It is good to know your cables and connectors! Read on to know more about the CAT 5 cable and RJ-45 connector.

It is a wired world and there’s no denying that we cannot survive without them! To know about these cables in details we would need to know about the things that connect to them.

Computer Networking – What is it?

The engineering discipline that is connected to the communication between computer systems or devices is referred to as computer networking. Theory and practical applications of these engineering and scientific disciplines form the core of computer networks.

Basically a computer network is made up of a set of devices or computers that are connected to each other. These devices have the ability to exchange data. Some of the networks are local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN) and wireless local area network and wireless wide area network (WLAN and WWAN). Networks are connected to each other in order to allow communication with a whole range of media. These include optical fiber, twisted copper wire cable, coaxial cable and other technologies.

CAT 5 Cables

Also known as the Ethernet cable sometimes, CAT 5 is short for Category 5 cable. This cable is a preferred choice for telephone and network wiring. The CAT 5 cable is an unshielded wire that contains four pairs of 24 gauge twisted copper pairs that terminate in a RJ-45 jack. Available in a variety of colors, the CAT-5 is made out of twisted pairs of wires that are sheathed in plastic with a standard color scheme. Sound and interference is reduced considerably because of these twisted pairs of wires. These cables can be bought off a spool in various lengths or pre-cut to standard lengths along with a RJ-45 cable attached.

The computer networking cable that we are talking about replaced the CAT 3 cable because it was only able to carry at speeds of up to 10 megabits per second. Thankfully, the CAT 5 cable supports data speeds of 100 mbps or more. Apart from networks and telephones, the CAT 5 cable can be used for other purposes. CAT 5 cables have three configurations meant for wiring with RJ-45 connectors or pin outs. The cable runs from a computer to a switch and then goes straight into a cable. The CAT 5 cable can be bought from electronic shops, home improvement shops and computer outlets. Even CAT 6 cables can be found in the market, these cables are a standard for Gigabit Ethernet and network protocols that are backward compatible with the CAT 5/5E and CAT 3 cable standards.

RJ45 Connectors

As the name suggests, the (Registered Jack) RJ45 is a connector that is used for network cables. These connectors are usually seen with Ethernet cables and network cable kits. The RJ-45 connector has eight pins to which the wire strands of a cable interface electrically. There are a few standard designs for these connectors and their wiring; they are RJ11, RJ14 etc. The only connector that is not the modular connector type is the RJ21X, It is a 25-pair Amphenol connector.

Both the ends of the cable are joined to the RJ-45 connector. The other end of the connector is connected with the LAN card of the computer and the other end to a switch or hub. To test the performance of the cables, cable testers are used. There are many other connectors that look like the RJ45 connector and can be closely confused for it. One such connector is the RJ-11 connector that connects to telephone cables.

There are many other cables and connectors in the market such as the USB network cable, which is used to connect two personal computers.