Why Is Cable Management Necessary for Data Center Cabling?

In the communication world, whether data center or field cabling, there are many excellent cabling which make us feel amazing. They look like the art works of a great master, and show the beauty of the cabling world thoroughly. However, if you have experience in data center or serve room, you may find that the cabling state near large switches or routers is very horrible. Cables, both Ethernet cables or fibers, are a nightmare if they aren’t carefully organized, not only because they look bad, but also they are not easy to management, or even exist potential safety problems. Thus, cable management is of great importance and necessity. Of course, you will get the appropriate return—efficient cable management and maintenance as well as clever pieces of modern art, if you have a good cable management solution. This is why many large data center operators are strict with their cabling for better maintenance or further extension.

The following examples show how easily server room cabling can turn into a nightmare without an organized methodology to the madness.

1-mess-workstation

One workstation. One giant mess. I really can’t imagine how people work in such situation.

2-mess-cable-management-systems

This server looks like it ate something that didn’t agree with it. I know, servers don’t eat, but you know what I mean.

3-spiderweb

A big yellow spiderweb. Masterpiece of Spider-Man?

4-mess-cabling

Where is the port on the switch?

5-mess-cabling

Let’s play and find the bad yellow cable.


So tired of cable messes? Want to get rid of nightmare and headache? No shortcuts, Cable Management is necessary.

frustrated-guy-cabling

Adding cable management is often seen as a “would be nice if” type of scenario. However, some operators may consider it as an extra cost and are not willing to do it. In fact, the cost of cable management, including cable management products and labor, is just a drop in the bucket. But you will find the value of cable management soon during your maintenance as it makes ongoing maintenance much, much easier. And there is another fact that the cabling work won’t stop with the initial installation. More cables will be added, and things will be changed. Thus, labeling appropriate cables, color-code cables and other processes to make easier to identify cables are also necessary.

Though individually labeling over a thousand cables may be a very time-consuming process, it is certainly worthy. Every network engineer will thank themselves for labeling each cable when there is an issue with a specific cable, as the individual can immediately pinpoint and pick out the affected cable by looking at its label. Leaving cables unlabeled is a disaster as the operator can not know which the affected cable is and he or she has to waste time and energy to find the source of the problem. In addition, engineers should also tie a pack of cables together depending on their component. For example, ten Ethernet cables connected to a router should be tied up, preventing them to be mixed up with another pack of Ethernet cables that are connected to another router.

The commonly used cable management products include open frame rack, rack cabinet shelves, network cabinet, patch panel, cable ties, cable markers/labels, wire loom and so on. They are necessary to use for a good cable management. In addition, the most important factor to achieve good cable management is the skilled cabling installers. They know how to get the best performance of your cabling and even can create arts of cabling.

Here is a few pictures which I think show how cabling can be works of art. Yes, it is all in the eye of the beholder, cabling is beautiful!

6-plana-cabling-art

A beautiful planar cable arrangement, no racks, just using clamps.

7-unbelievable-art

Unbelievable! It is a real art, not cabling, right?

8-cabling-color

Can also be colorful, just like the rainbow.

9-big-tree-cabling

To draw a big tree between two racks is also a good idea.

10-snake-cabling

Cabling also can be so unbelievably sexy, with S-shape body.

Of course, a good cable management is not used for ornamental, it is a method to make our cabling more easier to manage. If cable management were easy, there would be no need for superior cabling solutions. But the fact is that cables of data centers will be more and more, a cable management solution is always necessary.
Tags: cable cabinet, Cable Management, cable ties, cable wire marker, open frame rack, wire loom

Cable Ties – Not as Simple as You Think

Who Is the Offender to Destroy the Fiber Cables?

In cabling system, both fibers or coppers are required cable management. Except the necessary rack, frame or panel, cable ties are also a necessary part of cable management. When we think of cable ties, the first impression may be the little plastic strips with self-locking, maybe with different colors. Many people do not care whether they choose a right cable tie or not, because they think that all the cable ties are the same as long as meeting the tying cable requirements. Are they pretty much the same? Actually, cable ties are not as simple as you think. From materials and size to construction and temperature rating, cable ties can have a wide range of features which allow them to be specialized to different situations.

Cable ties have to be able to meet the most varied demands these days as they are used in the widest range of operations – from the simple bundling of cables with cable ties to the absolutely specific use of cable ties under extreme conditions. Thus, many factors are taken into consideration during the design of cable ties.
Construction

Cable ties can be classified as either one-piece or two-piece construction. One-piece cable ties typically have a plastic locking device molded into the head of the tie. The locking device ratchets the notched strap to tighten and lock. This design has a lower cost of manufacturing and is used for general-purpose applications around home or office. Compared to one-piece cable ties, two-piece cable ties are with higher performance. They consist of a stainless-steel locking device embedded into the head of the tie, and a smooth locking strap. This design offers high tensile strength, and resistance to mechanical and environmental stress for applications that require greater performance than what a general-purpose cable tie offers. In addition, the smooth, infinitely adjustable strap also allows for the exact bundled tightness. The head of the two-piece cable tie engages the strap when installed, and permanently locks in place. With a lower profile and smoother cross-section, the uniform cross-section distributes stress across the strap more evenly than with one-piece cable ties. Thus, the two-piece cable ties are more resistant to brittleness and breakage in harsh environments, particularly appropriate for harsh conditions, such as ultraviolet exposure, extreme temperature, and exposure to moisture or chemicals, as well as for applications where retrofitting is not an option.
Material

The material design of different cable ties also needs to consider for different application, such as occurring indoors or outdoors; the environment’s temperature range; the presence of moisture, chemicals and radiation; flammability issues; and cost. Cable ties are available in a wide range of materials, each with its own specific properties. Among them, the most common type is Nylon cable ties. Nylon ties can offer good resistance to weather and ultraviolet rays in lower-temperature environments. In addition, for applications in harsher environments that require extra durability in the face of heat, chemicals and other corrosive elements, there are stainless-steel cable ties.
Special Features

Though the standard-design cable ties can meet most of our requirements, sometimes, we still need something special for special applications. For instance, most cable ties lock permanently, but sometimes, we would prefer to looking for a cable-tying solution that can be undone without actual cutting. Then, releasable cable ties have been launched in the market. In a releasable cable tie, the built-in locking tab can actually be disengaged, allowing the tail end of the tie to be pulled free from the head. Releasable cable ties tend to cost a little more than the standard type, but they save money and are more eco-friendly in the long run because you can reuse them over and over, as opposed to just throwing them away. Additionally, for different special applications, there are mounted head cable ties, marker ties, etc.
Color

The most commonly used cable ties are white and black. But colorful cable ties are also popular with users. These cable ties with rainbow colors are very useful when you are trying to color-code your cables, or just want to match the ties to your equipment. Moreover, you can use different cable ties to mark different cables bunch which is convenient for cable management.
Size

When using cable ties, you should also consider the size and shape. First, be sure to measure the diameter of the cable bundle you’ll be tying and decide the length. In general, to buy cable ties with a little longer length is better. Because no one will want to find out at the last minute that the cable ties are too short to use. In addition to length, width or shape are also important considerations to choose optimal cable ties for your cable bunch.

We may see that some users use random ties to tie cables. It is a non-standard practice in cabling. Cable ties, though, are only used to tie cables, they’re not as simple as you think. A right cable ties can help you reduce many issues during the cabling and maintenance. In a word, the benefits of cable ties cannot be underestimated once you choose a right cable ties.