Finally putting together a parts list.

[IkeaGnome]

I've been toying with the idea for updating my home network. Currently it's a modem and a router. I've wanted to do a NAS with all this and that's what's been holding me back. Once I realized I still have an "old" PC in my closet I can set up on FreeNas this morning I started really wanting to push the idea. Here's my "end goal." I'd like to set this all up in the closet of the computer room. House is 11x12 meters. What I would like to do is take the ethernet in from the road and run it through the crawl space to under the closet in the computer room to a switch in the closet. From there it would go to the router for WiFi and out to computers(blue) and TVs(orange). The goal is to have both PCs set up with Ethernet and then ethernet to the TVs. The NAS is mostly going to be for media, old movies and music. I would like to use it as a backup for important files, but that's almost secondary. They're already on the PCs and USB drives. 

My main questions here are where to start. I know I need a 5 port switch to get this to work, but would like an 8 port in case anything else pops up. I own the house so adding holes to walls/new outlets isn't an issue. I mostly don't really know what to look for in a switch. Do I want CAT 6a or 7? I fall within the run distances for all the categories, including the 15m for 100 gb/s. Currently I don't have gigabit internet due to ruralness, but the company I have internet on is working on getting it out to our area so I'd like to be set up for that. 

Besides Switch, Cables, Wall Plates, Cable ends, and a crimp tool is there anything else that I'm missing?

 

[Exidor]

You might want to look for a place where you can rent a tester that can validate the speed of the CAT cable.

Cat 6a and cat 7 is a bit harder to terminate you can terminate and it will run OK at 1gig but wont recognise the cable as 10gig capable and as pulling out a cable is a pain I would just rent a tester.

 

Depending on price difference I would go cat 7 just for the extra insulation. But cat 6a should be fine for up to 10gigs for those distances.

[IkeaGnome]

7 minutes ago, Exidor said:

You might want to look for a place where you can rent a tester that can validate the speed of the CAT cable.

Cat 6a and cat 7 is a bit harder to terminate you can terminate and it will run OK at 1gig but wont recognise the cable as 10gig capable and as pulling out a cable is a pain I would just rent a tester.

 

Depending on price difference I would go cat 7 just for the extra insulation. But cat 6a should be fine for up to 10gigs for those distances.

CAT 7 isn't that much more expensive ($0.28/ft compared to 0.15).

There aren't many businesses or places up here that rent tools that would have them to rent. I was thinking of just getting a Klein set. I've used their tools for years on heavy equipment as far as the crimpers go. I'd rather have the tools, use it once and not need it again, or have it in the house for if I have to do trouble shooting later on. I guess that's the mechanic in me. 

https://www.amazon.com/InstallerParts-Piece-Network-Installation-Tool/dp/B074Y5LQZY/ref=sr_1_26?dchild=1&keywords=cat+7+tester&qid=1611521885&sr=8-26

[Exidor]

I guess on such short runs that is OK.

But that tester basically just tests if there is a signal not if the signal could take 10gigs.

https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/free-whitepaper-testing-10-gigabit-ethernet

 

https://hackaday.com/2016/01/30/is-your-cat-6-ethernet-cable-cat-6-probably-not/

 

https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/what-is-an-excellent-cat6-6a-cable-testing-unit.1303821/

 

https://www.lanshack.com/shielded-cat6a-jack.aspx

If you want it to run at 10gig later it is very easy to mess up termination.

 

 

PS. I learned this the hard way.

I bought a condo built in 2016 supposedly all the cables in the walls are cat 6a non of them can take 10gig luckily it was enough to terminate them better to get them to run at 10gig.

[IkeaGnome]

24 minutes ago, Exidor said:

I guess on such short runs that is OK.

But that tester basically just tests if there is a signal not if the signal could take 10gigs.

https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/free-whitepaper-testing-10-gigabit-ethernet

 

https://hackaday.com/2016/01/30/is-your-cat-6-ethernet-cable-cat-6-probably-not/

 

https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/what-is-an-excellent-cat6-6a-cable-testing-unit.1303821/

 

https://www.lanshack.com/shielded-cat6a-jack.aspx

If you want it to run at 10gig later it is very easy to mess up termination.

 

 

PS. I learned this the hard way.

I bought a condo built in 2016 supposedly all the cables in the walls are cat 6a non of them can take 10gig luckily it was enough to terminate them better to get them to run at 10gig.

All in all it doesn't look that bad. If I can't get a hold of a tester my plan is to make runs, do my terminals, use blinky tester to test. Then since I'll be using an old PC for the NAS, I can use that in Linux with my desktop to test actual speed. I'm not too worried about "perfect" 10 gig speeds. It would be nice, but first try on anything is always a learning experience.

[Exidor]

12 minutes ago, Voluspa said:

All in all it doesn't look that bad. If I can't get a hold of a tester my plan is to make runs, do my terminals, use blinky tester to test. Then since I'll be using an old PC for the NAS, I can use that in Linux with my desktop to test actual speed. I'm not too worried about "perfect" 10 gig speeds. It would be nice, but first try on anything is always a learning experience.

Yea

 

I was a bit shocked as I thought it is the same as 1gig cat 5 but 10gig can really be a pain to work with.

It is a learning experience I was just a bit annoyed that even stuff that is supposed to be cat 6 is really not cat 6......

[IkeaGnome]

Just now, Exidor said:

Yea

 

I was a bit shocked as I thought it is the same as 1gig cat 5 but 10gig can really be a pain to work with.

It is a learning experience I was just a bit annoyed that even stuff that is supposed to be cat 6 is really not cat 6......

Seeeee, that doesn't really surprise me. To me I see that the way I see "re manufactured" parts. The water pump may be "re manufactured" but there's a good chance it was built on a Friday.. I personally care more about the wires being ran correctly and being the right lengths than getting every ounce of speed I can out of them. In reality, I'll probably never use 1gb, at least into the house, and besides transferring movies and files to my NAS. 

[Exidor]

Yea.....

 

Lately just with HDMI 2.1 and the crap shoot that is USB 3.0 everything feels like beta testing..... More so than usual. Or absurd stuff like Tesla saying we will "beta test" self driving on public roads.....

I get triggered every time somebody says Agile..... And there is 0 repercussion usually. Too much of that idiotic StartUp mentality everywhere. It is OK for shit software that nobody really cares about but bringing that into the real world and even worse to critical infrastructure etc. is a bad idea.

 

I mean I know i might not use it but I paid for it.....

 

 

But yea I am ranting just wanted to say that 10gig internet is a lot more murky than normal 1gig lines.