ᐅ Cat 7 Network – What Is It?

So, that means a maximum of 4 ports, probably only 2. A small patch panel will be sufficient. It might be advisable to have an additional outlet in the living room.

Hello,
if you are installing or having LAN cabling installed (some people swear by Wi-Fi – I’m more a fan of cables when it comes to connecting fixed devices), you should plan generously from the start or at least install empty conduits accordingly.
Having one outlet in some corner of the child’s room wouldn’t be enough for me – if you rearrange the room, you suddenly have to run a cable across the room. My suggestion would therefore be at least a double outlet in two corners each. In the home office, perhaps even more, for example if you have a network printer that should also be accessible from their computers, or to connect a backup system. And in the living room, at least double outlets in the spots where the TV and stereo system might be placed. My TV already has a network connection, as does the PlayStation; with internet TV becoming more popular, and the stereo system or iPod also needing a connection, it makes sense. Additionally, you may want one or two places in the house where you can connect a Wi-Fi router to ensure good reception throughout the house and perhaps also in the garden.

The patch panel and network switch do not have to be very large – you don’t use all outlets at the same time, so you only need as many ports as you actually use. Devices are becoming more affordable, so you can upgrade later. But with cabling, it gets complicated if you have to retrofit.

Oh, and you can also use a pre-installed Cat7 cable for a telephone connection – the respective cable just needs to be patched at the patch panel to the telephone system instead of the network switch or router. So that should be considered as well.

Regarding the technology: the number after “Cat” indicates the maximum possible data transmission speed of the cables and outlets. Cat7 is currently, I believe, the fastest (10 gigabit), but there are hardly any Cat7 outlets available. Cat6 still supports 1 gigabit – if more is needed, you can replace the outlets later. Currently, 10 gigabit switches are still quite expensive, and 1 gigabit provides enough bandwidth for now. Price-wise, Cat7 cables are not much more expensive than Cat6 – so in my opinion, it makes sense to install Cat7 right away.

Best regards,
Jens

dismantled schrieb:
The patch panel and the network switch do not necessarily have to be very large – you don’t use all the outlets at the same time, so you only need as many ports as you actually use.

The patch panel should be sized according to the number of outlets, regardless of whether they are used or not. However, this hardly makes any difference in terms of cost.

Skunk schrieb:
The patch panel also needs to be larger, matching the number of outlets, whether the outlets are used or not. It hardly makes any difference in price.

True, that was my mistake. After all, all the cables from the house end up at the patch panel. Thanks for the correction, Skunk.

Question 1:
So, I understand that with these wall outlets I can network my house in a way that, for example, I have my external hard drives and network-enabled printer set up in the office downstairs, and from the kids’ rooms upstairs I can print and also access the hard drives?

Question 2:
Is it possible to connect something like a Wi-Fi access point to this patch panel, so that I can, if necessary, print from my laptop in the living room? Or is this only possible with wired connections?

Question 3:
Should I plan for a wall outlet in the living room to, for example, play movies from my external hard drives in the office on my TV? Either via a network connection on the TV, or by using a network cable → laptop → HDMI cable to the TV?

Question 4:
Can I connect a router to the patch panel via LAN so that I can go online with a PC in the kids’ room using a network cable without Wi-Fi?

Question 5:
If any of this is incorrect, what would you recommend:
- if I want to use wired network connections in the kids' rooms
- if I want to watch movies from the external hard drive in the office on the TV

Question 6:
Which patch panel would you recommend if I plan one outlet each for:
- office
- 2 per kids’ room (2 units)
- living room
I searched for patch panels on Amazon and there are thousands of results. Is it correct that these typically cost around 40.00 EUR (approximately $43)?

Sorry for all the questions, but I’m just starting to learn about this. This was never really my area before. I enjoy working with PCs, laptops, and networking, but I have never planned something like this.

krausf3 schrieb:
Question 1:
OK, so I understand that with these network outlets I can connect my house in a way that, for example, I have my external hard drives and my network-capable printer in the office downstairs, and from the kids’ rooms upstairs I can print and also access the hard drives?

Yes, that’s exactly the goal.

Question 2:
Can I do something like connect a wireless access point to this patch panel, so that in an emergency I could print from my laptop in the living room? Or can I only do this via cable?

Wireless is possible. Just place one or even several wireless access points somewhere in the house and connect them to one of the LAN outlets.

Question 3:
Should I plan for an outlet in the living room to, for example, play movies from my external hard drives in the office on my TV? Either via network connection on the TV, or by network cable --> laptop --> HDMI cable to the TV?

Two people have already suggested that to you 😀

Question 4:
Can I connect a router via LAN to the patch panel so I can get online with a PC in the kids’ room using a network cable, without Wi-Fi?

If a 4-port switch is enough for you, then yes. If you need more ports, a small switch would be appropriate, which you then connect between the router and the patch panel.

Question 6:
Which patch panel would you recommend if I plan one outlet each for:
- Office
- 2 per kids’ room (2 rooms)
- Living room
I just searched for patch panels on Amazon and there are thousands. Is it correct that they "only" cost around 40.00 EUR (around 43 USD), for example?

I can’t give a product recommendation offhand. As I said, just count the number of connections you need.

How about the installation of the patch panel? It’s not as easy as you might think. Special tools would be helpful. I would even come by and do it quickly, but unfortunately you live a bit too far away, and I’m sure you wouldn’t like my hourly rate 😀