ACTIVITY 1 Cabling Connection and installation

1. Plan for network connections-There are certain design considerations that need to be
addressed based on your needs.
a. Which room(s) do I want wired?
b. How many ports do I want in each location?
c. What is a good location for distribution?
d. What path should the cables take?
e. What network speed do I need? This will mainly play a part in what kind of switch
to get.

Step 2: Required Tools and Materials (and Costs)

Your tools and materials (and costs) can vary a lot based on your needs and what you already
have. I borrowed a lot of the following tools, but here's a very basic, estimated breakdown:

Tools
a) Ethernet crimping tool (only if you're putting plug on the ends). Cost: $13 on Amazon.
b) Drill (primarily for drilling through wall top plates, but makes screwing faster too). Cost:
varies (I already had one).
c) Square Ruler
d) Pointed hand saw (this makes it easy to cut holes for the gang boxes/wall plates). Cost:
usually around $15.
e) Strong string or a fish tape.
f) Label maker (optional).
g) Pencil.
h) Sharpie-type marker.
i) Ruler.
CPIC-CSS NC II Page 1 of 8
 j) Stud finder.
k) Punchdown tool (optional). I used a small screwdriver instead.
l) Laptop or cable tester (to test each drop).
Materials:

a) 1000' spool Cat5e or Cat6, Cat6 recommended (more or less based on your need).
b) Single Gang Retrofit Boxes (the kind that clamp to the drywall, open back).
c) RJ45 Jacks and plates (get what you need, maybe an extra or two).
d) RJ45 plugs (optional).
e) Plastic grommet (optional, makes the cabling look professional).
f) Patch panel (optional, another professional touch).
g) Ethernet switch.
h) Router (optional, may be required by you ISP). I already had one, and most of you
probably will too.
i) Velcro strips for cable management (optional).
j) Short patch cables

Step 3: Mount the Wall Plates

Once you've decided where to mount the box, you need to draw the lines on the wall to
fit the new box and cut the hold with the pointed hand saw. The pointed saw should be
able to push through the dry wall pretty easily without the need to drill starter holes.

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 2 of 8
Once you have the hole cut in the wall, you can put the single gang box into the hole
and screw the clamps with hold it in place by clamping to the back of the dry wall.
Repeat this for each location that you want to run to.

At this time you'll also want to cut a hole in the wall in the distribution room. Here you
want to cut a hole that the plastic grommet will fit into.
Step 5: Connect the Wires to the Jacks and Patch Panel

Now we've got the cables run we can punch down the cables to the patch panel and the
to jacks. You can take the raw cable directly out of the wall, put a RJ-45 plug on it, and
plug directly into the switch. But for permanent installation.

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 3 of 8
Most patch panels and jacks have diagrams with wire color diagrams for the common
T568A and T568B wiring standards.

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 4 of 8
UTP Installation Do's And Don'ts.
Run all cables in a Star Configuration so that all network links are distributed from, or homerun to,
Do one central hub. Visualize a wagon wheel where all of the spokes start from on central point,
known as the hub of the wheel.

Keep Each cable run must be kept to a maximum of 295 feet (90 meters), so that with patch cords,
Do
the entire channel is no more than 328 feet (100 meters). This is a requirement of the standard.

Maintain the twists of the pairs as close as possible to the point of termination, or no more than
Do
0.5"(one half inch) untwisted.

Do Not Skin off more than 1" of jacket when terminating UTP

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 5 of 8
 Make only gradual bends in the cable where necessary to maintain the minimum bend radius of 4
Do
times the cable diameter or approximately 1" radius (about the roundness of a half-dollar).

Allow the cable to be sharply bent, twisted, or kinked at any time. This can cause permanent
Do Not
damage to the geometry of the cable and cause transmission failures.

Do Dress the cables neatly with Velcro cable ties, using low to moderate pressure.

Do Not Over tighten cable ties or use plastic ties.

Cross-connect cables (where necessary), using appropriately rated punch blocks and
Do
components.

Do Not Splice or bridge UTP cable at any point. There should never be multiple appearances of cable.

Use low to moderate force when pulling cable. The standard calls for a maximum of 25 lbf (pounds
Do
of force).

Do Not Use excessive force when pulling cable.

Use cable pulling lubricant for cable runs that may otherwise require great force to install. (You will
Do
be amazed at what a difference the cable lubricant will make)

Use oil or any other lubricant not specifically designed for UTP network cable pulling as they can
Do Not
infiltrate the cable jacket, causing damage to the insulation.

Keep UTP cables as far away from potential sources of EMI (electrical cables, transformers, light
Do
fixtures, etc.) as possible. Cables should maintain a 12-inch separation from power cables.

Do Not Tie cables to electrical conduits, or lay cables on electrical fixtures.

Do Install proper cable supports, spaced no more than 5 feet apart.

Install cable that is supported by the ceiling tiles. This is unsafe, and is a violation of the building
Do Not
codes.

Do Always label every termination point at both ends. Use a unique number for each network link.
This will make moves, adds, changes, and troubleshooting as simple as possible. The TIA-606A
administration standard provides guidance for properly labeling an installation.

Always test every installed segment with a cable tester. "Toning" alone is not an acceptable test..
Do
"Toning" alone, is not an acceptable test.

Do Always install jacks in such a way as to prevent dust and other contaminants from settling on the
contacts. The contacts (pins) of the jack should face up on flush mounted plates, or left, right, or
down (never up) on surface mount boxes.

Do Always leave extra slack neatly coiled up in the ceiling or nearest concealed place. It is
recommended that you leave at least 5 feet of slack at the work outlet end, and 10 feet of slack at
the patch panel end.

Do Not Never install cables taught. A good installation should have the cables loose, but never sagging.

Always use grommets to protect cable when passing through metal studs or anything that can
Do
possibly cause damage.

Choose either 568A or 568B wiring scheme before you begin your project. Wire all jacks and patch
Do
panels for the same wiring scheme (A or B).

Do Not Mix 568A and 568B wiring on the same installation.

Use staples on UTP cable that crimp the cable tightly. The common T-18 and T-25 cable staples
Do Not
are not recommended for UTP cable. However, the T-59 insulated staple gun is ideal for fastening
(1 exception)
both UTP and fiber optic cabling, as it does not put any excess pressure on the cable.

Always obey all local and national fire and building codes. Be sure to firestop all cables that
Do
penetrate a firewall. Use plenum rated cable where it is mandated.

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 6 of 8
Once you have all the cables connected, you can mount the patch panel to the wall and
click the jacks into their respective wall plates on the other ends. You can also screw the
wall plates into the gang boxes.

Step 6: Test Your Connections

Before you start connecting most of the network components, you want to test all of the
connections to be sure things are working. This can be done a number of ways. If you
actually have a network tester, then you probably know what you're doing.

The next step is to take another patch cable and a laptop and plug it into each port in
each room. Check the switch after each port and verify the "link" indicator is on. Being
able to establish a link tests the physical layer (i.e. no broken wires, all tight crimps, no
crossed wires), as well as the data link layer (i.e. negotiation between network card and
switch port). No IP addressing or anything needed for testing.

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 7 of 8
Pictured above: Neat and clean labels for each port actually go where they say they do.
MB = Master Bedroom, SB = Second Bedroom, etc.

Step 7: Connect to the Internet

CPIC-CSS NC II Page 8 of 8