From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cabling is the most common cable used in computer networking. It is a variant of twisted pair cabling. UTP cables are often called ethernet cables after Ethernet, the most common data networking standard that utilizes UTP cables, although not the most reliable.
In contrast to FTP and STP cabling, UTP cable is not surrounded by any shielding. It is the primary wire type for telephone usage and is very common for computer networking, especially as patch cables or temporary network connections due to the high flexibility of the cables.
[edit] Advantages
- It is a thin, flexible cable that is easy to string between walls.
- Most modern buildings come with CAT 5 UTP already wired into the wall outlets or at least run between the floors.
- Because UTP is small, it does not quickly fill up wiring ducts.
- UTP costs less per foot than any other type of LAN cable.
[edit] Disadvantages
- It is more susceptible to interference than most other types of cabling. The pair twisting does help, but it doesn't make the cable impervious to electrical noise.
- Its unrepeated length limit is 100 metres.
The 8 pin modular jacks at both ends of an ethernet cable, clearly showing the wire pairs inside
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- Cat 1: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Previously used for POTS telephone communications, ISDN and doorbell wiring.
- Cat 2: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Previously was frequently used on 4 Mbit/s token ring networks.
- Cat 3: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B, used for data networks using frequencies up to 16 MHz. Historically popular for 10 Mbit/s Ethernet networks.
- Cat 4: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Provided performance of up to 20 MHz, and was frequently used on 16 Mbit/s token ring networks.
- Cat 5: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Provided performance of up to 100 MHz, and was frequently used on 100 Mbit/s ethernet networks. May be unsuitable for 1000BASE-T gigabit ethernet.
- Cat 5e: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B. Provides performance of up to 100 MHz, and is frequently used for both 100 Mbit/s and gigabit ethernet networks.
- Cat 6: Currently defined in TIA/EIA-568-B. It provides performance of up to 250 MHz, more than double category 5 and 5e.
- Cat 6a: Future specification for 10 Gbit/s applications.
- Cat 7: An informal name applied to ISO/IEC 11801 Class F cabling. This standard specifies four individually-shielded pairs (STP) inside an overall shield. Designed for transmission at frequencies up to 600 MHz.
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| See also: TIA/EIA-568-B • Ethernet • 8P8C • Ethernet crossover cable • Twisted pair |
