Physical rack cabling technique and ideas for my project

[Gdamato]

Hi all, I recently built a house and had it wired to the max I was able to do. My plan was to have a company run all of my wiring, then I would handle the final pieces and equipment connection myself. I went to school for networking, but I haven’t been involved in the physical aspect since then. I wanted to get some advice on the flow of my wiring into my rack for now and any other nuggets of advice that you guys may have based on what you see.


-They had all of my wiring flow through 2 low voltage panels as you can see. I’m not sure what the point of these panels should be. Thoughts?


-All of the wiring goes down to almost the floor, then pops out of an electrical plate (I’m assuming to keep the wiring in one bundle. Should I come up from the bottom into the rack, or should I come down from the top? My original thought is to pull everything out of the low voltage panel and come down from the top of the rack. I also want to have some slack (nicely bundled and clean) in my wiring so if I need to pull the rack in or out a bit for whatever reason, I’m not in trouble.


ANY thoughts you may have would be appreciated. Links to pics below.


Thanks!

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B2rjYBAzf_q_bkd0elpDX1ZMUmc

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B2rjYBAzf_q_RFhQakVRZGY5ZHM

 

[thiggins]

Not sure there is a right / wrong answer. More a matter of what your approach is.

I agree the panel boxes aren't much use. The first question is whether you're going to use patch panels and if yes, where they will be.

This is an old article, but you might get some tips from it.

 

[CaptainSTX]

Impressive low voltage wiring.

What are all the color/cables for?

White I assume is CATV/Video/, blue is Ethernet, what are the green, yellow and orange for?

 

[thiggins]

Dunno. Could be coded by room or floor.

 

[sfx2000]

Don't forget to invest in a decent PDU - there's a few device 2U UPS's with integrated PDU's that are reasonably priced...

The temporary setup looks pretty scary

 

[L&LD]

I would pull out the wires and put them in from the top of the rack.

Leave a big loop or two (about 3' diameter) of wires above the rack suspended by a padded wire or thick rope. You'll be able to move the rack in and out as needed with minimal stress on the wire.

Agree those panels there don't make much sense, considering the rack you have.

Did the contractors know about the rack you would put in? Or, was that something they weren't aware of?

 

[sfx2000]

In my old Data Center Racks, we always brought wire from the top down...

Always leave some room however at the top of the rack unless you're doing forced air cooling of the rack (unlikely in this environment)...

PDU's went in at the bottom, and a rail along the side - that was a decision made before I arrived, so something I had to live with...

 

[Gdamato]

Not sure there is a right / wrong answer. More a matter of what your approach is.

I agree the panel boxes aren't much use. The first question is whether you're going to use patch panels and if yes, where they will be.

This is an old article, but you might get some tips from it.

Hi Thiggins, thanks for the response. I have a 48 port switch and 2-24 port patch panels I'm planning on mounting in my rack (switch in middle, patch panel on top and bottom). I know if I had 5 guys set this up, it would vary with each person. I'm mainly looking for pros and/or cons based on what you see of my set up before I roll up the sleeves. I just don't want to cut wires and set up and realize I didn't think of something. I'll check out the article, thanks!

 

[Gdamato]

Impressive low voltage wiring.

What are all the color/cables for?

White I assume is CATV/Video/, blue is Ethernet, what are the green, yellow and orange for?

Thanks! I have 3 cat6, 1 cat5 and an RG6 at each TV location. Each are colored differently just to make it easier and quicker to decipher what's what.

 

[Gdamato]

Don't forget to invest in a decent PDU - there's a few device 2U UPS's with integrated PDU's that are reasonably priced...

The temporary setup looks pretty scary

View attachment 6821

Ha! Thank you. The rack actually has a PDU built in, I just have to have power run to the rack as I believe its 220.

 

[Gdamato]

I would pull out the wires and put them in from the top of the rack.

Leave a big loop or two (about 3' diameter) of wires above the rack suspended by a padded wire or thick rope. You'll be able to move the rack in and out as needed with minimal stress on the wire.

Agree those panels there don't make much sense, considering the rack you have.

Did the contractors know about the rack you would put in? Or, was that something they weren't aware of?

Thanks for the tips! Do you have any pics of the loop suspension you're referring to? I'll do a search myself as well. I got the rack probably mid-way during the install, but I think they knew I was getting one. It's probably just the way they always do it and didn't think it through I guess.

 

[Gdamato]

I have some audio and video distribution equipment I'll be installing in the rack as well. Does anyone have an opinion on the placement of my switch in the rack (top, middle, bottom)? Also, I've seen some pictures (like the below link) online showing the use of the low voltage panel/cabinet. I'm not going to remove them so I guess it's not a real issue if I find uses for them later, but I wonder if they installed them for stuff like this...

http://www.averyelectricinc.com/attachments/Image/structured_panel.PNG

 

[L&LD]

Thanks for the tips! Do you have any pics of the loop suspension you're referring to? I'll do a search myself as well. I got the rack probably mid-way during the install, but I think they knew I was getting one. It's probably just the way they always do it and didn't think it through I guess.

You're welcome.

You don't need anything too fancy. Just a big enough loop of the cables that doesn't cause them any stress (when in their normal 'stationary' position and when you infrequently need to move the rack).

A couple of appropriately placed bungee cords or thicker rope would do it.

 

[Gdamato]

You're welcome.

You don't need anything too fancy. Just a big enough loop of the cables that doesn't cause them any stress (when in their normal 'stationary' position and when you infrequently need to move the rack).

A couple of appropriately placed bungee cords or thicker rope would do it.

Thank you, this helps me feel more comfortable about the top down approach and bypassing the low voltage panels. Do you typically use T568A or B? I always thought and used B in the past, but after having researched I'm finding some pretty mixed opinions. Some are saying A is better because it's more compatible with other things nowadays. Thoughts?

 

[L&LD]

Thank you, this helps me feel more comfortable about the top down approach and bypassing the low voltage panels. Do you typically use T568A or B? I always thought and used B in the past, but after having researched I'm finding some pretty mixed opinions. Some are saying A is better because it's more compatible with other things nowadays. Thoughts?

Every cable run can be alternating between A and B, as long as the same cable is consistent at both ends.

Use what you like within your network (I don't know of any real downside).

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Thank you, this helps me feel more comfortable about the top down approach and bypassing the low voltage panels. Do you typically use T568A or B? I always thought and used B in the past, but after having researched I'm finding some pretty mixed opinions. Some are saying A is better because it's more compatible with other things nowadays. Thoughts?

There's no performance difference, even though you read some people thinking that there is. All it is, is switching the green 'n orange pairs. If you do A on one end, and B on the other, you simply have a "crossover cable"..which is pretty much extinct, since part of the gigabit standard is having auto MDI-X done on the network interface (NIC or switch port). So technically these days you can do a network run with A on one end, and B on the other, and the switch or computers NIC will straighten it out. But for being "proper"...you do same type on both ends.

In the United States, "B" is more common.

I prefer patch panels outside of server cabinet...sometimes you have to move cabinets (for maintenance or replacement of items for example). I prefer patch panels fixed on the wall, or in a COM rack, next to the cabinet. Have switch there, or in cabinet, connect devices with 6 footers or whatever is needed.

 

[Gdamato]

There's no performance difference, even though you read some people thinking that there is. All it is, is switching the green 'n orange pairs. If you do A on one end, and B on the other, you simply have a "crossover cable"..which is pretty much extinct, since part of the gigabit standard is having auto MDI-X done on the network interface (NIC or switch port). So technically these days you can do a network run with A on one end, and B on the other, and the switch or computers NIC will straighten it out. But for being "proper"...you do same type on both ends.

In the United States, "B" is more common.

I prefer patch panels outside of server cabinet...sometimes you have to move cabinets (for maintenance or replacement of items for example). I prefer patch panels fixed on the wall, or in a COM rack, next to the cabinet. Have switch there, or in cabinet, connect devices with 6 footers or whatever is needed.

Thank you! My plan to at this point is to keep the patch panels in the rack in an effort to keep everything together. That being said, in your opinion, do you have a rule of thumb as to where to place the switch and patch panels in the rack (top, middle or bottom)? I need to read through my other equipment to determine the main "flow" of cabling so it makes as much sense as possible from a layout perspective. Just wanted to know if you had any opinions on the placement for any particular reason I may not have thought of.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

I guess if I had to patch in a full height server cabinet, I'd have the patch panels up top. Less cable crossings that have to be done, and no power cables have to be near them or going through/next to them

From top to bottom,
Patch Panel
Switch(s)
Router
Server(s)
APCs (cuz heavy)