How I'm Planning a 10GbE Home Network From Scratch (Before Moving In)


By Paul S

When I closed on my new condo, I made a promise: no more WiFi compromises, no more cable spaghetti, no more “I’ll fix it later.” This was my chance to do it right from day one — before the furniture moved in, before the walls were closed up, before I talked myself out of running cable because it felt like too much work. And unlike renting, I actually own this place. Whatever I build into these walls is mine. That changes how you think about your infrastructure entirely. In my current rental I couldn’t run ethernet, so I got creative. I picked up a pair of goCoax MoCA 2.5 adapters — devices that turn your existing coax cable (the same coax your TV uses) into a wired ethernet backhaul. The result: I went from 400 Mbps over WiFi to 800 Mbps on my internet speed tests — same apartment, same internet plan. It was a revelation. What I didn’t realize at the time: that 800 Mbps was my ISP connection getting closer to its full potential over a wired backhaul, not a measure of what MoCA 2.5 can actually deliver on a LAN. MoCA 2.5 is capable of up to 2,500 Mbps of local throughput — I just never tested it properly with a second wired device. Once I knew what a proper wired connection felt like, I wanted more. And with a condo I actually own, I can finally build it right. I want speed. I want efficiency. And I’ve never done this before.

This article is the honest, unfiltered account of how I’m planning a 10 Gigabit Ethernet network as a beginner — the research, the decisions, the questions I had to ask my electrician, and the mistakes I’m trying to avoid before I make them. If you’re in a similar spot, planning ahead of a move or renovation, this is the guide I wish I’d found first.

ComponentMy PickApprox Cost
In-wall cableShielded Cat6A copper~$0.10/ft premium over Cat6
10GbE switchTP-Link TL-SX105~$234
2.5GbE switchTP-Link (owned)—
10GbE NICTP-Link TX401~$60–80
NASDIY or UGREEN, Synology~$750 budget
* Conduit1” ENT throughout—

*The conduit is not happening since the walls will not be fully opened.

Why 10GbE? Why Not Just WiFi 6 or Standard Gigabit?

Fair question, and one I asked myself. WiFi 6 is genuinely impressive — fast, low latency, great for phones and laptops scattered around an apartment, but it has a ceiling. Real-world speeds rarely crack 500–700 Mbps under ideal conditions, and the moment you’re editing 4K footage from a NAS across the room, or doing a large backup, you feel that ceiling immediately. I lived this firsthand. In my rental I was getting 400 Mbps over WiFi — respectable, but inconsistent. I added a pair of goCoax MoCA 2.5 adapters to run a wired backhaul over my existing coax cable and jumped to 800 Mbps. A real, measurable doubling of throughput without touching a wall. What I later learned: MoCA 2.5 is actually capable of up to 2,500 Mbps on a local network — my 800 Mbps was my internet plan’s ceiling, not MoCA’s. I hadn’t tested LAN throughput at all. Either way, it sent me down the rabbit hole that led to this project, and I still wasn’t doing 10GbE NAS transfers or editing 4K off network storage. I needed the real thing.

Standard Gigabit Ethernet (1GbE) — the kind most homes have — maxes out at around 125 MB/s. That sounds fast until you’re transferring a 100GB video project and watching the progress bar crawl for 13+ minutes. 10GbE is ten times that. A 100GB transfer takes about 90 seconds. For my use case — 4K/8K video editing and streaming off a NAS, large file transfers, and future-proofing an apartment I intend to stay in for years — it made obvious sense. Especially since I was starting from zero. Running Cat6A instead of Cat6 costs maybe $0.10 more per foot of cable (have to confirm with the AV). The 10GB switch is the real investment but is a one-time purchase that will hopefully last a decade. The math was easy: do it right now, or pay more to redo it later.

Step 1: The Meeting That Changes Everything — Your AV Installer and Electrician

Here’s something nobody tells you in the networking forums: the most important part of a home network install isn’t the gear, it’s the conversation you have before anyone touches a wall. I’m meeting with an AV installer and electrician before my move-in date. These are the questions I’m bringing to that meeting:

For the electrician:

For the AV installer:

The ENT conduit point deserves its own paragraph.* ENT conduit — the flexible orange or gray plastic tubing — is the single best investment in a structured cable install. You run the conduit through your walls, pull your Cat6A through it, and if you ever need to upgrade to Cat8, fiber, or whatever comes next, you pull the old cable out and push the new one in. No drywall. No mess. No $3,000 reinstall fee. I’m specifying 1-inch diameter to leave room for multiple cables or thicker future runs. If your installer pushes back on conduit because it’s more labor, have a direct conversation about why you want it. It’s your apartment and your long-term investment.

Step 2: Designing the Network Layout

For a 3–4 room apartment, my planned layout looks like this: Central location (utility closet or dedicated office corner):

Office (highest priority room):

Living room:

Bedroom / other rooms:

The key principle: every room gets at least one drop, even if you don’t need it today. A drop you don’t use costs almost nothing extra during install. A drop you need and don’t have costs a lot to add later.

Step 3: The Gear I’m Planning to Buy

I want to be transparent here: I haven’t purchased most of this yet. This is my research shortlist based on months of reading forums, Reddit threads, and spec sheets. I’ll update this article with real-world performance once I’m up and running.

Cabling: Cat6A Copper, Full Stop

After researching Cat5e vs Cat6 vs Cat6A vs fiber, the answer for a home install in 2026 is Cat6A copper without much debate.

Switch: Starting With 10GbE in the Office

For my office, I’m looking at the TP-Link TL-SX105 — a 5-port unmanaged 10GbE switch. It’s one of the most affordable ways to get full 10GbE on a small number of devices without paying enterprise prices. For the rest of the apartment where I don’t need 10GbE speeds, a standard gigabit switch handles everything else. If I eventually want VLANs, QoS, or more advanced management, the MikroTik CRS305-1G-4S+IN is the enthusiast favorite — 4x SFP+ ports plus 1x RJ45, highly configurable, and beloved by the homelab community. I have a TP-Link 2.5GbE switch sitting in a box right now (still unopened). That’ll likely end up serving the living room and bedroom runs while the 10GbE switch handles the office. A tiered approach — 10GbE where it matters, 2.5GbE or 1GbE elsewhere — is practical and keeps costs reasonable.

NIC: 10GbE for the Workstation

Every device connecting to your 10GbE switch needs a 10GbE network interface card (NIC). Most motherboards ship with 1GbE or 2.5GbE onboard — you’ll need to add a card. The TP-Link TX401 is the most commonly recommended beginner-friendly 10GbE NIC: single RJ45 port, PCIe x4 slot, broad driver support including Windows, TrueNAS, and Linux. Around $60–80. For the NAS itself, many modern NAS units from Synology, QNAP, and others include a 10GbE port or expansion slot — something I’m factoring into my NAS purchase decision.

NAS: TBD

I haven’t bought my NAS yet. But the 10GbE network is being designed around it — the whole point of this speed upgrade is to make the NAS feel like local storage rather than network storage. My shortlist includes Synology, UGreen, and QNAP units with native 10GbE support, in the 4–6 bay range.

The Honest Beginner Mistakes I’m Trying to Avoid

After reading hundreds of forum posts, these are the most common regrets people share:

Not running enough drops. Everyone wishes they’d added one more. Cable and labor during the initial install is cheap. Return trips are expensive.

Skipping conduit. The #1 regret in structured cabling threads. Pull cable without conduit once, spend thousands to redo it later.

Buying a switch before knowing your port needs. Count your devices first. A 5-port switch sounds like enough until you realize you have a NAS, workstation, desktop, and 2 spares to connect.

Forgetting about patch cables. Your in-wall Cat6A runs terminate at a patch panel. You still need short patch cables to connect the panel to your switch. These need to be Cat6A too if you want the full chain to support 10GbE.

Assuming the installer knows what you want. Write it down. Bring a diagram. Specify conduit diameter, cable category, drop locations, and termination style in writing before they start. Verbal agreements disappear the moment a drill comes out.

What’s Next

My move-in date is end of March 2026. Between now and then I’m finalizing the switch and NAS purchases, having the AV/electrician walkthrough, and documenting everything.

After move-in I’ll publish:

If you’re planning a similar install, bookmark this page — I’ll be updating it as the project progresses. And if you have questions or have been through this yourself, the comments are open.