Category Archives: Cabling

Organizations and their data centers have come to recognize that structured cabling is the foundation of network infrastructure. As time passes, they will look for methods to make their structured cabling designs work with more efficiency and functionality. This article will discuss the emerging trends for data center cabling in 2018.

Cloud Integration

The industry is seeking ways to further integrate cloud technology with structured cabling. Data centers are gravitating to affordable and effective cloud products that improve performance, enable expansion, ensure security, and handle big data. In addition, business owners are upgrading their data cabling with copper and fiber technologies. 

Now that your business is ready to install new cabling or perform an upgrade, you will be meeting with a cabling installation company that has been vetted to discuss the project. Typically, the contractor will ask several standard questions to gain a good understanding of the project and make an evaluation. The questions are organized under topics and discussed in the paragraphs below.

Moving

When does your business plan to move? If the move is in the next two months, have arrangements been made for the phone or T1 lines with the telecommunications provider?

Although this is a key component when moving an office, many companies neglect it. Some telecoms need a 45-day notice for a T1 installation, so your move must take this into account.

Voice and Data Drops

What will be the number of voice and data drops required? A drop is a cable run usually starting from a server room or wiring closet and terminating at a cubicle, workstation, or office. Keep in mind that each station will typically require a drop for each computer and telephone line. Drops will also be needed for office equipment such as fax machines and network printers.

Construction

What kind of construction was done at the new office location? Does it have a hard cap ceiling, which most houses have, or a drop/acoustic ceiling? Facilitating access for running cables, drop ceilings are far easier than hard cap ceilings for installations, modifications, and upgrades.

Cabling Type

Is plenum or non-plenum cabling needed at the new office location? When cabling has to run over a ceiling where the space is already utilized for a HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) system, then plenum-rated cable will be required because of its fire retardant and smoke-limiting capabilities. Plenum is a bit more expensive, but required to comply with code.

Phone System

Will the current phone system be transferred to the new office? The cabling installation company may not be capable of handling the type your business is using, therefore a subcontractor may be retained to handle this aspect of the project as it requires specialization.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

As discussed in Part 1, the Top-Down Approach for network design provides several advantages, especially when its implementation is business-driven. Part 2 will cover the topics of Top-Down Logic and Scope of Design.

Top-Down Logic

The top-down network design approach is capable of utilizing top-down logic in conjunction with the process of Preparation, Planning, Design, Implementation, Operation, and Optimization (PPDIOO) as summarized by the following bullet points: 

Today’s network design must be capable of providing the technical requirements of expanding and evolving IT and business demands. As a result, the task is growing in complexity and difficulty for both service providers and enterprises. The challenge is even steeper when dealing with a legacy infrastructure that must be upgraded for the adoption of newer technologies. In order to succeed, a network design may use either of the two structured approaches discussed below.

Top Down

As it simplifies the process, the top-down design approach is favored by many designers. It does so by providing more control by dividing tasks to directly aim at the scope of the design, assisting designers by letting them view solutions from the perspective of the enterprise.

Bottom Up

On the other hand, the bottom-up design approach initially chooses network technologies and design models. Unfortunately, this greatly increases the risk of design failures due to the greater possibility the network will not be able to provide the needs of the application or business.

Business Driven

An emphasis on a business-driven approach will greatly improve the prospect of attaining a strategic design that will be a success for an enterprise. This is achieved by making both business and technical objectives the central focus of network design. The following will illustrate how a Business Requirement will guide a respective IT & Network Strategy as laid out by the bullet points below:

• Cost Efficiency                                       Consolidate and virtualize networks.


• Flexibility                                                Make design responsive and adaptable.


• Industry Compliance                            Ensure compliance with industry standards.


• Continuity of Business                         Design resilient services and networks.


• Access Control                                       Maintain confidentiality throughout network.

Compliance

Enterprises commonly practice strict compliance with industry standards to secure advantages for their businesses. For example, compliance with ISO/IEC 27001 Information Security Management raises the reputation of a financial services company by reducing the number of security breaches. In addition, its operational costs from downtime are minimized.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

During the process of selecting a cabling installation company, you will meet with candidate contractors at the new office space. Each visit will typically be a free consultation as each contractor they will make a site survey in order to make an evaluation and prepare a quote for the project. Below are items and information a business owner should be ready to provide to make each site survey as efficient and productive as possible. 

If you are busy running a business every day, you probably don’t consider the IT infrastructure of your company very often. However, if you let it become outdated, you will make your enterprise un-competitive and prevent it from achieving its potential.

Think of your IT network as the transport system for your data and some of the services your firm provides. Using structured cabling is the best way to ensure its efficiency. This system is advantageous because it allows the connection, movement, and removal of devices without needing new cables every time there is a change.

A structured cabling system that is up-to-date can run optimally in the present and also allow a company to readily expand in the future as its business grows. The following are five advantages of a structured cabling system.

Decreased Maintenance Costs

Replacing old cabling with superior high-quality cabling will ensure better performance and longevity. Structured cabling also makes it much easier to trace and repair problems, resulting in less downtime and monetary losses from maintenance work. The unification of data, voice, and video on a single IT network will also reduce the time needed for maintaining and repairing components.

Ease of Management

The consolidation of cabling under a single system that can handle data in several formats will be much easier to manage than a disorganized system of multiple point-to -point wiring. Structured cable also allows longer cable runs, which help decrease errors and interference affecting data. Cabling will also be easier to remove and install.

Greater Speeds

Slow data transmission hurts the bottom line because time is money. If your company still has obsolete CAT3 cables, upgrade to CAT5e or CAT6 cables to keep up with your competitors. Fiber optic cables will provide even better performance. Upgrading will also allow your organization to more easily expand when more bandwidth is needed.

Less Clutter

A well-organized office projects the desired image for clients and customers. It also helps promotes company pride among employees. Clutter and poor data transmission caused by bundles of disorganized wires and cables will be eliminated by the simplified organization of structured cabling.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive Office teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

The crossover cable connects two Ethernet network devices to each other. They were invented for temporarily supporting host-to-host networking when a network router or another intermediary device is not available. Although crossover cables appear the same as a standard straight-through (patch) Ethernet cable, their internal wiring structures are different.

Straight Through vs. Crossover

A straight-through cable is used for connecting two different kinds of devices, such as a network switch to a computer. In contrast, a crossover cable is for connecting two devices that are identical.

The straight-through cable’s ends can be wired in any manner, but both ends must be identical. This is different from the crossover cable’s internal wiring, which reverses the signals for receiving and transmitting. The first and third wires and the second and sixth wires are crossed.

High-quality Ethernet crossover cables have special markings which allow users to distinguish them from straight-through cables. They are often red in color and the word "crossover" will appear on its casing and packaging.

Crossover Cable Needs

Crossover cables came into use during the 1990s and 2000s because the most common types of Ethernet were unable to support direct cable connections between hosts. Intended for using specific wires for both receiving and transmitting signals, the original and Fast Ethernet standards required the communication of two endpoints through an intermediary device to avoid conflicts.

The Ethernet feature MDI-X has auto-detection for the prevention of signal conflicts, enabling the Ethernet interface to automatically determine and negotiate the expected signaling convention of the device at the other end of the cable. The majority of home broadband routers and Gigabit Ethernet adopted MDI-X.

As a result, crossover cables are only necessary for the connection of two Ethernet client devices if they are not configured for Gigabit Ethernet. Nowadays, Ethernet devices are compatible with crossover cables because they can automatically detect them.

Ethernet Crossover Cables Usage

Crossover cable usage should be limited to direct network connections. When a user tries connecting a computer to an antiquated router or network switch via a crossover cable rather than a standard cable, the link can be prevented from working.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive Office teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

As discussed in Part 1, point-to-point cabling systems are outdated and companies should strongly consider making the transition to structured cabling to remain competitive. Part 2 will discuss the advantages of upgrading to structured cabling.

The Advantages

Cost Effectiveness – Flexible and scalable, structured cabling can transmit data reliably and more easily handle increasingly large loads. This allows an organization to raise the productivity of its employees, helping to achieve its business goals. Its bottom line is further aided because structured cabling decreases the costs of maintenance and energy consumption.

Decreased Downtime – There is a greater chance of human error when there are several disorganized cabling networks, which result in disruptions and downtime. In contrast, a sound structured cabling system provides greater reliability; in addition, troubleshooting expenses are reduced because problems are easier to identify, find, and repair.  Downtime is decreased, business losses are minimized, and a company  will be more reliable and profitable.

Future Proofing –Structured cabling provides greater bandwidth and this allows a company to easily expand when its business grows. Having adaptable and scalable IT systems makes a company more competitive when it needs to evolve with its industry. Structured cabling ensures that an organization’s network infrastructure will remain capable of supporting new applications and technologies.

Greater Flexibility – Structured cabling can improve performance levels allowing a business to expand with greater ease. Move, add and change requests can be handled faster and more efficiently. Companies with structured cabling can develop and deploy services much faster because its data center can accommodate network infrastructure modifications more readily.

Maintenance Easier – Structured cabling provides a organizational approach that makes maintaining data centers and networks much more straightforward. In normal business environments, a variety of IT equipment and devices are being used simultaneously. When they are functioning on only one system, this removes the need for several wiring systems to be installed.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive Office teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

If it has been a while since your company has upgraded your network cabling, you and your team may not be achieving your potential. As you know, an organization’s IT network is the very heart of its operations. Lacking a network that is up-to-date, staff members will not be as efficient and productive as possible.

Updating from Point-to-Point Cabling

The update that yields the most benefits is having your network make the transition from an outdated point-to-point cabling system to a far more effective structured cabling system. As you may know, there are only two ways for transmitting data over network cables. Numerous companies persist on using point-to-point cabling. Unfortunately, it tends to become problematic, especially when a company needs to significantly expand the network’s size and capabilities. Let’s dig deeper to understand the reasons.

Point-to-point cabling directly connects a switch, device, network, a server, or network, to another network component via fiber optic cable. For the last few decades, this wiring method provided an innovative way to swiftly build a network. However, during that period, the majority of networks at IT departments were not large.

Nowadays, as networks expand and speedy transmissions of massive data amounts become routinely expected, the maintenance of outdated point-to-point cabling systems, along with the thousands of cables required for operations, becomes a large burden on a company’s IT resources.

As a result, organizations have transitioned to structured cabling systems. Rather than directly connecting every single network component to another, a structured cabling system directly links storage units and servers to a communication backbone.

Installed in every part of a facility, local cabling panels are linked to the communication backbone with only one cable. This enables users to easily connect their devices to the whole network by connecting a cable to the nearest cabling panel.

Part 2 will discuss the advantages of upgrading to Structured Cabling.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive Office teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.

Structured cabling that is properly installed can help your business grow by helping to improve its network performance and IT capability. The following will discuss structured cabling’s Top Ten Tips for installing cabling systems.

#1 Cable Labeling

Although cable labeling will slow installation, it will help save lots of time and effort during future repair, reconfiguration, and maintenance tasks.

#2 Cable Testing

Ensure every cable is tested and confirmed to be functioning properly during the installation process. A cable with a nominal performance should not be utilized as it may decrease overall system performance.

#3 Short Patch Cables

Do not use long patch cables when they aren’t required. They are inefficient, look disorganized, and are prone to tangling.

#4 Select Quality Terminations

Avoid purchasing cheap terminating cables because time will be unnecessarily spent on troubleshooting in the future. Select those that are of high quality and terminate properly and rapidly.

#5 Avoid Overheating

Keep in mind that maintaining proper cable temperatures to avoid overheating is crucial for stable and reliable network performance.

#6 Measure 2X, Cut 1X

Precise measurements prior to cutting will minimize damaged and wasted cables during installations.

#7 No Kinky Fiber Cables

As fiber cables have great flexibility, they can kink bend, and knot. These will result in flaws in the fiber cables, negatively affecting performance of the network.

#8 Maximum Cable Length

Do not exceed the maximum length of a cable run, which is typically 100 meters for network cabling systems.

#9 Allow for Expansion

Network cabling systems should always have room for interior expansion. As a business grows, its network should have the room to be able to upgrade or expand.

#10 Qualified Installation Company

In order to ensure that a company’s network cabling system will be properly installed, management must select a qualified installation company and request references.  Their technicians should be BICSI certified and experts in ANSI standards.

Progressive Office Cabling

Founded in 1986, Progressive Office’s success has been a direct result of years of commitment to seeking solutions on behalf of our clients in the Washington, D.C. and New York City areas. Efficiently working together, Progressive teams get cabling installed and operating as fast as possible while minimizing disruption and downtime. Call our toll free number (800) 614-4560 today.