5 Signs It’s Time to
Upgrade Your Cabling

Technology changes fast—but many businesses are still running on the same cabling they installed 10 or even 15 years ago. While servers, Wi-Fi, and applications evolve constantly, the cabling hidden in your walls quietly determines whether all that new technology actually performs. Here are five signs it’s time to consider an upgrade:

  1. Slow or inconsistent performance
    If you’ve increased your internet speed but your network still feels sluggish, outdated cabling could be the bottleneck. Cat 5e and older standards simply can’t handle the bandwidth demands of modern applications like video conferencing and cloud computing.
  2. Frequent disconnects
    Dropped calls, frozen video meetings, or “network unavailable” messages often trace back to failing cables, poor terminations, or excessive crosstalk. Aging cabling systems tend to show their age in the form of reliability issues.
  3. You’re adding new technology
    Moving to Wi-Fi 6? Expanding your surveillance system to 4K cameras? Shifting to cloud-based applications? All of these demand higher bandwidth and more reliable infrastructure. If your cabling isn’t up to the task, the new tech will only perform at a fraction of its potential.
  4. Messy telecom rooms
    If your IDFs look like spaghetti bowls of unlabeled cables, you’re overdue for cleanup. Disorganized cabling isn’t just ugly—it makes troubleshooting harder, increases downtime, and usually signals that the underlying cabling is outdated or installed without standards.
  5. Your system is over 10 years old
    Structured cabling is designed to last, but nothing lasts forever. If your cabling hasn’t been touched in a decade, it’s likely not supporting today’s performance standards. Newer Cat 6A and fiber systems deliver far more bandwidth and headroom for the future.
blue network cables

Bonus Indicator: Your competition is faster. If employees or customers are frustrated with slow Wi-Fi, laggy video calls, or unreliable services, it might not be your ISP—it could be your infrastructure.

The Takeaway
Upgrading your cabling isn’t just about avoiding downtime—it’s about enabling growth. A clean, certified system reduces IT headaches, improves performance, and future-proofs your business. If you’ve spotted one or more of these warning signs, it’s time to call in a qualified technology contractor and get your infrastructure back on track.

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