Cabling and Technology Information Specifications
Twisted-pair copper 10 Mbps Operation
Category 3, 4 or 5, 100-ohm unshielded twisted-pair (UTP)
or shielded twisted-pair (STP) cable, complying with IEEE
802.3 10BASE-T specifications.
100 Mbps Operation Category 5, 100-ohm UTP or STP cable, complying with IEEE
802.3u 100BASE-TX specifications.
1000 Mbps
Operation
Category 5, 100-ohm 4-pair UTP or STP cable, complying
with IEEE 802.3ab 1000BASE-T specifications—Category 5e
or better is recommended. See note on 1000BASE-T Cable
Requirements below.
Multimode fiber
62.5/125 μm or 50/125 μm (core/cladding) diameter, low
metal content, graded index fiber-optic cables, complying
with theITU-T G.651 and ISO/IEC 793-2 Type A1b or A1a
standards respectively.
1
Single mode fiber
9/125 μm (core/cladding) diameter, low metal content fiber-
optic cables, complying with the ITU-T G.652 and ISO/IEC
793-2 Type B1 standards.
1
A mode conditioning patch cord may be needed for some Gigabit-LX installations.
See for more information.
Note on 1000BASE-T Cable Requirements. The Category 5 networking cables that work for 100BASE-TX
connections should also work for 1000BASE-T, as long as all four-pairs are connected. But, for the most
robust connections, you should use cabling that complies with the Category 5e specifications, as described
in Addendum 5 to the TIA-568-A standard (ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-A-5).
Because of the increased speed provided by 1000BASE-T (Gigabit-T), network cable quality is more important
than for either 10BASE-T or 100BASE-TX. Cabling plants being used to carry 1000BASE-T networking must
comply with the IEEE 802.3ab standards. In particular, the cabling must pass tests for Attenuation, Near-End
Crosstalk (NEXT), and Far-End Crosstalk (FEXT). Additionally, unlike the cables for 100BASE-TX, the 1000BASE-
T cables must pass tests for Equal-Level Far-End Crosstalk (ELFEXT) and Return Loss.
When testing your cabling, be sure to include the patch cables that connect the switch and other end
devices to the patch panels on your site. The patch cables are frequently overlooked when testing cable and
they must also comply with the cabling standards.
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Aruba Instant On 1930 Installation and Getting Started
Guide