Server rack and network cabinet installation
Cablify supplies and installs floor and wall-mount racks and cabinets for IDFs, MDFs and server rooms: assembled, anchored, bonded and fitted with cable management before the first patch panel goes in.
- Rack unit
- 1U = 1.75 in (44.45 mm), EIA-310
- 42U rack
- 73.5 in of mounting space
- Deep equipment
- 1200 mm cabinets and deeper
- Bonding
- To the room busbar, TIA-607-E
Rack or cabinet
The equipment, the room and who can walk into it decide which one fits.
| Type | Best for | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Two-post rack | Patch panels and switches in IDFs | Front mounting only, so deep or heavy gear needs four posts |
| Four-post open frame | Servers and deeper network gear in locked rooms | No doors, so the room itself has to be secure |
| Enclosed cabinet | Servers, shared rooms and airflow containment | Depth, width and door swing in a small room |
| Wall-mount cabinet | Small closets, store back rooms and branch offices | Wall strength and anchoring for the loaded weight |
Sizing
Height, depth and width are chosen from the equipment list and the cable count, not the room’s leftover space.
Height
A 42U rack gives 73.5 inches of mounting space. We leave open units for growth and for horizontal cable managers between panels.
Depth
Modern servers are deep. Eaton recommends 1200 mm (47.24 in) or more for current equipment, with room behind for power cords.
Width
600 mm (24 in) cabinets line up with raised-floor tiles. Wider 750 to 800 mm cabinets leave space for heavy cable counts, and TIA-942-C calls for at least 800 mm where switches sit.
Mounting
Rails with holes 18-5/16 inches apart center to center for 19 inch equipment, threaded or square-hole to suit the gear.
Clearance, anchoring and bonding
Three things that are hard to fix once the rack is full.
Clearance
TIA-569-D called for at least 1 m (3 ft) in front of racks and 0.6 m (2 ft) behind, with 1.2 m and 1 m preferred. We lay rooms out to those numbers before placing anything.
Anchoring
Racks are bolted to the floor and braced to the wall or ladder rack where needed. In California and other seismic regions, seismic-rated cabinets are tested on shaker tables to Telcordia GR-63-CORE.
Bonding
Each rack and cabinet is bonded to the room’s telecommunications busbar under TIA-607-E, released in May 2024. Rack bonding conductors are commonly 6 AWG.
Cable management
- Vertical managers sized for the full cable count, not today’s
- A horizontal manager above or below each patch panel
- Patch cords cut to length or bought in fitted sizes
- Power on one side of the rack and data on the other
- Labels on the front and rear of every panel
- Rack elevation drawings with every unit marked
Racks are usually part of a larger job. See data center and server room cabling for full rooms and structured cabling for the cable that lands in them.
Common questions
Should we use a rack or a cabinet?
Use an open rack in a locked telecom room where airflow and access matter most. Use a cabinet when the room is shared, when the equipment needs to be locked, or when you are containing hot or cold air.
Two-post or four-post?
Two-post racks suit patch panels and switches. Servers and other deep, heavy equipment need four posts so the gear is supported at the front and rear.
What does 1U mean?
One rack unit, 1.75 inches (44.45 mm) of vertical space, as defined in EIA-310. A 2U device takes 3.5 inches.
Do we need a seismic cabinet?
In seismic regions, and where your engineer or the building code calls for it. Seismic cabinets are tested on shaker tables and anchored to the structure.
Request a rack or cabinet quote
Send the address, the equipment list or rack count, and the room size. Photos of the room help us check clearances and the floor.