Cabinets Vs. Closets
In a perfect world every MDF and IDF would have its own dedicated room with limited access. Since most of us live in the real world, compromises must be made.
About one year ago the organization I work for went through a complete network infrastructure upgrade in one of our buildings. Since space was limited and building renovations were not in the scope of the project, we ended up using locking 45U server cabinets to house the switching equipment as well as patch panels. Most of these cabinets were put in shared storage rooms, and only one was placed in a room the received steady traffic.
With the renovation of another one of our buildings this year, we had to make a decision on if we wanted to use locking cabinets or dedicate closets specifically for networking. My past experience and current opportunity allowed me to reflect one the pros and cons of both. Here is a quick breakdown that I came up with:
Network Cabinets:
- Allows flexible placement of distribution frames to maintain cabling standards
- Provides relative security when placed in trafficked areas
Network Closets:
- Security by obscurity
- Generally allows more flexibility for cable routing
- Easy access without interrupting others
These lists could be much longer and could contain many more technical arguments. In this case, I choose to look at the less technical reasons for choosing one over the other.
In my case, I believe that a dedicated network closet is superior to a locking cabinet in a public area. Placing anything in the public eye will by nature draw more attention to that object. Add some whirly fans along with blinking lights and even a grown adult will be drawn to a network cabinet. This attention may come with some unwanted consequences such as vandalism or even accidental damage. I strongly believe in security by obscurity. What’s out of sight is out of mind, and therefore people are less likely to tamper with the equipment.
Network closets are only superior if they are dedicated and secure. Closets that are shared will quickly become a place for others to store their junk. This increases the risk that someone might cause an outage or otherwise damage equipment. I often see custodians move their cleaning carts into these spaces, bringing with them all sorts of liquids and chemicals you don’t want on your equipment!
As with any project take your requirements into close consideration. Also ensure that you plan for the future and not just present needs. A properly designed network closet can easily scale to future needs, whereas with a cabinet you are more or less stuck between the posts.