Hey there. I’m trying to connect the Ethernet jacks in my condo so I can use them for a home media server, gaming PC, etc. There are 4 jacks throughout the condo, in different rooms, and they all run to a small distribution board in my bedroom closet where the coaxial lines also run. There are two sets of cables in there, though: The ones that terminate in the distro board, and bare ones that I crimped ends on to yesterday. I tested the cables that I crimped ends on to and all but two of them work – I don’t have 6 jacks in my condo, so I assume one goes downstairs to the telecom room and I’m not sure where the other one goes, but neither of them show a signal when I use the cable tester.

My hope was that, with a switch added, I’d be able to distribute a connection throughout the condo, but it doesn’t seem to be working. I’ve attached a photo of the setup, which should be easier to explain things.

I have a single Google Nest WiFi router in my living room that I’d like to use to as the router. The modem for Xfinity is there as well, and that’s the room where the coaxial is connected to.

So my main question is, why are the connections showing as active with my cable tester, but I can’t get my router to distribute a connection to any of the ports? Nothing lights up on the switch, not even my router’s line, which I know works because the tester shows it as active when the router is connected to that jack and I test the other end of the cable. Is the distribution board doing something funky?

Thanks for the help!

  • bizarre_seminar@alien.topB
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    ·
    1 year ago

    I’m confused about exactly what you’ve done when you say you tested the cable. You’ve verified the continuity of the run between each of the four jacks and one of the cables you terminated, and which is which? If so, what is going on with the cables terminated to the distribution board? I would expect them to be the cables going to the jacks and that you’d have to disconnect them.

    (As another comment points out, there’s no sign of power to your switch but I assume it is PoE powered. If it isn’t… definitely check that first)

  • TiggerLAS@alien.topB
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    1 year ago

    What tester are you using to verify things are “active” ?

    Model number, or perhaps link to manufacturer’s page. .

    • colfitsky@alien.top
      cake
      OPB
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 year ago

      It’s a generic NSHL-468. It seems accurate because it only shows connection when something is actually connection, and it shows continuity between my router and the tester.