Fibre is about to arrive at my gate. What the heck do I do now?

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Ournewhouse

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

# 94125 6-Dec-2011 17:24

So.

After an extremely long wait, there is about to be something in that little box at the bottom of the drive in our brand new subdivision.

The house is complete, and fully run with Cat6 which is tidily terminated in the patch panel in the server room. We have a 2-person Home office, and we purchased new DLNA TV's on the theory we would use Media Centre. We have an empty mini rack, and the new server is sitting in a box awaiting developments.

I don't need help on what to do with that lot, as one of my colleagues will be building the server and following a well trodden 3-year trial in his own home for that side of things. This is all about equipment and plans and connecting to that bit of fibre at the gate.

What the heck do I do now?

I have Fibre in my commercial premises, and of course, in central Auckland it all just happened around me, whereas in my domestic situation I'm not quite sure what I should ask.

I gather I need to figure out whether the Fibre terminates at the gate, and then I presume there is media converter of some type, and then Cat6 into the house?

Or, do we have some sort of joint/connector and Fibre comes into the house, and then the media converter sits in the server room?

Then what? Do I find an ISP? We are in the North Waikato (semi-rural), and the developer of the subdivision is about as useful as my cat, in supplying advice on this topic.

I don't even know what questions I should be asking, so any guidance would be much appreciated.

All I want is a good solid fast Broadband connection.  Maybe a "Home Phone" solution to go with it. Who are the providers of this sort of plan going to be in the new world? From the reading I have done it seems that the pilot projects have this all hammered out, but being outside of a pilot I don't know who to start with.

Beccara

1124 posts

Uber Geek

# 554591 6-Dec-2011 17:29

Is this UFB FFTH? If so the Fibre comes directly into your house and a "media converter" called an ONT is installed inside your house which has normal copper cat5/6 connections on it. From there your ISP will either supply a router or you can connect your own router (Cable Router only, No ADSL routers)

If it's not the UFB then you will need to contact whoever is doing the fibre deployment

Most problems are the result of previous solutions...

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Ournewhouse

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

# 554596 6-Dec-2011 17:36

Nope it isn't UFB Fibre.

The subdivision is part of a larger development, and so what is appearing at the gate in the next few days is an extension of an existing Fibre network already installed in the Commercial areas of the business park and operating for a couple of years.

The park consists of a large apartment development, and multiple commercial premises, and the 15-site subdivision is just one component of the whole thing.

So I guess I will need to go back to the company who are doing the delivery of the fibre, on behalf of the developer as my first point of contact, rather than trying to wing it on my own?

Zeon

3493 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

# 554601 6-Dec-2011 17:44

I don't know if any ISPs can offer UFB based fibre services yet? If it's Chorus based try giving Orcon, Unleash, Xnet a call see if they provision services over it.

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maverick

3594 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

WorldxChange

# 554611 6-Dec-2011 18:07

Your developer must know who has laid the fibre in the Sub Division ... push him hard on it and don't take "I don't know" as an answer

Yes I am a employee of WxC (My Profile) ... but I do have my own opinions as well

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Ournewhouse

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

# 554721 6-Dec-2011 22:01

Thanks for the advice folks. I'll ask them to give me a contact person and number, and will see where I get to.

At least once we know who was the provider of the first bit, we can ask them to recommend a contractor to get it in.

This afternoon the bloke pulling the cable, who is contacted to someone 3 layers down from the provider, has said, and I quote "what I'm laying in the road could run all of Hamilton. You need something much lighter coming from the gate."

He has left us a couple of metres of cable - still fibre - rather than Cat6, as a sample but in these days of specialisation he "doesn't do the house bit"...

in general terms do we get any benefit at all from keeping it fibre for a long a possible or doesn't it make a blind bit of difference?

chevrolux

4202 posts

Uber Geek

# 555177 7-Dec-2011 19:27

Like Zeon said get on to a ISP and just ask what they can do for you. I dont see why you couldn't run your own fibre from the house to the gate. A duplex (2 cores) is all you need. You want some indoor/outdoor fibre. Go to an electrical wholesaler in your area (stewarts/radcliffes/ja russel, corys) and see what they can do for you. Should be able to buy it by the meter. I dont know if you can actually get 2 core fiber so maybe just a 4 core. Fiber is cheap so wont be any more than $2-3/meter. You just want enough to from the gate to your patch panel with a few meters at each end.

But again, get on to an ISP and see what they can do for you and what they require first.

Can you remember if they guy oulling in the fibre was putting it in green pipe? If so I assume they will allow you to bring your own fiber in through your current duct going to your house.

raytaylor

3403 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

# 555234 7-Dec-2011 21:46

If its a private fibre network then your typical ISP wont be able to help. It will probably be owned by an ISP who has been contracted to install it - and probably also be the sole provider over it.

Ray Taylor
Taylor Broadband (rural hawkes bay)
www.ruralkiwi.com

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Ournewhouse

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

# 555533 8-Dec-2011 15:39

Progress so far....

The complex has fibre provided by FX Networks, so at least I know where that is coming from, and we have been given the contact details of a Hamilton company who - according to their website - are certified to deliver FTTH from the UFB rollout as it progresses.

Thanks for the help, as it lead to me knowing what questions I should ask, and has given me a broad brush laypersons knowledge of how this will all hang together.

The next fun steps are going to be all about what this is all going to cost! The connection phase, and the ongoing monthly fees. But that's a game I at least know how to play.

I appreciate the advice.

eXDee

4025 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

# 555677 8-Dec-2011 21:38

If you're hamilton based, call rurallink, velocity networks, fx (as you've already discovered), or any other provider in the Wel netwokrs fibre consortium.

webwat

1990 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

# 559638 19-Dec-2011 15:22

If the network is managed by Velocity, they might link it up with the UFB network anyway. Hopefully they can tell you which ISPs are available.

When the fibre comes into your house, ask them to put the ONT (equivalent of a media converter) in the wiring cabinet with your main patch panel and router, thats what it needs to connect to.

Qualified in business, certified in fibre, stuck in copper, have to keep going ^_^

Ournewhouse

6 posts

Wannabe Geek

# 559710 19-Dec-2011 17:45

I think Christmas is going to get in the way, and we'll have two more long weeks on Vodafone Mobile Broadband, but we have a continuous live link at the gate.

We are 'blowing' or pulling a much thinner bit of cable through the conduits that initially planned, cos apparently it is overkill bringing the 250mm diameter cable we were given, into the house. Next step is for the company we are dealing with in Hamilton to put in the ONT, and I have been in contact with a couple of companies with plans to see what we can sign up.

Roll on the New Year, and everyone back to work, for my selfish needs.