Cat5e Wiring

[oolon]

Here are some different kinds of cable, LSZH for inside, external for out. In general you use a solid cable for fixed runs, and a stranded cables for fly leads. I have used this place in the past for my cabling needs. LSZH cable is bright purple, so you need to hide it or will have to paint it.

[peterb]

LSZH (Low Smoke, Zero Halogen) isn't essential for domestic installations - it is specified (for example) in marine installations, and office/industrial installations, especially where the cable isn't run in ducting or trunking.

Conventional PVC (Poly Vinyl Chloride) or PTFE (PolyTetraFluoroEthylene) contain (as you might guess from the names) halogens, which form dense acid smoke on combustion. Not a good idea when it is a large installation in a confined space. However these considerations are unlikely to arise in domestic situations.

[dave87]

I may have gone a bit overboard, but this is the home network setup I've created:

http://forums.hexus.net/hexus-hardwa...style-wip.html


Essential bits of advice:

Where you can run one cable, run two, perhaps four.
Where you think you need a couple of ports now, think how the room might change - leave enough slack to either move it, or cater for both options.
If you are thinking of using it for other things - i.e. video/audio distribution, flood wire - ie double/triple what you currently use for data. This will allow expansion if required.
Use a patch panel or wall ports in the main room, or node 0. This will make it a lot easier to wire.
Gigabit is nice, however not everything runs at GbE, nor does everything need to. A small GbE switch and a larger 10/100 will give more flexibility and less cost.

Otherwise, have fun. I've done networking bits before in larger installs, but this was the first time designing, planning, installing and configuring without any other input. There are probably a couple of things I'd do differently, but due to planning it to the greatest level of detail, not a lot, nor very important things....

[killie99]

A mountain of information here