Managed Switch Install - Before and after pictures

[studerje]

Tonight I finished installing one of the new Meraki 8 port switches in one of our ward buildings.

I took some time to do some cleanup. After cutting a lot of zip ties, removing gear that is no longer needed, mounting some gear on the backing board, and some proper cable management, I think it looks much better. Best of all, NO ZIP Ties! only hook & loop(Velcro) and some adjustable nylon cable straps. This should make future servicing much easier.

Thought I'd share by attaching a before/after picture.

[lajackson]

I took some time to do some cleanup.

Nicely done.

[russellhltn]

Nice! I noticed you did something I'm also doing - trying to color code the wiring. Just from that picture, I can follow the connection from the modem all the way to the managed switch. As for the rest, while I may not be able to follow to specific ports, I have a good idea what is connected to what.

What are the three black boxes mounted above the patch panel?

[studerje]

What are the three black boxes mounted above the patch panel?

Those are wireless receivers/bridges for the Honeywell thermostats. I put them in the facilities zone and verified with FM that they can see and control the devices. Previously, they were on the unmanaged switch, so they were in the public zone.

[russellhltn]

Those are wireless receivers/bridges for the Honeywell thermostats.

Ah, I saw my first wired unit the other night.

Something else I did was label all the devices - including the serial numbers for the firewall and managed switch.

It may be important to future people to know the one switch is managed and the other is not (and what zone it belongs in).

Higher end p-touch labelers will do "cable wrap" style labels for those of us not lucky enough to have a patch panel.

[drepouille]

I thought so! At first, I wondered why you needed three cable modems. Then I saw the big cable modem, and realized those three black devices looked exactly like the wireless receiver for the Honeywell thermostat in my house.

[studerje]

Those are wireless receivers/bridges for the Honeywell thermostats.

Something else I did was label all the devices - including the serial numbers for the firewall and managed switch.

It may be important to future people to know the one switch is managed and the other is not (and what zone it belongs in).

Higher end p-touch labelers will do "cable wrap" style labels for those of us not lucky enough to have a patch panel.

I’ll be heading back in the next few days to do some labeling. Luckily this building is right down the street from my house.

[dbaresrc]

If you don't mind, I put my pictures in too.
Originally, all our connections came through the patch panel then to the unmanaged switches on either side. With the new switches, we couldn't keep this setup. The rest of the wall is full of electrical circuit breaker boxes and there wasn't enough room on the mount board even if we took the old switches down.

before.jpg

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So I had Facilities install a new mounting board on an adjacent wall with a circuit and jack for power. I mounted a shelf for the UPS and the new switches there. I used D-Rings to manage the cable runs between the patch panel and the new switches.

wiring.jpg

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new_wall.jpg

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Each switch has documentation on it. Each port is labeled with what is connected to it. All cabling is color coded so you can look at any cable and know exactly what its purpose is.

switch_1.jpg

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switch_2.jpg

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[russellhltn]

Wow. How did you manage to get a 24 port and a 8 port switch with only 5 APs?