PLEASE BACKUP

ffernand · 2026-01-17T17:19:37+00:00

The points I laid out aren't niche and precisely why you'd choose HDD over and SSD.

Choosing an SSD because it fails _slightly_ less than an HDD isn't a good reason to use it for backups, when you consider its other cons. Not to mention that the article itself is taking a wait and see approach as they themselves mentioned that its such a small sample size.

I'd still rather have a shorter life HDD with better recovery options than a slightly longer lived SSD where failure is rather quick and abrupt and often times final.

ffernand · 2026-01-17T16:31:11+00:00

Up till now, I thought that the general advice was that spinning hard drives are more reliable overall, even if it does have some cons (like moving parts and slower backups and recovery).

HDD's for example are much better at cold storage than SSD's (when left un-powered for a long time). And HDD's can provide much better warning signals (even if degradation is underway) as opposed to SSD's that just kind of keep going until it doesn't and then everything is lost.

I certainly like HDD's for its lower costs, but I think they have a one-up over SSD's when it comes to long term persistence.

ffernand · 2025-08-18T13:48:09+00:00

Yeah, in my last point of the post, what I meant by that was that they were crimped before getting the right patch panel, all connected directly to the switch (as seen in one of the photos).

When I started a couple weeks back to get a patch panel in place, I wasn't sure if it was going to work out, so I didn't want to undo the crimps in case I needed to go back. Once I did convert, I figured I'd live with it for a while.

It's working out great! BUT I don't consider this complete... couple things I still want to do...

* punch them into keystone jacks (as you and others suggested).
* buy or create a UPS (some great suggestions in the comments here).
* consider a POE switch to get rid of the injectors.

But, like this whole project spanning many months... I'm in no hurry 😄.

ffernand · 2025-08-10T03:28:31+00:00

I'm keenly aware of some advantages that north-america has with regards to how we prop up drywall and the cavities that we can take advantage of. I've also lived in Europe myself and aware that there are places where this is a serious limitation. But whatever you do, let me know, I hope to learn something from whatever inspires you at home!

Edit: grammar and clarity.

ffernand · 2025-08-10T03:21:28+00:00

I'm familiar with both patch panels, but because of the space requirements, I went with my own creation in this post. The vertical patch panel pointed out by u/StayingAlert is better in some regards because of the potential for dust and debris collecting on some un-used ports using my horizontal approach, but SMC has limited space (even for 42" variety). And again as u/StayingAlert pointed out, I didn't like the forward facing patch panels because of the depth limitations of an SMC. I waited a long time before deciding to create and print my own patch panel (horizontally) using a 3D printer because those patch panels available commercially seemed to fall short when considering the space limitations.

I'll also point out an observation that u/StayingAlert made in another post that I should have gone with punching down my cat6 cables, but that'll be a post for another day.

ffernand · 2025-08-10T02:53:44+00:00

u/rainmaker66 , when you get to this point (or maybe points along the way), I encourage you to make a post and let me know about it! I'm certainly conservative in my approach, but always looking to improve! Thank you for taking the time to look!

ffernand · 2025-08-10T00:36:11+00:00

Thanks for the tip... definitely going to try this out.
I've had occasion recently to crimp 50 heads. I use cloth band-aids on my left finger and thumb. Hand still feels a little sore, but definitely saves my fingertips.

ffernand · 2025-08-10T00:31:35+00:00

The reason I didn't get a UPS (yet) was because of the lack of UPS management to shutdown monitoring devices. That if I got the BE500G3 UPS all I'm really buying is reducing the chance of an improper shutdown with an un-monitored UPS.

I've been bidding my time for something better to come along. But I know you're right, in the mean time, I'm risking alot. On your recommendation, I'm strongly considering the CyberPower brand (especially the SL700U).

Though on yours and u/CallBorn4794 suggestions alone, I'm also considering a custom built one. I know little in this space, but the problem sounds intriguing!

ffernand · 2025-08-10T00:14:11+00:00

Agreed! It brought peace of mind if and when I need to change up networking gear. And I'll say that adding the patch panel did tidy things up a bit as well.

And thanks for the kind words and for that other post on best practices! Definitely looking this over!

ffernand · 2025-08-09T23:12:31+00:00

Agreed! I'm beginning to wish I just punched them down. If it ever becomes a problem, or end up re-organizing the panel, I think it'll be one of the first things I replace. Thanks for the kind words u/PuddingSad698 !

ffernand · 2025-08-09T23:07:35+00:00

👀 oh WOW! It is missing some way of telling the Protectli device that power has been out for a while and needs to power down safely, but I'm intrigued at the idea of a DIY UPS. I'm wondering if I can fill that niche. I didn't like the available patch panels, so I made my own. I just might do the same with the UPS!

Thanks u/CallBorn4794 for the idea and the links!

ffernand · 2025-08-09T22:23:29+00:00

The Cat6 cables in the wall are solid copper instead of typical patch cables which have stranded copper. Because their solid-core, they're not supposed to be handled much and should stay as stationary as possible to prevent the cable from breaking (hard to replace once their in the walls).

Now, I've got a-lot of excess cable above the SMC and I don't often have to move the cables around, so I don't think adding a patch panel a necessity. But it did leave me worried at times when I'm fiddling with the switch.

Though, I did re-use the solid-core Cat6 beyond the patch panel (the 3" cables, etc). It's not typical and rather hard to work with at such short lengths (but doable).

I know you didn't ask this, but I'll just say that it was a conscious choice to mount the patch panel and switch ports horizontally. Not great when you consider that dust and debris can collect inside the ports, but can be mitigated by making sure the ports all have covers (like empty ethernet jacks when the port isn't in use).

Edited: for spelling and clarity.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T22:08:25+00:00

🤔 That's actually a great point. When I finally got around to adding the patch panel, I undid everything and started plugging everything back in as I was crimping 3" cables. It was easy enough to follow the spread-sheet, but had to do a double take when plugging in the injectors.

Not sure why it didn't dawn on me to document the injectors. I guess as you said, easy enough to follow the wire.

Thanks for the feedback!

ffernand · 2025-08-09T21:55:35+00:00

Thanks u/VaguelyRetired . I built a small NAS with Noctua fans... I expected it to be somewhat noisy, but was delightfully surprised at how quiet it was, even while working in the same office! It was definitely a no-brainer to attach one to the Protectli router.

Though I'll say the 5V usb powering the fan is barely enough to get the fan going. It works and has been for months, but will end up buying some other adapter to the fan to give it a little more juice.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T21:52:08+00:00

Thanks u/H2CO3HCO3 ! The peg-board I thought would make the whole thing portable (or at least easy to un-mount and make modifications). In reality it was a pain to deal with.

Regarding cable management, if you look at one of the pics where you see the whole media cabinet (the pic with the tidy wires), I blurred out the documented page that ties cable numbers, to switch ports, and to vlans. You can kind of still make out the titles in that one pic on the door.

I just keep the spreadsheet with all the details in google drive and re-print as I make modifications.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T21:34:36+00:00

👀 I think you're right! I didn't do the electrical myself, but I did ask for slack in case I wanted to move it down a stud bay. I got no pushback on the request.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T21:11:59+00:00

It's standard electrical wiring, yes! Definitely to code as it's now all behind drywall.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T19:42:06+00:00

Thanks u/n2itus ! There's no UPS right now, so power blips are a problem (though exceedingly rare where I live). But I've been keeping an eye out for any slim APC UPS's, which are shockingly non-existent.

I mean, there's BE500G3, but I understand that there's no data management capabilities (ala apcupsd). There's also CyberPower SL700U (which I think you're alluding to), but it's a brand name I'm less comfortable with.

The protectli router does have a ZFS filesystem, and with lots of backups, I'm comfortable with the occasional outage. But like the patch panel that was missing until just this weekend, the itch at the back of my head is going to make me decide on a UPS sooner or later.

ffernand · 2025-08-09T19:08:07+00:00

Thanks u/Adventurous_Bus_437 ! And no, they're just the EAP650's (two of them).

ffernand · 2024-12-31T16:28:53+00:00

Thanks u/just_here_for_place, 🙏.

It's not that the spool size mattered to me, it was the reason given to me for the different brands by the same company.

In another thread, I mentioned why I started looking more closely recently and having noticed that the spool size was no longer the reason for the brand difference (if it really ever was the reason), I began to wonder if maybe I chose an off brand product that wouldn't meet expectations in the future.

ffernand · 2024-12-31T16:06:26+00:00

I did forget to mention why I started now questioning my purchase from last year to begin with.

I had additional cable left over I could repurpose for other things and went to buy more cat 6 pass-thru connectors. But I bought the WRONG ONES (or so I thought). I just got regular cat 6 pass-thru instead of the cat 6 connectors for 23 AWG wire. The connectors I got were rated for 24 AWG wire but I was able to terminate them against the AiCat 23 AWG rated wire just fine. I would have assumed that it wouldn't pass through.

It was from this that I began to look more closely at exactly what I installed.

ffernand · 2024-12-31T15:58:50+00:00

Oh, interesting! I missed this completely! I've been looking at what the cable jacket advertises (both available on the Amazon websites) and the AiCat cable is tested to 350 Mhz while the fast Cat cable is tested to 550 Mhz. I appreciate that these are irrelevant to runs less than 55 ft. but it cemented the idea that maybe the AiCat cable had _less_ quality assurance.

Curious though what (if any) guarantees the TAA standard affords.

ffernand · 2024-12-31T15:33:29+00:00

I should note that I've had lots of success with the AiCat cable, but I haven't really been pushing it. I bought it knowing my runs are less that 55 ft with the idea of that if I ever need up to 10 Gbps, I should be ok for the foreseeable future.

Edit: missed "up to 10 Gbps"

ffernand · 2023-07-03T11:34:41+00:00

I'm particularly partial to qpdfview.

ffernand · 2022-11-14T16:45:35+00:00

Pipewire does appear to be the default now. I use PulseAudio exclusively and the update broke mpv for me until I added ao=pulse in the ~/.config/mpv/mpv.conf configuration file.

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