Networking guide
Home Network Cabinet Cleanup: Fiber and Switch Setup
My 2021 network cleanup added Google Wi-Fi and TP-Link switches after a fiber upgrade. It shows how the room connections, office computer and smart-home hubs fit together—and what I improved later.
The main takeaway
Organizing the wired paths helped me use the new service and place hubs where I wanted them. The follow-up matters too: viewers correctly flagged terminations that I later repaired.
Best for
Homeowners investigating wired connections, local transfers and a stronger backbone.
Before you start
This adapts my original video and test. Check current specifications, firmware support and prices before buying older equipment.
Original video
2021-04-16
Focus
home network cabinet organization
Article type
Practical guide
What helps
- Physical network cabinet and office setup shown
- Room switch makes hub placement flexible
- Wired PC test demonstrates the finished path
What to know
- Original terminations needed later correction
- Adhesive mounting isn't right for every device
- Historical equipment isn't a current buying recommendation
Why I changed the network
I had moved from roughly 100Mbps service to a gigabit-class fiber connection and wanted the house network to make better use of it. This April 2021 project added mesh Wi-Fi and switches, with the office PC and smart-home hubs part of the plan. It is a historical installation tour, not a claim that every viewer needs a fiber upgrade or the same equipment.
A main switch and another in the office
The closet switch served the room cables, and an office connection fed a smaller switch for nearby devices. That let me connect the computer and several hubs without running an individual cable all the way back for each one. The office devices share the uplink's available capacity when they use it. That arrangement is useful where the workload fits, rather than inherently wrong because two switches are connected.
Placing hubs where they made sense
I wanted some smart-home hubs in the office rather than every product piled into the central closet. The room-side switch provided the needed Ethernet connections. I also showed the cable route to the PC and practical organization around the equipment. For another installation, use appropriate mounting, airflow and strain relief instead of assuming an improvised setup from the video is suitable everywhere.
The result—and the correction that followed
The wired test near the end reached around 870Mbps in one direction and over 900Mbps in the other, which I was happy with. Viewers also identified cable-termination problems in this project. I addressed those in the later Orbi Pro and PoE upgrade video. Read the two together: the first shows the network layout and the follow-up shows why neatness alone isn't enough without sound connections.
Technical references
More networking guides and reviews
Ethernet Over Coax: My MoCA Setup and Speed TestWi-Fi 7 Speed Test: What Changed on My Home NetworkMy Wi-Fi 7 and 10Gb Ethernet Home Network UpgradeI Finally Understand My Home NetworkCommon questions
Why put a second switch in the office?
It lets several nearby wired devices share one room connection, subject to the uplink's capacity.
Were there problems with the original installation?
Yes. Viewers flagged cable terminations, which I revisited in the later upgrade video.
Watch the full walkthrough