Common LAN Media

• STP – Shielded Twisted

Pair
– combines the
techniques of
shielding,
cancellation, and
twisting of wires
– metallic shielding
materials in STP and
ScTP need to be
grounded at both
ends
– usually 150 Ohm
cable
Common LAN Media
• Screened UTP (ScTP)
– Also known as Foil
Twisted Pair (FTP)
– metallic shielding
materials in STP and
ScTP need to be
grounded at both ends
– usually 100 or 120 Ohm
cable
Common LAN Media
• UTP - Unshielded twisted-
pair cable
– relies solely on the
cancellation effect
– crosstalk is further
reduced between the
pairs in UTP cable by
varying the number of
twists in the wire pairs
– impedance of 100 ohms
– easy to install
– less expensive
– fastest copper-based
media
Common LAN Media
• Coaxial Cable
– can be run for longer
distances
– largest diameter referred
to as thicknet
– thinnet (cheapernet)
smaller diameter
– ensure that it is properly
grounded
Common LAN Media
• Optical Fiber
– capable of conducting
modulated light
transmissions
– more expensive
– not susceptible to
electromagnetic interference
– capable of higher data rates
than any of the other types of
networking media
 Common LAN Media
• Wireless communication
– Wireless signals are electromagnetic waves, which can
travel through the vacuum of outer space and through
media such as air
– wireless LANs built in accordance with the IEEE 802.11
standards
– typically use radio waves (for example, 902 MHz),
microwaves (for example, 2.4 GHz), and Infrared waves
(for example, 820 nanometers) for communication
 LAN Media Standards
• Cisco focuses on standards for
networking media that have been
developed and issued by the following
groups:
– IEEE - Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers
– UL - Underwriters Laboratories
– EIA/TIA - Electronic Industries Alliance/
Telecommunications Industry Association
 LAN Media Standards
• The IEEE has outlined cabling
requirements in its 802.3 and 802.5
specifications for Ethernet and Token
Ring systems
• Underwriters Laboratories issues
cabling specifications that are primarily
concerned with safety standards
 LAN Media Standards
• TIA/EIA standards
– TIA/EIA has had the greatest impact on
networking media standards
– specify the minimum  requirements for
multi-product and multi-vendor
environments
– allow for the planning and installation of
LAN systems without dictating the use of
specific equipment
LAN Media Standards
 EIA/TIA Standards
• TIA/EIA standards address six
elements of the LAN cabling process
– horizontal cabling
– telecommunications closets
– backbone cabling
– equipment rooms
– work areas
– entrance facilities
 EIA/TIA Standards
• We will focus on TIA/EIA-568-A
standards for horizontal cabling
– horizontal cabling - cabling that runs from
a telecommunications outlet to a
horizontal cross-connect, horizontal
cabling includes the networking media
that is used in the area that extends from
the wiring closet to a workstation
 TIA/EIA-568-A
• It calls for running two cables, one for voice
and one for data, to each outlet
– the one for voice must be four-pair UTP
• TIA/EIA-568-A standard specifies five
categories
• CAT 3, CAT 4, and CAT 5 are recognized for
use in LANs
• CAT 5 is the one most frequently
recommended and implemented
 TIA/EIA-568-A
• The networking media that are
recognized for these categories are the
ones you have studied:
– shielded twisted-pair
– unshielded twisted-pair
– fiber-optic cable
– coaxial cable
 TIA/EIA-568-A
• For shielded twisted-pair cable, the TIA/EIA-568-A
standard calls for two pair 150 ohm cable
• For unshielded-twisted pair, the standard calls for
four pair 100 ohm cable
• For fiber-optic, the standard calls for two fibers of
62.5/125  multi-mode cable
• 50 ohm coaxial cable (is expected to be removed from the
list of recognized networking media)
 TIA/EIA-568-A
• Requires a minimum of two
telecommunications outlets or connectors at
each work area
– The first is a four-pair 100 ohm CAT 3 or higher
UTP cable along with its appropriate connector
– The second can be any one of:
• four-pair 100 ohm unshielded twisted-pair cable and its
appropriate connector
• 150 ohm shielded twisted-pair cable and its appropriate
connector 
• coaxial cable and its appropriate connector
• two-fiber 62.5/125 µ optical fiber cable and its
appropriate connector
 TIA/EIA-568-A
• The maximum distance for cable runs in
horizontal cabling is 90 meters (m)
• Patch cords or cross-connect jumpers located
at the horizontal cross-connect cannot exceed
6 m in length
• allows 3 m for patch cords that are used to
connect equipment at the work area
• total length of the patch cords and cross-
connect jumpers used in the horizontal
cabling cannot exceed 10 m
 Ethernet 10Base-T
• Carry Ethernet frames on inexpensive twisted-pair wiring
• four components are passive (no energy required)
– patch panels
– plugs
– cabling
– jacks
• three are active (energy required to do its job)
– transceivers
– repeaters
– hubs
 Ethernet 10Base-T
• standard 10BASE-T termination (end point,
0 plug, connector) is the registered jack-45
connector (RJ-45)
– it has eight conductors
• standard 10BASE-T cable is CAT 5 twisted-
pair cable
– composed of four twisted pairs that reduce noise
problems
– thin, inexpensive, and easy to install
 Ethernet 10Base-T
• RJ-45 plugs fit into RJ-45 jacks or
receptacles. The RJ-45 jack has eight
conductors
• Patch panels are convenient groupings
of RJ-45 jacks. They come in 12, 24,
and 48 ports, and are typically rack-
mounted
 Ethernet 10Base-T
• A transceiver is a combination of
transmitter and receiver
– that they convert one form of signal to
another form
– networking devices come with an auxiliary
unit interface (AUI) and a transceiver that
allows a 10BASE2, 10BASE5, 10BASE-T,
or 10\100 BASE-FX to be connected to
the port
 Ethernet 10Base-T
• Repeaters regenerate, and retime signals,
which then enables cables to extend farther
to reach longer distances
• exist at the physical layer (Layer 1)
• Multiport repeaters (Hubs) combine
connectivity with the amplifying and re-timing
properties of repeaters. It is typical to see 4,
8, 12, and up to 24
 Shared Media Environment
Directly Connected Networks
• shared media environment - occurs when
multiple hosts have access to the same medium
• extended shared media environment - is a
special type of shared media environment in
which networking devices can extend the
environment so that it can accommodate
multiple-access, or more users
• point-to-point network environment - is most
widely used in dial-up network connections
 Shared Media Environment
Indirectly Connected Networks
• circuit-switched - an indirectly-connected
network in which actual electrical circuits
are maintained for the duration of the
communication
• packet-switched - rather than dedicating
a link as an exclusive circuit connection
between two communicating hosts