Using Patch Panels in a Home Network or Homelab

[@JohnDoe1999-lg7mh]

Nice. Very important the twist of the pairs together as much as possible. The higher Cat #, the more important it is to get speed and to be stable.

[@homenetworkguy]

Yeah that’s important. I could’ve maybe twisted a bit more in the demonstration but if only the last inch is not twisted perfectly, I don’t think that’s a big deal because at some point the wires have to be separated a little bit to be terminated. I try ensure the jack of the Ethernet is as close to the edge of the keystone as possible and properly seated inside RJ45 plugs whenever making cables to minimize the amount that’s untwisted. (It also helps support the cable better too in addition to looking cleaner)

[@doctorno3912]

The modular patch panels are the way to go. I'll sometimes leave a keystone blanked so I can feed SFP+ DAC's through them. Keeps it looking nice and tidy. Big fan of the rj45 couplers but many people will lecture you on using them lol. It's not a production network so stuff it.

[@homenetworkguy]

Yeah for sure. I recently thought about feeding the SFP+ DAC through the empty keystone opening as well when I was making this video, but since I'm using a 48 port switch in my rack, I don't have extra openings so I just wrap the DAC cables around the side of my rack (I have a small, clear command hook that I rest the cables in along with velcro on the cables so it looks relatively clean). I may do that in the future if I'm rearranging some things in my rack (will probably be adding a new core/aggregation switch at some point). I have some extra modular patch panels since I replaced 2 2U modular patch panels with a single 48U modular patch panel. I primarily use the RJ45 couplers for any Ethernet connections for devices in my rack because it makes it easy to use standard Ethernet cables. It seems silly to me to use punchdown keystones for devices inside my rack since I have to make custom cables or cut off one end of a perfectly usable premade Ethernet cable. The rest of the keystones I use are RJ45 punchdowns for all of my wall drops in my house. S

[@alonzosmith6189]

Agree, the keystone patch panels are the way to go.

[@homenetworkguy]

It’s more expensive because of buying all the modules but they are super convenient and allows you to mix different types of keystones.