Installing a network
Running the cables
If you are going to network a large room then it's best to buy a drum of cable and cut each run to the correct length, rather than buying pre-made cables. Not only is it cheaper, it's also neater. But you will need to beg, borrow or buy the correct crimping tool to make the end connections - it's impossible to do the job without one, and it will set you back about US$20.
Choose a good position for the hub. It doesn't really matter where you position it in relation to the PCs, the total length of cable required will be approximately the same. So site it where you can see it easily and in such a way that you can see the lights which show the activity of each PC - this will be a boon when you are trouble-shooting problems.
You also need to choose sensible runs for the cables, going up over doors if necessary or even up into the ceiling and back down to cross a room. Never run cables along the floor or across a walkway. It's obviously neater if you enclose the cables in proper trunking. Don't be tempted to run them in the same trunking as the mains cables as you will probably get interference and unreliable performance.
Leave a few inches gap between the end of trunking and the hub so that you have some flexibility in running the cables. Try and position the trunking so that the cables leave it and curve down (or up) to meet the hub, allowing for some flexibility in swapping cables around if necessary, and don't pull them too tight. Don't worry too much about putting the cable from PC-01 into the port marked number 1 on the hub, you can always renumber the ports with tape to show which PC connects to them. Instead, insert them into the nearest ports and avoid criss-crossing the cables. The final arrangement will depend on your own situation, but these pictures will give you an idea of how (not!) to do it.
After you have installed the trunking, put all the PCs in position and then put a mark on the trunking cover opposite the network card of each machine. Drill a hole through the cover at the marked position large enough to allow an RJ45 connector to pass through. Then move the PCs out of the way so that you can put wires into the trunking easily.
Making the cable ends
Some people like to run all the cables in the trunking, cut them to length and then take them out again to fasten the connectors on each end and test them. Others prefer to run the cables, cut them and then crimp the connectors in-situ, assuming that there will be no faulty connections. The first method is more work, the second more fiddly, so take your choice.
The important thing is to be very careful and methodical in cutting, trimming, inserting and crimping the cable ends. If you can wire a mains plug then you can make a network cable, but if you are at all lazy or slapdash you will have many failures. Sometimes the ends look fine, but they still don't work. Cut them off and remake them with new connectors, taking more care this time as connectors cannot be reused.
Remember that both ends should be identical, so check the wire colours carefully. If you can get someone who has made up cables before to give you a demonstration then do so. Follow the colour coding below:
At the PC end, make sure you have at least 0.5m of cable sticking out of the trunking. It's a big mistake to cut the cable shorter than this as you will not be able to move the computer for cleaning or checking without damaging the cable or the plug. Just loosely coil the slack behind the PC and don't tie it - you want it to unravel if the machine is dragged forward.
Testing
Well, having installed the cables, plug then in at both ends, switch on the hub and then switch on all the PCs. As each PC comes up and automatically logs on to the network, its corresponding LED should light up on the hub. No LED, no connection.
Allow a minute or so for the network to settle down and then double click the Network icon on the desktop of each PC and check that all the machines are visible on each one. If any PC is not visible, open its network properties and check that:
- the correct protocols have been installed
- sharing has been enabled
- the workgroup name is spelt correctly
If a PC can see itself on the network, but no others, then most likely there is a fault with the cable. Swap the PC with another to confirm this. If the cable is faulty, try re-crimping the connectors first in case they are tight. If it still doesn't work, decide which end looks the most suspect, cut off the connector and remake it. If it still doesn't work then you'll have to remake the other end too.
When all the PCs can be seen, try transferring a few files around to make sure that everything is working properly.
There, that was easy wasn't it?