About a month ago I submitted a post called Cable Management: A Necessary Evil and discussed the sometimes odious, but very necessary task of implementing proper cable management in the data center. An even more important aspect of data center infrastructure that is out of sight, but should never be out of mind, is the cable plant itself.
I learned quite some time ago during a BICSI course on structured wiring and first-hand when helping the Coast Guard move into a newly constructed office space in Norfolk, Virginia; that the network is only as good as the cable it's traveling on and how well or poorly it was installed. CableOrganizer.com offers many products to ensure you've got a properly installed and dependable cable plant.
The best way to help make sure the installation is done right is to use the right components:- Cable Trays (raised floors) or Cable Ladders (above rack implementations) allow the network cables to be run out of the way to prevent crushing, snags, kinks or extreme bends that could impact the performance of the cable. Snake Tray is also a very useful product that can be adapted to suit your specific needs.
- UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) cable should be long enough to accommodate routing through all cable management areas and if you're finishing the cables yourself, use good quality connectors/plugs and the proper tools (a flathead screwdriver is not an acceptable substitute for proper tool to punchdown connections at a patch panel). The quality of your UTP cable should be confirmed using a Cable Analyzer/Tester and these are useful not just for new installs, but necessary when troubleshooting an issue with the cable plant.
- Fiber-Optic cable can also suffer performance degradation if not installed skillfully using the proper tools or good quality cable and connectors. As with UTP, testing the connections with the proper equipment is a must.
- Labeling the cables and equipment can be a very tedious task, but again very necessary. I can't count the number of times I've been chasing down a problem and gotten frustrated when things weren't labeled properly or documented well.
So, remember the time & effort you put into your data center is valuable and in many cases a one-time investment, because it can be very hard to go back and correct a poorly installed cable plant. Make sure you use the right tools or equipment and if you don't have them, take a gander at what CableOrganizer.com has to offer.
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