Structured Cable System??

You're in the marketplace for a brand spanking new cabling infrastructure for your home or business network & need a structured cabling method. But the query you have is what exactly IS a structured cabling method? The key part of the answer to that query is that this type of cabling method is standards compliant. A structured cabling method is that is properly documented & tested. It will also leave room for future network expansion as the necessity arises.

Compliance With International Standards

Cabling systems must be installed according to standards set forth by definite international organizations tasked with identifying definite characteristics of the structured cabling method that can & will degrade method performance & quantifying testing methods & algorithms, as well as specifying levels of performance. As an example, in Europe, this organization is the International Standards Organisation (ISO) & in the US, it is a combination of the American National Standards Institute & the Electronics Industry Association along with the Telecommunications Industry Association (ANSI/EIA/TIA). The standard, as set forth by these groups, is called the EIA/TIA 568-B.3-2001(more for copper-based networks), along with the more recent 568-C (Aimed more at fiber optic networks).

Proper Documentation

In the event you have ever looked in to a cabling closet, it can be confusing. It looks like theirs wires & cables thrown in, like what pasta looks like after being cooked & drained. However, if the cabling method was properly documented in the work of installation, somebody can walk in to that cabling closet (known as an Intermediate Closet, Entrance Facility, or Telecommunications Room) & know exactly where each cable goes, whether it goes to an office or a conference room, the back bedroom or the entertainment middle. This is true whether the network is in your home & there is nodes (A node is network endpoint, such as a computer, or Netflix-enabled tool), or the network is in a commercial building & there is over a thousand nodes.

Full Standards Compliance Means Certification

These types of tests are OK for a home network where the cable lengths are comparatively short & the network is not mission-critical. However, in a business surroundings, that network definitely is mission-critical & the network manager desires to make definite it will perform as advertised. This is where structured cabling certification comes in to play. function of certification is wiremapping. However, cable performance is also measured, with most of the performance metrics being crosstalk (where the signal from cable "bleeds over" to another) & its plenty of derivatives, such as Near- & Far-end Crosstalk & PowerSum Crosstalk. Crosstalk, since it degrades signal quality, must be minimized in order for the cable plant to perform as rated.

There is a substantial number of different ways that a structured cabling method can be tested to make definite it works. The simplest of these is a simple continuity check to make definite that there is no breaks in any of the individual conductors inside the cable. The next step up is called a wire map. This type of check makes definite that each individual conductor at finish corresponds with the same conductor at the other finish, which is called properly punching the cable down, because terminations are made with a punch down tool.