[Leaplist] new office, existing cabling

[Ray Brunkow]

Jason Boxman wrote:
> We're moving offices.  The new building is an improvement, as it 
> actually has Ethernet wired.  I don't have any background working with 
> cabling, so I can't tell which, if any, of the Ethernet cables are hot 
> and functional.  Several of the rooms actually have a multi-drop box 
> of four Ethernet, though one just has a single drop.  (I wonder about 
> Ethernet cabling and VoIP were we to move to it.)
>
> There's also a rather complicated punch down board for the phone 
> system.  We're still running a rollover two line analog phone system 
> with voice mail handled upstream by Embarq.  I can determine even less 
> about the wiring for it.
>
> Anyone have any thoughts on handling wiring in a new building?  Do I 
> want to get some device to test the Ethernet cables or just plug stuff 
> in and hope they're actually functional?
>
> We're running a Windows desktop per user for three users, plus a 
> GNU/Linux box for managing DNS, Samba, email, and such.
>
> One day I still want to go VoIP.  I watched Jesse Rhodes' excellent 
> presentation via John Simpson's hosted video.  There are a lot of 
> moving parts, though.
>
> Any cabling issues I should be on the lookout for for Ethernet or the 
> RJ11?
>
> Thanks.
>
>
You could use a beeper/wand combo to see what wire goes to were in 
addition it might be a good idea to put a data-line tester on each line 
for both phone and ethernet.  As far as the punch down block goes, just 
have to tone out the wires and follow them closely across the block.

Companies do this for about $50-$150/hr.  I run $50 just for testing and 
identification and labeling of lines and $75 per drop for new lines.

-- 
Raymond L. Brunkow
5th Degree Black Belt
Certified Instructor
Choong Sil Kwan TaekwonDo Federation


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