17. Network Cable Types and Connectors

Part 17 of Computer Networking Fundamentals: Network Cable Types and Connectors

Cable Types and Connectors

At the end of this episode, I will be able to:

1. Compare and contrast network cabling types, specifications and standards.

Learner Objective: Compare and contrast network cabling types, specifications and standards.

Description: In this episode, the learner will explore various network cable types, connectors and cabling standards.

• Introduction to Network Hardware
  • Network Media Types
    • Cable Types
      • Copper - copper cabling is the most prevalent media in networks today. This type of media has a lower cost when compared to fiber
        • Coaxial cabling - this type of copper media is mostly used in audio and video implementations today rather than networking. This cable type uses a centralized copper conductor wrapped in a dialectric coating, braided shielding and an insulating out jacket. The common connectors used for termination are BNC, F-type and T connectors.
        • Twisted pair cabling - this is the most commonly used bounded network media in local area networks. This cable is comprised of 8 copper conductors, twisted in four pairs. These cable come in an unshielded variety called unshielded twisted pair or UTP as well as a shielded variety that wraps the internal conductors in a foil shielding called shielded twisted pair or STP. These cables use an RJ-45 connection for termination not to be confused with the smaller RJ-11 connector used in telephone systems.
          • PVC grade cable - this twisted pair cabling is commonly used to connect computers to wall plates.
          • Plenum grade cable - this cabling is used in premise wiring throughout plenum spacing for fire code.
      • Fiber Optic - this type of cabling uses glass or plastic cores, cladding, strengthening fibers and an outer jacket. This network media has the fastest and farthest transmission distance of all bounded network media.
        • Multimode fiber - this fiber optic cable uses cores of 50 and 62.5 microns and mulitple light sources to propagate the signal. It is the cheaper and shorter distance when compared to singlemode fiber.
        • Singlemode fiber - this fiber optic cable uses a core of 9 microns and a single light source to propagate the signal. This type of fiber optic cabling is more expensive and farther transmission distances than multimode fiber.
        • Connectors
          • Subscriber Connector - An older square locking connector.
          • Lucent connector - A smaller connector than the SC connector, providing a greater port density.
        • Transceiver Modules
          • SFP/SPF+ - these are modules are identical in size, however SFP support 1 Gbps transmission speeds and SFP+ supports 10Gbps.
          • QSFP/QSFP+ - these modules are identical in size, the difference is that the QSFP support for four 1 Gbps links simultaneously and QSFP+ supports four 10 Gbps links simultaneously.
      • Cable Categories - these are a set of specifications that were developed by the Telecommunication Industry Association/Electronics Industry Alliance or TIA/EIA as a part of the cabling standards endorsed by the American National Standards Institue (ANSI)
        • CAT5e - this is the cable used in Gigabit Ethernet implementations capable of transmitting data a 350 Mbps
        • CAT6 - this is the cable standards used in Gigabit Ethernet implementations capable of transmitting data at 1 Gbps
        • CAT6a - this is the cable used in Gigabit Ethernet implementations capable of transmitting data up to 10 Gbps.
    • Ethernet Base Standards
      • 10BASET = Ethernet implementation, 10 Mbps tranmission speed over twisted pair cables
      • 100BASET = Fast Ethernet implementation, 100 Mbps tranmission speed over twisted pair cables
      • 1000BaseTX = Gigabit Ethernet implementation, 1000 Mbps tranmission speed over twisted pair cables
      • 10GBASELX - 10 Gigabit Ethernet implementation using fiber optic media.
    • Cabling Issues
      • Improper termination - internal conductors are crossed or damaged
      • Electromagnetic interference - high voltage power sources, water fountains, HVAC systems, fluorescent lighting can cause interference and corrupt the communication signal in copper-based media.
      • Damage - physical damage to the out jacket, internal conductors or cores can cause communication issues on the network
      • Standards Mismatch - this can cause slower than expected or poor performance on the network or worse, no communications.