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Frequently Asked Questions (continued)
What type of cable should I be using? (continued)
What´s the difference between a crossover cable and a straight-through
cable?
The wiring in crossover and straight-through cables are different. The two
types of cable have different purposes
for different LAN configurations. EIA/TIA
568A/568B define the wiring standards
and allow for two different wiring color
codes as illustrated in the following
diagram.
*The wires with colored backgrounds may
have white stripes and may be denoted
that way in diagrams found elsewhere.
How to tell straight-through cable from
a crossover cable:
The main way to tell the difference
between the two cable types is to
compare the wiring order on the ends
of the cable. If the wiring is the same on
both sides, it is straight-through cable. If one side has opposite wiring, it is a
crossover cable.
All you need to remember to properly configure the cables is the pinout order of
the two cable ends and the following rules:
A straight-through cable has identical ends
A crossover cable has different ends
It makes no functional difference which standard you follow for straight-through
cable ends, as long as both ends are the same. You can start a crossover cable
with either standard as long as the other end is the other standard. It makes no
functional difference which end is which. The order in which you pin the cable
is important. Using a pattern other than what is specified in the above diagram
could cause connection problems.
When to use a crossover cable and when to use a straight-through cable:
Computer to Computer – Crossover
Computer to an normal port on a Hub/Switch – Straight-through
Computer to an uplink port on a Hub/Switch - Crossover
Hub/Switch uplink port to another Hub/Switch uplink port – Crossover
Hub/Switch uplink port to another Hub/Switch normal port - Straight-through
Why can´t I access the web based configuration? (continued)
