Structured cabling is a total network solution for your telecommunications infrastructure. This cabling facilitates voice, data, video, image, and text transfer.

Essentially, you have a main telecom room (MDF) and may have additional ‘intermediate’ telecom rooms known as IDFs. These rooms are typically connected by fiber and each room typically has racks or cabinets with patch panels that connect to jacks/telecom outlets for user workstations or devices.

Network Infrastructure according to ANSI/TIA-568-C.1:

The Access Provider connects to the Entrance Facility. This is where your network begins. The Entrance Facility extends the network to the Main Cross-Connect (Distributor C) in the Equipment Room. This is the highest physical level in the network, and it connects to the next layer, of which the hierarchy is:

• At the highest level, an Intermediate Cross-Connect (Distributor B) in the Equipment Room which is usually a connection between multiple buildings.
• Or a Horizontal Cross-Connect (Distributor A) in the Telecommunications Room or Telecommunications Enclosure
• Or a Telecommunications Outlet/Connector (Equipment Outlet) in a Work Area

The Main Cross-Connect can connect to (a), (b), or (c) directly but a lower rung of the hierarchy can never jump before a higher layer.