Network Patch Panel in the Utility box... - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

TorqueDog · 07-31-2013, 05:35 PM

So I've moved into a new place that has Ethernet ports in each of the rooms, which is awesome, but I'm trying to get my stuff wired up and it looks like there's been a bit of a mess made in the utility box...

http://torquedog.dyndns.org/pictures/patchclose.jpg
http://torquedog.dyndns.org/pictures/patchfull.jpg

I've linked to the images as I've left them at full size so you can get a good look at what I'm talking about.

Top three blue wires are fully punched down, bottom wires appear to be for voice only. However, there's two that are disconnected and I have no idea how I'm going to make use of this. The patch panel on the right with the RJ45 sockets (what I'm USED to seeing when I think "patch panel") is not connected to anything at all.

I haven't had to mess with this crap since 2006-2007, and don't have any of the tools needed to tone the wires or anything. I'd love to throw the gigabit switch I bought into the utility box and have all the ports talking to each other, but I have no idea what to make of what's in front of me.

Can any of you guys shed some like on what I need to do... OR would anyone be willing to help out a fellow CPer with this?

Violator · 07-31-2013, 06:42 PM

I hate those boxes you can make a tone generator for pretty cheap its hard for me to explain on the internet but you really only need splice connectors.But the best thing to do is trial and error plug all your cables in and just walk from room to room seeing if you have a signal.

TorqueDog · 07-31-2013, 07:48 PM

Well so my question is are all those endpoints going to be able to see each other? Are they, in that configuration, effectively on the same network (similar to if they were all plugged into the same switch)?

Rathji · 07-31-2013, 07:50 PM

Just use a live network device to tone. Laptop on one end and just a switch or something sitting on the other. Plug in and look for link light.

As for putting in a switch, assuming 3 of those ports are currently live, you should be able to put it in and just patch them directly to the switch. Then it is just a matter of punching in the other 2.

If 3 of those ports are not connected, and this is way I assume, then the 2 sides of the device are not connected and you will need to punch in cables in what looks likeThe 6 sets of 8 surrounding the jacks.

Bottom line, find the manual and then RTFM.

Rathji · 07-31-2013, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

Well so my question is are all those endpoints going to be able to see each other? Are they, in that configuration, effectively on the same network (similar to if they were all plugged into the same switch)?

Unless I am mistaken, it is a patch panel, not a switch. At least the right side is. It just provides a way to nicely connect the Cat5 running from your rooms to the switch -with patch cables.

The left side I am not sure, find the model and post here. Maybe someone can find and make sense of the manual.

TorqueDog · 07-31-2013, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rathji

Unless I am mistaken, it is a patch panel, not a switch. At least the right side is. It just provides a way to nicely connect the Cat5 running from your rooms to the switch -with patch cables.

The left side I am not sure, find the model and post here. Maybe someone can find and make sense of the manual.

I figured as much and that's where I'm getting confused too. I'm not sure what purpose that left-side panel serves. The left and right sides are two separate components entirely.

Three more pictures...

The left-side where all the wires are punched down.
http://torquedog.dyndns.org/pictures/leftfront.jpg
http://torquedog.dyndns.org/pictures/leftback.jpg

The 'patch' panel I'm used to seeing which isn't connected to anything at all:
http://torquedog.dyndns.org/pictures/patchfront.jpg

EDIT: Oh goody, so I did some reading up and it looks like whoever did this completely effed it up. According to this thread the Leviton PWB 58141-02 board that the cables are hooked into are for voice only. Basically, I'll need to punch those wires into the right-hand patch panel to get any use out of it.

Rathji · 07-31-2013, 08:16 PM

Go to this website and either call or do the web chat.

I am sure they will be able to answer your questions.

Violator · 07-31-2013, 09:06 PM

I feel ######ed the left side should be phone

BloodFetish · 07-31-2013, 09:25 PM

The left-hand board is for phone. On the backside you can see the traces connecting them all together, so it's a way of having multiple phones share the same line. I would expect your incoming line would be punched down into one slot and then the others would be for the cable runs to phone runs on the wall. Typically the blue pair is used for voice, which equates to the middle pair of conductors in a phone jack. The top three are fully punched down as you say but I expect only the blue pair is actually used.

The good news is you can use any of those blue cables for data - just punch them down on the right-hand side and use a patch cord to make a connection to your switch. You may need to change out the jack on the other end of the run - if it has a RJ11 on it for phone just replace it with a RJ45 for data.

Too bad I'm in Vancouver - looks like a fun job.

oilyfan · 07-31-2013, 09:50 PM

It's pretty typical to run cat 5 for both voice and data these days. The downside in your case looks to be that it seems they only an one cable to each room. That means that you could only have one, phone or data, in each room. The left side is voice and the right is a patch panel for data.

You need a tool like this to punch down cables in the panel http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX3172

And get some cat 5 RJ45 ends to replace in the rooms http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX244

Wiring sequence for cat 5, you want to wire 568B http://crimsonshift.com/make-cat-5-cable/

photon · 07-31-2013, 10:44 PM

Yeah, I didn't worry about the patch panel for the data part and I simply put ends on the cables I used as Ethernet cables and plugged them directly into my router. I don't use the right side at all.

I guess it'd be easier to punch them in and then run a patch cable, but mine's like that where there's 6 ports, and I've got an 8 port switch filled and a couple of cables waiting for when I replace it with the 16 port switch I bought a while back.

Putting on ends is cheaper than expanding the patch panel I'd wager.

TorqueDog · 07-31-2013, 10:48 PM

Just an update, just finished redoing the panel. Bought a punch tool from Memory Express about 10 minutes before they closed.

So whoever touched it last made a REAL mess of it. And it's obvious someone had, as it looked like the wiring had been punched, removed, and re-punched without the ends being cleaned up.
- The only two RJ11 receptacles in the suite were wired as though they were data ports.
- One of the RJ45s meant to carry voice (as evidenced by the wiring of the port on the wall) was also wired as data in the panel. I re-wired the port to do data or voice, but left the panel as voice.
- Two RJ45 outlets were not even wired in the panel (the two wires hanging loose in my photo).

I went around with my notebook and a CAT6 cable to each port and tested it with a switch hooked up in the panel. All of the data ports are now wired and can ping over the network. All of the voice ports can go blow goats, since I don't have any need for analog voice services in the suite, but they'll work should someone ever attempt to use them now.

Oilyfan: There's multiple ports per room.

Kitchen: 2x RJ11 (Voice.)
Bedroom: 2x RJ45 (Both wired as data.)
Living Room & Den: 3x RJ45 (Living room and 1x den are wired as data, 1x den wired as voice for a fax machine.)

That voice module really threw me for a loop. I've never seen one of those before.

Thanks for all the feedback, guys.