Omada EAP power supply issues
Omada EAP power supply issues
This is a long one.... I have 3 locations( totally separate, my home, my business, my weekend getaway) where I have installed TPLink Omada access points along with 0C200 controllers. Two of the three locations are having an identical problem and one location is working correctly. Here is the basic setup of the one location that works correctly… Internet comes in on fiber to supplied ISP wireless router. I do not use this wireless router and simply run a cat 6 from one of the router’s ports straight to a 16 port POE+ switch. From this switch I run to five TP Link EAP indoor and outdoor access points along with one OC200 hardware controller. All of the access points and controller are from the TP Link Omada system. That is the basic setup at the location that works perfect. Now to the problem I am having at the other locations …
These two locations are setup identical to the first location but they have a problem. The problem is how they are powered. My switch is nowhere close to reaching power limits overall or individual port limits. All cabling is Cat6. Now, for some reason plugging the access points directly to the POE switch some of the access points will not power up but some of them will. Through trial and error I have found a way of getting them to power up by inserting the supplied POE injector between the switch and the access point they will fire up and work normally. And when I say inserting the Poe injector i mean just the injector WITHOUT plugging the injector into power, What the heck? All of my OC200 controllers power up fine when plugged into POe switch. I am not understanding this at all. I want the access points to run directly off the Poe switch as they should. The hardware controller designed for these access points works perfectly fine straight off the Poe switch so why don't the access points? Why do I need the UNPOWERED poe injectors in line with the other access points to make them work? I want a clean and efficient install and don’t want the extra mess of injectors hanging all over the place on some access points and no injectors on others. Obviously these injectors shouldn’t be needed since the access points are running off the switch and the injectors aren’t even powered. The craziest part is that I have the EXACT same setup at the first location that works perfectly with no injectors. I am using the exact same Poe switches, Hardware controller, and access points. I thought maybe a bad POE switches but swapped out with known good switches and same problem. The length of any one cable doesn’t exceed 150’ but just to confirm that wasn’t the problem I put the entire system together with 10’ long cables and same problem. Also, all firmware to every device at every location has been updated to the latest. I know this is a long explanation to define such a small problem but it’s the only way I know how to get across what I am trying to say. I’m not educated on this stuff and only know what I have been forced to learn working on my own stuff. I just don’t understand.
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Even this is not from TP-LINK. But, quite informative. CAT6 is likely to have an issue. Tested with CAT5E?
Forum title:
Unexpected PoE / Cable length limitations with UniFi Switch-16-150W & UniFi AC-LR Access Points
Post:
What you are likely seeing here is something that will become more of a problem down the road - CAT6/6A cables are being made with 26 gauge cable.
The biggest problem with 10Gb ethernet is crosstalk between the wires/pairs in the cable. THere's just one way to lessen this - move the wires physically farther apart. One way the cable mfgrs have found to accomplish this while not making the cable too large - there is actually a spec for the maximum diameter of ethernet cable - is to make the copper wire itself smaller, so the insulation is thicker, so there's more space between conductors. This actually works ( and they love it because there's less copper which saves them money, but they can charge more for the cable because, well, it's spec'd higher, right?) , but it causes the problem you are seeing - the smaller conductor has higher resistance and therefore more voltage drop than the standard cat5e 24 gauge wire. So with longer cat6 cables ther PoE limitation needs to be accounted for. This is why I never use Cat6/6A cables except for very specific things, and never ever for PoE.
Change out your cable to cat5e and the problems will go away. And at gigabit speeds it will work just fine up to 100 meters, even at 24V PoE.
Jim
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@Tedd404 I disagree with few things, for one it would be false claim that cat6e should not be used with poe+ or that it does not work, thousands households where it works since over 10 years would disagree with you. The biggest issue in cable choice is not really if it is cat5/cat6, many people fall for cheap cables where no 100% cooper is used but some aluminium with cooper just around it. Cable quality matters. Those cables one does not want to use at all, for nothing, maybe for hanging things around in a room or to fix it, but not for networking. Those aluminium cables can cause fire too and should never be used with PoE, and that has nothing to do with how thick cables are.
As next, if one crimps cables, there a lot can go wrong, starting with material usage and finishing with technical skills of a user.
Also, there are different cables for different purpose, as example those which you put inside a building can break if you push it over 90°. Then normal user buys such super expensive cables and breaks them during laying, resulting in going back to lets say not solid cooper cable.
Also, before one buys cables and is not sure about specifications written on cable, you should ask the vendor/maunfacturer if those cables are poe capable and ensure they are not flameable.
Changing a cable and testing cat5 is good advice as those eap devices are certified only for cat5 (like most devices).
Where we speak about cables, on one location with YuaanLey gigabit switch, all cables connecting doses, eap's, controller, switches and ipcams, they all are connected with cat6a, on other location with same switch all cables are cat7. By that, I can confirm that cat6 and cat7 work in that constelation.
OP wrote that he knew he will be pointed to switch, that's why I wrote at all, as I can not confirm that YuanLey switches have any issues at all, they do excellently the task they should. Also, few cams are over 70m and this switch powers them still without any issues, anyway, there are restrictions in cable lenght for PoE and as far as I remember Pharos devices had something like 50-60m with cat5e cable. On both locations there are Pharos devices too and they too work without any issues with YuanLey switches.
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Cable specs vary. CAT6 7 8 are great at link speed. Yet, I still use 5e commonly on PoE. I connect my PC with CAT8 purely for stablilty.
I am not saying CAT6 7 don't work with PoE. They are backward compatible. I think it could be a cable issue.
Yes. Max PoE distance is up to the cable quality. If the PoE device runs well with the shorter cat6 7 8, or even cat5. That'll be the fault of the switch.
Gigabit or Fast Ethernet does not matter in this case. I think.
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@Tedd404 Not that it matters if it is gigabit or fast-ethernet, I just believe their hardware is not the same because. My point is, I tested only YuanLey switches with 1Gbit and cant say anything about 100Mbit devices as I did not use them with omada, but I saw YuanLey in many households, mainly those where some video surveilance existed.
For cables, I do normally preffer to use keystone modules for cables in walls, then from dose in a wall which is normally available at the workdesk, there then people can/do use very thin and flexible cable. If you want to make a joke with hidden cam on your workplace, replace all those desktop/notebook cables in that room with solid cooper cat7 :), then take a look how long it takes after first angry employee comes to ask for a flexible cable. I never lay and crimp cat5 cables, I buy them always finished, mostly those are 0.15cm-0.30cm.
In real, I have always cat7 cables and many connectors and keystone modules, meaning that it is costing me more to buy separately cat5 cables, wait for them and they are not in perfect length. For patch panel connections like 48 short 20cm cables, those I buy and save my time, but if I need just one, two cables, then it is mostly cat7 as it is here, do not need to wait for it. Those would be biggest differences for me personally, beside their technical specification.
For the point about bad cables, regardless which cat standard you choose, never buy cables with CCA written on cable (stands for Copper Clad Aluminum), that's more important, as if it is 100% cooper and you connect with shorter cables than 100m, you will be good with cat5e too.
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