Right now I am completely wireless internet on all devices that need it. I am wanting to go to wired connections on a few devices. I have a panel in the garage with all where all the pre wired Ethernet cables go to the attic and into separate rooms. (See picture)

Am I correct in assuming that one of the Ethernet outlets is (hopefully living room or office) is the one that I would connect my modem to and it would make all the other outlets "hot" for use? Or am I completely off on how this works?

I think there should be RJ45 connections if this was a patch panel for internet connectivity. This may be for a phone line setup in your house.

That's for splitting lines for phone connections for instance. You want to unhook the wires from the circuit board, and replace it with this:

12 port patch panel

Then get a 12 port switch:

16 port switch

Plug in all the cables, and you will have internet to all the wired locations.

First off, those are all Cat5 cables going into a legacy (older) patch-panel interface. Basically like a junction box of sorts.

We (nor you) know what's going into those lines - could be patched analog (telephone), or it could be all cat-5 networking.

HOWEVER - it's extremely likely for phone because of the way it's patching. I'm pretty sure that's a Leviton model.

The patch panel presented to you would modernize that (recommended), but would break everything phone-wise if those are your phone lines... IF you still needed them (as phone/fax lines).

TO answer your question - we'd need to know where those Cat5 cables are going/traveling to... before you attempt to repurpose them.

You should invest a few bucks into a small toner-finder unit for wires and put one end in your phone jacks around the house, and the other end there.... If you have what I think you have (ethernet cat5 cables being used for phone lines), you can likely repurpose those wires into being network jacks instead and replace that Leviton PWB-58141 patch panel with a network patch panel for Cat5/Cat6 cabling and use it for inner-house network connectivity.

https://www.amazon.com/Klein-Tools-VDV500-705-Generator-Alligator/dp/B084LKVBM5/ref=asc_df_B084LKVBM5/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=692875362841&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4558707265922689696&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9192495&hvtargid=pla-2281435179778&mcid=fc4087dffe363e40948a1871a63a34f7&hvocijid=4558707265922689696-B084LKVBM5-&hvexpln=73&th=1

Also, go to a select room, take the phone-plate off the wall and see if you see similar cat5 blue cat5 cables with all 8 wires intact... that would be an excellent sign you can convert to ethernet (data) networking.

2012Ag said:

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I think there should be RJ45 connections if this was a patch panel for internet connectivity. This may be for a phone line setup in your house.

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This is misleading. There are lots of punch blocks of this type around for connecting ethernet cables to one another... it's an older method but it's still prevalent.

That being said, I'm pretty sure it's phone because of the style the patch panel is (Leviton PWB-58141)

A trace needs to be done to see where those cat5s punched down to that panel actually go.... that's the missing information.

agnerd said:

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That's for splitting lines for phone connections for instance. You want to unhook the wires from the circuit board, and replace it with this:

12 port patch panel

Then get a 12 port switch:

16 port switch

Plug in all the cables, and you will have internet to all the wired locations.

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This just isn't wholly true. First off, you're asking him to wreck his phone system - and you first have to make sure that's OK - that he's not using those wires.

Secondly, you have to convert all the wall phone jacks those cat5 cables to go - but you have to make sure they are one-to-one meaning they're not split elsewhere and such - which is common with analog/phone lines.... and not OK for network.

Not simple for the common man...

And once he does all that - he has to get a cat5/cat6 cable from whereever he has network connectivity TO that patch panel area just to connect to his newly created Cat5 network...

satexas said:

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2012Ag said:

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I think there should be RJ45 connections if this was a patch panel for internet connectivity. This may be for a phone line setup in your house.

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This is misleading. There are lots of punch blocks of this type around for connecting ethernet cables to one another... it's an older method but it's still prevalent.

That being said, I'm pretty sure it's phone because of the style the patch panel is (Leviton PWB-58141)

A trace needs to be done to see where those cat5s punched down to that panel actually go.... that's the missing information.

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Older panel or not, it still may be a phone panel is my point. Yes they need to find the routing for each cable to confirm. If it's direct to each room, then getting a modern panel with RJ45s and then a network switch will achieve what OP is trying to do.

Edit:

You edited your post which originally said "False, it's just an older panel, nothing more, nothing less". So I'm mentioning that here so OP has context for my response.

Go online and lookup "company that can run cat5/cat6 cabling in my house." I would have a professional knock this out. If it's not complex, it should cost too much.