Best Solution to Resolve Cat5/6 Distance Limitation & EMF/EMR Interference
We have a client that has an old manufacturing plant (1 block square) and a 200x200 ft office above one corner of the building. They have cat5 & wireless run through part of the building using a residential type AT&T 2wire router and a Comcast EMC gateway for internet access and 20 year old AT&T PBX 40 handset phone system. We are designing a new network that will replace all the wiring, wireless, include a VIOP and Windows 2008 R2 file server.
The distance from the network switch to the outer areas of the production floor is over 300 Ft.
The production floor has many 220 lines, panel boxes and machnes causing EMF. We know wireless in the production area is poor at best and we want to run cable to eliminate any outages.
My question is will a few 300 or 400 ft runs of Fiber work better that Cat5 or Cat6 from the network switch to the four main sections of the production floor?
Any suggestions on the type of fiber and/or connections that will work the best and be trouble free? I'm looking for recommedations from experts who currently use Fiber and have experience with it.
The distance from the network switch to the outer areas of the production floor is over 300 Ft.
The production floor has many 220 lines, panel boxes and machnes causing EMF. We know wireless in the production area is poor at best and we want to run cable to eliminate any outages.
My question is will a few 300 or 400 ft runs of Fiber work better that Cat5 or Cat6 from the network switch to the four main sections of the production floor?
Any suggestions on the type of fiber and/or connections that will work the best and be trouble free? I'm looking for recommedations from experts who currently use Fiber and have experience with it.
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I used the catalyst series
3650 i think with Gig eth and fiber @ hq
and I had some 2900....series 2950 ?
but cisco also has some small business switches that come with 2 mini-GBIC slots
IF COST IS A REAL ISSUE
i think its the SFE / SFG series?
just make sure it a managed switch
no tthe little 100 unmanaged type equipment
decide which type of interface Sc/st/lc
3650 i think with Gig eth and fiber @ hq
and I had some 2900....series 2950 ?
but cisco also has some small business switches that come with 2 mini-GBIC slots
IF COST IS A REAL ISSUE
i think its the SFE / SFG series?
just make sure it a managed switch
no tthe little 100 unmanaged type equipment
decide which type of interface Sc/st/lc
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
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ASKER
I appreciate both of your comments. I was already considering the MDF/IDF setup as mentioned above. Can both of you provide feedback in what type of fiber connection and fiber line is the best over all choice for a small business of this size?
50/120 Multi-mode Fiber at least 12 strands. This should give you up to 60Gb of bandwidth @ 10Gb per pair. 24 strands will give you double the capacity. So depending on the number of switches and aggregated bandwidth required. Note you will need a professional fiber installer to do the work. So they will really explains the pros and cons of each type.
I use multi-mode throughout my environment and single-mode only for my Telco circuits. Single-mode fiber is typically used for longer distances such as 80km; or multi-mode of distances up to 600 meters.
I use multi-mode throughout my environment and single-mode only for my Telco circuits. Single-mode fiber is typically used for longer distances such as 80km; or multi-mode of distances up to 600 meters.
i agree with martin Fiber info
connectors
SC and LC are still the most popular....
but I'll recommend LC
its newer smaller and I like em
SC is fine but ...a little older
connectors
SC and LC are still the most popular....
but I'll recommend LC
its newer smaller and I like em
SC is fine but ...a little older
Agreed... Everything is LC these days. Unfortunately, I still have SC for my Fiber Multimode interconnects and have had ST in the past , but if I installed new fiber I would go with LC all around.
Although, about two years ago my Telco provider drop in a 96 strands of Fiber with a SC interconnect/junction box. Not sure why they choose SC vs LC. Probably becuase they had a big inventory of them. For standard network LC would be the way to go.
ASKER
I appreciate this feedback. I'm not downplaying any thought of fiber, I'm just looking for opinions if they object to the final cost.
We are only running about 700 feet from the router. Since there is a lot of EMF/EMR in the factory, I thought fiber would be the best way to go to ensure speed, no signal loss and modern technology.
What are your thoughts regarding using Sheilded Cat6 instead of Fiber? I know it's past the 328 Ft limit, but would it work if a good managed switch was inserted every 200 Ft?
We are only running about 700 feet from the router. Since there is a lot of EMF/EMR in the factory, I thought fiber would be the best way to go to ensure speed, no signal loss and modern technology.
What are your thoughts regarding using Sheilded Cat6 instead of Fiber? I know it's past the 328 Ft limit, but would it work if a good managed switch was inserted every 200 Ft?
Fiber! Shielded CAT6 should be fine with EMF/EMR under 328FT (not over), but needs to be grounded on both ends. Honestly, I would test Shielded CAT6 on areas of high EMF/EMR concern.
Previously, I worked at an HVAC manufacturing company that used shielded CAT5e with no issues. We had an IDF on the manufacturing floor with Fiber between MDF. They had a lot of transformers and high voltage lines for all of the sheet metal and other type of heavy machinery; we even had WiFi accross the warehouse and production floor.
Previously, I worked at an HVAC manufacturing company that used shielded CAT5e with no issues. We had an IDF on the manufacturing floor with Fiber between MDF. They had a lot of transformers and high voltage lines for all of the sheet metal and other type of heavy machinery; we even had WiFi accross the warehouse and production floor.
You do not want to daisy-chain switches.
ASKER
Hi Experts: in your experience, is daisy chaining a few switches to extend cat5/cat6 past the 328 foot limit a good depenable solution? I need to go to about 500 Ft in a few directions.
weeeellll
can't say i've never done it....but I wouldn't recommend it
I've done it as a temporary-- bandaid solution
I still think fiber is the best way to go
I used shielded before and although it worked well enough
it cost more for the cable and connectors ....
so fiber made more sense in the long run....excuse the pun
and ur talkin 700' not 400-500'
so you double the distance++
I argued that we also had the ability to expand....
p.s. since it was there we soon found a reason to use the extra capacity
can't say i've never done it....but I wouldn't recommend it
I've done it as a temporary-- bandaid solution
I still think fiber is the best way to go
I used shielded before and although it worked well enough
it cost more for the cable and connectors ....
so fiber made more sense in the long run....excuse the pun
and ur talkin 700' not 400-500'
so you double the distance++
I argued that we also had the ability to expand....
p.s. since it was there we soon found a reason to use the extra capacity
ASKER
I appreciate the info. We are still in dicsussions with the client. I will probably post a follow up question latter.
ASKER
We plan to replace the cabling from the server room to two prodution areas with Fiber to make it quicker and less suseptable to environmental interference. Three additional areas past the 300 ft mark will be added by fiber for wireless access points and about 10 Pc's. All wiring and fiber will be run across ceiling beams and down support posts to the pc's and access points.
Can you tell me what Cisco equipment you recommend for a small buildout like this?