# Network Closet & Structured Cabling

## Overview

The network closet is located in the **Basement Electrical Panel room**, which serves as the central termination point for all Ethernet and Coax runs in the house. This is not yet a finished closet — it is an open area with a floor-standing rack in place. Full rack buildout (patch panel punch-down, cable labelling, power management) is planned for **Summer 2026**.

> **Status:** Work in progress. All Ethernet runs are currently raw ends. Patch panel is not yet installed.

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## Rack

| Property | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Floor-standing |
| Size | 6U |
| Status | In place, not fully secured or built out |

> **Note:** 6U is tight at full population. Current planned rack residents: 24-port patch panel (1U), GigaPlus switch (1U), 5-port PoE switch (1U), PDU (1U) — leaves 2U spare. Consider upsizing before finalizing rack procurement.

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## Patch Panel

| Property | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | 24-port Cat6 keystone |
| Status | Not yet installed — pending cable labelling |
| Blocker | All 18 runs require labelling at both ends before punch-down |

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## Ethernet Runs — Full Inventory

18 total runs. All Cat6 runs were self-installed post-purchase. Cat5a runs are builder-installed dual-purpose cable.

| # | Room / Zone | Count | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Basement Gym | 1 | Cat6 | Single wall plate (unfinished). Feeds Deco AP, TV, PoE injector → Front Yard Camera |
| 2 | Living Room | 1 | Cat6 | Self-run through wall. Feeds unmanaged switch → TV + AppleTV |
| 3 | Front Yard | 2 | Cat6 | Run 1: from Network Closet → Reolink camera (active). Run 2: from Gym PoE injector → future gas meter camera (Fall 2026) |
| 4 | Back Yard | 2 | Cat6 | Run 1: PoE → outdoor Deco X50-Outdoor AP. Run 2: unconnected — reserved for future WAN failover (Starlink or UniFi SIM) |
| 5 | Garage | 1 | Cat6 | ~50–70ft via conduit. Feeds Deco X50-Outdoor AP (PoE-powered from Closet) |
| 6 | Kitchen | 2 | Cat6 | Run 1: Deco BE11000 AP (primary node). Run 2: spare / unconnected |
| 7 | Kitchen | 1 | Cat5a | Builder run — awkward termination position, unconnected |
| 8 | Media Room | 1 | Cat5a | Single wall drop — daisy-chained switches downstream |
| 9 | Guest Bedroom | 1 | Cat5a | Not directly in use for Ethernet — MoCA adapter at desk end |
| 10 | Office | 1 | Cat5a | Feeds Deco XE75 Pro AP + MokerLink switch → homelab + work desk |
| 11 | Master Bedroom | 1 | Cat5a | PoE — feeds Deco X50-PoE on-wall AP |
| 12 | MoCA Network Feed | 1 | Cat6 | Dedicated run from Network Closet to Coax splitter for MoCA/OTA distribution |

> **Labelling status:** Starting from zero. Previous labels have fallen off. Full re-labelling required at both ends of all 18 runs before patch panel work begins.

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## Coax Infrastructure

A coax network runs in parallel to Ethernet throughout the house, fed from the Network Closet via a coax splitter.

**Signal sources at splitter:**
- OTA antenna (attic-mounted, amplified)
- MoCA Ethernet bridge (1x adapter at Network Closet end)

**Coax-capable rooms:**

| Room | Active Use |
|---|---|
| Living Room | Coax present — current use TBD |
| Media Room | Connected to TV (OTA) |
| Guest Bedroom | MoCA adapter → desk Ethernet |
| Master Bedroom | Coax present — not actively in use for MoCA |

**MoCA Adapters:**

| Location | Role |
|---|---|
| Network Closet | Coax → Ethernet bridge (network side) |
| Guest Bedroom | Coax → Ethernet bridge (endpoint) |

> MoCA expansion is possible but unlikely. The Guest Bedroom use case is a unique placement issue where Coax terminated at the right desk location but no Ethernet run was present.

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## Outstanding Action Items

- [ ] Label all 18 Ethernet runs at both ends (Network Closet + room end)
- [ ] Install 24-port Cat6 keystone patch panel in rack
- [ ] Secure and complete rack buildout
- [ ] Verify IoT network isolation method (see Wireless page)
- [ ] Install gas meter camera on Front Yard Run 2 (Fall 2026)
- [ ] Determine WAN failover solution for Back Yard Run 2 (Starlink vs UniFi SIM)

## Last Updated
2026-06-18