Network Cabling

Cable is the medium through which information

usually moves from one network device to another.
There are several types of cable which are commonly
used in LANS.
The type of cable chosen for a network is related to
the network’s topology, protocol, and size.
Types of Network Cables
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) Cable
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) Cable
Coaxial Cable
Fiber optic cable
Twisted Pair Cables
Two Types Of Twisted Pair Cables
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) Cable
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) Cable
UTP & STP Cable
UTP Cable
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) Cable
UTP is simply twisted pair cabling that is unshielded.
The quality of UTP may vary from telephone-grade wire to
extremely high-speed cable.
The cable has four pairs of wires inside the jacket.
 Each pair is twisted with a different number of twists per
inch to help eliminate interference from adjacent pairs and
other electrical devices.
The tighter the twisting, the higher the supported
transmission rate and the greater the cost per foot.
 The EIA/TIA (Electronic Industry
Association/Telecommunication Industry Association) has
established standards of UTP and rated six categories of wire.
Unshielded Twisted Pair Connector
The standard connector for unshielded twisted pair
cabling is an RJ-45 connector.
This is a plastic connector that looks like a large
telephone-style connector.
A slot allows the RJ-45 to be inserted only one way. RJ
stands for Registered Jack, implying that the connector
follows a standard borrowed from the telephone
industry.
This standard designates which wire goes with each
pin inside the connector.
Straight – Through Cable
The wire on the both side are on the same order. You
can determine that the wiring is a straight-through
cable by holding both ends of the UTP cable side by
side and seeing that the order of the wires on both
ends is identical.
You can use a straight-through cable for the
following tasks:
Connecting a router to a hub or switch
Connecting a server to a hub or switch
Connecting workstations to hub or switch
Crossover Cable
In the implementation of a crossover, the wires on
each end of the cable are crossed.
It is used to transmit and receive for both rip and ring.
Pin 1 on one side connects to pin 3 on the other side,
and pin 2 connects to pin 6 on the opposite end.
You can use a crossover cable for the
following tasks:
Connecting uplinks between switches
Connecting hubs to switches
Connecting a hub to another hub
Connecting a router interface to another router
interface
Connecting two PCs together without a hub or switch
Rolled Over Cable
In rolled over cable, the wires on each of the cable are
opposite. It broadcast to receive and receive to
transmit on both side, for both tip and ring. Pin 1 on
the one side connects to pin 8 on the other side, pin 2
connects to pin 7 on the opposite end, pin 3 connects
to pin 6 on the opposite end and pin 4 connects to pin
5 on the opposite end.
For out of band console connection between the
console port (RJ45) of the manageable switches and
the com port (DB9) of the computer using a RJ45 to
DB9 terminal.
For out of band console connection between the
console port (RJ45) of manageable routers and the
com port (DB9) of the computer using a RJ45 to DB9
terminal.
Ethernet Cable Summary
Specification Cable Type
10BaseT Unshielded Twisted Pair
10Base2 Thin Coaxial
10Base5 Thick Coaxial
100BaseT Unshielded Twisted Pair
100BaseFX Fiber Optics
100BaseBX Single Mode Fiber
100BaseSX Multimode Fiber
1000BaseT Unshielded Twisted Pair
1000BaseFX Fiber Optic
1000BaseBX Single Mode Fiber
1000BaseSX Multimode Fiber
At last some basic guide lines when
installing cable
Always use more cable than you need. Leave plenty of
slack.
Test every part of a network as you install it. Even if it
is brand new, it may have problems that will be difficult
to isolate later.
Stay at least 3 feet away from fluorescent light boxes
and other sources of electrical interference.
If it is necessary to run cable across the floor, cover the
cable with cable protectors.
Label both ends of each cable.
Use cable ties (not tape) to keep cables in the same
location together.
 Categories of Unshielded Twisted Pair
UTP Data Max.Length Cable Type Application
Category Rate(Speed) Use
CAT1 Up to 1Mbps - Twisted Pair Old Telephone
Cable(Voice only)
CAT2 Up to 4Mbps - Twisted Pair Local Talk & Telephne-
Rarely used(Token Ring
Networks)
CAT3 Up to 10Mbps 100m Twisted Pair Token Ring & 10BASE-T
Ethernet
CAT4 Up to 16Mbps 100m Twisted Pair Token Ring
Networks(Rarely used)
CAT5 Up to 100Mbps 100m Twisted Pair Ethernet, Fast Ethernet,
Token Ring
CAT5e Up to 1Gbps 100m Twisted Pair Ethernet, Fast Ethernet,
Gigabyte Ethernet
CAT6 Up to 10Gbps 100m Twisted Pair Gigabyte Ethernet, 10G
Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) Cable
STP is same as UTP except that STP has a braided foil
shield around the twisted pair (to decrease electrical
interference).
Shielded twisted pair cable is available in three different configurations

Each pair of wires is individually shielded with foil.

There is a foil or braid shield inside the jacket covering
all wires (as a group).
There is a shield around each individual pair, as well as
around the entire group of wires (referred to as double
shield twisted pair).
Unshielded & Shielded Network Cables
Coaxial Cable
A Coaxial cable is a cable used in the transmission of video,
communications, and audio. ...
Most users relate to a coaxial or coax cable as a cable used to
connect their TVs to a cable TV service.
However, these cables are also used in networks and what
allow a broadband cable Internet connection using a cable
modem.
Coaxial cabling has a single copper conductor at its center.
A plastic layer provides insulation between the center
conductor and a braided metal shield.
 The metal shield helps to block any outside interference from.
What is the use of coaxial cable?
Coaxial cable is used as a transmission line for radio
frequency signals.
Its applications include feed lines connecting radio
transmitters and receivers with their antennas,
computer network (Internet) connections,
digital audio (S/PDIF), and distributing
cable television signals.
Which connector is used for coaxial cable?
BNC Connectors
To Connect coaxial cable to device, it is necessary to
use coaxial connector.
The most common type of connector is the Bayone-
Neill-Concelman, or BNC, connector.
There are three types:
1. BNC connector
2. BNC T connector
3. BNC Terminator
Coaxial cable connector

Application include cable TV networks, and some traditional Ethernet LANs

like 10Base-2 or 10Base5.
Types of coaxial cable

Two Types Of Coaxial Cable

1. Thin coaxial cable
2. Thick coaxial cable

Thin coaxial cable

 10BASE2 (also known as cheapernet, thin Ethernet,
thinnet, and thinwire) is a variant of Ethernet that
uses thin coaxial cable, terminated with BNC
connectors.
 The approximate maximum segment length being 200
meters. 
 Thick coaxial cable

10BASE5 (also known as thick Ethernet or thicknet)

was the first commercially available variant of
Ethernet.
 10BASE5 uses a thick and stiff coaxial cable up to
500 meters (1,600 ft) in length.
Thick coaxial cable has an extra protective plastic
cover that helps keep moisture away from the center
conductor.
This makes thick coaxial a great choice when
running longer lengths in a linear bus network.
Fiber Optical Cable
A fiber optic cable consists of a bundle of glass threads,
each of which is capable of transmitting messages
modulated onto light waves. 
Fiber optics has several advantages over traditional
metal communications lines.
Fiber optic cables have a much greater bandwidth than
metal cables.
A light-emitting diode (LED) or an injection-laser diode
(ILD) can be used for generating the light pulses.
Using a lens, the light pulses are funneled into the fiber-
optic medium where they travel down the cable.
Types of Fiber Optical Cable
There are three types of fiber optic cable commonly
used.
 single mode,
multimode and
plastic optical fiber (POF).
Transparent glass or plastic fibers which allow light to
be guided from one end to the other with minimal
loss.
OM1 or OM2 OS1 or Os2 Single
OM3 or OM4Laser Optimized Polarization Maintaining
Multimode(Orange) mode(Yellow) OS1 or Os2 Single
Multimode(Aqua) Singlemode Fiber(Blue)
mode(Red)
single mode fiber
In optical fiber technology, single mode fiber is
optical fiber that is designed for the transmission of
a single ray or mode of light as a carrier and is used
for long-distance signal transmission. For short
distances, multimode fiber is used.
. A typical single mode optical fiber has a core
diameter between 8 and 10.5 µm and a
cladding diameter of 125 µm.
Single-mode fiber (SMF) – Widely used for
communications
 multimode fiber
In optical fiber technology, multimode fiber is
optical fiber that is designed to carry multiple light rays or
modes concurrently, each at a slightly different reflection
angle within the optical fiber core. ... For longer distances,
single mode fiber (sometimes called monomode) fiber is
used.
A basic specification of a multimode fiber contains the core
diameter and the outer diameter of a multimode fiber.
Common types for fiber-optic communications (see below)
are 50/125 μm and 62.5/125 μm fibers, having a core diameter
of 50 μm or62.5 μm, respectively, and a cladding diameter
of 125 μm.
Multi-mode fiber (MMF) – Used for office networks
Glass optical fiber
Multi-component glass optical fiber -- Widely used
along with POF for lighting
Plastic Optical Fiber
Plastic Optical Fiber, (POF), typically uses PMMA
(acrylic), a general-purpose resin as the core material,
and fluorinated polymers for the cladding material.
 In large-diameter fibers, 96 percent of the cross-
section is the core that facilitates the transmission of
light.
PMMA plastic optical fiber(POF) -- Consumer short-
distance fiber for electronic appliances and motor
vehicles
Why fiber optic cable is better?
And fiber optics can definitely transfer more data at
higher throughput over longer distances than copper
wire. ...
Traditional copper wires transmit electrical currents,
while fiber optic technology sends pulses of light
generated by a light emitting diode or laser
along optical fibers.
What are the uses of optical fibers?
Optical fibres have become very important in high-
speed communications, such as cable TV and high-
speed broadband services.
Information, in the form of pulses of light, is sent
down bundles of optical fibers.
Fiber optic cables are able to carry more signals than
traditional copper cable telephone lines.
What is the diameter of fiber optic cable?
The size of the optical fiber is commonly referred to by
the outer diameter of its core, cladding and coating.
Example: 50/125/250 indicates a fiber with a core of 50
microns, cladding of 125 microns, and a coating of
250 microns.