The cabling between our patch panel and switches isn't a complete nightmare (like this), but is far from well organized. As we add new wall jacks, or office moves happen, cables get moved on the patch panel; in a given cable bundle, one cable may go to port 10, the other to 410.
The key problem, I think, is because we have fewer switch ports (336) than patch panel ports (480) and so can't neatly arrange and tie up the cables in groups at the patch panel end in a one to one relationship to the switches.
How can I improve the arrangement of the cables at the patch panel end when they go anywhere and everywhere? Am I missing some obvious trick here, or do I just have to lie back and think of England?
Best Answer
Divide the switches up into patch panel sections. Switch 1 may go to panel 1, switch 2 to panel 2, etc. Once you get to a situation like this, there really isn't much you can do but go in at 1am and start pulling cables, re-routing and bundling when all the routing is complete.
Having a higher count of patch panel ports may necessitate couple new switches, especially if you are finding yourself disconnecting ports here and there to accommodate a temporary connection.