Fix/Move Ethernet on Side of House

Question

The house I recently bought has the networking cables to each room (2-4 each) terminate at a junction box on the outside of the house. To hook up my Internet, the tech hooked up to one of the cables to my living room, where I hooked it into my router. However, that leaves several ports in my home useless because there is nothing connected to them on the outside to give them any sort of internet access.

I'd like to have 4 Ethernet outlets per room to have all my devices wired and set up a couple APs for the devices that can't be wired. Basically I've considered doing the following.

1. Find the internet-connected cable in my attic, disconnect and pull it from its outlet and hook up to my router->network switch. Then, run new cables to each room from that network switch. (This is overly simplified).

2. Run a cable for each wireless AP to the wall/ceiling locations I want them.

I'm not sure if this is the best way to do this. I'm not sure what to do with all the cables in the junction box (and through the brick and mortar, btw). Should I pull them all, leaving just the network connected line? I'd like a good home network, but it seems there will be a lot of extra work due to poor initial network wiring. I don't want to use powerline adapters either.

Some notes:

1. It's an FTTP/H connection, set up so I don't need a separate modem.

2. The current wiring is as follows: Fiber->ONT->(over ethernet)Junction Box->Through Outside Wall->Living Room->Router. I think I'd prefer the following: Through Outside Wall->Router->Switch->Room Outlets/APs.

Current setup:

Proposed setup:

Any help (including things to keep in mind and look out for) is greatly appreciated!

Edit: Whatever setup I decide, I don't plan to leave it in the attic. The conditions are too variable and, I think, not good for networking equipment.

Answer 1

Stated another way, your options are to make the best use possible of the cable that's already installed or install new cable that suits your need better.

Ethernet outdoors

There exist environmentally hardened Ethernet switches designed for outdoor use, but you won't find them on the shelf at the local big box electronics store and they'll cost more than consumer/SOHO indoor-rated gear. Then again, indoor-rated gear might perform acceptably for you even outdoors. So there's one option: install an Ethernet switch near enough to all those cables outdoors so that they can be patched into the switch. You'd have to get power to it from somewhere and it would require some kind of protection from water.

Turn cables indoors

Think about what's on the interior side of the wall from that outdoor junction box. Would it be acceptable to place a patch panel near that location? You could cut an opening in the interior wall, pull all the cables from the junction box into a new box inside, and repair the wall.

Modify, abandon, or replace

If all else fails you'll have to install some new cable. Some of the existing cable might run through accessible areas like the attic. Any existing cable you can find and re-route to the new patch panel location saves work in fishing new wire through walls. Consider whether it's useful to have more than one patch (and switch) location to so that everything doesn't have to home-run to a single place.

Don't go to great pains to rip out wire you're not using -- if it isn't hurting anything, just leave it in place. Maybe you or a future owner will think of something to use it for later.

Retrofitting cable is something of an art form, but it can be learned. Things to consider as you plan a retrofit are which direction the floor joists go and where there are mechanical chases (ie for duct work) that you might be able to push wire through.

Answer 2

I had a very similar situation in a house, but the difference is that all my ethernet cables from around the house terminated in the attic. That made it a little easier to deal with than yours, but maybe my approach will give you an idea.

Rather than worry about finding a router/switch that would survive in the 130F heat of the attic, I put a patch panel in the attic and ran new wires into a nearby closet. I had about loose cables in the attic, so I punched them all down on to a patch panel and ran patch cables to the closet.

Installed a wiring cabinet in the closet and rack mounted a switch, power supplies and a few PoE injectors in it and this is where all the connections were made from room to room.

So, summary answer - leave existing cables alone and install new cables that run to a more convenient location for all your networking equipment.

Answer 3

This is normal. The builder has run 4 cables to each room, and brought them all out to a junction box. This work is not finished. On purpose. You are expected to finish it according to your preferences, which the builder cannot and should not guess at.

Presumably this involves fitting punchdown blocks to all the cables, (RJ11 or RJ45 depending on phone vs ethernet needs), then installing a switch in the junction box. I gather there isn't mains power in the junction box, but that's what PoE is for.

If the junction box isn't big enough, change the junction box. That is much easier than running new wires in the walls.

Equipment can work fine outdoors if the box is reasonably weather resistant. After all, the equipment will be powered up and making heat, which will preclude it freezing and prevent any condensation. If you're going to power it down for an extended period, remove it.

As far as the box getting hot in the summer sun, you are talking about putting the switch/router in the attic, where heat would be a much bigger problem. It can help greatly to paint the sunward sides of the box a snow white color (91%+ reflectivity) or better, fit some sort of shade sail to keep sun off it entirely.