Help choosing the correct home network components

Pat_V

I desperately need help choosing the right components for my home network. I have a total of (18) cat5e runs, but (7) will remain telephone land lines in case we ever sell the house. I am changing (4) of the existing R11 jacks to RJ45 jacks, adding (3) RJ45 that will need a 4/5-port switch to connect clusters of equipment (dish/TV/PS4, desktop/printer/dish/AP, etc.), have (4) future runs for TVs & a WiFi AP when I finish the basement, and may also add a couple more runs for future Ethernet jacks in strategic locations as the need arises. My ISP is being brought to the house via Ubiquiti Power Beam air fiber dish with cat5e to a wireless access point. I also have (14) RG6 runs throughout the house, with only (1) being used to bring the satellite signal to the main TV, then to (3) more WiFi receivers.

I would like to know if someone at MC could help me choose the correct components to tie everything together. I will either install a small rack with patch panel, switch, and power supply on the wall next to my electrical panels, or mount a structured media panel and land all the coax, telephone, & data runs depending on the cost. I would like to conceal all the components and make for a clean finished product. I don't necessarily need or want the ability to configure any ports or switches. In fact, I would like it to be as plug & play as possible.
Thanks in advance for your help.

TSKyleH

Hello Pat,
Thank you for posting your request, I would certainly recommend using a patch panel for starters as this would keep all the cat5 runs together at a central point. One option would be a 24 port panel, https://www.microcenter.com/product/393919/shaxon-24-port-cat5e-rj45-110-patch-panel , which still gives you room to add even more as the need arises. We also have a variety of switches, and based on your description you would want unmanaged switches, these would be the best plug and play options, https://www.microcenter.com/search/search_results.aspx?N=4294966884+4294822108&Ntk=all&sortby=match&myStore=true. You will want at least 24 ports as your main switch, then you can get any number of smaller switches for the different clusters. 

Another recommendation I can offer is sticking to the same company or brand, this is commonly referred to as an ecosystem, but since you already using a ubiquiti device, you can make all of your other switches and future APs ubiquiti as well and it will provide you a central management point. Here are some of the ubiquti specific switches we have to offer, https://www.microcenter.com/search/search_results.aspx?N=4294966884+4294816303&Ntk=all&sortby=match&myStore=true. 

Pat_V

Hi TSKyleH,
Thank you for taking the time to respond to my post.
My understanding is that I will need a gateway or router for the incoming line prior to the first switch. Is this correct? Also, would you recommend a Ubiquiti Cloud Key? Lastly, does Micro Center sell racks? I will need a place to house all this stuff.
Thanks again!

TSTonyV

Yes, you'll want a router before the first switch, assuming that the modem you're using doesn't have one built in. If it does, a separate router would not be necessary. 

The Cloud Key Device is useful because it allows you to run a local instance of the UniFi Controller software as well as remote access. It's not required, but could be useful. 

After checking through our inventory, it appears we don't sell the racks themselves, unfortunately.