Can You Run a Business Network Over Coax? We Did, for $140

The job

We had a client that wanted to upgrade their network to UniFi, so we agreed and decided to go with the UniFi Dream Machine Pro as the core of the new network. Everything was hooked up, connected, and powered on when we ran into the catch: the drop-off point for the ISP's modem was across the building, and there was a Verizon router sitting in the rack. That meant all traffic would have to run through the Verizon router to get out to the internet.

Why we didn't just bridge the Verizon router

The router can be put in transparent mode, but those settings can be finicky and have a way of reverting on their own. It has happened to us multiple times. We didn't want the client's brand-new network depending on a setting that might quietly undo itself one day.

The router connected back to the demarcation point over coax, which was fine, except we weren't sure what the coax was rated for, and honestly, we had never really seen coax in a commercial building until now.

The fix: a Bonded MoCA 2.5 adapter

So we decided to remove the Verizon router entirely. Our solution was a Bonded MoCA 2.5 network adapter. We had never done this before, but we assumed it would be simple. Turns out it was.

The funny thing was that the same coax run had a splitter in it feeding a TV. After some research, we found that MoCA operates on frequencies above the ones cable TV uses, so we could put the adapters on the line without affecting the TV at all. We ordered the kit, installed it, and lo and behold, it was stable. To our surprise, honestly. The client was getting their full ISP speed through the new network, and the TV kept working like nothing happened.

Why we didn't run a new cable first

We could have run a Cat6 cable to the other side of the building. But we wanted to test whether the coax would carry the connection before doing that. If it hadn't worked, we would have run the cable, and because we recommended the adapter, we would have run it at no additional cost to the customer. That is how we handle it when we push a solution: if it doesn't work, we fix it. In this case, there was nothing to fix. The kit cost about $140 on Amazon, and the client got their full speed over infrastructure that was already in the walls.

Old infrastructure isn't always dead infrastructure

This story makes one point: just because your infrastructure might be considered old, because it's coax instead of fiber or Ethernet, doesn't mean it can't be repurposed with current technology. If your business has coax in the walls, you may or may not need new cables. We've made the same point before about wiring buildings that were built before Ethernet and about connecting buildings without trenching. The pattern holds: the expensive answer is not always the right answer.

The good thing about how we work is that we try to do it as efficiently as possible, with the same result. Because we're led by a team of engineers, we were able to come up with a solution that didn't involve buying and running new cable. That won't be the case for every customer, and we won't pretend it will be. But we won't oversell you on anything you don't need, either.

Have coax in your building?

If you want to hear more about this story, or want to see whether we can make your coax (or any of your IT, really) work, reach out to us. We have staff on the ground in New Jersey, New York City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Boston, and West Palm Beach, and we support businesses beyond them remotely.