Tuesday, January 22, 2008

What is: "CAT5, CAT5e" (4 All)

Category 5 and Category 5e Network Cabling.

Definition: CAT5 is an Ethernet network cable standard defined by the Electronic Industries Association and Telecommunications Industry Association (commonly known as EIA/TIA).

CAT5 cable contains four pairs of copper wire. It supports Fast Ethernet speeds (up to 100 Mbps). As with all other types of twisted pair EIA/TIA cabling, CAT5 cable runs are limited to a maximum recommended run length of 100m (328 feet).

Although CAT5 cable usually contains four pairs of copper wire, Fast Ethernet communications only utilize two pairs. A newer specification for CAT5 cable - CAT5 enhanced (CAT5e) - supports networking at Gigabit Ethernet[ speeds (up to 1000 Mbps) over short distances by utilizing all four wire pairs, and it is backward-compatible with ordinary CAT5.

Though newer cable technologies like CAT6 and CAT7 are in development, CAT5 / CAT5e Ethernet cable remains the popular choice for most wired local area networks (LANs), because Ethernet gear is both affordable and supports high speeds.

From Bradley Mitchell,

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