Fibe New-install questions

bpsmicro

My eldest's apartment building is about to get Fibe run to all the units. It's a building from the 70's, currently with cable.
We have managed to determine where the fiber will pop out of the wall in his unit, and it's about as far away from the TV (and his existing networking gear) as possible. The existing cable line was just stapled up and over doors and on baseboard to travel to the far corner. It's a hell of a run.
He doesn't have TV service or home phone, just Internet. He plans to keep it that way, but we should plan as though he can change his mind on TV.

We're going by the assumption that the new Fibe modem will go near the fiber jack, because that makes most sense. So we're trying to plan for the "inside" work.

When the time comes, will the Bell installer run a cable from the modem to where the TV is? Will they normally also run a CAT6 (or equivalent) to where it's needed for all the existing gear? Or can the one cable for TV do double-duty for TV and networking?

We're just trying to determine whether we need to plan to run all the inside wiring from modem to router, or if we can rely on the Bell tech handling that. Everything else from router to all the devices is already working.

Brad.

Artwebb1986

bpsmicro

You could also get them to staple the fiber wire around the doors and baseboarda to where you want the modem. I got mine all around the doors over to my computer desk from the bedroom where they put the fiberjack.

Donoreo

The TV boxes will be wifi if he gets it. No need to run cables.

bpsmicro

Donoreo Okay, so no cable for TV. But switching all the internet-connected stuff to WiFi will be painful (heck, the desktop PC used for work doesn't even have WiFi). So we'll need at least a CAT6 to the modem. Is this something the Bell installer might run during the initial install?

I know Bell's own site focuses on WiFi. But just how fast can you get through only WiFi (real speed, not theoretical)?

I'm hoping to get Fibe to my place this year (rural run that's supposedly "on the way"), so I'm also planning ahead for mine. And there's no way in heck I'm using WiFi for everything (servers, etc). But I can run my own cables at least. :-)

Dks01

bpsmicro No. Bell will install nothing past the Giga Hub. Actual wireless speed depends on the device and distance from the Giga Hub as well as any interfering floors and walls.. In my home I rarely get less than 200 Mbps and that is from Bell pods.

dillyhammer

bpsmicro A USB to Ethernet dongle can be had for pretty cheap... Amazon for under $15.
Canada Computers has them for about the same, maybe a buck or 2 more.
In this day and age, wires are a bit of a nuisance.

Eskimo007

bpsmicro I get 450 Mbps wifi (ac) to my laptop, which is my current broadband subscription limit… You can get a USB wifi dongle for your older machines that will likely get similar results

bpsmicro

Dks01 That's my concern. And this is an apartment building of 20 floors times maybe 20 units, each (potentially) running their own WiFi networks now.

And if I'm paying for (for example) 1,5Gbps service, I want near-1.5 at my primary devices. Paying for 1.5 and getting 0.2 just ain't gonna fly. If I was willing to tolerate that, we'd just stick with the cable (service tops out at 100Mbps to the modem, and he gets over 90Mbps at the desktop PC).

But I have the info I need. We'll plan on running CAT6 from the modem to the router, and if he later wants TV (unlikely), we can deal with that wirelessly.

bpsmicro

Artwebb1986 Fiber must be a lot more flexible than the old days then. If we can make that work, that solves a bunch of other problems (like having to get yet another UPS just for the modem).

Dks01

bpsmicro You won't notice one bit of difference. I have the 3GB service. You need to plug the modem ethernet into the 10GB port and then put in a 10 GB unmanaged switch for your devices (more than one) to get 3 Gb wired. Your wired devices will also need 2.5 or 10 GB cards. Wireless devices will connect at the fastest speed they can. My iPhone 15 Pro connects at 1300 Mbps synchronous 3 feet from the Giga Hub. Move to 10 feet and it drops to 600 Mbps. Chasing speed is a fools game.

Artwebb1986

bpsmicro the old days? 10 ish years ago at my old building it was bent around corners just fine as well as now.

Took the girl about 20 mins, only had black fiber but I didn't care what color as long as it was at my computer desk. Then I had Ethernet ran behind the tv anyways so I wired up the STB since Wifi is garbage on anything but a cell phone.

Dks01

bpsmicro It is. Bell uses Corning Clearcurve. The bend radius is not as tight as ethernet cabling.

bpsmicro

Artwebb1986 Perfect. That should solve the problem nicely.

Last time I messed with fiber, it was still made from glass. ;-)

Artwebb1986

bpsmicro it is made from glass.

Dks01

If you are running ethernet to an external router, you realize the fibre is terminated in the Giga Hub? There is no ONT any more?

bpsmicro

Dks01 Yeah, it's basically a challenge of the line coming into the apartment being the opposite end from where everything else is. So we run fiber to everything else and put the modem close to the existing hardware, or leave the modem at the far end and run CAT6 to the existing router, or just convert all current wired connections to WiFi and eliminate the router. But there's a lot of steel & concrete around, so I worry that all-WiFi just won't cut it.

The first option is the quickest & least expensive because the Bell tech handles the fiber run, and it's plug'n'play for the rest. The second option is easy enough, just puts the job of wire-running to us. The third option requires buying a bunch of WiFi "adapters" and hoping it all works well together, but eliminates all wiring concerns.

AdmiralMike

When you said cable line, does he have coax internet right now?

Also what does he have for existing networking gear?

Other possible solutions, keep the Bell modem where it comes into the building and either use

power line networking to get the network connection to his gear
moca to reuse the existing coax run.
Use a wireless bridge to connect his current gear then to the modem wirelessly, this would require one device instead of changing everything over.

These aren’t the most idea methods but it would work. Just thought Id give some other options.

I would also wait to see what the Bell tech can do.

bpsmicro

AdmiralMike Yeah, we have a few backup options for sure. If we can have the Bell tech just put the modem next to the existing setup and run fiber around, that’ll be easiest. Then we have a list of backups we can fall back on as required.

Dks01

AdmiralMike With Bell you must use their Giga Hub. The Giga Hub has PPPoE passthrough. There is no bridge mode. The modem does not work with PoE, I believe. A mesh system also works. Again, through the Giga Hub. Bell will also rent you their pods (Plume). I have them. They work.

bpsmicro

Yeah, in the end we’re thinking the best approach is eliminate the existing router, go WiFi for everything that supports it (which is all but one box), and for the last one look at a WiFi 6 to Ethernet adapter (is that what one of their pods would do?) or maybe a USB WiFi module. The main PC has WiFi 6 built in, and most other boxes have WiFi 5 (which is more than adequate). Then we don’t have to deal with wire-running at all.

Dks01

Eskimo007 I use Wifi to usb dongles off Bell pods. They work just fine.