Network Connection Criteria; Network Cable; Cabling Requirements; Twisted-Pair Cable - 3Com EtherLink 10 User Manual

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PPENDIX PECIFICATIONS
Network
Connection Criteria
NIC Cable
3CR990-TX-9X Category 3, 4, or 5
unshielded twisted-pair

Network Cable

Cabling Requirements

Twisted-Pair Cable

Unshielded Twisted-Pair
Cable Categories

10BASE-T Description

The following table provides network connection criteria for the 3CR990 NICs.
Network Cable
Connector
RJ-45
This section provides information about various network cable standards and
descriptions of those standards for EtherLink 10/100 PCI NICs.
The cable type, quality, distance, and connectors must comply with the
Electronic Industries Association/Telecommunications Industries Association
(EIA/TIA) 568 Commercial Building Wiring Standard and the Technical Services
Bulletin TSB38 standards.
Twisted-pair cable consists of copper wires surrounded by an insulator. Two wires
are twisted together (the twisting prevents interference problems) to form a pair,
and the pair forms a circuit that can transmit data. A cable is a bundle of one or
more twisted pairs surrounded by an insulator.
Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) is the most commonly used type of twisted-pair
cable. Shielded twisted pair (STP) provides protection against crosstalk.
Twisted-pair cable is now commonly used in Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, and
other network topologies.
The following table shows the five categories of unshielded twisted-pair cable as
defined by the EIA/TIA.
Category Use
1 Traditional telephone cable.
2 Data transmissions up to 4 MHz.
3 Voice and data transmission up to 25 MHz. The cable typically has four pairs
of wires. Category 3 is the most common type of installed cable found in
older corporate wiring schemes.
4 Voice and data transmission up to 33 MHz. The cable normally has four pairs
of wire. This grade of UTP is not common.
5 Voice and data transmission up to 125 MHz. The cable normally has four pairs
of copper wire and three twists per foot. Category 5 UTP is the most popular
cable used in new installations.
10BASE-T is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.3
standard for Ethernet signaling over unshielded twisted-pair wire at 10Mbps.
Ethernet, as the most widely used network protocol, uses 10BASE-T as its primary
cabling scheme. Ethernet characteristics include:
A data rate of 10 Mbps
A broadcast architecture
A specific media-access control (MAC) scheme
Maximum
Transceiver Network Segment
On-board 328 ft/100 m
Speed Media Type
10/100 10BASE-T
Mbps
100BASE-TX