<< Too many contrary people with their fingers in the pudding doesn't help. I stand by my original advice as a professional installer and yes I also have significant experience with RF systems. >>
Not quite sure how to take the first bit, since the whole reason people post here is to get advice, and different perspectives. The fact that someone has a different idea about the best solution for a given situation (keeping in mind the amount of info that has been offered so far by the original poster) doesn't make them "contrary," unless you just can't stand listening to what anyone else has to say.
You are correct from the perspective of the interception of wireless systems vs. wired cabling. But anyone determined enough can still get access to the wiring plant if they are truly determined to compromise a network. I still think this is a moot point in the end, since security is NOT a concern, as demonstrated by the poster's own words, which I'll quote in the rest of this post.
I'm gonna try to bring all this back to what the original poster related, point by point, and explain my POV about this PARTICULAR situation:
<< a 52 room hotel...planning on wiring it for eathernet access >>
52 rooms. Important number to KIM.
<< thinking about getting some kind of router and haveing 3 switches each 24 port >>
total of 72 ports available by my math. Prolly something like 70 or less free for guest connections. NO way they can wire for multiple connections in every room, unless they plan to do a lot of switching of patch cables. Administrative cost, which is definitely NOT desired as evidenced in other comments to follow.
I'll stop here a minute and say that the original poster DOES have wired in mind, no question. But from my perspective, depending on the layout of the hotel and the rooms, etc. etc. wireless may be more feasible, from a cost, management and maintenance perspective.
<< Most of the customers are business so we are not worried about wear and tear, most people are gentel. >>
This is a HUGE point. chiwawa's profile says "Silicon Valley, CA," so if his uncle's hotel is anywhere near there (don't know if it is or not), they can probably count on a more advanced business traveler. The current growth of public access 802.11b networks--in hotels, restaurants, airports, what-have-you--makes a stronger case for looking at that now, rather than the investment in a wired network. That type of traveller might have seen wired Ethernet as advanced even as recent as, say, 3-5 years ago, but the attention is on wireless right now. And remember, this isn't planned to be a service that is charged for. It's more a PR draw, probably to attract a savvier, more affluent business clientele, and to kinda "Keep up with the Joneses."
They aren't worried about wear-and-tear (and I wouldn't presume to 2nd guess their direct knowledge of the damage levels they have seen historically), which is good from the perspective of the issue of jack abuse. But what about the guest who likes to work in bed? Or the one who like to work at the desk? Or from an in-room couch? How do you wire the rooms to meet all these different preferences? That's just 3 preferences, for 1 room. My math calculates that as 156 ports, which is many more than what chiwawa mentioned. Unless they plan to swap patch cables in and out, which would fly in the face of your own statement <<It's gotta be easy for the greatest majority of guests and low maintenance and hassle to the hotel staff.>> This issue of maintenance is entirely my point!
If you don't wire for preferential spots, then there most likely WILL be jacks ripped out of the wall, or laptops flying to the floor as folks trip over long snarled cables...
<< i belive it will be free so no need in managing who gets on or not >>
This throws any issues of access control out the window IMMEDIATELY. No need to worry with security, either, for the guest network. This also hints that the cost of management should be minimal, since as mentioned before this network by itself will not generate additional revenue for the owner through extra charges.
<< I was thinking netgear for the router and what about the switches? Ive seen switches from dell starting at 200 and ive seen switches for 800 >>
These choices definitely highlight a need to keep costs down as much as possible. We don't even know what type of Internet connection we are talking about at this hotel. With the choice of a netgear router, we are most likely talking about simple NAT, but unsure if the device supports multiple IPSec pass-through sessions (since remote VPN connections are very popular). The choice of switches also trends toward the lower end (not SOHO tho, which is good).
<< main traffic on this network will be just basic email/web-browsing. >>
This expectation also supports my point, since minor degradations in signal would not materially interfere with guest's ability to use it for those purposes. If they choose to pass traffic in cleartext over their connections, whether wireless or wired, they have made the choice, not the hotel.
My advice to chiwawa is simply this: Give the customers what they want. Don't reject one choice over another because of a certain feeling one way or the other. Maybe your uncle should survey guests about which they would prefer...wired or wireless? And if they would be willing to pay a nominal fee? Or maybe even if any kind of networking service at all would change their minds about staying there and referring others?
If this has already been done, that's GREAT! Because it means the focus is delivering some type of value to the customers, so that they will in turn reward the hotel for that value (more business, etc.). And those responses should then determine the decision, not what some folks who spend entirely too much time arguing about networking minutiae and the relevance of their own professional qualifications say.
Justin: I'll end by saying you seem to be focusing on several issues--which to my eyes aren't really in play--that get resolved using large $$$ with equipment, facilities and management at an enterprise level. I also don't see that kind of $$$ in play here when looking at the original post. Worse, such focus may not take into account how customers prefer to access such services.
BTW: My final post on this thread, so any last words are yours for the taking. And, welcome to AT!
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