Making Ethernet Cables - Simple and Easy

HOW TO MAKE AN ETHERNET CABLE

 Purchasing Ethernet cables can be quite expensive and pre-made lengths are
not always the length you need.  Making Ethernet cables is easy with a box of
bulk Category 5e Ethernet cable and RJ-45 connectors that are attached to the
cut ends of your preferred cable length.

Bulk Ethernet Cable - Category 5e or CAT5e

 (You may also use Category 6 or CAT6 cabling which has higher performance
specifications and is about 20% more expensive than CAT5e.)

 Bulk RJ45 Crimpable Connectors for CAT-5e or Bulk RJ45 Crimpable

Connectors for CAT-6

 RJ-45 Crimping tool

 Types of Ethernet cables
 Here are two kinds of Ethernet cables you can make, Straight
Through and Crossover.
1) STRAIGHT THROUGH Ethernet cables are the standard cable used for almost
all purposes, and are often called "patch cables". It is highly recommend you
duplicate the color order as shown on the left. Note how the green pair is not
side-by-side as are all the other pairs. This configuration allows for longer
wire runs.

2) CROSSOVER
CABLES - The
purpose of a
Crossover Ethernet cable is to directly connect one computer to another
computer (or device) without going through a router, switch or hub.
 Here's how to make a standard cable:
 Cut into the plastic sheath about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the end of the cut cable.
The crimping tool has a razor blade that will do the trick with practice.

 Unwind and pair the

similar colors.

 Pinch the wires between your fingers and straighten them out as shown. The
color order is important to get correct.

 Use scissors to make a straight cut across the

8 wires to shorten them to 1/2 Inch (1.3 cm) from the cut sleeve to the end of
the wires.
 Carefully push all 8 unstripped colored wires into the connector. Note the
position of the blue plastic sleeve. Also note how the wires go all the way to
the end.

 A view from the top. All the

wires are all the way in.
There are no short wires.

 WRONG WAY - Note how the blue plastic sleeve is not inside the connector
where it can be locked into place. The wires are too long. The wires should
extend only 1/2 inch from the blue cut sleeve.

 WRONG WAY - Note how the wires do not go all the way to the end of the
connector.
 CRIMPING THE CABLE carefully places the connector into the Ethernet
Crimper and cinch down on the handles tightly. The copper splicing tabs on
the connector will pierce into each of the eight wires. There is also a locking
tab that holds the blue plastic sleeve in place for a tight compression fit. When
you remove the cable from the crimper, that end is ready to use.

 For a standard "Straight Through" cable, repeat all steps and wire color order
on the other end of cable. For a cross-over cable, the other end will have a
different color order as shown by the crossover picture above.

 Make sure to test the cables

before installing them. An inexpensive Ethernet cable tester does this quite
well.

 NOTE - The maximum cable length of CAT-5, CAT-5e or CAT-6 Ethernet cable
is 328 feet or 100 meters.
 What are Straight and Crossover cable
 Common Ethernet network cable are straight and crossover cable. This
Ethernet network cable is made of 4 pair high performance cable that consists
twisted pair conductors that used for data transmission. Both end of cable is
called RJ45 connector.
 The cable can be categorized as Cat 5, Cat 5e, Cat 6 UTP cable. Cat 5 UTP cable
can support 10/100 Mbps Ethernet network, whereas Cat 5e and Cat 6 UTP
cable can support Ethernet network running at 10/100/1000 Mbps. You
might heard about Cat 3 UTP cable, it's not popular anymore since it can only
support 10 Mbps Ethernet network.
 Straight and crossover cable can be Cat3, Cat 5, Cat 5e or Cat 6 UTP cable, the
only difference is each type will have different wire arrangement in the cable
for serving different purposes.

Straight Cable
 You usually use straight cable to connect different type of devices. This type
of cable will be used most of the time and can be used to:
1. Connect a computer to a switch/hub's normal port. 
2. Connect a computer to a cable/DSL modem's LAN port. 
3. Connect a router's WAN port to a cable/DSL modem's LAN port. 
4. Connect a router's LAN port to a switch/hub's uplink port. (normally
used for expanding network) 
5. Connect 2 switches/hubs with one of the switch/hub using an uplink
port and the other one using normal port.
 If you need to check how straight cable looks like, it's easy. Both sides (side
A and side B) of cable have wire arrangement with same color. Check
out different types of straight cable  that are available in the market here.
 Crossover Cable
 Sometimes you will use crossover cable, it's usually used to connect same
type of devices. A crossover cable can be used to:
1. Connect 2 computers directly. 
2. Connect a router's LAN port to a switch/hub's normal port. (normally
used for expanding network) 
3. Connect 2 switches/hubs by using normal port in both switches/hubs.
 In you need to check how crossover cable looks like, both side (side A and
side B) of cable have wire arrangement with following different color .
Have a look on these crossover cables  if you plan to buy one. You can also find
more network cable choices and information from Comtrad Cables.

 In case you need to make a

crossover cable yourself! You can use this crimper  to do it.
 Lastly if you still not sure which type of cable to be used sometimes, try both
cables and see which works.
 Note: If there is auto MDI/MDI-X feature support on the switch, hub,
network card or other network devices, you don't have to use crossover cable
in the situation which I mentioned above. This is because crossover function
would be enabled automatically when it's needed.
 Difference of Straight through and Crossover Cable
 Ethernet cables can be wired as straight through or crossover. The straight
through is the most common type and is used to connect computers to hubs
or switches. They are most likely what you will find when you go to your local
computer store and buy a patch cable. Crossover Ethernet cable is more
commonly used to connect a computer to a computer and may be a little
harder to find since they aren’t used nearly as much as straight through
Ethernet cable. Then, what’s the difference between them? Difference
between straight through and crossover cables will be introduced in this blog.

T568A and T568B Wiring Standard Basis

 A RJ45 connector is a modular 8 position, 8 pin connector used for
terminating Cat5e patch cable or Cat6 cable. A pin out is a specific
arrangement of wires that dictate how the connector is terminated. There are
two standards recognized by ANSI, TIA and EIA for wiring Ethernet cables.
The first is the T568A wiring standard and the second is T568B. T568B has
surpassed 568A and is seen as the default wiring scheme for twisted pair
structured cabling. If you are unsure of which to use, choose 568B.
 What Is Straight Through Cable?
 A straight through cable is a type of twisted pair cable that is used in local
area networks to connect a computer to a network hub such as a router. This
type of cable is also sometimes called a patch cable and is an alternative to
wireless connections where one or more computers access a router through a
wireless signal. On a straight through cable, the wired pins match. Straight
through cable use one wiring standard: both ends use T568A wiring standard
or both ends use T568B wiring standard. The following figure shows a
straight through cable of which both ends are wired as the T568B standard.
What Is Crossover Cable?
 A crossover Ethernet cable is a type of Ethernet cable used to connect
computing devices together directly. Unlike straight through cable, the RJ45
crossover cable uses two different wiring standards: one end uses the T568A
wiring standard and the other end uses the T568B wiring standard. The
internal wiring of Ethernet crossover cables reverses the transmit and
receive signals. It is most often used to connect two devices of the same type:
e.g. two computers (via network interface controller) or two switches to each
other.

Choose a Straight Through or Crossover Cable?

 Straight through vs crossover cable, which one should I choose? Usually,
straight through cables are primarily used for connecting unlike devices. And
crossover cables are use for connecting alike devices. Use straight through
Ethernet cable for the following cabling:
Switch to router
Switch to PC or server
Hub to PC or server
 Use crossover cables for the following cabling:
Switch to switch
Switch to hub
Hub to hub
Router to router
Router Ethernet port to PC NIC
PC to PC
 Conclusion
 Straight through and crossover cables are wired differently from each other.
One easy way to tell what you have is to look at the order of the colored wires
inside the RJ45 connector. If the order of the wires is the same on both ends,
then you have a straight through cable. If not, then it’s most likely a crossover
cable or was wired wrong. At present, the straight through cable is much
more popular than crossover cable and is widely used by people. FS.COM
provides a full range straight through Cat5e, Cat6, Cat6a and Cat7 Ethernet
cables with many lengths and colors options. Look for Ethernet patch cables,
just come to FS.COM!
 In straight cable connectivity is like as follows

RJ451 Connected to RJ452

1. Pin1------------------------------------- Pin1

2. Pin2------------------------------------- Pin2

3. Pin3------------------------------------- Pin3

4. Pin4------------------------------------- Pin4

5. Pin5------------------------------------- Pin5

6. Pin6------------------------------------- Pin6

7. Pin7------------------------------------- Pin7

8. Pin8------------------------------------- Pin8

In cross cable connectivity is like as follows

RJ451 Connected to RJ452

1. Pin1------------------------------------- Pin3

2. Pin2------------------------------------- Pin6

3. Pin3------------------------------------- Pin1

4. Pin4------------------------------------- Pin4

5. Pin5------------------------------------- Pin5

6. Pin6------------------------------------- Pin2

7. Pin7------------------------------------- Pin7

8. Pin8------------------------------------- Pin8

 Purpose of this cross cable is RX (receiving terminal) connects to TX

(transmitting) of one pc to another PC and vice versa.
 As we use two PCs (same devices), straight cable will connect TX to TX and RX
to RX of two computers, so cross cable is required. If you use HUB or switch,
then straight cable will work because it has internal arrangement like cross
cable. So note that use cross cable to connect two similar devices.
 A straight cable will not work to connect two computers together.
 Crossover used to connect to PCs directly together, also used for connecting
networking devices together like Switch to Switch etc.
 Straight cables connect two DIFFERENT types of devices. Whereas crossover
cables connect two of the SAME type
 Now do this (if possible): connect cross cable between switch and PC and see
what happens..
 Hub  Switch Router  Workstation
 Hub  Crossover  Crossover  Straight  Straight
 Switch  Crossover  Crossover  Straight  Straight
 Router  Straight  Straight  Crossover  Crossover
 Workstation  Straight  Straight  Crossover  Crossover