ᐅ Is it necessary to have LAN cables installed in the garage?

xMisterDx schrieb:

Over time, electricity costs really add up... and using a decentralized solution is definitely more efficient than a centralized one.

I’m having trouble following your calculation... Starting with the fact that a 4-port switch does not provide you with 4 connections in one room, but only 3. The 4th port has to be used as an uplink. Also, I haven’t seen anyone unplug their decentralized switches when they’re not in use. In theory, that might work with a PC power strip, but otherwise, it’s quite unrealistic. Why are you comparing a centralized setup with PoE and a decentralized one suddenly without PoE? And just looking at it plainly, in your example you would actually need a total of 7 decentralized switches plus the central one. So where exactly are the savings on electricity consumption coming from? (I haven’t checked the claimed 2.5W, but that seems optimistic.) How much does the additional always-occupied power outlet for the switch cost?

Other disadvantages include, for example, that with a switch all connections are in one place. But the devices might be located on different walls.

Back to the topic: we are currently building, and a LAN cable is going into our garage (12m (39 feet) away from the house). It is essential for the wallbox, but I also want to have internet in the garage (which is quite long with a workbench and a hobby corner). Wi-Fi would be too unreliable for me there.

@DaveG74 then install a duplex cable right away. This way, you can use one line for the wallbox and the other for an access point. If you only have one cable, I would connect the access point and provide everything (including the wallbox) via Wi-Fi.

rick2018 schrieb:

@DaveG74 then go ahead and install a duplex cable.
This way you can use one for the wallbox and one for an access point.
With only one cable, I would connect an access point and supply everything (including the wallbox) via Wi-Fi.

A standard switch is also an option here, despite having just one connection, to get all devices connected to the network via cable.

Yes, I actually considered a PoE switch as well.

For many things, you still need a point-to-point connection. That’s why I wouldn’t skip using duplex at this point (workbench connected in series :eek 🙂.
If you have the option, you could also install a pre-made fiber optic patch cable (20m [65 feet] might cost around 30€). That way, with compatible switches, you would have galvanic isolation between the home LAN and the workshop LAN. From my experience, it’s not a bad idea at all 😉