[SOLVED] Ethernet outlet issues

[Mrags964]

Ethernet outlet issues

There are Ethernet outlets in almost every room of my house, but they don’t work when I plug my laptop into them. (Yes, an Ethernet cable fits into it.) I took the Ethernet cord I use for my xbox which I’ve been using for months, and tried it in an outlet but nothing...

In my pantry, it looks like all of the cords come to one spot. There are 5 Ethernet looking cords coming out of the Line Distribution Board but none plugged in. Right next to it is a Leviton Category 5e with open slots but I’m not sure what goes where.

I looked things up and it seems I need a switch to plug these cords into, but I don’t know what I’m doing. If I need a switch, what plugs into it, AND do I need to plug the switch into my router? My router is far away so I would have to run a long Ethernet cable from the pantry to my router in the living room.

Can someone help me out and please dumb it down for me? Thank you!!!!

 

[alceryes]

Can you upload a pic of the LDB so we can have a look? Is it definitely ethernet (RJ45) and not phone (RJ11)? The LDB is probably just where all the ethernet runs terminate - analogous to a 'patch panel'.
If your end goal is to get multiple ethernet-connected devices on the internet then you will need a switch and that switch needs to be connected to a device that has internet (router). You would get a switch that all your ethernet runs would plug into (from the LDB) and you would have one ethernet run going to your router from that switch.

The above is a simplistic explanation. Depending on your router's configuration and the unknown LDB you may have to do more to get it going.

 

[Ralston18]

Yes.

Per @alceryes add some photographs.

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2173703/post-images-tomshardware-guide.html

Try to keep the photographs as focused as possible and free of glare and clutter.

Note device make and model information through out.

Also google "home network diagrams".

Two reasons:

1) Get a sense of what a home network can look like with respect to devices and connecting cables or wireless connections.

2) So you can sketch out your network in some manner to learn what is already in place and what you may need to get everything up and running on the network.

The sketch does not need to be a work of art. Likely the sketch will get revised as you learn and discover more about your home network configuration.

Keeping the "big picture" in view helps everyone including yourself.

And you can always revise your google searches as necessary to narrow results or focus on some particular issue or problem.

Plus you can ask here as well.

 

[gggplaya]

1. Buy a network switch with enough ports to match what's in your pantry.
2. Install the switch in your pantry so it has power.
3. Connect all the network ports to the switch, doesn't matter which port, just that they're all plugged in.
4. Connect one of the ports(not WAN) on your wifi router to one of the wall outlet ports anywhere in the house.

 

[Mrags964]

1. Buy a network switch with enough ports to match what's in your pantry.
2. Install the switch in your pantry so it has power.
3. Connect all the network ports to the switch, doesn't matter which port, just that they're all plugged in.
4. Connect one of the ports(not WAN) on your wifi router to one of the wall outlet ports anywhere in the house.

Thank you!! I’ll have to give that a try ASAP.