Ethernet Standards

[RoofTops]

I am planning to run some ethernet cabling around my house. The current system uses normal cables which came with plugs on the end to link it all together but I now want to run a cable to the other end of the house. My plan is to fit a wall socket at each end and then connect the two with a run of cable. I already have the tool for connecting the wires into the sockets but when I come to look at the available cables etc there are a range of standards.

My current system has a 100mbs switch in it and it runs at 95% capacity when doing a back up so I plan to replace it with a Gigabit switch in due course - so the cabling needs to be of a suitable standard.

When I look at possible suppliers, e.g. http://www.cablemonkey.co.uk/acatalog/cat6modularoutlets.html There are Cat 5e, Cat 6, Cat 6a standards. Is there much of a difference? Do they all use the same size plugs and sockets?

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[region2]

Wireless is less disruptive and Wireless N beats Cat 5...

At the risk of incrementing my external link count here's a link to some good advice: http://www.broadbandutopia.com/caandcaco.html

R2

 

[RoofTops]

Forgot to mention I have a wall in my house wireless simply won't go through. With the router (tried 3 different sorts including the latest 300mbs N one) on one side I can just about pick up a signal a few inches away on the other side.

There is a technology using a bridge which allows you to have 2 separate wireless networks in the same house which is a possibility but gigabit ethernet cabling looks as if it would be a simpler solution as the wired connection will work in the office with the wireless bit doing the rest of the house which is the other side of the Great Wall.

But thanks for the lonk - sounds like Cat 6 is the way to go if I stick with wires.

 

[fatshark]

Bridging is still wireless so might not get through. We resorted to running the wired network over the mains cable for the furthest extremes of the house. Works pretty well.

In the office they're switching over to gigabit and aren't replacing any cables or connections, just the switches/hubs. I suspect most of the current cables 5/5e are perfectly OK - see here for comparisons.

 

[region2]

Ethernet over mains works well - came as standard with our BT Vision setup...

R2

 

[Poly Hive]

What about running it via your mains cabling?

http://www.broadbandbuyer.co.uk/Shop/ShopSearch.asp?CategoryID=256

PH

 

[alanf]

Cat 5, 5e, 6 and 6a are increasing specs for more demanding capacity. They are all backwards compatible, that is the plugs work. However the whole cable run will only operate at the speed of the lowest link, a higher rating for your fixed cable will give only a marginal improvement if you keep using that ratty old patch cable.

Gigabit Ethernet should have cat 6. It should be printed or moulded on each cable, otherwise it needs test equipment to tell the difference. The increased spec is intended to reduce electrical noise, so broadly has better insulation and thicker wire. If you are doing your own wiring you should be aware that kinks and angles in the cable and untwisting pairs in the sockets can easily reduce the effective standard too. Don't run cable where it can be snagged or worn and use conduit, don't tack it to the skirting. Wall sockets look neat, but if you only have one I'd consider a prewired extension as a cost effective alternative that reduces the number of plug/socket links in the chain.

A short straight run will always have a greater capacity than a long cable on a kinked path past other electrical kit. If you have existing cat 5 it might be possible to upgrade sections, but for new cabling the time and money is in the cable run. Saving a couple of quid by installing less than cat 6 makes little sense.

By the way, absolutely 100% right going for cable. Wireless and mains adaptors are only quick fixes or niche uses for smartphones etc. They are subject to increasing problems as everyone and his dog starts using the frequencies. If the route is at all practical, cable wins every time.

 

[wightbees]

Just remember that if you dont have the same strengh parts that it will only run a the lower speed,so a 100 Mega bits second will not run at that speed if you have say lower Mbs parts.

 

[fiftyjon]

Installing Cat6 would be the way to go, avoiding running close to mains etc.
Agree with alanf.

We have used Gigabit networks on Cat5 & Cat5e cabling without issues, but installing new cable runs, Cat6 cable would be the choice.

The RJ45 connector is the same for UTP 10/100/1000 MB/s and are backwards compatible.

 

[RoofTops]

Thank for the replies. Maplin seem best for cable - they will sell Cat 6 by the metre - unless anyone knows of alternative suppliers? I tried a local electrical factor but they would only sell me a reel at vast cost, they wouldn't do it by the metre.

I have tried broadband over the mains but it was not very succesful - but the ones I bought were cheap low speed ones so newer ones would I am sure work better but for simplicity and reliability I don't think anything beats wires.

 

[Poly Hive]

Not so sure about your wall as this building is 1850 with some decent walls and with a booster we have wireless throughout all the rooms. If you could borrow one to run a trial it may save you some grief? The booster is really for the two outside rooms, the furthest being some 50m from the booster ariel.


PH

 

[region2]

What make'n'model is your 'booster'?

R2

 

[RoofTops]

The problem with the wall is what it is made of. It is an outside wall - or was before the extension was built and is made of two layers of block which produce black dust when you drill into it. My guess is they may be made out of something like power station ash and have a lot of carbon in them. It is more or less impervious to wireless signals - we have tried the BT Home Hub, the Netgear 384 and now a TP-Link 300N and with each the signal the other side of the wall is more or less zero. With a laptop or any other device held up to the wall you get a bare one bar of signal and this with the router a few inches away from the other side. Move to another room and there is no signal at all.

We got round it for years with an aerial remoted into the attic from the Netgear 384 but that router can't cope with the recent upgrade to ADSL 2+ round here. It works for a while but then keeps cutting out. Apparently it is a common problem and relates simply to the design which is getting a bit old now.

The plan now is to move the new 300N router into the house and run wires to my office as that doesn't need wireless.

 

[alanf]

The plan now is to move the new 300N router into the house and run wires to my office as that doesn't need wireless.

Once you have a wire through the barrier you can have a router/wireless access point both sides if that's what you need at some point in the future. You could even re-use the Netgear if you are happy with it.

 

[rae]

Done this at home....and at work.

Gigabit will work fine of Cat5E. Really it will. As long as you stay below 100 meters or so, it will be perfect. Maplin is expensive, generally an electrical factors will be cheaper.

If you are doing backups over the network and are hitting 90+ Mbit, then forget wireless and powerline stuff. Plugging a gigabit switch into your existing wiring will work fine.

if you are going to wire up properly, focus on the access, not the wire. Use 22mm blue pipe to give you clear access to the wall plates - that way when people are running Cat10 (or fibre or whatever is invented next), you can simply pull the cables out, and replace them with the new technology.

Always put dual port wall plates in. They are no bigger, and give you more options. There are precious few "home PCs" that can actually drive a Gbit network properly. Unless you have solid state drives, the hard drive will be the limiting factor for any large transfers.

 

[RoofTops]

This is just an update as to what I did in the end.

Fitted new 300N router inside the main house - in my eldest son's built-in wardrobe, but as he is rarely here I don't think it will fry his brain too much.

From the router I ran a Cat 6 ethernet cable, using Cat 6 sockets at each end, through the attic space and then through the cavity wall into the extension, where my office is. Here it is plugged into a 10/100 switch from which other cables go to my pc, the printer and a Netgear NAS which is is used as a back up device. An improvement might be to move the NAS next to the router so if my office burns down it might survive - and vice versa, but it will do for the moment.

The whole system is not of course gigabit yet but at least I have made a start.

While I was doing this I came across an article on how to use an old wireless router to provide a second wireless network. The article describes a different router to mine (Netgear 834G) but with a bit of digging around in the admin pages I was able to get it running and providing another wireless network in my office, separate from the one in the main part of the house.

The main thing to do is change its IP address from the default, which clashed with the new router, and disable the DHCP server function. You are also supposed to switch off the firewall but I couldn't find an option for that but so far it all seems to be working fine. The article is at this link: http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1...er_as_a_diy_wireless_access_point/index3.html

It should take you to page 3 where the nitty gritty starts. But then you all turn to page 3 anyway...

 

[alanf]

While I was doing this I came across an article on how to use an old wireless router to provide a second wireless network. The article describes a different router to mine (Netgear 834G) but with a bit of digging around in the admin pages I was able to get it running and providing another wireless network in my office, separate from the one in the main part of the house.

The main thing to do is change its IP address from the default, which clashed with the new router, and disable the DHCP server function. You are also supposed to switch off the firewall but I couldn't find an option for that but so far it all seems to be working fine.

Good start.

Your Netgear 834G is actually several devices in one, it's a switch, router, network access point, dhcp server, firewall, Nat server, ADSL modem and probably others I have forgotten. It should be possible to run all or any as required.

You have worked out a configuration that works which shows you have a good idea of the basics. Main message now is to make only small changes and make sure you can revert each. Backup where you can, proceed slowly. A good principle is to allocate addresses to anything you want to reach reliably. That's routers, printers, NAS devices. Usual practice is to reserve a range for that such as 192.168.0.1 to 192.168.0.15 and set your DHCP allocation for another range, say 192.168.0.16 to 192.168.0.254, for laptops, smartphones or anything else where a fixed address isn't needed. 255.255.255.0 would be the mask, and as you found only one DHCP server per subnet because duplicate addresses are always trouble.