Home Network Advice

[facetman]

Hi Guys- Tired of my kids whining about the wi-fi cutting out or getting slow occasionally (bedrooms only have wi-fi currently so they are gaming on wi-fi signal) - so I am now going to wire the house for a home network. I don't know why the internet it is cutting out as sometimes it comes back quickly, other times you have to reset the modem or the wireless or both, and other times you have to unplug th epower to the modem/router for 5 minutes then reset. This network will also solve another issue as I will be dropping Direct TV in February, but currently have no internet to my main floor TV viewing area. So with the new network I will have wired internet in that area for a new smart TV or Blue ray player or PC or all the above and will be able to watch movies, shows, etc via internet.


I will have the modem and router in the basement and run cat6 to the bedroom and other rooms in the basement directly via the drop ceiling. I will then then run 2 Cat6 wires to main floor inside the walls to study and multi-media tv area . TO get to the second floor I will have to go outside by running 3 cat6 wires out of basement into a PVC pipe that will run up the side of the house into to the attic and then run the wires individually down into the second floor walls to the three bedrooms- to a wall outlets.

Main questions are:

1) Need a good network switcher ( need 8 ports GB at least)
2) Current internet provider is Comcast - would like to buy a modem rather than renting theirs - their modem may be part of the problem- but I don't know for certain.
3) Need new router - my ASUS 660 maybe part of the problem it is 3 years old
4) suggestions on Internet tv services/plug in adapters, etc.

So far , the best place I have found to get the cat6 cable is at Mono price- other suggestions?

What is the max length of Cat 6 you can run without degrading the signal? I figure the longest I will have to run will be less than 100 feet.

How hard is it to make your own custom length Cat6? or should I just buy it long and not use all of it? ie) 4 x 50 foot and 3 x 100 foot lengths with ends already installed. This way I could also get different colors so know which is which for plugin into the switcher is easier.

50 foot = Cat6 Straight Cables - 50ft - Monoprice.com

100 foot = Cat6 Straight Cables - 100ft - Monoprice.com

Thanks in advance guys.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Netgear makes decent 5, 8, and 16 port gigabit switches - the ones with the blue metal cases.

You can certainly buy a modem. Motorola Surfboards are pretty populat. I have a 6121, but there are definitely newer models.

ASUS 660? You mean a 66U? Those are good routers.

No suggestions on internet TV - I just use Netflix mostly.

Monoprice is fine for cabling. Keep maximum runs over 300 feet. (100 is fine.) If you've never crimped your own cables, it's probably better/safer to buy pre-made if you can afford to; might save you some frustration later if you make some cables that are only sort of okay but fail later.

Color coding is fine, but I recommend labeling them anyway.

 

[pauldun170]

This little fella has served me well for quite some time. Bought it for 20 bucks on sale.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833156251
If you want to go nuts, here is the 16 port model http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...9SIA24G1729389

As for the router, there are some great options on the market with some decent sales out there.
What do you currently have?
With a couple of Asus routers, you may need to take some canned air and blow it out. Certain models run hot to begin with and with age and dust they end up overheating and become unstable. Many times, blowing the crap out of to clear dust helps.

 

[facetman]

Sorry guys my router is a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833320062

Definitely want the high level Gigabyte speed ports - so Pauldun170 your second link was only 10/100, not 10/100/1000 - so that wont work. I am trying to future proof as much as possible without going crazy. Hence the Cat6 and not Cat5 cable. I will check into the first link more.

What the difference in the managed vs unmanaged switchers?

 

[pauldun170]

Sorry guys my router is a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833320062

Definitely want the high level Gigabyte speed ports - so Pauldun170 your second link was only 10/100, not 10/100/1000 - so that wont work. I am trying to future proof as much as possible without going crazy. Hence the Cat6 and not Cat5 cable. I will check into the first link more.

What the difference in the managed vs unmanaged switchers?

Oops, thought I had the filter set on the search results. No wonder that 16 port switch was so cheap.

For home network, think of an unmanaged switch as set it and forget it.
With a managed switch, you can go in and configure things things like traffic or vpn or things that really don't matter on a simple home network.
For cabling
CAT5 - Skip
CAT5E - The common goto cable.Good for gigabit speeds.
Cat6 - That's when you start getting into 10gb
Then you start getting into CAT6a which is mainly for snobs.

If I had to choose between Cat5e and Cat6 for install (in the walls) I'd go with 6.
From the wall to PC\HUB or anything I can unplug and move, I'd go with plain old cheapo CAT5E.
Considering the cost difference is fairly small I would even go for cat6 but usually I find cat5e on sale.

 

[matricks]

As you mention future proofing, and you need 8 ports now, you should consider buying 16 ports while you're at it. You never know what you might want to connect in your network. Printers, cameras, radios, consoles, computers, network storage, TV, lightbulbs... And if you'll connect all of that by wireless, you'll eventually need more access points that will work a lot better with wired connections than wireless-to-wireless transmission.

I would also buy a managed switch as the "core switch" of the network, but others wouldn't, and that's fine. I would want the ability to segment my network, but not everyone does.

 

[facetman]

Since I don't even know what "segmenting" the network is - I should probably not even try that. Maybe 16 port is a good idea though - I had not added in printers.

Someone mentioned a cable that is better against interference - Cat6 STP - anybody heard of that?


EDIT: OK Sounds like the Cat6 STP cable will be better for the longer 100 foot runs since they will be running parallel most of the time.

SO will need 3 of these: http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=102&cp_id=10232&cs_id=1023216&p_id=5907&seq=1&format=2

So far cable costs = 1) 6 x 50 foot Cat6 cable= 6 x $8 = $50
2) 3 x 200 foot Cat6 STP = 3 X $29 = $100

Total= $150

Found a wall plate that sounds perfect:

http://www.amazon.com/RiteAV-Shielde.../ref=pd_cp_e_1

Will need 7 of these : 7 x $14 = $100

So far $250 without switch box, modem, or Router.

Router = since I am now building a wired network, I should not need a AC wireless router- correct? I don't think I have a single item that could make use of the a/c speed anyhow. So, something reliable with dual 5 and 2.4 should be fine.

Router = Asus RT-N66U = Walmart for $120

 

[pauldun170]

Since I don't even know what "segmenting" the network is - I should probably not even try that. Maybe 16 port is a good idea though - I had not added in printers.

Someone mentioned a cable that is better against interference - Cat6 STP - anybody heard of that?


EDIT: OK Sounds like the Cat6 STP cable will be better for the longer 100 foot runs since they will be running parallel most of the time.

SO will need 3 of these: http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=102&cp_id=10232&cs_id=1023216&p_id=5907&seq=1&format=2

So far cable costs = 1) 6 x 50 foot Cat6 cable= 6 x $8 = $50
2) 3 x 200 foot Cat6 STP = 3 X $29 = $100

Total= $150

Found a wall plate that sounds perfect:

http://www.amazon.com/RiteAV-Shielde.../ref=pd_cp_e_1

Will need 7 of these : 7 x $14 = $100

So far $250 without switch box, modem, or Router.

Router = since I am now building a wired network, I should not need a AC wireless router- correct? I don't think I have a single item that could make use of the a/c speed anyhow. So, something reliable with dual 5 and 2.4 should be fine.

Router = Asus RT-N66U = Walmart for $120

if you are hard wiring everything your current router is going to have less load to deal with. Also you can now move that router anywhere you want. Before you get a new router, try blowing out the current one and maybe a factory reset. Move it to dead center of the house or the main area where folks spend most of the time staring at their phones.

 

[brshoemak]

For ease of installation what you're considering is probably the way to go.

The usual method involves using bulk cable (no ends), running it through the house (usually two runs per wall location), and punching it down to keystone jacks on the wall and into a patch panel on the other end. For each jack, you'd have to punch down 8 separate small wires into the back of a keystone jack. Keep in mind that the bulk cable, wall plates, CAT5E jacks, etc. are MUCH cheaper and give more flexibility than the pre-made wall plates you linked along with the pre-terminated patch cables.

However, with the upside of flexibility comes with the downside that it's obviously more complicated than just plugging in pre-made cables into RJ45 jacks. If you're looking for just one jack per room then the setup you're considering is fine.

*Quick side note: Don't ever terminate/crimp UTP (CAT5/CAT5E/CAT6/etc.) cable into RJ45 plugs. It will only end in heartache. This isn't just for you, as much as anyone reading this thread.

 

[billyb0b]

For ease of installation what you're considering is probably the way to go.

The usual method involves using bulk cable (no ends), running it through the house (usually two runs per wall location), and punching it down to keystone jacks on the wall and into a patch panel on the other end. For each jack, you'd have to punch down 8 separate small wires into the back of a keystone jack. Keep in mind that the bulk cable, wall plates, CAT5E jacks, etc. are MUCH cheaper and give more flexibility than the pre-made wall plates you linked along with the pre-terminated patch cables.

this

and if you've never done it before you can watch a few videos online on how to do it. it's quite simple, just takes a bit of attention to detail

you can practice on making cables and terminating them with the bulk stuff you buy.

overall a much more $$$ effective method of running ethernet in the home

 

[Carson Dyle]

Is going outside the only way you can get to your attic? If your attic has an electrical outlet, something you can do is make just one run of Ethernet cabling to the attic, place another switch up there and branch out from that one run.

If done correctly (avoiding sharp bends and twists, avoiding running parrallel with electrical wiring, proper termination) you can have Ethernet runs of up to 100 meters, so I'm not sure there's any call for STP. But if you do go with STP, make sure you do some research into its installation. I've never installed it, but I don't believe its nearly as easy or forgiving as UTP. IIRC, you need to pay careful attention to grounding the shielding, or its benefit is lost.

 

[matricks]

Since I don't even know what "segmenting" the network is - I should probably not even try that. Maybe 16 port is a good idea though - I had not added in printers.

Someone mentioned a cable that is better against interference - Cat6 STP - anybody heard of that?

Segmenting is simply to have several small network (segments), as opposed to a single network where everyone can reach everyone. Very common in business environments. As I said I see some benefits for home networks too, but I like to play around with these kind of things, and have fun overdoing my home network.

If STP cables don't cause budget trouble, you may as well use it. I'm not sure you will notice a practical difference unless you live in a very noisy environment, or run your cables in coils around your kitchen appliances. It may not make a difference, but it certainly won't hurt (and if anyone says it does, read up on the antenna myth and mythbusting of shielded cabling).

 

[facetman]

OK thanks everybody.