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Fault Finding

An old piece of engineering wisdom says that there is never just one correct way to do something, but there are hundreds of ways to do it wrong. Network engineering is no exception to this rule, which holds true for every aspect of a network’s design and implementation, from cabling to subnetting and from topology to choice of equipment.

 

Network cabling mistakes are among the most frustrating problems to deal with. Troubleshooting them post-factum tends to be very disruptive of daily business operations, as they involve temporary loss of connectivity, checking cables that are routed through walls, floors and ceilings and so on. Furthermore, many network cabling mistakes, especially systemic ones, can manifest themselves months or years after they have been made.

Cabling is the longest-lived piece of a network’s infrastructure; oftentimes, once a mistake has crept in, you live with it throughout the network’s lifetime, or deal with it at immense cost.

 

Understanding the most common mistakes in network cabling can be key to formulating future-proof requirements, to helping your chosen vendor deliver the best possible quality, and, of course, to verifying the quality and compliance of their work.

 

What are the most common mistakes that you need to avoid throughout this process? Here is our top 9.

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  1. Short signed Planning

  2. No Cable Management

  3. Leaving Unused Cables Around

  4. Ignoring Installation Requirements

  5. Incomplete Testing

  6. Needlessly Mixing Cable Types

  7. Not Provisioning for Maintenance and Replacement

  8. Making Purchase Decisions Based on Upfront Price

  9. Ignoring Known Problems

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Mouse chewed cables

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Screwdriver Job

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This cable was run over a halogen ceiling light

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Damaged Cables

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Here's a data point fitted to an external wall

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