I'm researching networks and was wondering about the different cabling. I found some CAT5 cable on one site that said it works at 10/100/1000 Base T. I'm assuming that these cables would work if you were using a 10/100 speed network? Or would you need to get 10/100 base T?

Sorry if i sound as though i dont know what i'm talking about, kind of new to this network stuff! Any information on cabling appreciated.

Thanks,
Alex

the 10/100/1000 can be used in 10mb, 100mb and 1000mb. 1000mb is still new and companies are still fighting for the standard. In a 10/100mb world, it only uses pin 1, 2, 3, and 6. 1000mb uses all 8 pins.

ACK! Most of that last post was wrong.

10Mbps networks operate at 10MHz.
100Mbps networks run at 100MHz.
1000Mbps (gigabit) runs at 100MHz (I believe), but incorporates differential algorithms to increase speed.

Basically, cards are backwards compatable, so the newest networking standard is still limited by the old stuff. Etherent (still IEEE 802.2 and 802.3) uses 4 wires. 2 for transmit, 2 for receive. So for gigabit to work with older networks, it too has to use 4 wires.

The EIA/TIA cabling standards (Category 3, Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6, etc...) are mostly about the gauge of wire used and how many twists per inch are required to cancel interference. Twisted-pair is just that -- each pair of wires has about 1 twist per inch (I can't remember the exact number) that acts as a sheild. The impedance and inductance of the twists will oppose each other when encountering Electromagnetic Radio Interference (EMI).

Basically, Cat3 is for 10Mbps. Cat 5 is for 100Mbps. Cat5e and Cat6 are for gigabit and 10 gigabit networks. Cat5e is actually just a subset of category 5 (thus the extra "e") that specifies more precise twists and tighter RJ-45 connections (to reduce NEXT).

But to answer the question, cabling is backwards compatible. Install Cat5e (or Cat6 if you REALLY feel the need) and don't worry about it.

K

if you are still reading this these guys do know what there talking about but here trust me i have made many networks all you need is that basic cat5 you were talking about its very cheap and works great