On-Q LeGrand Home Network -- Need Help Please!!

[GirlOnFire]

Hi there,

I have a On-Q at home but have not used it. I think I found a solution, but wanted to check with you guys to see if this is correct.

Below is my setup:

1. The yellow cat5 cables are not terminated on anything. They are just cut off. It sounds like I need to get this 8-Port Network Interface module (http://www.legrand.us/onq/networking...x#.Uq6PP2RDvwE) to terminate those cables.

2. I have the DSL wireless router on the first floor. I connect a patch cable into the wall from the router, which leads to one of these yellow wires in the home network. (I have no idea which one it is, so I just have to do a process of elimination by checking each one.) I can check each one by connecting a cat5 cable into the 8-Port Network Interface module by plugging it in and seeing if I get an internet connection when connected to my laptop.

3. Once I find which is the "live" wire. I can connect that into the cable modem port in a switch by using a patch cable. Then using patch cables, connect the rest from the Interface module onto a switch.

4. I should be able to get wireless as usual on the first floor and get wired connection on the second floor in other rooms by connecting right into the wall jack.

5. If I wanted wireless in another room that doesn't get a good signal from the first floor, can I connect a wireless router to the wall to increase the signal?

Please let me know if all of these make sense and if I am correct or totally off base. Give a girl some help here!!!

Thanks,
GOF

 

[kelub]

Well, no one else has commented yet, so I'll try to help, but I'm a bit confused. You said you have an "On-Q" at home. What, exactly, do you have? I've done quite a few wiring jobs, and I'm familiar with the brand (in fact I just bought some Legrand/On-Q wall ports and plates this weekend) but to me they're a brand, not a specific item.

Are the yellow cables terminating at one point in your house, but they're just not connected to anything? Are the cables coming from different rooms in the house? Where are they terminating to - a closet, or a room? Are there electric plugs nearby? If that's the case, you have a few options at the termination point:

1) Get a patch panel and wire all of the yellow cables to the patch panel. That gives you a nice, clean place to plug in cables from a switch.
2) Connect wall ports to each one and have wall plates. I think they only support up to 6 ports per plate, so you could do 2 1-gang options with 2x 4-port plates. It's basically the same idea as the patch panel, but using wall ports & plates instead of a patch panel.
3) If the cables are long enough, and if making them tidy isn't as much of an issue, then you could just terminate each cable with an RJ45 connector and plug them straight into a switch.

Once you have that settled, and as mentioned in the steps, you'll need a network switch, which will need to be powered - which is why I was asking if you had an electrical source near the termination point of the cables. You can get a switch on Amazon.com or buy one at a local electronics store. I wouldn't buy one from the hardware store - for some reason all I ever see there are 10/100 switches and they're way overpriced. You can get a nice 8-port gigabit switch for ~$30 on Amazon. However you decide to terminate the cables, you'll need to eventually plug them into the switch to get them to all talk.

You'll want to know which cable is going to which room, and to somehow label your patch panel / wall panel / individual cables (depending on how you choose to terminate) accordingly. And yes, to do so all you really need to do is plug something into each one at a time and see what port lights up on the switch. Technically it doesn't really matter if you label them, I suppose, but it's nice to know what's coming from where so that you can troubleshoot problems later on. (I only say it sort of doesn't matter if you label because whether or not you know where they're coming from and what's on the other end, you're plugging all of them into the switch indiscriminately, so they'll operate correctly whether or not you label them. It doesn't matter if the router is plugged into port 1 or 4 or 8 on the switch, it'll just work.)

As far as your router is concerned, you are correct: once the network cables are all terminated and connected to a switch, you should be able to simply connect the router to the wall, which is connecting it to the switch. Most routers have a network port or a 3 or 4-port switch built-in; just connect that. The router will then handle assigning IP addresses to all the devices on the switch.

Yes, you can connect a wireless access point into one of the wall ports that are wired to the switch, and extend wireless to that section of the house. By connecting to the switch, which is connected to the router, you're effectively extending the reach of the router to that location. If you're using another "router" be sure to put it in bridge mode so it isn't assigning IP addresses to clients connecting to it. You'll want it to pass on whatever addresses are assigned from the router.

As a side note, *theoretically* you should be able to name the SSID the same on all the wireless access points; that way your clients can move from one area of the house to the other without having to actively change their SSID. I've done this in practice successfully in the past, but it's been a while. I'll be trying it again when I do my wiring project in a week or two. Someone may challenge me on that, and all I can say is that I've done it before and it worked exactly how I wanted it to. In fact it was for a house that was similar to what it sounds like yours is: there was a wifi AP downstairs and one upstairs, and the owner wanted to move from one to the other seamlessly. The client device would connect to whichever was stronger.

I hope that makes sense and is helpful.

 

[GirlOnFire]

Wow, thanks kelub that was extremely helpful!

I have the legrand onQ at home. The picture shown is the enclosure that is it in upstairs in a closet. The wall ethernet ports are already connected but the yellow wires in the closet are not terminated on anything. I'm trying to figure out what the benefits of terminating to a patch panel vs. terminating to RJ45 connectors and then just plugging it into a switch.

I'm completely new to this and have just started researching it, but am pretty handy around the house. Which is easier to do? What tools would I need?

I understand 100% of what you're saying and it makes total sense. Now I just need recommendations on the process (patch panel or RJ45 to switch), recommendations on devices (switch, wireless access points), and lastly what tools I need.

Thanks again!
GOF