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[oldbulldog]

Dear friends,

I need help setting up my home network for my family.

The equipment I have are,

1, Openreach MK4 Master socket 5C
2, BT router,
3, Tp-Link 8-Port Gigabit Easy Smart Switch.
4, TIME Data Cable CAT6
5, Mk Telephone Socket 1 Gang Slave

I want to link the BT router to my Tp-Link Switch, then cable to every room at home, even my garden office.

The problem I had now. The telephone cable comes into my house on the First Floor. BT put an Mk4 Master socket 5c on the wall. However, I want the BT router in my living room on the ground floor. I want to use the CAT6 cable to link with the Master socket on the first floor to another Master socket in the living room. How could I link those two?

Can anyone help? Thank you.

[HPsauce]

First thoughts are just put the router at the master socket.
Then put the switch wherever it best suits the topology of your network round the house.
One Cat5e (or Cat6 if you must) from router to switch.
How fast is your broadband though, even Cat5e is probably extreme overkill unless you're on FTTP, I use 4-core phone cable (Cat 3, maybe 4, fine for 100mbps domestically) as it's very flexible and slim and does the job perfectly well for my 20mbps broadband.

[oldbulldog]

Thank you for your kind reply.

I had my plan before my builders did the work for my house. However, they used cheap cable( I am sure what is that) as the cable from the main master socket to my living room where I want the router set.

I do use the master router to link the BT router. It is just not the right place for it. I could not close my door as it will cut off the single for other rooms.

[HPsauce]

Why do you need the router anywhere other than at the master socket?
If you have a wired network that's the logical place for it.

[dee.jay]

Why do you need the router anywhere other than at the master socket?
If you have a wired network that's the logical place for it.

Not always - but I'm not going to go into it at the risk of confusing matters.

[oldbulldog]

Why do you need the router anywhere other than at the master socket?
If you have a wired network that's the logical place for it.

Cos the Master Socket is located on the first floor in my walk-in dressing room.  I just want to link it to my lounge near to my Tv and power socket. There is also a CAT6 cable link to my pantry where all the other cables and switch have set before the main building work. 

[meritez]

You can run DSL cable through ethernet, it would only take two cables to do so, though you used to be able to plug rj11 plugs into rj45 sockets and at the other end use another rj11 to rj11 cable to connect the BT router downstairs.

Does the rj11 plug fit the cat6 socket?

[DaveC]

Hi

I would recommend watching some of the videos from "My Mate Vince" on youtube - this link is his playlist of Telecoms and Networking videos:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLexbWs0Wp_H6LvKLZ6n5fyUknvlMag-Su

This one describes how to install an extension suitable for use with ADSL/VDSL:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGDAAcpqm9Y


If I understand your posts correctly, you already have a "cheap cable" running between the master socket and the lounge?  If so, I would test that first (compare the sync speeds shown in your router) to see if it is good enough - you may get away with not needing to run a new CAT6 cable.  You just need to make sure it is connected correctly (i.e. to the A+B terminals in the detachable faceplate of your master socket). 

Hopefully even your cheap cable consists of "twisted pairs", and you need to use two wires from the same pair to connect to A+B (it doesn't matter which way round).

[HPsauce]

I've never (as a retired IT manager responsible for both IT and phone systems) understood the fixation for Cat6 in a domestic setting, unless you've got a mega-mansion and some serious IT systems. Cat6 will run 10Gbps LAN over distances way beyond any house, or mansion for that matter!
And for incoming broadband on a phone line it's a waste of money, your phone cable is just a simple twisted pair as noted above.

The key point for best broadband is to keep the line as short and as "clean" as possible, hence my basic suggestion - put the router at the master socket.
Nothing that has been said so far gives a reason (other than maybe cosmetic or personal preference?) why you can't and shouldn't do that.
Putting the router on the end of an extension, however good (and Cat6 is no better than old-school phone solid core cable here) WILL make the line longer and so WILL make it slower; hopefully not much if you're careful.

And how fast is your broadband link, the LAN connection from your router to switch only needs to support that. Even, as I noted earlier, 4-core phone cable (correctly connected in pairs) will run at 100mbps over domestic distances. And definitely does in my house.
In fact if you look at quite a lot of older routers (e.g. Netgear) you will find that the standard ethernet cable (often yellow!) that came with them was only 4-core. That is twisted slightly differently to phone cable so works fine up to 100 metres.

[burakkucat]

Nothing that has been said so far gives a reason (other than maybe cosmetic or personal preference?) why you can't and shouldn't do that.

Look closely and I think you might see a reason . . .

I do use the master router socket to link the BT router. It is just not the right place for it. I could not close my door as it will cut off the single signal for other rooms.

After correcting what I suspect are two typos in the above quotation the reason becomes clear. With the door closed, the WiFi signal is just too attenuated for use in the other rooms of the house. 

[HPsauce]

I did read but didn't understand that sentence. Anyway, why then have a switch and Cat6 cabling, surely that enables wireless access points, a much better solution?

If you have a well-cabled property, as our poster seems to have, the ISP-supplied router is fundamentally the interface between your local network and the broadband connection. The fact that it also supplies WiFi is secondary. Depending on the geometry of the house it may even be worth turning the WiFi off and using well-placed WiFi access points for everyday activity.

[burakkucat]

I agree with the points that you mention. We just need to guide the OP with the best practices for the current situation.

[Alex Atkin UK]

Yeah the key problem here is you should not place your router for best WiFi signal, at the cost of a poorer broadband signal.  Its a royal PITA with all these combined gateways where its a single device for both which means you often have to compromise.

But as mentioned, ideally turn off the WiFi on the router, put it at the master socket and get a WiFi Access Point you can easily place in a better location for reception.  They usually have better WiFi than routers anyway.

Mind you, shutting a router in a closet might not be ideal either - needs some airflow.  That's a bizarre place to put a master socket.

[HPsauce]

I agree with the points that you mention. We just need to guide the OP with the best practices for the current situation.

Hopefully he's considering the several items of advice that various people here have contributed, there's been no recent update.
It's always good to hear back what people do after seeking advice and how it works out.

[burakkucat]

It's always good to hear back what people do after seeking advice and how it works out.

Indeed, yes.