Where should you use a fibre backbone to link data cabinets. Where are the installation standards for when you do install a copper cabling backbone such as Cat6 or Cat6a

1. What is CopperBackbone cabling?
Copperbackbone cablingsupportsthe installationof datacablingwhenservedfrommore thanone
single location.Therefore,whatiscopperbackbone cabling?Ethernetorstructuredcablingrefersto
waysthat connectcomputersto a local networkorLAN.
The basic ideaof itsdesignisthat mostcomputershave directaccessto a dedicateddatacabling
cabinet.Anexample of anEthernetconnectionisacable systemthatconnectsa computernetwork
to a small businessoffice.Furthermore,Telephones,WiFi,printers,CCTV,andAudiovisual all
connectoverstructuredcabling.
Backbone cablingisthe connectionbetween2separate areassothat theycan share the same
networkandcommunications.Forexample,onamulti-floorbuilding,there willbe individual comms
roomsor cabinetsdedicatedtoeachfloor.These cabinetswill needtobe linkedsothattheycan
communicate.Inaddition,smallwall-mountedcabinetsare ofteninstalledtoserve asmall remote
locationsuchas a storage warehouse.
Backbone Cabling
Alsosometimescalledvertical cabling,the backbone isusedtoprovide communicationbetween
telecommunicationrooms,accessfacilities,machinerooms,orbuildings.Backbonescanbe done
withmanytypesof cablesincludingcoaxial,structuredcabling,andfiberopticcabling.Fibre optic
cablesare usuallythe standardforlinkingtogethertwocommunicationrooms,butthe ease of
installationandcostconsiderationssometimesleadtoa copperbackbone installation
The copper backbone canat timesbe anythingfromCat5e andCat6 throughthe highergradesof
Cat6a, Cat7, and Cat8
Cat6a, Cat7, and Cat8 allowconnectionbetweentwocabinetsat10 Gigabitwhereasthe other
categorieshave amaximumof 1 Gigabit
What is the difference betweenthe backbone and horizontal cabling?
A horizontal cable installationisfromthe userequipmentsuchasa telephone orcomputer
connecteddirectlytoacommunicationorIT room.This can be usedto connectworkplacesand
variousservicesandinformationstores,andthenruntothe telephone communicationsroom.
Dependingonyourneeds,astandardgigabitEthernetcable cando the jobbut fiberopticcablesare
sometimesalsoused.Backbonecablingandhorizontalcablingshare variousfeaturesof
telecommunicationsservicesandare inmanywaysverysimilar.Furthermore,bothare important
for large networksthatcan be seeninbusinesssettingsoreducational buildings.Withthatinmind,
the type of cable usedcan make a difference,sobe sure toconsulta communicationsprofessional.
Considerationfor CablingInstallation
Backbone systemsare oftencalledrisersystemsbecause inmostinstallationsalotof systems,
especiallycable,are installedinastraightriser.In multi-storybuildings,forexample,the backbone
connectsequipmentora computerroomto the basement,andcommunicationcabinetsavailable
on all floors.
On the campus,however,the backbone canworkhorizontally,connectingvariousentrancesor
remote communicationcabinets.Insome applications,however,there isnoreal difference between
the words“horizontal”and“vertical.”Physical topologiescanvary,and sometimescommunication
isinconsistentwithourideasaboutwhata backbone is.

2. The main requirementof abackbone programis to be able to supportmanydifferentuser
programs,fromsimple voice transferstohigh-speeddataandmultimedianetworks.Tomeetthis
requirement,plannersandinstallersshoulduse foresightwhenplanningthe spinal plan.The
installation todayshouldanticipate future growthwithexistingapplicationsandcurrentneeds.For
thisreason,mostbackbone implantsare basedonfiberoptical fiberandcan be loadedwithbulk
endfibers,if notreal wires.Anotherrecenttrendistoinstall fiber-opticcablesinpartsof the
backbone.Furthermore,touse multimodecable buttoleave single-mode strandsdark,orunused,
to supportfuture needs.
Voice CablingLinks
The majorityof phone systemsare nowVoIP,whichmeansthatthe phone signalsare transmitted
overEthernet.However,inolderanalogue anddigital systems,the transmissionof the voice signals
isstill requiredtobe linkedviacopperdatacabling
Withan analogue system,1or 2 pairs peroutletwill be usedforaphone.Therefore,Multi-core
cableswere andare usedtolinkphone voice panels.If youneedtoserve 100 phonesyoucan install
a 100 pair or 200 pair cable.
Witha digital system, anindividual cable perphone isrequiredtogoback to the central phone
system.If youhave 20 phonesyourun 20 data cablinglinksbetweencabinets
Are Cat5e, Cat6, or Cat6a suitable cables?
As previouslymentioned,the majorityof designscall forfibre opticcablingfortheirbackbone
connections.
However,manysituationsonlyrequireasimple copperbackbone connection.The followingareas
are where acopperdata cable mightbe a betterandmost cost-effectivesolution
1. Whenlinkingasmall wall cabinettothe maincommunicationsroom(i.e asmall amountof
users)
2. If the distance betweencabinetsisshortandunder90m
3. Whenthe expectedtrafficbetweendatanetworksisexpectedtobe low bandwidth
4. Whenlinkingequipmentwithinternal commsequipmentdirecttothe network.(I.e a
processingmachine thatinternal cablingbacktoa central inproduct cabinet)
The cost savingsinlinkingwithcoppercablingisthatFibre optictransceiversandreceiversare not
required.These are requiredtosendandreceive the datatransmission.Insome cases,thisrequires
an upgradedswitchwhichcanbe expensive.