On Jun 4, 2018, at 5:34 PM, Jim Hart via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:

I have a fresh box of gray cat 5 that was for a home project that never got done. I have the ends around here someplace or can get some in a day or two. I have the tools for either crimp or punch terminations.

—Jim Hart

On Mon, Jun 4, 2018 at 5:19 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:

...

We need a bunch of network cables to wire up the museum PoE security cameras.

I have not yet measured. My estimate is about 200 feet total for four cables.

Two questions:

1. Does anyone have a very long reel of cat 5 to donate? I prefer black.

2. Does anyone have the RJ-45 ends and the tool/experience to terminate the cables? (I used to know how, but it's been 17 years since I last did it.)

I have a significant amount (several hundred feet at least) of white cat 6 in a box but I do not have any more ends. Used them all when I wired the house with cat 6 this past winter. I can drop the cable off this weekend in the morning before work if you're interested in it. Tony

I have a significant amount (several hundred feet at least) of white cat 6 in a box but I do not have any more ends. Used them all when I wired the house with cat 6 this past winter. I can drop the cable off this weekend in the morning before work if you're interested in it.

Tony

Yes. I found out that Martin already established white as the in-attic standard for other InfoAge buildings, so this is a good choice, plus you're local so we do not have to ship anything, etc. .... please drop it off in the museum workshop.

Crimped ends on solid-conductor cable (normally used for station wiring) tend not to be reliable, especially if there's any movement or vibration.

I'd highly recommend punching jacks onto either of the cable if it's solid-conductor, and using short patch cables to connect the devices and switches.  Said patch should be stranded cable.(*)

You can get patch panels cheap for the rack end that hold keystone-style jacks.  On the device end they can snap into a "biscuit" box if visible. Often up in a ceiling, the jacks are just left as-is, wrapped in tape if they don't have decent punch block covers.

This may sound scope-creep-y, but it'll save headaches later.

Yes to all of this. I was just about to send a similar message to the list, based on conversations this morning with one of our members who's an enterprise IT professional and knows all about building codes (which we're subject to at InfoAge: can't do residential stuff). So, here is what we will do: 1. Physically hang the cameras on the ceiling 2. Run patch cords from each camera into the attic 3A. Run long stretches of (solid, I guess) Ethernet from the patch cords, across the attic, and down into the rack vicinity 3B. Where the cables exit the attic, we'll install a piece of electrical PVC (gray; not the white plumbing stuff) 4. Attic cables terminate into a patch panel 5. Patch cords from the panel into the switch 6. Bask in nerd cred for doing things the professional way Martin is donating the patch panel and keystones. He advised me to only install the keystones as they're needed, not all at once, because it's a lot of easier to terminate them and then snap them into the panel vs. removing them for termination later or (PITA) trying to wire it when they are already mounted.