[comp.dcom.lans] removing ethernet taps

andrew@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Andrew Knutsen) (08/05/88)

	Hi...

	We're re-doing our building ethernets, and the issue has come up
of what the best thing is to do to a yellow cable after a tapped transceiver
is removed.  The choices seem to be:

	- leave the tap in, and terminate it

	- replace the tap with something else (what?)

	- remove the tap and "fix" the cable (how?)

	Lets see if there is a consensus on this one (we all hate those
short slide connectors, right?)...

Andrew Knutsen
Convergent
ctandrew@unix.sri.com
(408) 435-3623

roy@phri.UUCP (Roy Smith) (08/05/88)

andrew@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Andrew Knutsen) asks:
> what the best thing is to do to a yellow cable after a tapped transceiver
> is removed.

	We leave the old tap in and cover it over with the plastic cover
which comes with each tranciever.  You certainly don't want to take it out;
once you've pulled a tap out of the cable, you can never put another one
back in the same spot.  The taps themselves are cheap -- about $30-40
compared to $250-300 for a complete tranciever.
-- 
Roy Smith, System Administrator
Public Health Research Institute
{allegra,philabs,cmcl2,rutgers}!phri!roy -or- phri!roy@uunet.uu.net
"The connector is the network"

jshelton@zodiac.ads.com (John L. Shelton) (08/05/88)

In article <437@mitisft.Convergent.COM> andrew@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Andrew Knutsen) writes:
>
>	We're re-doing our building ethernets, and the issue has come up
>of what the best thing is to do to a yellow cable after a tapped transceiver
>is removed.  The choices seem to be:
>...

Either leave the tap, if you suspect you might re-use it someday, or
remove the tap, and wrap the ethernet with electrical tape.  We have
never had a problem with doing either.

=John=

edm@nwnexus.WA.COM (Ed Morin) (08/05/88)

If the tap is an intrusive type, just get an appropriate barrel connector
to join the two pieces of cable together.

If the tap is the "old" vampire type with the integral, non-removeable head,
then remove the tap and put some electrical tape around the exposed hole (I
would *not* re-use the tap point).

The newer vampire tap heads (made by AMP) are only attached to the transceiver
with two screws.  They are easily removed.  Many transceiver manufacturers
will sell just the tap heads for about $30/each.  (AMP will also sell them to
you.)  Take the plastic cover from the new one (or the old one if you still
have it :-) and put it over the tap head on the cable.  That will protect the
contacts until you wish to use the head again in the future.  Maybe a wiretie
or two to insure that the cover doesn't slide off (tape will leave gum all over
the place).

Just my 2-cents worth!

Ed Morin
Northwest Nexus Inc.
"Public access Un*x for the masses"
edm@nwnexus.wa.com

eshop@saturn.ucsc.edu (Jim Warner) (08/06/88)

In article <437@mitisft.Convergent.COM> andrew@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Andrew Knutsen) writes:
>
>	We're re-doing our building ethernets, and the issue has come up
>of what the best thing is to do to a yellow cable after a tapped transceiver
>is removed.  The choices seem to be:...

I insist that all transceivers installed on building cables *MUST* use
the Amp tap connector.  If a transceiver is removed, we leave the
vampire tap unit on the cable, covering the pins with the plastic
cover that comes with each tap and wrapping with a piece of electrical
tape.  Replacement vampire tap blocks cost us $20 ea.

The Amp tap system seems to be used by just about everyone except TCL.
Vendors that use it include Cabletron, 3com, Dec, Interlan and BICC.

Note that if you "terminate" after you remove a transciever you will
break your network for sure.

jim warner

latzko@hardees.rutgers.edu (Alexander Latzko) (08/06/88)

In article <5088@zodiac.UUCP> jshelton@ads.com (John L. Shelton) writes:
>In article <437@mitisft.Convergent.COM> andrew@mitisft.Convergent.COM (Andrew Knutsen) writes:
>>
>>	We're re-doing our building ethernets, and the issue has come up
>>of what the best thing is to do to a yellow cable after a tapped transceiver
>>is removed.  The choices seem to be:
>>...
>
>Either leave the tap, if you suspect you might re-use it someday, or
>remove the tap, and wrap the ethernet with electrical tape.  We have
>never had a problem with doing either.
>
>=John=

We add one more wrinkle to removal of taps.  carefully dehair the 
hole and spread some silicone sealer into the tap hole and the pricks
made by the sides.  After it has a chance to set either wrap it in 
electrical tape or wrap it with heat shrink tape for a protective
cover.

cheers
/S*
latzko@rutgers.edu
{backbone}!rutgers!latzko