Ok, so we have an apt at university oaks. Its a privately owned apt, so we aren't renting. The apt is pre-wired with Ethernet outlets in all of the rooms, but no internet running to them. How do we get the internet running through them? We have to use a router right now, which sucks because a wired connection would be tons faster. Is there somewhere to plug in the surfboard and router so run it to all the rooms. Thanks TWW!


ps not sure if this makes a difference, but they are also prewired for cable (but that we have running to all the rooms).

8/13/2009 1:03:36 PM

Quote :

"wired connection would be tons faster"

for internet access? no, it wouldn't. even the old 802.11b wireless routers were usually faster than the internet access you probably have.

and when i lived at university house all of the ports ran to some wiring in the laundry room. check in there.. if that's the case then it's easy. i used one of the ports in the living room, connected it to the router, then put a cheap ass hub in the laundry room to connect everything. or you can just put the router in the laundry room if they're there.

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 1:17 PM. Reason : a]

8/13/2009 1:07:00 PM

checked the laundry, didnt see anything; i checked the closet on the outside patio....there are some wiring stuff in there, but its all phone-line sized outlets and wiring

8/13/2009 1:47:08 PM

Are you sure they're wired for ethernet and not phone?

8/13/2009 1:48:45 PM

they are for both....the ethernet cable plugs in perfectly to the slots in the room (but doesnt fit in the slots in the outside storage closet)

8/13/2009 1:50:56 PM

Quote :

"the ethernet cable plugs in perfectly to the slots in the room"

that doesn't mean it's for ethernet.

8/13/2009 1:56:42 PM

you'd have to take pictures of closet. the pairs are probably there waiting to be punched down to something.

8/13/2009 2:03:38 PM

ScHpEnXeL what you posted doesn't even make sense.

a) connection speeds always depend on the type of hardware you're using. if you have an 802.11n wireless device, chances are it's going to be faster that 10/100 hardware, but not gigabit, if you have gigabit, there is no wireless that's faster. if you have 802.11b, a wired connection 10/100/1000 will always be faster and more stable.

b) never use a hub, switches are so cheap you'll get nearly twice the speed out of a switch as you would a hub

I would ask your apartment complex what they meant by 'prewired for cable'

What you need to do is find where all the cables come together, plug them all into a single router (which in turn acts like a switch), or buy a switch and plug that into the router.

8/13/2009 2:04:49 PM

the RJ45 connector that everyone generally associates with ethernet is not specific to ethernet. Pop off one of the plates and verify that the connector is wired for ethernet by comparing the wiring layout to eia/tia 568B. If you pop it off and see more than one set of cables attached its wired for phone and isn't going to work for ethernet.

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 2:08 PM. Reason : a]

8/13/2009 2:07:31 PM

also if it is wired for phone and the phone service is on, you run the risk of frying your NIC if you plug it in.

8/13/2009 2:09:23 PM

He's probably referring to the bottleneck 1.5mbit DSL would introduce on an 11megabit 802.11b network.

It was just an example because who uses .11b these days anyway?

Quote :

"they are for both"

I read this to mean there are RJ-11 jacks as well as RJ-45. If there's only one RJ-45 keystone and the OP assumes this to be phone/internet combo then /facepalm.

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 2:11 PM. Reason : .]

8/13/2009 2:10:09 PM

who's the idiot that wires an apt. building with RJ45 for phone use only?

RJ45 has different uses in businesses yes, but I've never heard of an RJ45 phone jack in an apartment and have it be phone only... (without another one for internet) that's just retarded. Most residential VOIP have an RJ11 jack built-into the cable modem since there are very few people out there with VOIP phones

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 2:16 PM. Reason : .]

8/13/2009 2:13:48 PM

Quote :

"connection speeds always depend on the type of hardware you're using. if you have an 802.11n wireless device, chances are it's going to be faster that 10/100 hardware, but not gigabit, if you have gigabit, there is no wireless that's faster. if you have 802.11b, a wired connection 10/100/1000 will always be faster and more stable."

that's both true and it isn't...in terms of the LAN, of course a faster connection will make a difference

in the case of the WAN, though, there will be very little difference...what's the ACTUAL sustained throughput of 802.11b? 4-5Mbps in ideal conditions? 2-3Mbps is probably more realistic...in any case, what's the ACTUAL sustained throughput of your 7Mbps cable connection? i'd be impressed if you receive more than 2-3Mbps SUSTAINED

point is that it makes jack's worth of difference...the bottleneck is your WAN connection, not the LAN

8/13/2009 2:15:58 PM

^for a single computer yes, but if you have multiple computers on the internet at one time, i've always seen wired connections be just as fast or faster than their wireless counterparts.... i see your point though.

i get about 6-8Mbps sustained on cable, have been for years, certainly dating back to 802.11b days.

needless to say a wired connection you don't deal with interference, signal strength, and a myriad of other issues.

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 2:22 PM. Reason : ,]

8/13/2009 2:21:13 PM

yeah, i'm right, shut the fuck up.

and hub vs switch doesn't make a damn on a network this small. yes i know how they both work. and again, his internet provider is going to be the bottleneck anyway you look at it. unless he's streaming shit loads of stuff around the computers on the local network then it is not going to matter.

8/13/2009 2:39:42 PM

RAP BATTLES ITT, IMO

*starts to beatbox*

8/13/2009 2:41:41 PM

SNOOP DOG MOTHA FUCKER

8/13/2009 2:44:35 PM

for each 802.11(a,b,g,n) AP, the bandwidth is shared by the number of hosts associated to it.

same idea as a hub, and you still have RF interference that will also affect your bandwidth and throughput adversely, especially in an apartment complex where you probably have dozens of wireless networks using the same frequencies.

If you just have 802.11 b, and several hosts sharing a broadband connection, you'd see a noticeable degradation of throughput. Less so with G, and negligible with N.

8/13/2009 2:48:16 PM

just because you work at cisco doesn't mean anything



jk

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 2:52 PM. Reason : a]

8/13/2009 2:52:20 PM

Quote :

"for a single computer yes, but if you have multiple computers on the internet at one time, i've always seen wired connections be just as fast or faster than their wireless counterparts.... i see your point though."

good point about multiple users...okay, so the truth is somewhere in between everything

8/13/2009 3:05:43 PM

Quote :

"wired connection would be tons faster"

It's pretty clear the original comment was referring only to an ISP/WAN bottleneck.

Anyone coming in here arguing semantics and claiming it doesn't make sense or someone doesn't know what they're talking about just missed the point of the comment.

THIS JUST IN -- 1000Mb IS FASTER THAN 11Mb!!1

8/13/2009 3:14:07 PM

i popped off the cover...and the wire underneath is the same as an Ethernet net cable

8/13/2009 3:55:38 PM

still doesn't mean it's ethernet

(and it's useless if you aren't able to figure out where it all runs to)

[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 4:03 PM. Reason : a]

8/13/2009 4:02:53 PM

How many pairs are punched? And borrow a toner to trace it out.

8/13/2009 4:20:38 PM

pics david, we need pics

8/13/2009 4:27:45 PM

ok, here's some pictures

this is the outlet in all the bed rooms and in the living room. on top it says phone, on the bottom 'Data C14'.


this pic shows the wires connected behind them



the next two are of the thing thats in the pattio storage closet...all those numbered outlets are phone cord sized (i tried fitting an ethernet cable into them)



hope this helps. thanks guys.

8/13/2009 4:27:48 PM

well the good news is that you definitely could accomplish what you're talking about. The bad news is that I'm not well enough versed in telecommunications to understand what the fuck you have going on there.

My coworker (most likely someone who has posted in this thread already as well) would know instantly what needs to be done.





[Edited on August 13, 2009 at 5:16 PM. Reason : ]

8/13/2009 5:11:00 PM

so it looks liek the bottom two ports might be wired correctly. I couldn't tell from that angle if there are individual cables going into each jack or not. And judging by the label theirs probably a patch panel somewhere with C14 A and B on it somewhere that you'd need to plug into a switch. The thing in the last two images is just for phone so dont bother with it.

What you're looking for is something like this:



My guess is the internet is provided by the facility and the patch panel is probably in their basement or something. You need to talk to the facility manager about where it terminates and if you can separate your apartment from the rest.

8/13/2009 5:18:37 PM

^osht, good call. At first it looked like that lump of cable could have been all of the runs he needed, but on second glance it's nowhere near is it. :/

Plus, it looks like they went with the loosely accepted 'blue cablez r 4 data' standard. It's just hard to tell with the Sheetrock coating.

8/13/2009 5:29:29 PM

Quote :

" for internet access? no, it wouldn't. even the old 802.11b wireless routers were usually faster than the internet access you probably have."

not sure it matters but this statement is incorrect.

i stopped reading at this point.

wtf happened to tech talk anyways?

8/13/2009 7:16:52 PM

yeah, you *can* do it.

that's a 110 punchdown block. the question is *what* is it being fed by, and where are they punched to?

8/13/2009 7:20:04 PM

To keep this simple, can you not just call your apartment manager and have him/maintenance guys come out and explain it? Im sure you arnt the only one wondering this there and they probably know and can explain faster than toning the lines.

8/14/2009 8:52:27 AM

I think your ethernet wiring may go to a central closet in the building.. the apartment complex had some company that was providing internet access directly to the apartments, Hyperlink(?) or something like that?

So, point being, I wouldn't assume that the wiring for the Ethernet outlets terminates in your apartment. you may not even have access to it.. ask the building manager.

8/14/2009 12:34:28 PM

Quote :

"My guess is the internet is provided by the facility and the patch panel is probably in their basement or something. You need to talk to the facility manager about where it terminates and if you can separate your apartment from the rest."

Yep. I used to live at University Oaks. At the time I lived there (granted this was 1999-2001 but I doubt they've rewired) broadband service was included in the rent. The wall ports are ethernet, and they go to a little utility closet on the first floor of each building that you do not have access to. Ask management (still Preiss co. I assume) how to make the ports work--unless they've given up on the infrastructure in which case you might be screwed. Point is, I don't think there's any way to run the ports in the rooms off a device you own, as I don't think there is a patch panel or anything similar in each individual unit.

8/14/2009 2:51:20 PM

simple test. plug a router into one outlet, plug a laptop into another. ping/nmap/ssh into your router. if you can get it, great. now all you have to do is setup a mac address filter on your router and turn your local firewall on. if you can't connect to your devices, take all the wiring that comes from the rooms and run it into a switch and try again. if all that fails, well then you're stuck with wireless.

8/15/2009 9:45:06 AM

I predict your conversation with Preiss will go something like this:

You: Hey, can I get into the telecomm closet in my building?

Them: Whats that? What for?

You: Explanation

Them: Oh, I don't think so.

You: Why not?

Them: Well, we don't actually do service here. We just take your money. (You must have us confused with a management company that gives a damn.)

8/15/2009 9:58:25 AM

if it's a priess property I know who you can talk to..

8/15/2009 10:12:38 AM

utility closets almost ALWAYS open out, not in. They are easy to pop open. Wear a set of coveralls with a phony name tag, pop the door, do your work, hell, re-route your apartment to its own terminal block inside of a locked cover. then enjoy.

8/15/2009 10:50:38 AM

^ Ive done that before

It was most fun, plus had the manager of the place come up to me and my friend acting as my asst and talk to us for a half hr (this was after we had put the door back on its hinges).

8/15/2009 3:19:40 PM