laurentio
3rd January 2009, 04:19 AM
CONNECTORS:
What is a modular connector?
Is the name given to a family of electrical connectors originally used in telephone wiring. Even though they are still used for that purpose they are used for a variety of other things as well. A modular connector's advantage over many other kinds include small size and ease of plugging and unplugging. The most well known applications of modular connectors is for telephone jacks and for Ethernet jacks. Ex: RJ11, RJ45, etc.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=79&stc=1&d=1230957707
What does RJ stand for?
Registration jack. The most familiar registered jacks are probably the RJ11 (telephony) and RJ45 (networking)
a) RJ11 - 4P4C.(small end)
4 Position 4 Contact connector (popularly, though incorrectly, called RJ22, RJ11, RJ10, or RJ9), is the "de facto" industry standard for wired telephone handsets. It is used to provide connection from the base of the telephone to the handset and from the ADSL socket to the base. RJ11 is probably the most familiar of the registered jacks, being used for single line telephone jacks in most homes across the world.
b) RJ45 - 8P8C.(large end)
8 Position 8 Contact connector or RJ45: informal designation for T568A/T568B, including Ethernet; not the same as the true RJ45/RJ45S. (The true RJ45(S) is an extremely uncommon registered jack, but the name "RJ45" is also used quite commonly to refer to any 8P8C modular connector.)
RJ45 plugs and sockets are most regularly used as ethernet connectors. Known as 8P8C connectors that are typically used to terminate a twisted pair cable. 8P8C has two paired components: the male plug and the female socket. 8P8C are commonly used in computer networking, where the plug on each end is an 8P8C modular plug wired according to a TIA/EIA standard
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=80&stc=1&d=1230957910http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=81&stc=1&d=1230957910
CABLES:
Cat 5 - Category 5 cable.
Provided performance of up to 100 MHz, and was frequently used on 100 Mbit/s Ethernet networks. May be unsuitable for 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet. Cat 5 has been superseded by the Cat 5e specification.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=85&stc=1&d=1230959925
Cat 5e - Category 5e cable.
Cat 5 e cable is an enhanced version of Cat 5. Provides performance of up to 100 MHz, and is frequently used for both 100 Mbit/s and Gigabit Ethernet networks.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=84&stc=1&d=1230959925
Cat 6 - Category 6 cable.
Cat-6, is a cable standard for Gigabit Ethernet and other network protocols that is backward compatible with the Cat 5, Cat 5e and Cat 3 cable standards. Cat 6 is the 6th generation of twisted pair Ethernet cabling. Cat 6 cable contains four pairs of copper wire and unlike Cat 5, utilizes all four pairs. Cat 6 provides performance of up to 250 MHz, more than double in comparison to category 5 and 5e.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=82&stc=1&d=1230959525
Cat-5 is rated to 100M
Cat-5e is rated to 350M
Cat-6 and CAT6e is rated to 550M or 1000M depending on the source
Cat-7 is supposedly rated to 700M or presumably 1000M
Today there is no approved Cat-6 or Cat-7. While some folks are selling products they call Level 6 or 7, there aren't even specs for them, making Cat-5e the best available option.
NETWORKING.
10BASE-T
Is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 10 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running Ethernet on this cabling.
100BASE-T
Is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 100 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running baseband Ethernet on this cabling.
1000BASE-T
(also called gigabit Ethernet) is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 1000 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running baseband Ethernet on this cabling.
CABLING.
T568A/T568B Termination.
T568A and T568B are the two color codes used for wiring eight-position RJ45 modular plugs. Both are allowed under the ANSI/TIA/EIA wiring standards. The only difference between the two colour codes is that the orange and green pairs are interchanged. T568A wiring pattern is recognized as the preferred wiring pattern for this standard because it provides backward compatibility to both one pair and two pair USOC wiring schemes.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=86&stc=1&d=1230960279http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=87&stc=1&d=1230960207
Straight-thru cable.(identical ends)
Straight” is the term used to describe an Ethernet cable that will connect a PC to a switch or a hub. The ports on a PC and a switch are wired differently, and a straight cable makes sure that the transmit wires on one connect to the receive wires on the other – simple enough. If you flip both ends of a cable upside down (with the clip facing the floor) and look at the ends side-by-side, the coloured wires should be in precisely the same order on both ends. T568A to T568A or T568B to T568B. Preferably T568A to T568A.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=88&stc=1&d=1230960527http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=89&stc=1&d=1230960527
Crossover cable.(different ends)
Where a straight cable is used to connect different types of ports, a crossover cable is used to connect ports of the same type. For example, if you wanted to connect two PCs directly to one another (without a switch or hub), a crossover cable would be used. The wires in a crossover cable are literally “crossed” so that the transmit wires on one device will now connect to the receive wires on the same type of device. So, any time that you want to connect devices of the same type, use a crossover cable. Note that switches and hubs use the same type of port, so when connecting a PC to a PC, a switch to a switch, or a switch to a hub, always use a crossover cable. Unless…
Right. There’s always an exception. If you’ve ever looked at a hub or switch, you may have noticed a port marked with an X that includes a little button or switch next to it that can be turned on or off. This is an “uplink” port, and is used to connect to another switch or hub. The uplink port is a special port that contains a built-in crossover capability, basically allowing you to either use a crossover cable to connect to another switch or hub, or a straight cable. If the crossover button is “on”, then you could use a straight cable to connect the hub or switch to another hub or switch. If switched “off”, a crossover cable would be used instead. To obtain one you must have T568A at one end and T568B at the other end.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=90&stc=1&d=1230960527
A complete video tutorial:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6knOtxwfbvU
A final recap:
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=91&stc=1&d=1230960861
EIA/TIA. (http://www.tiaonline.org/)
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) is the leading trade association representing the global information and communications technology (ICT) industries.
UTP.
UTP stands for Unshielded Twisted Pair. UTP cables are often called ethernet cables after Ethernet, the most common data networking standard that utilizes UTP cables. Twisted pair cabling is often used in data networks for short and medium length connections because of its relatively lower costs compared to optical fiber and coaxial cable.
Stranded cable.
Stranded cable has several small gauge wires in each separate insulation sleeve. Stranded cable is more flexible, making it more suitable for shorter distances, such as patch cords.
Solid cable.
Solid has one larger gauge wire in each sleeve. Solid cable has better electrical performance than stranded cable and is traditionally used for inside walls and through ceilings - any type of longer run of cable.
Patch Cables.
Patch Cables are made of stranded copper conductors for flexibility. This construction is great for the flexing and the frequent changes that occur at the wall outlet or patch panel. The stranded conductors do not transmit data signals as far as solid cable. The TIA/EIA 568A which is the governing standard regarding commercial cabling systems limits the length of patch cables to 10 meters in total length. Does that mean you can't use stranded cable for longer runs? Not at all, we've seen installations running stranded cable over 30 meters with no problems - it's just not recommended.
Here's a nice tutorial on how to (http://searchwindowsserver.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid68_gci1255699,00.html)Crimp RJ-45 connectors onto CAT6 cable (http://searchwindowsserver.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid68_gci1255699,00.html)
What is a modular connector?
Is the name given to a family of electrical connectors originally used in telephone wiring. Even though they are still used for that purpose they are used for a variety of other things as well. A modular connector's advantage over many other kinds include small size and ease of plugging and unplugging. The most well known applications of modular connectors is for telephone jacks and for Ethernet jacks. Ex: RJ11, RJ45, etc.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=79&stc=1&d=1230957707
What does RJ stand for?
Registration jack. The most familiar registered jacks are probably the RJ11 (telephony) and RJ45 (networking)
a) RJ11 - 4P4C.(small end)
4 Position 4 Contact connector (popularly, though incorrectly, called RJ22, RJ11, RJ10, or RJ9), is the "de facto" industry standard for wired telephone handsets. It is used to provide connection from the base of the telephone to the handset and from the ADSL socket to the base. RJ11 is probably the most familiar of the registered jacks, being used for single line telephone jacks in most homes across the world.
b) RJ45 - 8P8C.(large end)
8 Position 8 Contact connector or RJ45: informal designation for T568A/T568B, including Ethernet; not the same as the true RJ45/RJ45S. (The true RJ45(S) is an extremely uncommon registered jack, but the name "RJ45" is also used quite commonly to refer to any 8P8C modular connector.)
RJ45 plugs and sockets are most regularly used as ethernet connectors. Known as 8P8C connectors that are typically used to terminate a twisted pair cable. 8P8C has two paired components: the male plug and the female socket. 8P8C are commonly used in computer networking, where the plug on each end is an 8P8C modular plug wired according to a TIA/EIA standard
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=80&stc=1&d=1230957910http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=81&stc=1&d=1230957910
CABLES:
Cat 5 - Category 5 cable.
Provided performance of up to 100 MHz, and was frequently used on 100 Mbit/s Ethernet networks. May be unsuitable for 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet. Cat 5 has been superseded by the Cat 5e specification.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=85&stc=1&d=1230959925
Cat 5e - Category 5e cable.
Cat 5 e cable is an enhanced version of Cat 5. Provides performance of up to 100 MHz, and is frequently used for both 100 Mbit/s and Gigabit Ethernet networks.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=84&stc=1&d=1230959925
Cat 6 - Category 6 cable.
Cat-6, is a cable standard for Gigabit Ethernet and other network protocols that is backward compatible with the Cat 5, Cat 5e and Cat 3 cable standards. Cat 6 is the 6th generation of twisted pair Ethernet cabling. Cat 6 cable contains four pairs of copper wire and unlike Cat 5, utilizes all four pairs. Cat 6 provides performance of up to 250 MHz, more than double in comparison to category 5 and 5e.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=82&stc=1&d=1230959525
Cat-5 is rated to 100M
Cat-5e is rated to 350M
Cat-6 and CAT6e is rated to 550M or 1000M depending on the source
Cat-7 is supposedly rated to 700M or presumably 1000M
Today there is no approved Cat-6 or Cat-7. While some folks are selling products they call Level 6 or 7, there aren't even specs for them, making Cat-5e the best available option.
NETWORKING.
10BASE-T
Is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 10 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running Ethernet on this cabling.
100BASE-T
Is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 100 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running baseband Ethernet on this cabling.
1000BASE-T
(also called gigabit Ethernet) is the IEEE standard that defines the requirement for sending information at 1000 Mbps on unshielded twisted-pair cabling, and defines various aspects of running baseband Ethernet on this cabling.
CABLING.
T568A/T568B Termination.
T568A and T568B are the two color codes used for wiring eight-position RJ45 modular plugs. Both are allowed under the ANSI/TIA/EIA wiring standards. The only difference between the two colour codes is that the orange and green pairs are interchanged. T568A wiring pattern is recognized as the preferred wiring pattern for this standard because it provides backward compatibility to both one pair and two pair USOC wiring schemes.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=86&stc=1&d=1230960279http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=87&stc=1&d=1230960207
Straight-thru cable.(identical ends)
Straight” is the term used to describe an Ethernet cable that will connect a PC to a switch or a hub. The ports on a PC and a switch are wired differently, and a straight cable makes sure that the transmit wires on one connect to the receive wires on the other – simple enough. If you flip both ends of a cable upside down (with the clip facing the floor) and look at the ends side-by-side, the coloured wires should be in precisely the same order on both ends. T568A to T568A or T568B to T568B. Preferably T568A to T568A.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=88&stc=1&d=1230960527http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=89&stc=1&d=1230960527
Crossover cable.(different ends)
Where a straight cable is used to connect different types of ports, a crossover cable is used to connect ports of the same type. For example, if you wanted to connect two PCs directly to one another (without a switch or hub), a crossover cable would be used. The wires in a crossover cable are literally “crossed” so that the transmit wires on one device will now connect to the receive wires on the same type of device. So, any time that you want to connect devices of the same type, use a crossover cable. Note that switches and hubs use the same type of port, so when connecting a PC to a PC, a switch to a switch, or a switch to a hub, always use a crossover cable. Unless…
Right. There’s always an exception. If you’ve ever looked at a hub or switch, you may have noticed a port marked with an X that includes a little button or switch next to it that can be turned on or off. This is an “uplink” port, and is used to connect to another switch or hub. The uplink port is a special port that contains a built-in crossover capability, basically allowing you to either use a crossover cable to connect to another switch or hub, or a straight cable. If the crossover button is “on”, then you could use a straight cable to connect the hub or switch to another hub or switch. If switched “off”, a crossover cable would be used instead. To obtain one you must have T568A at one end and T568B at the other end.
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=90&stc=1&d=1230960527
A complete video tutorial:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6knOtxwfbvU
A final recap:
http://support.bicestercomputers.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=91&stc=1&d=1230960861
EIA/TIA. (http://www.tiaonline.org/)
The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) is the leading trade association representing the global information and communications technology (ICT) industries.
UTP.
UTP stands for Unshielded Twisted Pair. UTP cables are often called ethernet cables after Ethernet, the most common data networking standard that utilizes UTP cables. Twisted pair cabling is often used in data networks for short and medium length connections because of its relatively lower costs compared to optical fiber and coaxial cable.
Stranded cable.
Stranded cable has several small gauge wires in each separate insulation sleeve. Stranded cable is more flexible, making it more suitable for shorter distances, such as patch cords.
Solid cable.
Solid has one larger gauge wire in each sleeve. Solid cable has better electrical performance than stranded cable and is traditionally used for inside walls and through ceilings - any type of longer run of cable.
Patch Cables.
Patch Cables are made of stranded copper conductors for flexibility. This construction is great for the flexing and the frequent changes that occur at the wall outlet or patch panel. The stranded conductors do not transmit data signals as far as solid cable. The TIA/EIA 568A which is the governing standard regarding commercial cabling systems limits the length of patch cables to 10 meters in total length. Does that mean you can't use stranded cable for longer runs? Not at all, we've seen installations running stranded cable over 30 meters with no problems - it's just not recommended.
Here's a nice tutorial on how to (http://searchwindowsserver.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid68_gci1255699,00.html)Crimp RJ-45 connectors onto CAT6 cable (http://searchwindowsserver.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid68_gci1255699,00.html)