Post your home network setup (Official Thread)

[Member-144497]

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[Meeklo]

Nice shrine to your network....brought to you by Cisco!

[Hammie]

Very nice. I'll take some pics tomorrow and post them.

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by Caleb

Thanks guys.

I'm looking forward to seeing your setup Hammie.

And I'm such a cisco fanatic because its the only brand I trust.

I've tried all the following adsl modems with the most recent firmware installed on each one.

Dlink 2007 model DSL-2640B.

Netgear 2011 model DGND3700.

Actiontec 2011 model GT784WN.

Trendnet 2011 model TEW-658BRM.

All of those models had major DNS issues and ALWAYS lost sync with my isp causing me to restart the modem.

Then when I almost lost all hope linksys introduced their first 2011 adsl modem.

My connection has been problem free ever since I upgraded to the linksys X2000.

I have multiple zones with each zone hard wired running Gig-E Cat6. All of this is connected to a Comcast/Xfinity 105Mbps cable Internet connection. The four zones I have in my house are:

Home Office:



Wireless Access Point:

The Vonage is gone. Too crappy quality of service. Everyone complained.



I also have the same D-Link Gig-E switches you see in the Home Office picture located in my Media Center Cabinet and my Gaming Center (small 32" LCD setup with XBox, AppleTV, and BD for the kids). I did not include pictures because they are hidden and out of sight. I may post the Media Center one next week after I do a major wiring overhaul in that zone.

I am also a Cisco guy, but I don't have any of their gear (except my Cisco Linksys AP). BTW, I am Cisco certified in Routing and Voice.

[MrFattBill]

Mine looks very similar to this...just replace the fork with a table leg


My stuff at work is a little more organized....not by much though.

Bill

[My_Two_Cents]

Originally Posted by MrFattBill

Mine looks very similar to this...just replace the fork with a table leg

[Show spoiler]

Bill

As bad as this?

IMGP0377.jpg

There's really not a lot more I can do to improve this mess, as I've got 7-8 main data lines (2 RG-59 + 2 CAT5 + phone + fiber optic) and numerous individual lines feeding into this main box from all over the house. Obviously the builder failed to size the junction box properly. I've though of picking up a better muti-splitter for the cable lines, but I'm just to cheep to spend the money when what I have works just fine.

[Waboman]

Originally Posted by Hammie

I have multiple zones with each zone hard wired running Gig-E Cat6. All of this is connected to a Comcast/Xfinity 105Mbps cable Internet connection. The four zones I have in my house are:

Home Office:

[Show spoiler]

What's that yellow washcloth hanging on your wall?

[Waboman]

You guys all have such sophisticated networks. Here's mine. Nothing but the best, baby.

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by Caleb

That's a pretty nice setup Hammie.

By the way why is their an orange light on the arris?

It is yellow/orange because my upload speed has only locked on to high speed versus ultra high speed. I may need to reset the modem or call Comcast.

Originally Posted by Waboman

What's that yellow washcloth hanging on your wall?

Hmmm... I don't know. Maybe the sign of a six time super bowl champs... What is the Vikings record in the Super Bowl?

[Waboman]

Originally Posted by Hammie

Hmmm... I don't know. Maybe the sign of a six time super bowl champs... What is the Vikings record in the Super Bowl?

Oh, I thought you kept that hanky there in case you had an emergency sneeze or just needed to blow your nose. Lol. The Vikings are working on it. Don't rush 'em.

[Waboman]

Originally Posted by Caleb

Waboman.....Do you have a modem also?

All I see is a router.

Hey Caleb.

My modem sits on a very cluttered part of my desk. I was embarrassed to take a pic of it. You have inspired me to clean that area up. It still pales in comparison to everyone else's home network. But at least my desk got cleaned.

[stevo4264]

Originally Posted by Ricshoe

As bad as this?

Attachment 39637

There's really not a lot more I can do to improve this mess, as I've got 7-8 main data lines (2 RG-59 + 2 CAT5 + phone + fiber optic) and numerous individual lines feeding into this main box from all over the house. Obviously the builder failed to size the junction box properly. I've though of picking up a better muti-splitter for the cable lines, but I'm just to cheep to spend the money when what I have works just fine.

That looks very Impressive

[Hammie]

Mine is from Comcast for Cable Internet. I need it provided to me because I also subscribe to their VoIP services. Mine is a DOCSIS3.0 compliant modem.

I have had zero issues. *knock on wood*

[brettallica]

Cool thread! Allow me to get some pics together of my network. alert!

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by brettallica

Cool thread! Allow me to get some pics together of my network. alert!

Sweet!!

Can't wait to see it.

[brettallica]

Originally Posted by Hammie

Sweet!!

Can't wait to see it.

Here are 11 good ones that give you all an idea of what I've got going on:

The router, which is a 1TB Time Capsule with 802.11n (and new doorbell to match). This is the best location possible for my router, as I've got wood treatment on my ceilings, and behind the router there I have my server closet. You will see this soon.
Brettallica Server 01.jpg

From the router and onward into the server closet. Note the custom grommet, which I made on a lathe.
Brettallica Server 02.jpg

We are now inside the server closet. This is a view of the first switch (NETGEAR ProSafe GS108) in my network after the router. The two dark screws that have nothing on them marks where my old DSL modem once lived. I got cable internet (not so) recently, and haven't fixed that yet.
Brettallica Server 03.jpg

Same view as above, but pulled back just a bit so you can see the server monitor. It's just a relatively cheapo Sony LCD. The monitor is mounted on a Monoprice swivel and tilt mount, and behind the monitor is the cable modem (coming later). I have the tilt fixed so it's pointed as downward as possible.
Brettallica Server 04.jpg

A close-up view of my keystone patch panel. You will notice that I have Ethernet, RJ11, and coaxial keystones. The Ethernet feeds other areas/zones in my house. Going upstairs, I have one Ethernet line going to my bedroom and into a keystone wall plate, which feeds the 5-port switch for the gear in there; and a single Ethernet line going into the kids' bedroom (they only need one line at this point, but I'm sure that'll change soon). The other lines go into the living room/main home theater and support all the Ethernet-hungry gear in there. The RJ11 and coaxial connect to the modem, which is an internet and phone combination modem. The coaxial in that panel comes from the outside box, then goes to the modem, for those who are curious of the flow. I have it connected to a 90-degree adapter because of space constraints and routing convenience.
Brettallica Server 05.jpg

...and a few more pics are coming...

[brettallica]

My older setup, which had a rack-mount surge suppressor (that the long black thing where everything is plugged in). Recently, after a power surge, the power supply in my server fried when this was installed, so I did away with this and went with a much beefier UPS.
Brettallica Server 06.jpg

Another view of the old setup.
Brettallica Server 07.jpg

The new setup, featuring the upgraded UPS. The left-hand side of the UPS' outlets are surge and battery, so naturally I have everything except for the monitor plugged into there. Theoretically, I could have a power outage for a while, yet still have internet, as well as a connection to my server. I haven't actually tested this yet, though.
Brettallica Server 08.jpg

Another view of the setup. The server is a much older computer: it's what is called a "Mirrored Drive Door" (or MDD) Power Mac G4. People familiar with Macs understand this sweetness of this computer. It still runs like a top, although obviously at this point it is dinosaur technology. I've got several TBs in there, and this thing has been upgraded to the hilt — relative to how it came off of the shelf, that is. All of my family photos and videos are in there, along with all kinds of other media, such as my entire music library, videos, and all of my design stuff. I still back-up all of my family photos on videos to disc and store them elsewhere, as you can never be too careful. Other computers (HTPCs, etc.) in my network connect here when they are in need of some media, as it is all here.
Brettallica Server 09.jpg

This is the modem, which is behind the monitor that I swiveled out of the way just for this picture. You can also see the hole that for some reason the previous owners of my house left, in which if you look closely you can see the transformer for the doorbell. This hole actually was useful when I was replacing the old one and installing the new one, so I guess I can't complain too much.
Brettallica Server 10.jpg

...and yes, the server closet also stores my RockBand gear (one more pic coming)...

[brettallica]

The final photo (at least for now). This server closet also doubles as my RockBand gear storage. I created custom shelves and such to get this all to fit in here like this. I like having this stuff here instead of in my living room. The guitars are in the living room, though. A couple sets of JB Weld in a baggie (a man's best friend) at the bottom of this frame touches up the picture nicely.
Brettallica Server 11.jpg

[Hammie]

Nice pics. Very clean install of everything.

I have been considering getting a wall mount 24RU server rack. For now, everything would be on shelves, but I would eventually like to get rack mount switches. Instead, I am now using a shelf from an audio/video armoire and some old pieces of laminate covered shelving I had laying around.

This is sort of what my office looks like. However, since this picture was taken, I have added a second monitor, a dock for my work laptop, built a mount for the phone (so it is straight), and am in process of moving the Mac Mini and Iomega Mini Max HDD into my AV cabinet.

[Hammie]

That TV couch looks awfully comfy.