will my crossover cable serve for 100BT

[jeana]

Hi,

I'm networking two computers that both have 10/100BT Ethernet adapters. I just made myself a nice little crossover cable(1236 => 3612) with RJ45 adapters and a crimper. I trimmed off the brown and green wire pairs. Question is, will these four wires limit me to 10BaseT? Do I need a new type of wire for 100BT?

T'anks,
Jeana

[Titan]

As long as it is category 5 cable, it will work up to 100mb. It should be printed on the cable.

[This message has been edited by Titan (edited 09-21-99).]

[800XL]

I believe the CAT5 spec calls for all 4 pairs, but only two are required for 100Base TX. There is a 100Base T4 spec that uses all 4 pairs and allows the use of CAT3 cables, but it is not common at all. You should be fine for 100Mbit. You can actually run two 100Mbit lines on the same CAT5 4 pair cable, but it is not optimal.

[jeana]

Thank you! It _is_ CAT5.

I'll guess that running two 100BT connections off a single eight-wire cable is not optimal because of insufficient shielding... am I right?

I've another question but I will give it a topic of its own...

[800XL]

Exactly right. Two 100Mbit connections on the same cable will get some amount of crosstalk. More than if they were by themselves, but not enough to have a big impact on performance, if even a measurable one.

I usually put all 8 wires in the RJ-45 connector because it is much easier to get them in the right slots if all the slots are filled. Saves time trying to get that one wire to slide into 6 all the way.