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Brocade Best Practices Guide: Cabling the Data Center

You haven't given much detail on what you're trying to accomplish. You seem to be doing framing, high voltage, and data runs for a data center. Here's some items that might be best suited for you:

1. Don't run power parallel with Ethernet. Additionally, when crossing power runs, do so at as close to a 90° angle as possible. If you don't follow this, the EMI will cause random packets to not reach their destination. A nice way to handle this is through the use of overhead cable pathways. Those will be very helpful in connecting to each rack's horizontal and vertical pathways. Also, it allows you to keep power down bottom and data up top (so they never connect).
   
   
2. I'm concerned that the high voltage is not running through some form of conduit. It's likely either you live in a place with very lax codes or an Electrician wasn't brought in.
   
   
3. It's great that the ends are labeled. Terminate the Ethernet cables at patch panels; not with RJ45 ends.
   
   
4. Are you using plenum cables or have otherwise reached the fire-safety codes?
   
   If you give more detail on where these runs start and end, as well as what the area is going to be used for, we can help with different suggestions.
   
   Edit: I also like /u/skifdank's suggestion of J-Hooks as a replacement for the cable pathways, if you insist on using the hot aisles, for some reason.

holy shit, that back panel looks like a cereal-box maze.

Its better. But velcro ftw. And kudos on the clever shelf -> cable ladder idea.

edit

Definitely dont mean to bum your high man, this is* an improvement. I'll make a few observations as a lay-person learning proper cable management techniques myself.

• The underlying goal of a proper layout is to facilitate ease of maintenance.
  
  this is why zip ties are generally frowned upon. If its all you got, its better than nothing, but this is the way to go, by far. Zip ties may be "cheaper" but they aren't reusable.
  
  
• That powerstrip daisy-chain is no bueno.
  
  It may never give you a hassle, but in production, thats a no-no, and its that way for a reason. Amperage draw specifically.
  
  From the OSHA PDF (shakes head for quoting OHSA)
  
  "when multiple power strips are
  interconnected, the one directly connected
  to the building outlet is often supplying
  power to far more than the approved
  number. This electrical current overload can
  result in a fire or can cause a circuit breaker
  to trip, deenergizing computers and other
  equipment throughout the area."
  
  that poor power delivery and circuit failure strains your devices and reduces life. I live in the real world too, where we have budgets and such. If you love your electronics, feed them well. Power conditioners not only evenly distribute power, but they clean up the spikes in the grid, making things easier on your gear.
  
  
• Play tetris, then snake.
  
  Obviously there is some give and take in this, but the most beautiful SoHo Cable setups have boxes laid out logically, then the wiring wrapped to compliment. Exhibit A. Exhibit B. Note exhibit B bundles Data and Power together. Typically not a serious issue, but something to avoid if possible.
  
  Sorry for the long edit, but my sarcastic humor floated to the top and I felt like an asshole. Kudos for your creativity. We learn things every time.

Looks like a great start!

Having some experience in automotive wiring, some pointers:

• Strain relief, strain relief, strain relief! You seem to already appreciate this, but it's amazing what 100,000 miles of road vibration can do to a single dangling bundle.
  
• Sealing is critical! Anything that might be exposed to the outside world must have proper boots and seals. Any moisture getting into a connector will cause it to eventually fail.
  
• Service loops! It's always a good idea to leave an extra inch or two at the end of every termination, twisted into a loop. When you inevitably mis-pin a connector or a crimp fails, you will be very, very glad you did.
  
• Abrasion resistance! All looms running outside of boxes need to be covered with some sort of shield, even if you think they can't possible move. This can be as simple as split-loom, or as serious as putting everything inside DR-25 heat-shrink. If you use the latter, you can combine it with epoxy-sealed connector boots to create fully watertight and strain relieved harnesses (which is probably overkill unless you're building an endurance racecar).
  
• Concentric twist is the shit. If you have the patience, it will give you mind-bendingly flexible bundles.
  
• For labeling your unterminated ends, you can get some assorted-color heat shrink like this, cut them into 1/8" collars, and use a code to denote pin number (the resistor color code works, if you have enough colors which this kit doesn't).
  
  Happy wiring! We have always had a lack of sexy vehicle wiring around here so I look forward to following your project!

For sure,

The Case is made by Marathon, it's an 8U Case that's only 14" deep because I needed the portability of a shorter case. Link to Case on B&H Photo

Front of the Unit

From top to bottom, we have a 9 port surge protector (The Surge Protector came with what I can only describe as a 15 foot cable which is fantastic, apologies for the Canadian Link as well), Blank Grille for cooling, Sonnet Mac Rack Mini (Two fully functional USB Charging ports on the front which can charge an iPad or iPhone, houses a 2012 Mac Mini refurb, Server is running with a 480GB SSD, 8GB of RAM, on the right side where another Mac Mini could go I routed the power cable and there is a 500GB USB 3 HDD Backup Drive, there is also redundant ethernet lines being run (one main to the computer and one backup via a Thunderbolt to Ethernet Adapter)), 1U Tray with Slots, 1U Tray (Sprayed with a rubber paint to make it non-stick), and a 2U Drawer which houses a cash tray.

The Blank Grille houses a TP-Link 8 port switch (as, for me, a 16-port switch would've been overkill as I only have 3-4 devices outside of the box that may need to be connected at any point in time). It also houses an older model of Apple Airport Extreme (this was simply because of convenience for me as I had it lying around and it fit in the space. If I wanted to throw more money at this box to get some newer products, I would've placed a new airport express (The smaller one that is the size of an Apple TV).

Only other thing that you can't see in the picture is a 6U Blank Grille on the back which is on a hinge (Hides the cabling when onsite and keeps it clean in the case that it has to face the customer, but provides airflow.

Essentially, if I understand your classroom-in-a-box solution, you need something that could house and power all the laptops, and possibly do networking as well. If that was the case, they make rolling versions of these boxes.... If the school you're working in didn't have wireless, but did have Ethernet, you can mark a location on the switch for the teacher the plug into the network. Then it's a matter of figuring out shelving, wiring and which wireless box you'd want to go with to keep everything clean. Simply have one or two power cables coming out of the unit when everything needs to charge up and you'd be good to go (If you are housing the computer... as I re-read your comment, it appears that these might be laptops that the students bring from home).

Hopefully that helps describe everything. Sorry for the wall of text.

I don't consider myself a pro. I don't make a living crimping cat5. But the faster I do it, the sooner I can get to the shit that I actually get paid for (I'm primarily a fiber/design guy).

I use a pair of electricians scissors (I prefer these, my coworkers like these), a good pair of gear ratcheted crimpers (like, ones that don't smash the tab on the cat5 head. these I hate. these I love), and cat5 heads like this (notice how the channels for the individual wires go about half way the length back. this makes it easier to feed the wires in aligned and get them in the channels before letting go. This is a pretty standard cat5 head, but sometimes people end up bringing in random ones or grabbing the only thing they could find at Staples and they're more trouble than they should be). We use cat5 solid core copper, not stranded. Much easier to work with IMO. The solid core stuff has a memory to it like a coat hanger when you bend it. The stranded stuff just kind of flops around and doesn't really hold its form which can add unnecessary difficulty when trying to feed the ordered wires into the head.

My method is to strip the jacket off a thumbs width from the end of the cable. Grab the orange pair and untwist it as i bend it to the left. Untwist the green pair and bend the green/white left. Untwist blue pair and bend it back slightly. Untwist brown pair and push to the right, push solid green near them as well. Then I lay my index finger behind the wires and start pinching them between my thumb and index finger in the order i want them as I swing the jacketed part of the cable hanging out of my hand from right to left (or left to right if you're a lefty) with my other hand to close the gaps between the individual wires as I'm pinching them down to hold them in place. Then, what I consider the most important step, wiggle the wires left and right heavily then less and less as you pull straight out on them a little harder and harder while holding the cable itself securely with your other hand. This should straighten all the wires. Then pinch again and cut the excess off flat, feed into your cat5 head, push all the way to the end, keep the pressure onto make sure all 8 are pushed all the way in as far as they can go, and crimp down.

​

Probably takes me about 60-90 seconds per end. If I'm actually doing a lot and can sit down to work on them all at once I can probably do an end in 45 seconds. Its just practice though.

Thank you good Sir!

I used these cable clips below.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075Y9J42T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I did a lot of research of several types of cable clips on Amazon and after using these ones i would definitely recommend. The adhesive is very strong compared to others. I just put these all over the back of the edge table and routed the cables through them. Worked like a charm! I also used three of them to clip the power strips to the bottom of the desk. I would cut the zip tie of one of them and run the other two zip ties through 1. I don't know if that makes sense. I can add pictures. Might be easier to understand.

I had ~10 racks with almost the exact same setup (same racks, same servers, very similar cable layout and switch position).

My advice to you is to tie the cables off in such a way that they are not touching the rack rails. Those hooks you see on the left side of the photo on the rack rails? They move with the server and love to catch the ethernet cables. Similar situation happens on the side with the power cables, although not as bad due to different cable management attachment point on the other side.

You will say to yourself, but sir, I will always be sure to power the server off and then disconnect all cables before removing it from the rack! - likely very true statement. However, no one else will give 2 shits about it and will do the old "I'll just pull this server out a half inch so I can go around back and tell which one it is" trick, which then pulls your ethernet cables into the pinch-n-cut hook, and the power cables pull out. Then your life gets worse :)

I suggest getting some of the really thin Velcro cable wraps like these - http://amzn.com/B001E1Y5O6?tag=amz-link-20 - then apply them liberally to keep stuff tied back and out of the way. They are really thin and don't get in the way like the thicker expensive ones do so they work great for actually tying the cables directly to the sliding section of the rack rails.

Here’s my write up on JeepForum

This is the fuse block I used

I used 6-position covered terminal blocks similar to these, although I got them for $3/ea at a local store

This was my ground bus bar. it was cheaper when I bought it, and 10-position is nice but I probably could’ve gotten away with less

These are the waterproof sealed relays I would recommend

This is the circuit breaker I wish I used, but I had the 150A on hand. I’ll probably swap it out at some point

Edit: to add on, I used heatshrink on noninsulated female disconnects so that I could have everything properly color coordinated for easier work if I needed to make repairs/modifications in the future. I only used 1/4” Red/Yellow/Black HS on the board :)

EDIT 2: I used the wrong link for my writeup. It's fixed now!

The "Type" of cable fastener absolutely does make all of the difference depending upon the application.

In many applications cable or "zip" ties are not allowed due to toxic fumes given off when they are heated. Many users tend to over tighten cable ties thus damaging the cable jacket or conductor vs velcro.

In the case of aircraft or high vibration scenarios the type of cable fastener used is highly regulated.

In the end remember there are Redditors from around the globe here that are not only home users but also many that work with cable fasteners day to day in the work that they do. I have been known to post a link to this set of velcro from Amazon to those that complain about price.

If this were my setup I would cringe at the crimped coax cable. It's totally worth redoing, using a compression fitting instead. Those tools can be found at your local hardware store, online or just befriend a cable guy and hand him a few bucks to remake the end. It will take him a minute or less.

Thx OP for the post, IMO anything better than a nest of cables is better in the end. I highly prefer velcro.

Does anybody know what kind of scissors those are? They look like my fluke scissors but only one side has the cutting leverage handle thingy lol. Don't know the technical name. If anybody else wants to recommend what scissors they use. I've been using these since they are very sharp and awesome.

https://www.amazon.com/Fluke-Networks-D-Snip-Cable-Scissors/dp/B000E5VAXM

Here's the composition of the rack:

• NavePoint 12U Network Rack
  
• TP-Link TL-SG1024: 24 port rackmount switch
  
• TP-Link TL-SG1016PE: 16 port rackmount power over ethernet switch (needed for the Wi-Fi access points)
  
• TP-Link TL-R600VPN: Rackmount router w/ dual-WAN and VPN
  
• Rackmount Power w/ surge protection
  
• Rack shelf: Used to hold modem and NAS
  
• Patch Panel: 24-port Cat6 patch panel (wires go in the pack via punchdown connection, and you run patch cables to the switches)
  
• 12" Patch cables: For connecting between the patch panel, swicthes, other on-rack devices
  
• Synology 416play NAS: Movies, music, pictures, etc. 32 TB in all.
  
  Elsewhere in the house/other useful parts:
  
  
• Keystone Cat6 jacks: one per bedroom, 4 in my home office, 4 in the media room (not built yet), 3 in the family room
  
• 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-hole keystone wall plates: Buy the number of holes you want and just pop in the keystone jacks
  
• Blank keystone inserts: For when you have too many holes in the keystone plates
  
• Ubiquiti AC Pro x 3: Wi-Fi access points, roughly center of the house on each floor (basement, first, second)
  
• Punchdown tool: For doing the punchdown connections on the patch panel and on each of the keystone Cat6 plugs in each room
  
• Extra rack screws and washers
  
• J-Hook: There are two hooks on each wall, holding service loops for the Cat6 and Coax, respectively.
  
  Useful things I learned:
  
  
• I was originally going to run the wires myself, but never could find the time. Also Cat6 is expensive when not purchased in wholesale quantities (< 10,000 ft). So we hired a local electrician to run the actual wires. It took two of them about 1.5 days to run everything. This was well worth the money, since the project would have taken many months to do in the evenings/on weekends with a toddler running around.
  
• I did all the wall terminations. Since they were punchdowns, it was easy and took one evening after work. The electricians would have charged me another half-day of labor.
  
• I did all the network rack work. This also took one evening after work.
  
• Do NOT buy electrical/networking equipment from a big box hardware store. Always go to a specialized retailer, like an electrician supply store. Their prices will be 1/20th that of the big box store, you won't have to have anything shipped, and their employees actually know what they are talking about. So if you're looking for something that you don't know the name of, you can usually describe it.
  
• Newer construction may have fire breaks/blocks/stops which prevent fire and gases from traveling up the inside of the walls. This makes fire move more slowly and give you more time to evacuate. However, it also means you might need to drill holes/patch walls in order to run wires vertically.
  
• Put in a service loop. If you ever need to re-terminate for any reason (like replacing a patch panel), it will give you extra cable to work with. Do the same thing inside your walls behind the wall plates, since you might have to do the same thing there as well.
  
• Buy networking gear that is rated for the same speed (i.e., gigabit). Your network will only be as fast as the slowest part of it.
  
• Watch out for network loops. This is really easy to do and will cause your router to crash or perform suboptimally. I spent >2 hours debugging on of these as a result of connecting my router to itself by way of both switches.

Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:

Amazon Smile Link: these.


|Country|Link|
|:-----------|:------------|
|UK|amazon.co.uk|
|Spain|amazon.es|
|France|amazon.fr|
|Germany|amazon.de|
|Canada|amazon.ca|
|Italy|amazon.it|




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I don't even think OP should have used an actual rack like that. The best thing for homes is a simple, wall-mount patch panel, which are inexpensive and easy to use. It's what I used in my basement. You can usually wall-mount a 5-port switch, too, they usually have those slots for screws in the back.

But if you really must have a 19" rack, you can get 4U wall mountable racks fairly cheaply, or a flush mount 1U rack, or if you need something sturdier. But I've seen those mounted; they stick out much further than you think they do when you picture them in your head.

I bought some recently and have liked them.

Tool
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001UL1CU0/ref=oh_details_o01_s01_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Connectors
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004D9WXCM/ref=oh_details_o01_s01_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

and FWIW
Cable
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0069F4H3G/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


The cable fits very well in the ends, very tight and weatherproof. And the Tool is very comfortable, I used mine all day.

Probably better prices to be found elsewhere, but in a rush to find cable ties, I bought one of these a couple years ago (for personal cables, not bulk use), and I still have them around and use them regularly. I bought them as an Amazon Prime customer, so they were $7.10 and free shipping.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001E1Y5O6/

Plug them all into a Pass through patch panel. Label it one for one with the labels on the cables. Should be pretty enough and functional. Then use patch cables and a nice 2u cable manager. Be nice of you to put some j-hooks on those shit studs about 2ft up and separated the cables from the power that its probably running on top of.

Heres a parts list.

Patch Panel

2u Cable Manager

J-Hooks

Patch Cables

Wall Rack Enclosure

OP (and others), try these, they're fantastic for cable management. I've always got a bunch kicking around at home and the office too, they're amazingly useful.

https://www.amazon.com/VELCRO-Brand-ONE-WRAP-Management-Self-Gripping/dp/B001E1Y5O6/

You can get flush-cut dykes super cheap. Lindstrom makes a nice pair.

https://www.amazon.com/Lindstrom-8142-80-Cutting-Capacity/dp/B000C79I7W

Thank you! And this is the rack pictured
Tripp Lite SRWO8U22 Wall Mount 2-Post Open Frame Rack Cabinet 8U/14U/22U Wallmount https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0041W55YE/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_IfkSub09Q16SV
Used it 4 or 5 times now in different configs. I enjoy them very much

http://www.amazon.com/Velcro-Reusable-Self-Gripping-Inches-91140/dp/B001E1Y5O6

Those cable ties always look a ton better than zip ties and are a million limes easier to remove. Even though you say its permanent, nothing is ever PERMANENT.

Ditch the electrical tape and get some velcro straps. Super cheap on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Velcro-Reusable-Self-Gripping-Inches-91140/dp/B001E1Y5O6/

Great connectors,

http://www.amazon.com/PPC-Ex6xl-Compression-Connector-Approved/dp/B004D9WXCM/

and the tool I've been using for 7 years,

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cable-Pro-Linear-Compression-Tool-RG6-RG59-CPLCCT-1-S-LCCT1-new-/200735549421

VELCRO Brand One Wrap Thin Ties, Black, 8 x 1/2-Inch, 100 Count (91140) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001E1Y5O6/ref=cm_sw_r_em_apa_L-7QAb6DGV2AA

Very satisfying $10.

I was looking at this TP-Link:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003BU0EKW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_GRswzbGTHG9TG

But only 5 year warranty.

This Netgear has lifetime warranty:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002CWPW2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TSswzbEF9ZDNZ


Is the TP-Link still the better choice? If so, why?

I'm also getting fiber (1Gig).

great good god...275 drops. 4 twisted pair / drop. That's 2,200 punches. I wonder how long it took.

​

EDIT: Is there a tool / technique to make punching down mass drop patch panels more efficient?

​

DOUBLE EDIT: Hold the fuck up. Those are RJ45 modular jacks....in a patch panel form factor? Is this common practice? I'm a cat5e 48 drop and below guy.

​

TRIP EDIT: I use these

https://www.amazon.com/Tripp-Lite-Rackmount-Ethernet-N052-024/dp/B00005129E/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=cat5e+patch+panel+tripp+lite&qid=1558584547&s=gateway&sr=8-2

Marine environments are tough, especially salt water. I did A/V automation for over a decade and always wanted to do a boat. I wanted to do a plane and an r/V also, but none of the opportunities presented themselves.

I always use velcro, but I don't really know how it handles the vibrations from a couple of engines and slapping against waves. Instead of using so many zip ties, you could use some cable snakeskin ( https://www.amazon.com/Techflex-PTN0-25BK25-General-Purpose-Braided/dp/B004UHJCFI ) and then just ziptie every foot or 18" it might give you a cleaner look while still giving you the permanence of zipties

Velcro ties, then organized however you like without worrying about tangles.

http://www.amazon.com/Velcro-Reusable-Self-Gripping-Inches-91140/dp/B001E1Y5O6/

Velcro cable ties are millions of times better. I bought a pack for home, and use them with my home theater and computer wiring. I use these (or something very similar).

That's the thing though... Velcro is hardly more expensive... Especially considering the advantages it offers.

I use one of these. With some of these. You can get the labels in different sizes. They look/work really well.

I like it. My homelab rack looks similar.

I just cringe when it comes to zip ties. Buy a couple packs of these for home and work use, imho

https://www.amazon.com/VELCRO-Brand-Reusable-Fastening-Organizing/dp/B001E1Y5O6

​

​

velcro ties. Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/VELCRO-Brand-Black-2-Inch-91140/dp/B001E1Y5O6/ref=pd_lpo_229_bs_tr_t_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=AW2FABYWJ6TYBNEDMMZ7

Get some of these.

Ended up getting this instead

I bought these

velcro cable ties

I've used velcro thin ties. They are thinner and lighter and cheaper than the thick ones. I think they come in rolls too but the price isn't as good.

For basics, you'll need a cat5/6 UTP stripper

http://www.amazon.com/Ideal-45-165-UTP-Cable-Stripper/dp/B000IBPRCM/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1377532523&sr=8-18&keywords=cat+5+UTP+stripper

A decent Punchdown tool, theres a few different brands, i use a Fluke personally.

A good set of snips is worth its weight in gold, not only for cutting cable, but for cutting larger wires, tie wraps, and fingers

http://www.amazon.com/Fluke-Networks-44300000-D-Snip-Scissors/dp/B000E5VAXM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377532588&sr=8-1&keywords=fluke+scissors

You'll need a cable tester, you can find a basic cheap one that tests for open and swapped pairs. Unless you need documented certifications, thats all you need.

And then a small flathead, medium phillips screwdriver, and a small hook for pulling out those pesky swapped wire pairs from jacks.