rcberg3
join:2009-06-11
| New home office setup. Please comment on feasability
So I'm redesigning my home network which doubles as a home office. Im planning on running cat 6 cabling for everything and basing it off of a comcast 16 Mbps. Essentially the cabling is the only new part aside from a possible gigabit switch which I have placed in the diagram. I want the ability for everything on the network to run at gigabit speeds (except for the wrt and laser printer). The belkin wireless N router that will run as an AP will not be gigabit as it lacks a gigabit WAN port. If anything will not connect at gigabit speeds (other than the fact they lack a gigabit NIC) or is overkill, please let me know. This is my first major networking project in which I incorporate multiple routers and run the cabling. I would appreciate help eliminating anything that I may not need in the network so as to save money. Also let me know if any of the computers may not see any of the printers. |
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DaMaGeINC
The Lan Man
Premium
join:2002-06-08
Greenville, SC
clubs: | Whats the point of gigabit if your running everything off of wireless? |
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JohnDrenZ
Premium
join:2000-04-03
Phoenix, AZ | reply to rcberg3
I would use cat5e instead of cat6, its easier to work with. Why do you need 3 WAP's? Also I see building for the future but gigabit is a bit overkill and like Damage said most of your network is wireless. |
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rcberg3
join:2009-06-11
| reply to DaMaGeINC
said by DaMaGeINC  :Whats the point of gigabit if your running everything off of wireless? The gigabit is for future proofing, but also because there will be some heavy files transfers/streaming off the HTPC which doubles as a file server. I have a few employees who come in, plug into the D-Link at the moment, and do large projects and either keep all of the files on the server or are constantly pulling them off and then putting them back on. The D-Link router signals where the actual office is in this diagram which is about 200 feet away from the HTPC so I figured having a higher starting speed would help if there are any speed degradation along the way.
said by JohnDrenZ
:
I would use cat5e instead of cat6, its easier to work with. Why do you need 3 WAP's? Also I see building for the future but gigabit is a bit overkill and like Damage said most of your network is wireless.
Why is cat5e easier to work with than cat6? From what I read its backwards compatible (for devices with cat 5e) and has the same connector. what makes it harder to work with? The three WAPs are simply because I have them. My house is also old with extremely thick walls and lots of turns that hinder wireless signals. I could probably go without the WRT as a WAP, but since I have it I might as well use it to saturate the signal. |
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Killa200
Premium
join:2005-12-02
Spring City, TN | the harder to work with comments are because its a thicker, tighter twisted cable. Also while cat6 uses the rj-45 connector, its not the same as a rj-45 crimp end you would use on cat 5 / 5e as cat6 has thicker gauge wiring in the bundle. |
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jbcg
join:2001-09-15
Milwaukee, WI
| reply to rcberg3
Properly installed Cat 5e (preferably 350 mhz) will support gigabyte. Cat 6 really doesn't add much to that in a home office environment unless you want to go with Cat 6a (REALLY expensive and tough to work with). Still, it's hard to imagine what a home office user will ever need 10 gigabyte bandwidth for.
Killa's right that Cat 6 is thicker, which can create problems by itself. Plus the tightly wound conductors have to be terminated to preserve the twist as close to the IDC blades as possible and there's usually a heavier jacket and a stiff plastic insert that you have to deal with. Part of the reason some companies use Cat 6 is that it's tougher and survives ham-fisted installers better than Cat 5e.
More info on cable standards: »www.lanshack.com/cat5e-tutorial.aspx
Re: Saturating the signal from multiple waps . . . Possibly there's something I don't understand here, but two waps on the same band (even if they use different channels) are more likely to duke it out in competition than they are to use all the potential bandwidth--especially draft-n waps. Even in a tough environment like yours, you may be better off just running one carefully sited and properly configured (see smallnetbuilder.com) wap. If it were my installation I'd be picking the wap that works best with my laptops and either selling the other on eBay or keeping it as a spare. Keep it simple!
Joey |
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wolfman2g1
join:2008-04-28
Brooklyn, NY
 ·Optimum Online
3 edits | In agreement with what was said before but would like to add that the only real advantage to the second access point would be to segregate you work stuff from your home entertainment stuff but since you have the file server on the same switch it wouldn't make a difference unless you get a managed switch and divide it into two Vlans, does add some complexity to your set up but it will give you the best of both worlds. it's currently how i have my home office set up. yea having more than one access points broadcasting will actually cut your range down so placement is definitely important. my advice for running two or more is don't depend on the auto channel setting manually separate them i usually use channel 2, 4 or 9 since most access point use 1,6 or 11 so that should also help you if you have neighbors close by with their own wireless networks. |
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tantivy
join:2007-03-17
Palo Alto, CA
 ·SONIC.NET
2 edits | reply to Killa200
said by Killa200 :the harder to work with comments are because its a thicker, tighter twisted cable. Also while cat6 uses the rj-45 connector, its not the same as a rj-45 crimp end you would use on cat 5 / 5e as cat6 has thicker gauge wiring in the bundle. Actually none of them are "RJ45" despite what all the IT folks say.. (and this is a pet peeve of mine)
RJ45 (and all other RJxx designations) defines a specific connector, wired in a specific manner, as specified for a specific telephone service. The designations are part of the Universal Service Ordering Codes, which were set up so that the telco's were all on the same page following the breakup of the Bell System. (It might have been earlier than that, but somewhere around that time).
The idea is that the customer can order the same service,anywhere in the country (or for that manner, North America), and know that a device that is specified to connect to a POTS circuit terminated on a RJ11C jack will work with any POTS circuit terminated on a RJ11C jack anywhere in the country.
Ethernet (and Token Ring) do not have RJ designations, because they are not telephone services. The original RJ designations were defined in 47 CFR 68.502. (aka: FCC regulations part 68.502), but are now administered by one of the other standards bodies.
It so happens that RJ45 specifies a 8 position 8 contact keyed modular jack, similar to , but not compatible with the unkeyed 8p8c jack used for ethernet. The wiring pattern is different, requiring only 2 pairs, using pins 4/5, and 7/8. At the wall jack, pins 7/8 are terminated with a resistor, with the value derived from a chart based on the measured loop loss from that jack to the central office. The function is to tell the 2 wire leased line modem what transmit level to set. A properly wired 2 pair RJ45 cable will have connectors that will not physically fit into an ethernet jack (because of the key), and lacks electrical continuity on pins 1/2, 3/6, which are the ones used for 10baseT and 100baseT.
There are multiple RJ designations using the same physical connector, wired in different patterns, which may or may not be electrically compatible with each other.
6p6c - RJ11, Rj12, Rj13, RJ14, RJ25, RJ17 (and others)
8p8c (keyed) - RJ45, Rj47, RJ48 (and others)
8p8c (unkeyed) - RJ61, 10baseT/100baseT, Token Ring, EIA/TIA 568A/B (and others)
For instance, RJ11, RJ12, RJ13, and RJ14 all use the same basic jack (6p6c). RJ11 uses only pins 3/4 for a POTS line. RJ14 uses 3/4, and 2/5 for 2 POTS lines. RJ12 and RJ13 use 3/4 for a POTS line, and 2/5 for A-lead control (basically a contact closure). If you plug a phone wired for RJ12/RJ13 into a jack wired for RJ14, you will short out the second POTS line whenever the phone is taken off-hook. The only difference between RJ12 and RJ13 is which side of the key equipment the POTS line is sourced from.
The IT folks somewhere along the line, saw the 8p8c jacks used in their intended application (probably a leased line modem), and made the assumption that the connectors carried the designation, when in fact the designation defines both physical connector, and wiring.
The same thing happened with "DB-9" connectors, where somebody assumed that the 9 pin D-sub connector carried the same DB-25 designation as it's 25 pin brother.. (it doesn't) The 9 pin D-sub is actually a DE-9, since it uses a size E shell, and contains 9 pins. The common sizes are DA-15, DB-25, DC-37, DD-50, and DE-9, but there are other variations such DB-13W3 (Sun Monitors), etc.
See the ITT Canon catalog if you don't believe me. They were the original manufacturer. My hardcopy dates to 1971, and I have seen earlier editions. They all agree with the current pdf.
It's kind of like calling all bleach "Clorox", all photocopiers "Xerox", and all cola "Coke".
But anyway.. Cat6 is a waste.. it is larger (23 awg instead of 24 awg), the pairs are bonded, making it a pain to terminate, and it's generally a royal PITA. Use cat5e, and be happy, unless you are planning on running 10gigE. |
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ImpetusEra
join:2004-05-19
00000 | reply to rcberg3
Use a quality cat5e and if possible have all your wired equipment connected directly to the core switch rather than to the wireless routers. |
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Killa200
Premium
join:2005-12-02
Spring City, TN | reply to tantivy
hmm, learn something new in my field everyday!
Though I'll still end up using the term rj45 for the connectors..... as its easier to communicate a term to the oblivious than teach them otherwise, lol |
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rcberg3
join:2009-06-11 | reply to rcberg3
thanks for all of the help. It looks like I'm going to have to revisit what I want to do. |
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bilbusb
join:2003-04-10
Tucker, GA | reply to rcberg3
ehh a wrg .. go setup a pfsence box .. those crappy little routers suck . .and lockup |
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