IDF Patch Cable color standards

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cyr0n_k0r

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We are re-doing about 45 IDF's at work and are re-patching/re-cabling everything.

Right now there is no standard for color codes for devices. We would like to implement one. There are 3 of us deciding and we wrote down the standards for places we all used to work and everyone's is different. We have the following device groups we'd like to have different color cables for.

Phones (PoE)
Access Points (PoE)
Projectors
Intercom Speakers (PoE)
Workstations/Data
Printers
Misc/HVAC/etc

We are considering doing a single color (yellow) for all PoE devices but I want to keep the intercom system separate because it is going to a different switch in each IDF than all the other devices in above. And because I am a stickler for consistency I am of the opinion that if intercom is PoE but not the same color as all the other PoE devices then what is the point of having a single color for the other 2 PoE categories. Either do it ALL one color, or separate them into 3 different colors you know?

I'd like to hear what others use for their standards for different devices and groupings.
According to monoprice we can choose from the following patch cable colors (some are more desirable than others)

Black
Blue
Grey
Green
Orange
Pink
Purple
Red
White
 
There is no real standard....every place either decides on one, or uses whatever cord they can find that reaches :/
We made it simple...white for phone and blue for data. Links between switches are red or orange so they don't get messed with.
 
we loop all our PCs through the phones to reduce on ports I can't come up with a colour system for that! :D
 
We use white from the jack to the phone, and blue from the phone to the PC.
Not too many PCs go through the phones since we have mostly POE switches.
 
Is it important to be able to identify the device type served in a raceway? If not, use all yellow for PoE and different color labels/tags for device type.
 
There is no standard. Just make sure whatever you choose will be easy to tell apart, even if someone is color blind.

More importantly, make sure you have plenty of the proper cables in stock, else you'll end up using whatever is laying around and destroying your system.
 
I should clarify that I am talking about patch colors inside the IDF's.
Inside the rooms/offices all the patch cables will be blue, regardless of what device is being attached. There are no plans for color standards on the user facing side.
 
ive always used "red" as internet in from cabe/adsl/other to router then from router to switches etc yellow..

green / purple for links between switches.

it all comes down to what you pick, but remember to right it down and note it all..

it's helfull for the guys on the other end when you are guiding them through a repair or fix process :)

hey pull the green cable or remove the red cable etc etc..
 
I've often wondered how to print a sign for my server room that won't fade in a year so that some notes and information are always available but I think I'm overthinking it..
 
adam30k said:
I've often wondered how to print a sign for my server room that won't fade in a year so that some notes and information are always available but I think I'm overthinking it..
Click to expand...

laser print then laminate :)
 
What we do is print out all the documentation for a particular room then put it inside a plastic sleeve. Similar to a UPS shipping label plastic cover but it's big enough to hold full size paper. We then tape or velcro that plastic sleeve to a wall near the door on the inside each room
 
We use-

Blue - Phones/Workstations

Purple - Printers

White - Wireless AP's

Red - Servers

Yellow for uplinks but most are fiber, we have very few switches on copper links.

Grey - Guest Network
 
Even in our enterprise environment, we're not that anal.

Honestly, doesn't matter to us. Everything is PoE and we have a request sheet to change the port type. (Trunk or specific vlan) We use gray due to a specific type of cabling.

The Data Center is a different story.

If it's that big of a deal, document it and make sure it's widely known. Otherwise, you'll get some random person plugging something in with a random cable and messing up your day. (Our server guys like to do this in the Data Center. DERP i was to lazy to walk to the other side of the room and get the correct color cable. So, i get to be the ass and end up fixing it.)
 
This is the color standard we use in IDFs and the DC.

Blue - Internal network. Could be POE to the access switches or inside the DC for servers.
Green - Trunks between switches.
Red - External or DMZ
Yellow - KVM
Black - Management network
Purple - Temporary to be labeled and color coded
 
I have never seen any place of substantial size implement a color scheme and maintain it properly over the long term in 17 years in IT.

You can never trust a cable color or label anyway. So many outages have happened because people yanked things out without actually checking what was really plugged into where.
 
mattjw916 said:
I have never seen any place of substantial size implement a color scheme and maintain it properly over the long term in 17 years in IT.

You can never trust a cable color or label anyway. So many outages have happened because people yanked things out without actually checking what was really plugged into where.
Click to expand...

Same here, its like the uber clean setups, I don't think I have ever actually seen one in a busy environment
 
Yellow for internet before router
red for all servers
purple for nas
orange/blue for everything else
black to the phone system ipt card.
 
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