connecting multiple cabinets

[Gast]

Hi,

I have a question about the loxone bus that connects the miniserver and the extensions between multiple electrical cabinets (e.g., one cabinet per floor and one in a separate garage).

Does the miniserver need to be in the first (or the last) cabinet to terminate the bus on one side?
cabinet 1 with miniserver <-- bus --> cabinet 2 with extension <-- bus --> cabinet 3 with extension <-- bus --> cabinet 4 with extension (+ resistor)

Or van the miniserver be in any cabinet?
cabinet 1 with extension (+ resistor) <-- bus --> cabinet 2 with extension <-- bus --> cabinet 3 with miniserver <-- bus --> cabinet 4 with extension (+ resistor)

Or can the bus be cabled in star topology?

Many thanks in advance!

[simon_hh]

as you wrote as first option:
cabinet 1 with miniserver <-- bus --> cabinet 2 with extension <-- bus --> cabinet 3 with extension <-- bus --> cabinet 4 with extension (+ resistor)

The bus must be daisy chain, so connected in series from start to one to the other and to the end.
Miniserver begins and the BUS is terminated at the last Extension

physically if you make a kind of star topology, it also works: That means using a CAT 7 cable you can use one pair of wires for the direction to one cabinet and another pair of wires from the cabinet back and go to next cabinet. This is what I made because I have one major cabinet and 2 minor cabinets.
It is cabled like CC1 (Miniserver) --> CC2 (Ext.) --> CC1--> CC3 (Ext.) --> CC1 --> CC4 (Ext. + resistor)

But there is a limit in the total length.

[Gast]

Thanks for your input.

According to

https://www.loxone.com/enen/kb/wiring-basics/

If you use multiple panels and as such have many Extensions around the project, then the maximum allowable length of the Loxone Link is 500m from the Miniserver to the last extension.

So a start topology using cat 7 would definitely work in many situations.

I assume conections to tree devices are not included in the 500 m since (I assume) tree is a different protocol / bus system?

Thanks,

[simon_hh]

yes that is correct.
For most private properties a star topology (physically the cables) but logically as a daisy chain (as I wrote in my first post) should work fine.

"The Loxone link MUST be a BUS strictly wired from one device to the next." as written in your link

Tree is another loxone own protocol and the topology can be anyhow:

https://www.loxone.com/enen/kb/wiring-loxone-tree/

But also here it is recommended to not extend 500 metres, which is far enough for a private house