We are going to use the same cabling and sockets for the ethernet and telephone points. This means that any ethernet outlet can be reconfigured as a telephone point and vice versa. Since there are multiple ethernet connections in each room, this provides us with a lot of flexibility plus we won’t have to worry about those ugly telephone extension cables around the place.
We have a standard BT telephone line and master socket. I have acquired a unit that will convert the incoming telephone line into 4 RJ-45 connections. This is the standard connector for ethernet.
All of the room sockets terminate in a patch panel, so it is a case of connecting the telephone line to the appropriate socket using a patch cable – rather line the old fashioned telephone exchanges you used to see on TV.
Once the telephone line is connected to the socket, it is a case of plugging in a short lead that converts the RJ-45 connection back into a standard BT plug (or an LJU socket to be more precise). These are just a few pounds each.
In fact, the unit that I have bought is capable of converting two telephone lines into 4 ethernet connections each. This means that if we ever get a second line (e.g. for business use) that this could be patched to any room in exactly the same way.
You will find the central unit is available from CyberSelect. I did have a good look around and there aren’t many on the market. They also supply the converter leads too.