Please help me make my ethernet ports in my home active

[MNnetworkguy]

I live in a house with ethernet ports in each room. I am trying to figure out how to make them active so I can use them. I found a teleco board where all of the Cat5 cables are centralized. This board is a GE CC-TP0110. I am scratching my head for how to make them work though and here is why....

I am assuming somehow I need to make this panel "live" and connect my router and/or modem to it. I have xfinity cable modem that connects via a phone line/cable line. I dont see how i could hook that up in this box?

Also, the box does not have a power supply near it so that would make it more challenging to plug in a router or modem by it.

Here are a few pictures of what I am talking about:

http://imgur.com/Z6a7I0K

http://imgur.com/U6agc1I

 

[Nullity]

I could be wrong, but that panel may not be compatible with ethernet. I think that board is meant to share a single phone line with separate rooms.

You need to replace that board.

Or maybe remove the board and terminate all the cat5 cables with connectors and plug them into a networking switch.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

I could be wrong, but that panel may not be compatible with ethernet. I think that board is meant to share a single phone line with separate rooms.

You need to replace that board.

Or maybe remove the board and terminate all the cat5 cables with connectors and plug them into a networking switch.

Thank you. If I did that, how do I get internet running to it? There isn't an outlet by it to plug in a router. Can I have the router or modem in a different part of the house?

 

[Nullity]

Thank you. If I did that, how do I get internet running to it? There isn't an outlet by it to plug in a router. Can I have the router or modem in a different part of the house?

You would need the switch (which requires power, but Power over Ethernet is an option) at the point where all the cables meet, but the router can be located elsewhere, with a ethernet cable connecting the router & switch.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

You would need the switch (which requires power, but Power over Ethernet is an option) at the point where all the cables meet, but the router can be located elsewhere, with a ethernet cable connecting the router & switch.

So do I need to physically run a cable from the router to the switch or can I leverage the Ethernet plugs in the wall

 

[Nullity]

So do I need to physically run a cable from the router to the switch or can I leverage the Ethernet plugs in the wall

You could use the wall.

Be wary because if all the cat5 was used as telephone line, the installer may have been less cautious. Ethernet is pretty strict with how you must treat the cat5 wire, like no harsh bends, no half-assed splicing, and probably other things. It is probably fine, but keep it in mind if you run into troubles.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

You could use the wall.

Be wary because if all the cat5 was used as telephone line, the installer may have been less cautious. Ethernet is pretty strict with how you must treat the cat5 wire, like no harsh bends, no half-assed splicing, and probably other things. It is probably fine, but keep it in mind if you run into troubles.

Thank you! Why would someone ever run cat5 as telphone line in the first place without assuming it would be used for internet?

On my telco panel all the cat5 cables are names with the rooms. however, there is a cable in the upper right that says "feed". I have no clue where this starts and how would i wire this one in a switch?

So will i need to crimp RJ45 connectors onto all of these cat5s?

 

[Nullity]

Thank you! Why would someone ever run cat5 as telphone line in the first place without assuming it would be used for internet?

On my telco panel all the cat5 cables are names with the rooms. however, there is a cable in the upper right that says "feed". I have no clue where this starts and how would i wire this one in a switch?

So will i need to crimp RJ45 connectors onto all of these cat5s?

How old is the installation? Back with 100Mbit ethernet you had 2 unused cable pairs in a cat5 cable, so you could simultaneously run internet & 2 phones in 1 cable. Or, the person who installed was thinking ahead. I use cat5 for phone in my own home, but that is mostly because I had a large spool of the cable laying around.

Regarding the "feed", unless you need it, just leave it out (if I understand correctly). Maybe it was the phone line that fed all the rooms?

Yeah, crimp standard rj45 onto the cable.


Just wondering... are the wall jacks for phone (rj11) or ethernet (rj45)?

 

[MNnetworkguy]

How old is the installation? Back with 100Mbit ethernet you had 2 unused cable pairs in a cat5 cable, so you could simultaneously run internet & 2 phones in 1 cable. Or, the person who installed was thinking ahead. I use cat5 for phone in my own home, but that is mostly because I had a large spool of the cable laying around.

Regarding the "feed", unless you need it, just leave it out (if I understand correctly). Maybe it was the phone line that fed all the rooms?

Yeah, crimp standard rj45 onto the cable.


Just wondering... are the wall jacks for phone (rj11) or ethernet (rj45)?

The house was built in 2010. Maybe you are correct about the "feed" line coming from the exterior. All of the wall jacks i have seen in the house are rj45. I don't think I have seen a standard phone jack anywhere.

So the feed line can just be ignored? How hard is adding r45 crimps? Also, is there a switch you would recommend that does POE? Sorry, i am a noob on this. I am fairly technically inclined so can pick up on things quickly. Just have not had to network anything before.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Thank you! Why would someone ever run cat5 as telphone line in the first place without assuming it would be used for internet?

Googling for "GE CC-TP0110" reveals multiple posts about this panel and they have all been installed as part of a multi-room telephone system.

So will i need to crimp RJ45 connectors onto all of these cat5s?

People have been asking the same as you, i.e. Can I convert it to Ethernet use? The best solution seems to be as @Nullity says. Crimp rj45 plugs on the ends of each cable and ignore the panel altogether.

http://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21589128/Leveraging-a-CAT5-phone-system.html

 

[CaptainSTX]

The cables as previously mentioned were probably terminated for telephone and not data use, meaning only six wires (3 pairs were terminated.

Cut off the terminations at both ends of every cable and reterminate with Cat 5e jacks and plugs.

You then can use one of the cables to back hual from your router to a switch located adjacent or in your wiring panel. Plug the Ethernet cables into the switch. With a 8 port switch you will be able to activate up to seven Cat 5 locations.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

Googling for "GE CC-TP0110" reveals multiple posts about this panel and they have all been installed as part of a multi-room telephone system.

People have been asking the same as you, i.e. Can I convert it to Ethernet use? The best solution seems to be as @Nullity says. Crimp rj45 plugs on the ends of each cable and ignore the panel altogether.

http://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21589128/Leveraging-a-CAT5-phone-system.html

and then i would just use one of the cat5 jacks by where the router is and put a cat5 cable from the router back into the wall and that would be the internet feed back to the switch and make it live?

 

[Nullity]

The cables as previously mentioned were probably terminated for telephone and not data use, meaning only six wires (3 pairs were terminated.

Are you saying that the wall jacks may only be using 6-pins/wires?

 

[MNnetworkguy]

The cables as previously mentioned were probably terminated for telephone and not data use, meaning only six wires (3 pairs were terminated.

Cut off the terminations at both ends of every cable and reterminate with Cat 5e jacks and plugs.

You then can use one of the cables to back hual from your router to a switch located adjacent or in your wiring panel. Plug the Ethernet cables into the switch. With a 8 port switch you will be able to activate up to seven Cat 5 locations.

Is there a way to tell before i do anything? I really don't to deal with all the wall jacks and rewiring them. When i look at the main panel it appears all wires are punched in. SO maybe they configured it for data and phone?

 

[ColinTaylor]

Are you saying that the wall jacks may only be using 6-pins/wires?

@CaptainSTX
The photos that he posted show that all 4 pairs have been terminated at the panel. Quite a nice job actually. Shame to rip it all out.

 

[ColinTaylor]

@MNnetworkguy

Can you remove one or two of the wall sockets and check the wiring behind them? Hopefully you should see that all 4 pairs of wires have be "punched down".

You'll also need to get some power to where the panel is to power the new switch. Is there any way you can get power to this location? Otherwise you'll have to use Nullity's PoE suggestion.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

I would have to get an electrician to power it. It's in the small crawl space under the stairs with only a light switch.

It looks like everything is punched down when I checked.

I wish I didn't have to rip this all up. Is that the only way?

 

[ColinTaylor]

I would have to get an electrician to power it. It's in the small crawl space under the stairs with only a light switch.

OK. It looks like you'll have to use PoE then.

It looks like everything is punched down when I checked.

That's good news. You say the wiring was done recently so it looks like they've done a good job. Hopefully the Cat5 cables are of reasonable quality as well.

I wish I didn't have to rip this all up. Is that the only way?

Well you can try and make it as neat as possible but at the end of the day that panel is of no use to you and needs to be disconnected from the cables.

PS What speed internet do you have?

 

[MNnetworkguy]

OK. It looks like you'll have to use PoE then.
That's good news. You say the wiring was done recently so it looks like they've done a good job. Hopefully the Cat5 cables are of reasonable quality as well.
Well you can try and make it as neat as possible but at the end of the day that panel is of no use to you and needs to be disconnected from the cables.

PS What speed internet do you have?

I have 105mb internet at the moment.

So just buy a POE switch and then hook all those up leaving out the feed line. Then with the router in another room take a cat5 from an open port and plug into the wall?

It frustrates me they didn't set it up for data in the first place even though they wired the rooms for it.

 

[MNnetworkguy]

Also, just so you all know my end goal that might help in case i am making this too complex. I have some wifi dead spots in my house. I have a Asus AC-66U router so it should be decent enough but some places just don't get coverage. Especially when 4k streaming and other things start to take off i want good wireless.

What i was going to do is make the ethernet ports live and then look at leveraging Ubiquiti access points to create a stronger mesh type wireless network. I see there are two products almost on the market like Eero and Luma but that just seems overpriced. At the end of the day there is also a benefit to having cat5 live in the rooms so then if i need wired internet i can.

Anyway, let me know if I have an easier solution or if i should still go with the switch in the control panel.