Tag Archives: fiber patch panel

How to Choose 24 Port Patch Panel

Undoubtedly, patch panels have become an important component in cabling system, since technological advances open the door to a new generation of more efficient and higher performance data centres. According to different ports, patch panels are commonly divided into 24 port patch panel, 48 port patch panel, 96 port patch panel and even more ports. And all the patch panels can provide a simple, neat and easily managed solution for IT technicians. Today, we’ll focus on 24 port patch panel buying guide.

Why We Use 24 Port Patch Panel

As we know, using a patch panel can enjoy many benefits. It can reduce cable congestion, improve flexibility and scalability and save the valuable space in a sever rack. These contribute to the simplification of manual monitoring, testing, routing and other maintenance on cables. Besides, the  24 port patch panel price is more favorable than other patch panel types. And designed in the same size, the ports distances of 24 port type is not as compact as the 48 port or 96 port ones, which is better for cable connections and cable cooling. This encourages people to choose 24 port type instead of the others.

24 Port Patch Panel: Copper or Fibre

As the backbone of a structured cabling solution, patch panels are available in copper and fibre versions. They are designed to connect different cables. Copper patch panel are used to connect the specific cables like Cat5, Cat5e or Cat6, while fibre patch panel is only applicable for single mode or multimode fibre cables with LC, SC connectors. Thus, before we buy 24 port patch panel, we must know what type of cables that used in our network.

24 Port Patch Panel Recommendation

FS.COM offers a wide variety of 24 port patch panel to help address your specific needs.

24 Port Patch Panel Cat5e

This 1U 24 port patch panel Cat5e features RJ45 couplers on both sides of each panel. It uses the removable design of the rear cable manager, which is conducive to uninstall and install. Also, it adopts the design of self-contained cable management tool, and no extra cable management equipment is needed. This Cat5e patch panel is made of SPCC+ABS materials with an operating temperature from -25℃ to 70℃.

 1U 24 Port Patch Panel Cat5e

Figure 1: 1U 24 Port Patch Panel Cat5e

24 Port SC Fibre Patch Panel

This fibre patch panel is applied to connect OS2, OM3 and OM4 fibre cables. Its sleeve material is ceramic, and its colour-coded couplers will facilitate quick cable type identifications and permit more accessibility during troubleshooting, installation or redeployment.

Figure 2: 24 Port SC Fibre Patch Panel

24 Port Blank Keystone Patch Panel 

The 24 port blank keystone patch panel is an ideal tool to manage all copper cables like Cat6 or Cat5e, so you can customize your patch panel and create a perfect mix connection based on your specific applications. The lacing bar with sequential port labels integrated into the panel provides easy identification of multiple types of cables, which can manage cables more efficiently. Designed with the SPCC + ABS plastics,  the material is stamped and formed to create a rigid and durable surface capable of withstanding the forces generated while punching down cables to the panel.

24 Port Blank Keystone Patch Panel

Figure 3: 24 Port Blank Keystone Patch Panel

Conclusion

From the above, I suggest if you need to connect copper cables such as Cat5e or Cat6 then choose the 24 port patch panel Cat5e or 24 port patch panel Cat6 type. If your cables are fibre cables, 24 port fibre patch panel is suitable for you. If you want to make the mixed connections, 24 port blank keystone patch panel is the best choice. So if you are ready to buy 24 port patch panel, please don’t be hesitate to visit FS.COM which is a supplier that offers a comprehensive range of patch panels designed to address a variety of needs.

Fibre Patch Panel Termination

It seems that we have already known that the fibre patch panel is the bridge of fibre patch cables. Fibre patch panel, also known as fibre distribution panel, serves as a convenient place to terminate all the fibre optic cable running from different rooms into the wiring closet and provides connection access to the cable’s individual fibres. Fibre patch panels are termination units, which are designed with a secure, organised chamber for housing connectors and splice units.

How Does Patch Panel Termination Units Works?

We know that there are two major termination solutions for fibre cable: field terminated and pre-terminated. The pre-termination, with most devices terminated by the manufacturers in advance, requires less efforts when installing than field termination does. Therefore, this post is going to offer a glimpse into the field termination which describes the termination of the fibre optic cable in the field or the termination after installation.

Fibre Patch Panel Termination Procedure

In the termination process, the fibre optic cable need to be pulled between two points, then connectors will need to be attached and then connected to a patch panel. In addition, before they can be attached to a panel, connectors need to be attached to each individual strand, and a variety of tools will be needed. With field termination, we can determine the cable length accordingly, and fibre optic bulk cable is very easily to pull from either end of the installation circuit.
To carry out the termination, such tools are needed as fibre optic enclosure, fibre cable, patch panel, cable ties, connector panels, permanent marker, fibre optic stripper, cleaver, metric ruler and rubbing alcohol.

To terminate the cable, first slide the boot onto the fibre. Strip the fibre to at least about an inch and a half . Place a mark at 15.5 mm for ST and SC connectors or at 11.5 mm for LC connectors. Clean the stripped fibre with an alcohol wipe and remove any debris. Set the stripped fibre into the cleave and cleave it. Insert the cleaved fibre into the rear of the connector until the mark align with the back of the connector body. Slight the boot up and over the rear of the connector body. After the termination, transmission testing of assemblies need to be performed.

fiber optics termination
In the final fibre patch panel termination, first, open the front and rear door of the patch panel, and remove the covers. Remover the inter stain relief bracket. Second, use cable ties to put the cables on the bracket. The fibres should be put inside the clips on the tray to segregate the fibres from A and B slots. Put the patch panel into the panels clips. Take the excess fibre slack into the slack management clips. Make a bend in the fibre to maintain slight pressure on the connection.

fix the cover

Conclusion

The processes in the device connection and cable management are linking with each other that missing any or failure in any one will result in the imperfect system, or even the damage. If we own a fibre patch panel, we should make full use of its termination function. The products provided by FS,COM enable you to perfect your cabling system.

Horizontal and Vertical Cable Management At a Glance

When the fibre patch panel is loaded with cables, your cabling is almost finished with the core elements all ready. You can achieve fast and smooth Ethernet connectivity. But turning around, you may find a mess caused and left by the installation. The slack cables without careful comb are hung casually, resulting in a sloppy look just like the noddles being stirred. If we have a look at an expert, it is common to find that they all manage their cables in a good order. And today, we will reveal the secret of the marvelous layout — horizontal and vertical cable management.

Horizontal and Vertical Cable Management

When you try to simulate others’ cabling system, you will inevitably find that the cable management comes in two varieties, horizontal and vertical. When installing cables in a fibre enclosure, you will undoubtedly have to run them both vertically and horizontally. The best solution for this cabling is to run all the cables horizontally from the server directly to the vertical cable management rack.
With these two solutions, you can gain many benefits like enhanced availability through reduced downtime, and improved system performance through reduced crosstalk and interference. We all know that crosstalk is harmful and will damage more or less the data transmission. What’s more, it enables us easier and safer access to individual components so as to achieve improved maintenance and serviceability. And the moves, adds and changes will be simplified.

horizontal and vertical cable management

Horizontal and Vertical Cable Manager

With horizontal cable managers, the cables from equipment in racks can be routed neatly and properly and away from damage. If you are using flat-faced patch panels or network switches form which cables come above or below, horizontal cable manager will complete the support pathway for patch leads between the cabling section and the exact connection point (port) on the patch panel or switch. Alternately, horizontal management can be used to create rack-to-rack pathways for patch leads. The FS.COM finger duct horizontal cable manager is designed with flexible fingers, rear pass-through holes and a removable cover. It can be mounted to standard 19 and server racks and cabinets providing well-organised cabling quickly and easily. 1U and 2U versions are both available at FS.COM.

horizontal cable management

Vertical cable manager just as seen in the below image, utilises the additional space at the both sides of the cabinet to manage the slack from patch leads, and make sure that they can easily route the largest cable diameter in your plan. For static environments, you can consider installing another vertical cable manager behind the racks, which does not block access to components in the space between the racks. Vertical racks can be also installed under a desk or against a wall and accommodate networking equipment up to 4 RU. Its dual sided fingers enable both front and back well-organised cabling.

vertical cable management

Conclusion

With horizontal and/or vertical cable managers, the human errors which may be committed previously due to the confusion of a mess of cables can be easily prevented in horizontal and vertical cable management. Once you have to deal with fibre and copper cables at the same time, apart from our multimedia modular panel, FS.COM cable managers can be used to house and organise fibre and copper cabling while keeping separation between the two.

Wall Mount VS Rack Mount Patch Panel

Patch panels are termination units, which are designed to provide a secure, organised chamber for housing connectors and splice units. Its main function is to terminate the fibre optic cable and provide connection access to the cable’s individual fibres. Patch panels can be categorised into different types based on a few different criteria. Last time, we have shed light on the copper and fibre patch panel and now let’s learn a different pair of it, namely wall mount patch panel and rack mount patch panel.

Wall Mount Patch Panel

As the name suggests, wall mount patch panel is a patch panel fixed on the wall.The wall mount patch panels are designed to provide the essential interface between multiple fibre cables and optical equipment installed on the customer’s premises. The units offer networking and fibre distribution from the vault or wiring closet to the user’s terminal equipment.

This kind of patch panel consists of two separate compartments. As shown below, the left side is used for accommodating outside plant cables entering the building, pigtails and pigtail splices. Whereas, the right side is designed for internal cable assembly networking. And both sides have a door secured with a quarter turn latch.

wall mount patch panel

Rack Mount Patch Panel

The rack mount patch panel usually holds the fibres horizontally and looks like a drawer. Rack mount panel is designed in 1U, 2U, 4U sizes and can hold up to 288 or even more fibres. They can be mounted onto 19″ and 23″ standard relay racks. The rack mount enclosures include two kinds. One is the slide-out variety and the other incorporates a removable lid. As for the latter one, the tray can be pulled out and lowered to 10 degree working angle or even further 45 degree working angle to provide ease of access for maintenance or installation work.

rack mount patch panel

Wall Mount VS Rack Mount Patch Panel

  • Installation

When installing wall mount patch panels, users need to leave at least 51mm additional space on each side to allow opening and removing the doors. Although it can be easily mounted to the wall by using the internal mounting holes, four screws are required when it is attached to a plywood wall, expansion inserts with wood screw for concrete walls and “molly bolts” for sheet rock. However, the installation of a rack patch panel just needs four screws without drilling the wall.

  • Space Occupation

Thinking from another perspective, the advantage of wall mount patch panels is that they allow you to optimise your work space by keeping equipment off floors and desks,which is superior to the rack mount patch panel.

  • Application

Both panels can be applied to Indore Premise Networks, Central offices (FTTx), Telecommunication Networks, Security Surveillance Applications, Process Automation & Control, Systems and Power Systems & Controls, while the rack mount patch panel has an advantage over the wall mount patch panel in that it can be applied to Data Centres.

Conclusion

To sum up, patch panels are available in rack mounted and wall mounted and are usually placed near terminating equipment (within patch cable reach). Both types can provide an easy cable management in that the panel ports can be labeled according to location, desktop number,etc. to help identify which cable from which location is getting terminated on which port on the patch panel, and changes can be made at the patch panel. The world-wide renown FS.COM can provide you the best quality rack mount and wall mount patch panel. Buyers are welcome to contact us.

Fibre Patch Panel for High Density Data Centre

Fibre optic cable has been increasingly applied to meet the need of high speed network. In data centres, the cabling infrastructure turns to be more complicated. Under that situation, keeping good cable management is necessary since messy cabling will cause fibre optic loss and not easy for troubleshooting. Then fibre patch panels can serve as the tools for cabling systems.

Fiber-Patch-Panel

A fibre patch panel is also called fibre distribution panel. It’s used to terminate the fibre optic cable and provide connection to individual spliced fibres. Besides, fibre patch panels can create a secure environment for exposed fibres, housing connectors and splice unites.

Fibre Patch Panel Types

Fibre patch panels can be divided into two types. Both types can house, organise, manage and protect fibre optic cable, splices and connectors.

One is rack mount enclosure. Usually the rack mount enclosure holds the fibres horizontally and looks like a drawer. Rack mount enclosure is designed in 1U, 2U, 4U sizes and can hold up to 288 or even more fibres. The rack mount enclosures include two kinds. One is the slide-out variety and the other incorporates a removable lid. The sliding design of panels gives engineer easy access to the fibres inside but it’s more expensive. The lid type is less expensive but requires the user to remove the whole enclosure from the rack to gain internal access.

The other is wall mount enclosure. While wall mount enclosure is designed for enclosed wall mounting of adapter panels or splice trays. They are fabricated from steel sheets and finished with a light textured black powder coat. These panels can be easily mounted to any wall using the internal mounting holes. They can protect fibres from dust or debris contamination and organise the cables.

 wall-mount

Fibre Patch Panel Structure

A typical fibre patch panel contains four parts: enclosed chamber (rack mount or wall mount), adapter panels, connector adapters (providing low optical loss connection through mating appropriate connectors) and splice tray (organizing and securing splice modules). Adapters on a fibre patch panel are available in different shapes, such as LC, SC, MTP, etc. Most times, all adapters are of the same type in a panel. But sometimes a panel with different types of adapters is needed when more than one type of fibre optic connectors used in a network.

Fibre patch panel has two compartments. One contains the bulkhead receptacles or adapters, and the other is used for splice tray and excess fibre storage. Patch cable management trays are optional for some patch panels and make possible the neat storage of excessive patch cable lengths.

Fibre Patch Panel Ports

Fibre patch panel ports provide a place for data to enter and exit the panel. The number of these ports vary from 12, 24, 48, 64, 72, 96 to 288 and even more. Actually there is no limit to the number of ports on a patch panel. As long as there is enough room, you can fill the enclosure without interfering with the integrity.

FS.COM offers a 288 fibres 4RU rack mount fibre optic enclosure, loaded with 12 slots duplex fibre adapter panels. This high density patch panel provides a flexible and modular systems for managing fibre terminations, connections, and patching in all applications. With its high fibre densities and port counts, it maximises rack space utilization and minimises floor space. This enclosure makes it easy for network deployment, moves, adds, and changes. It’s a perfect solution for engineers to do the fibre termination and distribution.

288-fiber enclosure

Fibre Termination in the Patch Panel

In a patch panel, pigtail or field termination can be used for the connection. If it uses the pigtail approach, a splice tray is needed in the patch panel. This method provide the best quality connection and is usually the quickest. The second method uses fibre optic connector for field termination. A fibre optic connector is directly installed onto the individual fibres. This method usually takes longer time than pigtail but doesn’t need a splice tray in the patch panel. However, the connection quality may not be as good as pre-terminated pigtails.

Summary

Fibre patch panels are very useful especially in the high density data centre. They feature with the benefits of easy fibre installation, maximum flexibility and manageability. Although patch panels are attractive, it’s the best only when it fits your application. No matter rack mount or wall mount type, loaded or unloaded, you should better choose the most suitable one based on your own situation.

Related article: Dos & Don’ts of Cable Management