When you tour office space, it is easy to focus on the things you can see: the light, the layout, the parking, the break room. The network is mostly hidden in ceilings and walls, so it rarely gets a second look until after the lease is signed. That is when businesses discover the closet is in the wrong place, the existing cable is too old to use or the landlord will not allow work during business hours. A few questions before you sign can save a lot of money and frustration later.
1. What cabling is already there?
Many spaces come with cabling left by the last tenant. That can be a head start or a headache.
- What category is it? The cable jacket is usually printed with its category, such as Cat5e, Cat6 or Cat6A. Older cable may not support what you plan to run.
- Where do the jacks go? Jacks placed for the last tenant's layout may not line up with your desks.
- Is it labeled and does it work? Unlabeled cable of unknown condition is hard to reuse with confidence. Testing a sample tells you whether it is worth keeping.
- Is there abandoned cable? Ceilings full of old, unused cable can complicate new work.
2. Where is the network closet, and is it any good?
Every network has a central point where cables come together and equipment lives. Ask to see it.
- Location. Under common cabling standards, each copper connection from the closet to a device, including patch cords, is limited to 100 meters. In a typical office that is plenty, but in a long or large space, a closet at one end can leave the far side out of reach.
- Size and space. Is there room for a rack, a firewall, switches, a camera recorder and battery backup?
- Power and cooling. Is there a dedicated outlet, and does the room stay cool? A closet with no ventilation can overheat equipment.
- Shared or private. In multi-tenant buildings, is the closet yours alone, or shared with other tenants or building systems?
3. Which internet providers serve the building?
Do not assume your current provider is available at the new address. Ask the landlord or property manager which providers already have service in the building, and confirm with the providers directly. Ask where the provider's lines enter the building and how they reach your suite. If fiber is not already in the building, getting it there can take time, so find out before you set a move-in date. If staying online matters to your business, this is also a good time to think about a backup connection.
Tip: ask to see where the internet service comes into the building, sometimes called the demarc. If it is far from your suite, the cost of getting service to your closet is worth knowing up front.
4. Who owns what?
The lease should make clear who owns the cabling, the closet equipment and the pathways, and who is responsible for them.
- Does existing cabling belong to the landlord, or did the last tenant leave it behind with no clear owner?
- If you install new cabling, who owns it at the end of the lease?
- Do you have to remove your cabling when you move out, or leave it in place?
- Who is responsible for building-wide pathways, such as risers between floors?
Lease terms vary widely, and these are questions for your broker or attorney as much as for your cabling contractor. The important thing is to ask before you sign, when you still have room to negotiate.
5. What will the landlord allow?
- Work hours. Many buildings require noisy or ceiling work after hours or on weekends, which can affect your schedule and cost.
- Approvals and insurance. Landlords often require contractors to provide insurance certificates and get approval before work starts. Ask what the process is.
- Ceiling access. Are the ceilings drop tiles that open easily, or hard ceilings that make running cable more involved?
- Roof and exterior. If you need an outdoor camera or a cellular antenna, will the landlord allow it, and where?
- Required materials. Some ceilings are used as part of the building's air handling system. In those spaces, the National Electrical Code generally requires plenum-rated cable or another approved wiring method, which adds cost. Your contractor can tell you which applies.
6. What do you need that is not there?
Think about what your business runs on and whether the space can support it.
- How many desks need wired connections?
- Where should Wi-Fi access points go so every room has good coverage?
- Do you need security cameras, a door access system or overhead paging?
- Do your phones, card terminals or other equipment need connections in specific places?
- How much might you grow over the term of the lease, and where would new desks go?
Writing these answers down before you tour makes it much easier to judge whether a space is close to ready or needs significant work, and to compare two spaces fairly.
Walk the space with someone who knows cabling
Most of these questions can be answered during a tour, if you bring the right person along. A cabling contractor can look at the closet, check the existing cable, peek above the ceiling tiles and give you a realistic sense of what it will take to make the space work. That information is useful in lease negotiations, and it helps you plan your move-in date around reality.
If you are weighing a new space, you can read more about how we install and upgrade office cabling on our computer network cabling page.
Take a checklist on the tour: our free commercial tenant low-voltage readiness checklist has 30 questions you can answer on the page or print as a fillable PDF.