Cabinet type
We discuss the dimensions (especially the depth) and weight of any servers to assess if a server rack rather than a cabling cabinet is required.
Normally, there is little extra cost for taller cabinets, so normally we recommend getting larger cabinets (providing they they will fit into your room). It is surprising how many elements such as CCTV NVRs and storage devices that benefit from being rack mounted in a secure cabinet.
Some cabinets may not fit through a standard doorway, so we will need to provide a flat pack version and the engineering resources to build it within the room.
Location
You need the cabinet to be accessible but also secure, so that you can always access the cabinet.
The height of wall mounted cabinets is important.
You do not want it to be risk someone walking into it, but also you do not want to have locate ladders every time you wish to make changes to the patching of the switches.
Suitable wall?
The construction of the wall is important to ensure a suitable fixing, so ideally cabinets should be fixed to brick walls, especially if the cabinet is to contain heavy items such as an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) or a data backup/storage device.
Electrical supply
The cabinet requires a stable independent electrical supply. In a secure room, it may be presented as a standard switched 13A socket, or we recommend a fused spur if there is a risk that the supply may be accidentally disconnected.
Ventilation
It is important to consider ventilation when selecting a new cabinet location.
Switches, especially PoE switches will create some heat and any other electrical devices servers are also likely to produce heat.
The operating temperature range for switches, normally results in manual vents for enclosed spaces, although fans or even air conditioning may be necessary depending on the environment and the nature of the devices.
Noise!
Most switches have fans and so cabinet locations must be selected where the associated noise is not critical.
Acoustic cabinets reduce the sounds from switches (and there are some switches without fans), although the lowest cost solution is generally achieved by fitted the cabinet in a suitable location where noise is not an issue.
