As in sorry I couldn’t resist getting silly with a joke. What I meant was that *in my case* I won’t have any individual ethernet cable going beyond 10m or so, hence perhaps unshielded won’t be as much of an issue compared to for example 95m of cabling in one stretch!
Sorry mate was just trying to be light hearted, clearly I don’t make myself very clear. And it’s late! Thanks for your advice dude.
You really had me going there!
Anyways, I still think that going with a shielded (STP or FTP) cable would be better.
And I still maintain, You don’t need anything higher than CAT5E really, Plus it’s cheaper (And the difference
is quite significant when buying it in bulk!)
Hmm good points. Isn’t it trickier to do properly though? Like I’ve read if you don’t terminate/earth properly it won’t have the benefits and some even say it’s worse to have improperly earthed shielded cable vs UTP.
It’s hardly rocket science, A shielded connector is made of 90% metal and 10% plastic, The shielding of the Ethernet cable (Or ground/earth whatever you wanna call it) just has to touch it slightly in order to make contact (So you just leave a little bit of shielding in the end and put it into the connector) See this video tutorial for more information:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpL8jiY0H4I
Also, If you plan on using CAT6, Better get those 2-Piece connectors as I’ve previously suggested.
These videos explain how to crimp a CAT6 connector that has a loading bar:
http://vimeo.com/5840776
Those are not for shielded ones, But you still get the point.
Do keep in mind that it’s slightly harder to crimp a shielded connector (It doesn’t fit as easily
on the crimping tool and requires a bit of force) but other than that, It’s simple enough!
There are different wire order standards for Ethernet wiring (T568A/T568B) which you may
wanna follow, But at the end of the day, You can put em in whatever order you feel like (As long as you
write it down and keep the order identical on both ends!)
Edit: If you plan on using keystone jacks with a wall plate, You might wanna refer to this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z1hE4Xd_nc
Clearly, You’d have to get shielded ones if using a shielded cable!
But doing it directly (Connector>Wire>Connector) would be easier by far.
Thanks Roberto, I appreciate your advice mate.
The earthing in my house is dodgy at best and to make sure every ethernet cable is earthed is likely to be a bigger issue for me btu I’ll defo look into that option as I appreicate it’s the better thing to do.
The earthing in my house is dodgy at best
What on earth are you talking about? (No pun intended!)
You do realize that there’s no correlation whatsoever between grounding RJ45/Keystone Ethernet
jacks and the grounding of your house’s electricity cables, Right? You seem a bit confused on the subject.
Also, If you’re familiar with wiring electricity cables, You might be confused on the need of a grounding bar, I.E:
http://www.homebrella.ca/Gallery/images/II/Ground%20Plate.jpg
This is NOT REQUIRED for shielded (Grounded) Ethernet cables at all!
You ground the jacks only and that’s that. It’s quite simple really.
Edit: One more thing I forgot to mention, If going with a shielded cable, It’s important to have a Router/Switch that supports shielding, Otherwise it’d be pointless. Computer motherboards support it by default, But not all Routers/Switches do. The router you plan on buying is all good in that department (It has a metal plate around the Ethernet inputs):
http://www.techinstyle.tv/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/ac66-router-back.jpg
No idea about the switch as you haven’t specified the model, But you could just run a look up on Google images and see for yourself.
For a quick and simple solution with no need for rewiring, you can also look into powerline networking
http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/buying-advice/network-wifi/3370997/homeplug-powerline-networking-adaptors-buying-advice/