Internet DRAFT - draft-arkko-homenet-physical-standard

draft-arkko-homenet-physical-standard






Network Working Group                                           J. Arkko
Internet-Draft                                                A. Keranen
Intended status: Informational                                  Ericsson
Expires: September 6, 2012                                 March 5, 2012


       Minimum Requirements for Physical Layout of Home Networks
                draft-arkko-homenet-physical-standard-00

Abstract

   Support for network technology in buildings varies greatly depending
   on the age of the building, but the ease of building a home network
   is also highly dependent on the chosen wiring, power, and equipment
   space designs.  As networking technology evolves at a fast pace, it
   is important to choose designs that are expected to be useful for a
   long time.  While there are many cabling, equipment, and protocol
   standards, only limited standards exist for the physical network
   layout for new buildings.  This memo sets a baseline requirements
   that new, single-family dwellings must at least satisfy in order to
   benefit from advances in networking technology.

   Standardizing network technology for buildings is a challenging task,
   however.  This memo has been submitted for the home networking
   working group at the IETF as one forum that the authors were able to
   find that cares about the home network as a system.  However, in
   general the IETF has expertise only on protocols, not on the physical
   medium.  Advice is sought on what existing standards already address
   this problem, what standardization efforts may be under way in the
   world, and if work remains, what the right forum to discuss these
   matters might be.

Status of this Memo

   This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
   provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
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   This Internet-Draft will expire on September 6, 2012.



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Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2012 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
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   described in the Simplified BSD License.


Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
   2.  Requirements language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
   3.  Motivation  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
   4.  Network Layout  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
   5.  Cabling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
   6.  Space and Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
   7.  Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
   8.  IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
   9.  References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
     9.1.  Normative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
     9.2.  Informative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
   Appendix A.  Acknowledgments  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
   Authors' Addresses  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9




















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1.  Introduction

   Support for network technology in buildings varies greatly depending
   on the age of the building.  Older buildings may have no wiring to
   support any network infrastructure, power may be available only at
   select places, and so on.  Newer buildings can generally support some
   wired networking mechanisms and provide space and power for the
   necessary equipment.

   But the ease of building a home network is also highly dependent on
   the chosen wiring, power, and equipment space designs.  As networking
   technology evolves at a fast pace, it is important to choose designs
   that are expected to be useful for a long time.  A well-designed
   network architecture at the physical, cabling, power, and equipment
   space level could support anything from plain old telephone systems
   to broadband IP networks, IP-based TV systems, and home automation.
   The underlying physical infrastructure should not be impacted by
   technology evolution such as moving from traditional telephony to
   transporting voice over IP networks, variations in employing either
   Ethernet switching, routing, and network address translation, moving
   from IPv4 to IPv6, and so on.

   While there are many cabling, equipment, and protocol standards, to
   date there has been no standard for the physical network layout for
   new buildings.  This memo sets a baseline requirements that new,
   single-family residences must satisfy in order to benefit from
   advances in networking technology.  The basic requirements call for
   using general purpose cabling in a star topology and providing space
   for equipment in an equipment rack, and sufficient power supply.

   Standardizing network technology for buildings is a challenging task,
   however.  This memo has been submitted for the home networking
   working group at the IETF as one forum that the authors were able to
   find that appears to care about the home network as a system.
   However, in general the IETF has expertise only on protocols, not on
   the physical medium, equipment racks, power supplies, or civil
   engineering and building requirements.

   Similarly, cabling standards bodies have experience only on the
   physical medium but not its application in a specific context, civil
   engineering standards bodies have only experience on buildings and
   not on networking requirements, equipment form factor and rack
   specifications are not specified for a particular home network
   context, and so on.

   As a result, it is unclear what forum would have the right expertise
   to discuss this.  Advice is sought on what existing standards already
   address this problem, what standardization efforts may be under way,



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   and if work remains, what the right forum to discuss these matters
   might be.

   The rest of this memo is organized as follows.  Section 2 defines the
   requirements language.  Section 3 discusses the motivation for
   needing any physical infrastructure beyond wireless in houses.
   Section 4 specifies the required network layout and minimum capacity,
   Section 5 specifies the use of Category 6 cabling, and Section 6
   specifies the requirements for equipment space and power.  Finally,
   Section 7 outlines brief security requirements for house networks.

   Buildings that satisfy the minimum requirements are said to be
   compliant with this specification.  Many buildings may support
   additional facilities, however, and some of the optional requirements
   are discussed throughout the memo.  Note that requirements for
   commercial buildings, apartment buildings, and special purpose
   residences such as summer homes are slightly different, and not
   covered in this specification.


2.  Requirements language

   The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
   "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this
   document are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119 [RFC2119].


3.  Motivation

   A frequently asked question is whether a wired infrastructure is
   needed at all, given the existence of fast and inexpensive wireless
   networking.  End user computing equipment such as laptops employ
   largely wireless networking today, and the trend is expected to
   continue, and even accelerate, with other types of devices as well.
   However, there are several reasons why the existence of a base wired
   infrastructure within a building is still essential complement to
   wireless technology:

   o  The need to support applications such as video surveillance, IP-
      based TV, or network-connected backup storage that may exceed the
      capacity of at least the current generation of wireless
      technology.

   o  The need to support applications that benefit from Power-over-
      Ethernet (PoE) and other similar technologies that can be
      implemented only over wired infrastructure.





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   o  The need to support legacy technologies, such as plain old
      telephones and other devices that can benefit from wired
      connectivity.

   o  Reconnecting parts from different areas of the house.  For
      instance, the Internet connection, the best place for a wireless
      LAN access point, and the desired place for an IP-based TV device
      may all be in different areas of the house.

      Connecting these different locations is possible over wireless as
      well, but it is typically more efficient to use a wired
      infrastructure.

   o  A wireless access point infrastructure is often easiest built on
      top of a wired infrastructure that connects to the access points.

      While typical homes today cope with a much simpler architecture
      that needs no infrastructure or multiple access points, evolving
      wireless technology generally tends to decrease cell size while
      increasing bandwidth.  Future local area wireless technology or
      even light-based communication mechanisms may make use of multiple
      access points in a far more aggressive manner than today's 802.11
      wireless LANs.

   o  Ability to employ future networking technology innovations that
      may also require wired connectivity.  As an example, one of the
      authors has deployed sensor network on top of wired infrastructure
      in his home.

   Another frequent question is whether there is a need for a dedicated
   space to place equipment in.  While technology evolves at a fast pace
   and is also being embedded in all of our devices, it is expected that
   some central equipment, such as routers, ADSL modems, or Power-over-
   Ethernet feeds will also be needed in the future.  It is easier to
   place these devices in a dedicated space that can be engineered to
   provide the necessary power and connectivity.  In addition, a
   dedicated space can be designed to prevent the equipment from causing
   a visual or aural distraction to the occupants of the building.


4.  Network Layout

   The network MUST use a structured cabling model and a star topology.
   Note that single-family homes are typically well within the maximum
   cable length limits even in this configuration.  Exceptional
   situations, such as secondary buildings MAY be handled through the
   addition of extra local star configurations for the other buildings.




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   All external wired connectivity to the building MUST be brought to
   the same space that holds the center of the star.  For instance,
   fiber-optic cables and phone cables are brought here so that they can
   be easily connected to the routers, switches and other devices in the
   central equipment space.

   This model ensures that individual devices can be connected despite
   changes in networking technology, merely by reconfiguring the central
   cable cross connect panel appropriately.  For instance, individual
   devices within the house get to have full-speed connectivity to the
   central equipment and the technology used to communicate to one
   device is not dependent on another device.

   At least one wired connection MUST be provided in this topology for
   every primary room.  This includes the living room, kitchen,
   bedrooms, libraries, offices, media rooms, and other rooms where the
   occupants may spend significant amount of time.  These rooms are
   likely to have a computer or a media device that needs connectivity
   either directly or via a wireless access point device placed nearby.

   Connections MUST also be provided in rooms dedicated to technology,
   such as as heating or technology rooms or closets.  It is expected
   that these rooms employ technology that benefits from smart energy or
   safety applications that may benefit from connectivity.

   Connections MUST also be provided in hallways or entrance rooms
   associated with the primary entrance, as those areas may employ
   movement sensors, surveillance cameras, home automation panels or
   other technology that again may benefit from connectivity.

   Connections MAY also be provided in additional areas such as storage
   rooms, hallways, bathrooms, basement, attic, and so on, but it is not
   strictly required.  The expected applications in these areas
   typically relate to safety and building health monitoring.


5.  Cabling

   The network MUST use cables manufactured and installed according to
   the Category 6 specifications [TIA.568-B.2].  This allows high-speed
   networking applications such as Gigabit or even 10 Gigabit Ethernet
   [IEEE.802-3ab.1999], as well as many other uses (including legacy
   voice services and surveillance applications).

   Note that a more stringent cabling standard MAY be used for all the
   cabling, as long as it is compatible with Category 6.  In addition,
   the network MAY use other types of cables as seen appropriate.  For
   instance, the installation of fiber optic cabling within the building



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   may be useful, even if it is not something that should be recommended
   today as the only cabling model.

   Cabling SHOULD be installed in manner that makes it possible to
   replace or upgrade the cables to future standards.  For instance,
   cables can be installed in tubes, cabling shafts, or other conduits
   where they can be replaced without affecting the structures around
   them.  In general, the expected lifetime of buildings should be from
   30 to 100 years or even beyond.  While current installations are
   likely to be useful in 20 years time, it is also likely that either
   the physical lifetime of the cabling or the suitability of today's
   cables to future applications demands replacement after some number
   of decades.


6.  Space and Power

   The house needs to provide sufficient space and power for placing
   equipment, such as modems, routers, and file servers.  Each star
   center point in the network topology MUST employ a 19 inch rack
   system [IEC.60297-3-100].  The rack system MUST be at least 22U (97.9
   centimeters) high and at least 600 millimeters deep.

   There are no mandatory requirements on the configuration of the rack,
   but it is RECOMMENDED that space in the rack be provided for Category
   6 cable termination panels, a power panel, shelves for freestanding
   equipment, as well as some free space for rack-attached equipment.

      For instance, a 22U system could be used to accommodate a 2U
      termination panel for 32 cables, a 24-port 1U Ethernet Switch, 1U
      power panel, 2 shelves both taking up 4U space, and 10U remaining
      space for rack-attached equipment.  It is useful to reserve a free
      shelf at the top of the rack with enough free space above it so
      that larger equipment, such as standalone PCs can be accommodated.

      Common industry standard of 900 millimeters deep racks may be
      unnecessarily space-consuming for home environments, however.  The
      depth of 600 millimeters is sufficient for many types of equipment
      (small switches are typically 200 to 300 millimeters deep, for
      instance), even if it may not be sufficient for high end servers
      and other full-size equipment.  A smaller form factor rack
      standard might be useful for home environments.

   The placement of the rack shall be according to the relevant building
   codes and practices.  Often the rack is placed in a technology room
   that houses other equipment as well such as electrical cabinets.

   In addition, mains power MUST be provided for the equipment space.



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   This power MUST be fed from an dedicated circuit breaker and SHOULD
   be filtered to prevent equipment damage from thunderstorms and
   similar phenomena.


7.  Security Considerations

   While communications equipment does not have the same electrical
   safety concerns as electricity cabinets, it is still RECOMMENDED that
   the equipment cabinets are protected from children and accidental
   tampering.  This can be accomplished with a lockable door, for
   instance.

   Safety critical applications SHOULD employ connectivity that matches
   the security requirements.  For instance, fire and burglary alarms,
   and medical applications should use either strong cryptographic
   security over the wireless medium, or cabling that is not easily
   tampered with by outsiders.  For instance, burglary alarm systems
   should not rely on cabling that is routed unprotected outside the
   building.


8.  IANA Considerations

   This document has no IANA implications.


9.  References

9.1.  Normative References

   [RFC2119]  Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
              Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.

   [IEEE.802-3ab.1999]
              "IEEE Standard Standard for Local and Metropolitan Area
              Networks - Part 3: Carrier Sense Multiple Access with
              Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) Access Method and Physical
              Layer Specifications - Physical Layer Parameters and
              Specifications for 1000 Mb/s Operation over 4 pair of
              Category 5 Balanced Copper Cabling, Type 1000BASE-T",
              IEEE Standard 802.3ab-1999, 1999.

   [TIA.568-B.2]
              "Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling  Standard
              - Part 2 - Balanced Twisted Pair Components", TIA/
              EIA 568-B.2.




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   [IEC.60297-3-100]
              "Mechanical structures for electronic equipment -
              Dimensions of mechanical structures of the 482,6 mm (19
              in) series Part 3-100: Basic dimensions of front panels,
              subracks, chassis, racks and cabinets", IEC 60297-3-
              100:2008.

9.2.  Informative References


Appendix A.  Acknowledgments

   The authors would like to thank Marc Blanchet for the inspiration to
   write about this.  The authors would also like to thank all the
   active members of the HOMENET working group for interesting
   discussions about home networking, Ericsson for supporting Jari's
   home networking experiments, Joel Halpern for excellent feedback, the
   TEKES/TIVIT programs for future Internet and Internet of Things
   research for funding, and Jari's family for endurance and for the
   permission to use the kitchen table as a soldering platform.


Authors' Addresses

   Jari Arkko
   Ericsson
   Jorvas  02420
   Finland

   Email: jari.arkko@piuha.net


   Ari Keranen
   Ericsson
   Jorvas  02420
   Finland

   Email: ari.keranen@ericsson.com













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