Looking for advice on running network outdoors...

[davidamarkley]

Hello!

I need some advice/tips on running a network cable outside.

Situtation:
I have 8 computers in the house, and am wanting to move one out to the office. The office building is about 60 feet from the house. I'm wanting the full speed of 100 Mbps, so wireless is not the route I'm wanting to pursue... Also, I don't want to have to spend on the things needed for the wireless hookups(wireless NICs, router/access point, etc.)

Possible solution:
I found some outdoor-grade CAT5 cable HERE. And am thinking about running that suspended from the house to the office.

Also, would be getting a couple of THESE.

Now, my questions are:

A) Is there a better outdoor CAT5 cable available for the same/better price?

B) Are there better solutions for lightning arrestors and/or better deals?

C) Have you ever installed this type of setup before? And if so, what are some things to avoid/remember?

Thanks!

David

[meese]

David,

It looks like you choose some quality cable and lightning arresters. Here are a few links to other sites. Have you considered running the cable under ground?

http://www.sellntell.com/catoutsa.htm
http://www.mycableshop.com/3rd_Level/Bulk-CAT5-UTP.htm
http://www.3com.com/products/en_US/d...se&sku=3CWE487

[davidamarkley]

I have considered that, but I'm not wanting this to be a big hassle, and digging up concrete isn't what I'd like to do... There is concrete in between the two structures, and I would rather just be able to string it up between them.

That "Aerial cable" looked interesting in your first link. It's just not sheilded, so I think unless someone else has any other suggestions, that I will go with what I found.

Thanks for the input, meese!

And if anyone else has any other tips/help in the matter, it would be appreciated!

David

[meese]

How do you plan to terminate the outdoor cable at each end. Are you going to drill holes through the structures and have the termination made inside, or will you use a coupler thats mounted inside a weather proof box on the outside of the structure?

[davidamarkley]

They will terminate inside on both ends at a patch panel. I'll drill holes, and then run the wire. Once finished hooking up, I will then seal it with silicone sealant in the holes.

[meese]

I know you say you don't want to go wireless, but this is what I did:

I have cable for internet. I have a small W2K domain setup in my house. (5 pc's and a notebook). I use the linksys BEFSR41 router, a linksys 5 port switch, and a WAP11 so I can wander around with my note book. Then my neighbor wanted to get cable, so instead of him getting cable I ran cat5 cable through my basement to the outside of my house, got another wap11 and installed it in a NEMA-4 fiberglass enclosure. Then I got a 15 watt light buld and a temperature thermostat so in the winter its always about 72 degrees F in the enclosure. My neighbor put a wireless card in his pc and now he has internet. We split the cost. Since I run a domain in my house, the DC is always on. Encryption is enabled along with allowing only certain mac addresses for wireless security.

So anyway, thats what I did

[davidamarkley]

Well, that's a good way of doing wireless...

But, I didn't mention that the computer going out to the office will have a DB full of around 7,000 client's information, and that I'm moving it out there so it's a little more secure. (Concrete block construction, solid metal doors, etc.) So, while going wireless would be nice, and I've done wireless linking before(once about 4 miles) it's not really where I want to go this time. For numerous reasons.

David