Dead Links

[karldenton]

We've had a lot of building work done over recent years. Network cables that were in classrooms have been cut and coiled up in roof spaces. They are still patched in in the server room.

 

Apart from patch panel / switch space, is there any benefit to unpatching these? It messes with our electricians head as he says its like having an electrical dead short !

 

Thanks

[dcwhitworth]

Presumably they've been coiled in roof spaces because they're going to be reconnected at some point ? If not then I'd not only want to unpatch them but get rid of the connections in the server room and preferably the cables in their entirety too. Why would you be happy with connections to your switches that go nowhere ? It might not be causing an issue right now but it could well cause confusion and extra work in the future. It's the sort of dotting the i's and crossing the t's job that you should definitely be doing.

 

If they are being reconnected then I'd still consider unpatching them temporarily. At the least whoever reconnects them will need to unpatch them in order to test their work. I don't think there's any way to cross-connect the wires that might damage the switch, nor is the voltage harmful to humans, but I'd still do it. At the least it will give you a chance to document and confirm your connections once they are redone.

[Meldrew]

Agreed. If the connections are patched into a switch definitely unpatch them, but I'd leave them still terminated at the patch panel (with some sort of labeling to show they aren't in use and documentation as to where the ends are coiled up). I've found you never know when you might need some cables in a position for CCTV, WiFi or some random reason in the future. We have a new fire alarm being fitted over Summer and we're planning to fit some cables for future use while the ceilings are down.

 

Meldrew.

[dcwhitworth]

Agreed. If the connections are patched into a switch definitely unpatch them, but I'd leave them still terminated at the patch panel (with some sort of labeling to show they aren't in use and documentation as to where the ends are coiled up). I've found you never know when you might need some cables in a position for CCTV, WiFi or some random reason in the future. We have a new fire alarm being fitted over Summer and we're planning to fit some cables for future use while the ceilings are down.

 

Meldrew.

 

Reuse of the cables would be dependant on your confidence in the quality and age of them. If they are old I'd be inclined to get shot and use new for any future requirements. But otherwise this is a good idea.

[pete]

Typically we coil up and unpatch at the rack. Mainly because "Hey, let's convert X to Y" often leads to "Let's convert Y back to X" a couple of years later.

[dcwhitworth]

Typically we coil up and unpatch at the rack. Mainly because "Hey, let's convert X to Y" often leads to "Let's convert Y back to X" a couple of years later.

 

That's a common theme in schools ! I'd still stick to ripping out significantly old cables because then you can say "yes but all the old stuff was taken out so you'll have to pay to have new installed" when they change their minds, more hassle true but you get new stuff installed. In my experience such major changes are often triggered by some funding secured from an external source. In the past I've been able to fund many significant pieces of infrastructure done on the back of such projects. "We're going to build a new building, great ! However you'll need to fund a new core network switch in order to handle the increased load."