Forum Discussion

Angry_Gandhi's avatar
Angry_Gandhi
Tuning in
2 months ago

VM on-site assessments

Hi all,

Doing a full renovation of a house I've bought and the place is still a building site.

The house we're renovating has VM set up but we're doing a full overhaul and the location of the VM box (maybe it's actually an NTL one) inside the house will be removed.

I have a plan in my head how I want it all to come into the house for both broadband and 2x TV but the last thing I want is for VM to say we need to dig up your newly laid driveway, 'oh, no, you can't do that' etc etc.

I want things sorted whilst it's a building site.

I'm on a 1Gbps contract - the area has full fibre but the house isn't set up for that (I assume).  I want to future the house but am also aware that the Hub5X can't go into modem mode.

I have a Hub5 and this can but assume the hub isn't compatible with a full fibre setup.  

For the home network I want to set up which includes gigabit switch, server cabinet (with patch panel), 3x PoE ceiling mounted WAPs & 20x CAT6 wall runs, it looks like the Hub5X won't work for us.

= TO MY QUESTION =

Is there a way to get VM to make on-site assessments to go over plans?

I'm of course happy to pay for this.  Is there a number I can call as I can't seem to find anyone.

Here's what I have in mind but not sure if it's as simple as this.

 

Thanks

 

35 Replies

  • Angry_Gandhi's avatar
    Angry_Gandhi
    Tuning in
    5 months ago

    Hi all,

    I'm doing a renovation and am confused about how to go about looking into the future in order to get VM in the house.

    The below image shows the electrical plan I've made.

    My intention is to have the router/networking hub under the stairs (purple triangle) and a VM TV box in the sitting room and family room (blue squares).

    The work is still under way - internal walls for example aren't even up.

    I will be using WiFi meshes, an ethernet hub & the router will be put into modem mode.

    My questions are:

    1. Should holes be drilled in the external walls in preparation for the TV boxes?
    2. If so, will these holes definitely be used by VM?
    3. Is there a VM department where I can talk to someone about the plans and my intentions?
    4. How would I go about having the router put under the stairs (I want the cabling to be as un-noticeable as possible) ?
    5. I'm not sure whether I should use coaxial ports for the TV boxes - are these needed?

    In the family room I intend to have a media wall and the TV going over a recess.

    The TV box won't be on show - I'm concerned that by doing this we're not going to be able to use the VM box or it'll be dodgy/temperamental. 

    If anyone can help with the above that'd be great.

    Thanks,

    Sean

     

    • nodrogd's avatar
      nodrogd
      Very Insightful Person
      5 months ago

      I hate to complicate the situation further.

      First question to ask is are you in a legacy VM cabled area or one of the new NexFibre FFTP areas. VM now runs three different types of network depending on location & they all have different installation scenarios & also different equipment in the house.

      Also VM only provides TV streaming boxes as standard now. These are WiFI or Ethernet connected, but do NOT record TV channels. V360 recording boxes are only provided by request (at additional cost) in legacy HFC or RFoG network type areas. ALL multiroom boxes are now the streamer type hence no coaxial requirement. The V360 main box does require copper coax from an external source in HFC areas & internally in RFoG areas.

      NexFibre FTTP is a single fibre connection direct to the hub. VM are also well into an upgrade program that will see FTTP being rolled out & eventually replacing HFC/RFoG connections in the coming years.

    • Tudor's avatar
      Tudor
      Very Insightful Person
      5 months ago

      "I will be using WiFi meshes". You could use a mesh system, but it would work much better if the units were Ethernet cabled back to your router. Better still is to use Wireless Access Points. I use WAPs, but ceiling ones which are PoE ones, they only need just an Ethernet cable. They look like fire alarm units and you have no unsightly wires trailing about. Even with a standard mesh system your have to have somewhere to place them and mains power.

      My setup is VM Hub5 under the floor under the stairs, stays very cool. Plain router, no WiFi, under the stairs with PoE network switch for WAPs and cameras. Ceiling mounted WAPs upstairs and down. V6 in living room, Ethernet cabled back to the router.

    • Angry_Gandhi's avatar
      Angry_Gandhi
      Tuning in
      3 months ago

      Hi, me again.

      Since my initial post I've now decided to be a wired as possible in my renovation.

      To the point where I'm going to have a 24 port gigabit switch, patch panels etc.

      I'm still learning about this and trying to figure things out.

      In my current house (that we rent so can’t make changes to) I have 3x Eero devices (1 plugged into the router).

      I’ve never had an issue with Eero so am going to stick with them.

      I had intended to use these in the new house (they’ll need to be plugged into the mains) but am leaning more towards PoE ones fixed to the ceilings and/or walls.

      Now, when mentioning this to my builder and electrician they said that these are only used in hospitals, offices etc.

      I initially accepted this but this isn’t the case.

      So, they don’t know it yet but I’m going to be doing it.

      As the electrician hasn’t filled me with confidence, I’m looking into all this myself and will either tell him what to do or I’ll get someone in.

      My question is this: Have I understood the setup for my house networking hub?

       

      The switch I'm looking at is: https://www.screwfix.com/p/tp-link-tl-sg1024d-24-port-desktop-rackmount-network-switch-black/239rn

      And the PoE switch: https://www.screwfix.com/p/labgear-60052pi-s-4-port-4-2-port-poe-10-100-1000mbps-switch-unmanaged-gigabit-poe-network-switch-black/712YE?tc=CB1

      • Tudor's avatar
        Tudor
        Very Insightful Person
        3 months ago
        1. Electricians are ok for just putting in the cables, but very few understand networking at all.
        2. As you are starting with a ‘clean sheet’ I would be looking for the future, not some currently old equipment. You need to think about WiFi 7 and access points with all 3 bands, 2.4, 5 and 6 Ghz radios. Also Ethernet 6A cables, Ethernet 7 or 8 cables are not needed at all just waste of money, 6A will cope with 10G up to the distances in a home.

           The equipment  I use is by Ubiquiti/Unifi and I cannot recommend any other at the moment. Most of their latest units support 2.5 and 10 Ghz.
        3. Look at networking outlets, not the well known retail outlets who are mostly networking blind.
        4. Basically it is down to how much you wish to spend.
  • Tudor's avatar
    Tudor
    Very Insightful Person
    2 months ago

    Can you get cable under the floor? In which case the cable could go on the left hand side of your picture and across to under the stairs. VM will not put cable under the floor unless you laid trunking for it with a draw cord. I take it you are in a DOCSIS area, if it’s fibre then the TVs will only need Ethernet connections or could use WiFi, but not recommended. 

  • newapollo's avatar
    newapollo
    Very Insightful Person
    2 months ago

    Hi Sean,

    I've merged this thread with the original thread from the Natter boards which you created 3 months ago.

  • Angry_Gandhi's avatar
    Angry_Gandhi
    Tuning in
    2 months ago

    What's going on with this forum?  

    I've made a new post/discussion and it's merged it with another one.

    I wanted to start a fresh one.

    It's changed the title of my other long one to be the same as my new one.

    Baffled!

    • goslow's avatar
      goslow
      Alessandro Volta
      2 months ago

      Topics do tend (rightly) to get merged when they are by the same person and on the same/similar subject.

      I would politely suggest you are unlikely to get too much more useful information via anyone from VM coming out to you. VM won't design a home network for you.

      We have also seen past topics on here where the customer has gone to the trouble of arranging a pre-installation visit with VM to address external cable routes, only to find that the external contractor has ignored all previous discussions and just crashed on with the fastest/easiest route to run in an external cable.

      If you are still at the first fix stage, you aim should be to fit as much cable containment as you can anywhere and everywhere that you think you may need connectivity. Materials to do this (such as flexible conduit) are not expensive.

      There is a huge amount of info in this topic already on what you need to do and, if you want info on cable layouts which VM uses, there is a whole load of that sort of info in the VM new build handbook

      https://prod.ctassets.virginmedia.com/uploads/new_build_handbook_v1_64_be936f5e4b.pdf

      If you were going to pay anyone some money for design, you might be best spending your money on a local supplier with networking and comm's expertise who could specify some suitable equipment for you to fit in with your overall design.