CAT6

[KingofFah]

just a quick question.
Is CAT6 completely compatible with basic 10/100 networking (NICs, routers, switches) or do you need specific hardware.
Also, do I need a different crimp and special CAT6 heads? I have not done any research on the CAT6 inner workings, so feel free to leave me a link with all the info if you know of one. Do not have time to google
Thanks

 

[PC Freak]

CAT6 will work with any 10/100 device you mentioned.
You can also use your current crip tool to put regular RJ-45 pluggs on.

The biggest difference with CAT6 that you'll see is, there is a divider in the wire that keeps all 4 pair of wires seperate. They never touch.
Just have to cut it off and put the plug on like normal.

 

[ScottMac]

CAT 6 is compatible with all the 10/100 stuff (and pretty much everything else - Video, Serial, etc).

By the book, yes, you need to have special connectors (not really "special," but they should be Cat 6 rated).

For any category-rated cabling, the entire span takes the rating of the lowest-rated component (connectors, panels, cabling, jumpers, inserts, etc).

FWIW

Scott

 

[KingofFah]

Thanks guys, I think I might buy a spool and replace all my cabling with CAT6.

 

[StraightPipe]

it wont give any "speed boost" to replace your cat 5 with cat 6 unless you have gigabit NIC's and/or switch

it will work fine, but your spending extra $ for nothhing.

 

[StraightPipe]

check out this other Cable thread

 

[KingofFah]

Well, I am going to buy a spool because I would like to upgrade my network to gigabit. For now though, I just wanted to make sure it worked fine with 10/100 because I might not get it updated just yet, but I need more cable. So I wanted to see if I would be fine getting the CAT6 now instead of buying more CAT5E then replacing that with CAT6.

I hear that CAT5E does work with gigabit, obviously it would 'work', but does it work to the max capacity of a gigabit lan?

 

[StraightPipe]

honestly, I'm not 100% positive, but I'm told that Cat5e does work for gigabit. I'm trying to get my working today, but having problems with one of my NIC's, it's not lighting up.

what I've read around here is that gigabit is a theoretical 1000mb, but rarely is able to reach full capacity, unlike 100 which can easily hit 100.

giga swiches are really expensive though, I was looking at some for $100-$200, but then i realized that they only have 1 giga port, and the rest are all 100. they are supposed to be used witht he giga-port on your sever and then measly 100 ports for you other PC's. true giga switches are in the upwards of $500.

I'm trying to do a nic-to-nic connection, I'm told that with gigabit you use straight instead of patch cable, but I cant get it to work yet.

 

[buleyb]

The single gigabit port is intended for a backbone to another switch (to allow for some stacking without hurting thruput).

And yes, 1000base-T isn't really maintainable at full speed (but it is faster than 100). Cat6 will improve on this, but it isn't going to use 1000mbps either. For real gigabit networking, fiber shines bright....but you should make sure your networking needs call for this anyway. What kind of usage do you have on this network?

Either way, CAT6 will improve reliability in your current network...

On a somewhat related note, Can somebody confirm that gigabit over cat6 is 250mbps per pair? I know 100base-TX doesn't need all 4 pair, but doesn't 1000base-T?

 

[StraightPipe]

I think that those speeds are right.

The pairs seems to make sense too. I was told about that when gig nic-to-nic connections where explained to me, because 1000base-T uses a straight cable instead of xover.

 

[vortix]

For real gigabit networking, fiber shines bright....

Fiber will not be any faster than copper gigabit. And actually, copper makes much more sense for most people....it's A LOT cheaper, is much more flexible, and it works with more common ethernet equipment. Nowadays, the only time fiber comes in handy is when a long run is needed.

 

[ScottMac]

Yes, Gig over copper is 250M per pair, all pair are used to go both directions at the same time (full duplex); i.e, all four pair are transmitting -and receiving- at the same time.

Either Gig or 100Mbps will go equally slow over poorly done or improperly terminated cable. The higher the speed, the more critical it is to do it right. Poorly done Cat6 will suck just as bad as poorly done Cat5e (or Cat5 for that matter).

Gig is fully supported on Cat5e. Many/most Gig is supported on Cat5 (with a strong recommendation for at least 5e). Cat6 will provide a little more headroom, and will support other structured cabling functions (i.e., video) by delivering a better quality signal.

Many vendors will support automatic configuration of straight-through / crossover ... but some don't (some/most/all Cisco, for example).
If you need a crossover, you need to cross all four pair (versus just 1&2, 3&6 with 10/100).

A suitable PC (server/server-class) can easily approach Gig speeds (mid-900 Mbps or more), many on several Gig interfaces concurrently. A suitable PC won't have a 32 bit PCI bus. There are other tweaks necessary for full throughput (like jumbo frames... not supported on most consumer equipment).

Most switch-switch, switch-router, or router-router trunks can do "full" gig, no problem. In a commercial environment, fiber is more reliable and more likely to realize the highest speeds, especially in shops where the networking "professional(s)" wouldn't know proper termination and cable certification if it bit 'em in the ass. They are at least smart enough to know they aren't properly educated or equipped to terminate their own fiber, so they buy the jumpers and have professionals install the plant.


FWIW

Scott