Run computer from another floor

[underemployeed]

I have a crazy idea that I'm wondering if anyone else has tried, I have a feeling that my new computer will turn my room into a sauna during the summer. My idea is this to put the computer in my moms office in the basement, directly beneath me because it remains about 55*F, but that is about 10ft I need to run cables. Or, I might just put a hole in the room adjoining mine and heat that room. then use a usb extension cable so I can hook up peripherals, and probably a 10ft HDMI cable. I see putting a faceplate in the other room as probably the easier solution but less cooling.

[lordlundar]

I see it all the time with the work I do. (bank system upgrades)

Bad news first: The PC isn't the exclusive source of heat. If the machine has solid ventilation, it won't even be the primary source of heat. That joy belongs to your monitor and there's not much you can do about that apart from making sure it's ventilated.

That said, it's a pretty easy system to set up. First off, consider how you are setting up your system. Anything that has a hole or a fan needs a lot of air around it for ventilation. As well, out of sight, out of mind tends to take effect here, so make sure your system is as clean as possible. So many systems I have seen that are tucked out of the way have dust demons. Not bunnies, these fight back. This is something you want to avoid, so keep the system clean and ventilated.

Next up is the cables. Take stock of all the plugs in your system. Apart from the power cord, everything is going to need an extension or longer cable. Priority cables like the monitor is going to be a longer cable as opposed to an extension because data loss is too big of a risk. Cable length is a big deal here, and there is a limit for some cables. You want to have all cables slack, so figure roughly a quarter to half again the length you might need.

So you have all the cables, now you have to learn to connect them securely. Remember, there's two points of failure at this point, and the mid point is always annoying to reach. keeping it secure makes sure you don't have to worry about it. The technique I was taught is to wrap one over the other like you're starting to tie a knot, then plug them together. I promise you, done right, that cable will break before the plug comes loose. At that point, you shouldn't have to worry about it unless the cable fails.

Now before you run the cables, map out where you want them to go first, and set up what you need to do so. Clips/hooks/etc at regular intervals, the holes you drill being as smooth as possible, etc. Before you run your cables, test them out out in the open and make sure they all work. A failure now is going to save you hours of work later. Once you confirmed they all work, then run the cables and do the final hook ups.

A final note here though. Remember earlier when I said out of sight, out of mind? That's going to mean it's going to be forgotten. Please don't do that. That is going to cause a lot of problems down the road.

[Daskinor]

Make sure you purchase a USB DVD drive and a good USB hub. You dont want to run down stairs to plug new stuff in.

[underemployeed]

My 22LCD tv is the monitor, and believe me just setup the computer today and my room is already a little bit toasty compared to having the tv run all day, looking at about 3-5 degree temp difference which only gets worse in summer. 95W processor, plus all the other components would be a beneficial shift out of my room.

Using HDMI, usb keyboard + mouse, probably getting a usb media remote, have a few junk hubs for the low end stuff. Acquired what I hope to be a 10ft usb 2.0 cable (it was free so I'm not worried), even then If I get a pci express tuner card, I won't need to keep using my usb tv tuner and 2.0 becomes even less important that I need it for line of sight as the Ir sensor is built into the tuner. Also, have audio extension cable.

I'm not to worried about the dvd drive, as right now I think I'm opting to use the room next to mine where nobody stays, so I don't need use stairs when I feel like using the dvd drive or do a hard reset, for the most part it will run 24/7

[Chromatix]

Most LCD monitors consume less than 100W maximum, and most computers consume about that at *idle*. So moving the computer to another room will probably be a big improvement in the heat input that needs to be dealt with.

For reference, the human body emits about 50W at rest.

Most types of cables do have a maximum effective length. However, I do believe that USB 2.0 and HDMI can be made to work over that kind of distance, and analogue audio cables certainly can if they're even slightly decent (and you use powered speakers). If a single USB cable doesn't do it reliably, put in a powered hub near the ceiling/floor and do it in two shorter cables.

[Hibble]

If you have the pc in another room plan how you will turn it on/off. but most important is how you monitor the system temp. e.g if your next to the pc and a fan fails you know by the change in sound or the beep beep coming from the pc. if its in another room you may not know till to late.

[TheSHAD0W]

Make sure you're using a digital video connection, either HDMI or DVI. A VGA cable longer than ten feet that won't fuzz your video gets expensive fast. Shop around on the net, you can find long digital cables that shouldn't destroy your budget.

[underemployeed]

Well, I simply need to walk at most 20 ft to get to the computer. or, I was thinking of making a power switch extension header,aka. Use some extra wire and make an box with a Normal open switch so I can run that thru the wall and not need the case's button. maybe few status LEDs. I can set speedfan to notify me of problems Also, with it being right on the other side of the wall considering you can hear voices, I should be able to hear a bad fan.

With the basement things are a little different, but right now for ease of design I think I'm using a faceplate hole in the wall to the adjacent room, most likely running cable and Ethernet jacks so if I move the computer, I pop on a face plate and hole disappears, but right now I don't want to go thru the expense of specialized audio and video jacks when I have no problem running a cable through a hole that is hidden behind my stand.

[EricKei]

Just a side note -- it's been my experience that most (but not all) printers have issues with NON-powered USB hubs (generally manifesting as Windows just plain ol' saying "Printer? What printer?" even after it's been installed by plugging it straight into the computer)... As long as you're in the market, consider looking at these while yer out window shopping.

My best guess would be the fact that printers generally require a much greater amount of communication, more often, than a mouse or keyboard does, and it's just overwhelming the available juice supplied by the mobo. I'm sure others here can elaborate and/or correct, however ^_^

[Andara Bledin]

I got lucky, and the Canon printer I have doesn't care what USB you plug it into.

As for temperature, have you considered maybe adding water cooling? It might be possible to mitigate the heat with less effort than it would take to relocate the system.

We never use the heat at my apartment because we have a huge TV, a 360, and two computers. We keep quite toasty. Summer gets tricky, however.

^-.-^

[lordlundar]

As for temperature, have you considered maybe adding water cooling? It might be possible to mitigate the heat with less effort than it would take to relocate the system.

Doesn't work that way Andara. Liquid cooling is used to keep components cool more efficiently than air cooled because liquid is more dense and can absorb more heat. The problem is that that heat still needs to go somewhere. Liquid cooling simply channels it through the pipes out the computer, so it's no more effective in keeping a room maintained.