Is it normal to want to assign every object you own a serial number, then keep a database? (by alaric)
I've been doing some systems work in a rack recently that uses redundant systems. Two optical fibres come into to two switches which are connected to two routers and two load balances, and every server has two or more network interfaces (since there's internal and external VLANs).
So there's rather a lot of cables in there! Since the spare length is all neatly bound into a bundle, finding the other end of the cable you're looking at is a bit of a pain.
So I'd like to number each cable, label each end of the cable with its number, and add cable numbers ot the "what's in what port of which switch" spreadsheet.
Most cable marking systems, however, have to be applied before the plugs are attached to the cable - since they involve a sleeve that goes over the cable. This isn't good, since I want to label existing cables.
Hunting about online, I found these folks who do a nice line of markers - including the PC range of snap-on markers for existing cables. Lovely!
They've sent me a pack of samples, so I can experiment to see what fits best on my cables:
...and it looks like PC40 is the best size for CAT5 UTP.
Computing, Electronics | alaric | 
Thu 18th Oct 2007 12:57 pm
Subscribe
By Ben, Thu 18th Oct 2007 @ 1:40 pm
What you want is to give every object an IPv6 address and have it expose status over http plus something like mDNS for discoverability.
By @ndy, Thu 18th Oct 2007 @ 9:10 pm
"The cable spreadsheet" and "The patch spreadsheet" are never a good idea for anything except for maybe the most permenant of installations. It only takes one person once to forget to update it, or update it incorrectly and then you're into GIGO land.
I'd get s switch that can tell you what it's got plugged into it, perhaps even via SNMP. Then, have different colour cable for each part of the redundancy. Then you plug all the "red" cables in one place, all the "white" ones in another and be happy that you have a "red" and a "white" connected to each server. You don't worry which port each one is in because it doesn't matter. You then write a script that works out which machine (MAC address?) is on the end of each port and changes the port settings appropriately.
Your spreadsheet database will be troublesome because you will constantly be trying to keep two different copies of the same data in sync.... and we all know where that ends.
By @ndy, Thu 18th Oct 2007 @ 9:13 pm
...and one more thing... In the past I've used some sticky cable labels. They're half label and half clear. You write on the label part and then wrap it around the cable, starting with the labely end. As you wrap, the clear end covers over the labely end and stops the text from rubbing off.
These look much prettier than the clippy ones in your picture but it's a case of form over function as your ones use the power of colour to make identification easier.