As a new owner of an EnGenius ENH500 (outdoor) Access Point, new questions pop up not covered in the manual - or if there are pieces, the why is missing.
Straight to it, the POE injector has a terminal on the side labeled "ground". It is connected internally to the metal-clad RJ45 sockets on the input and the output end of the injector. There are also metal Rj45 sockets on the AP itself. No ethernet cables were supplied.
The manual is silent on the connection. Let's talk about hookup first - bare wire to a piece of grounded equipment (mixer, rack)? For what?
If instead, I were to use shielded twisted pair ethernet cable with metal shells on the RJ45, connected between the mixer (QU16) and the POE, that would complete the POE "ground" circuit at the mixer.
Extending the shielded cable with metal shells between the POE and the AP would then completely interconnect the ground through all three devices through the shielding.
My reading of the use of Shielded Twisted Pair leads me to the conclusion that that would lessen interference to/from that cable. But given my run will never exceed 25' (stick the AP on a pole next to the mixer location), I'm not sure of the benefits in my situation. I can see it if it were to be used for its intended purpose - permanent install outdoors at the end of a longish run most likely.
Which leads me to the real question: what is this "ground" terminal is supposed to be?
- EGC?
- Lightening protection?
- Shield connection/drain?
One thing I've learned here is how much I do not know (the list is increasing), and if in doubt (possible safety issues), I should ask. Grounding and bonding are two of these things about which the more I learn, the less I know. Any help on the whys and wherefores of connecting/ignoring the "ground" is always appreciated.
frank
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