UTP cable is made of twisted copper wire pairs within a plastic sheath. It comes in categories like Cat3, Cat5, and Cat5e. STP cable includes a protective foil wrapping. RJ-45 connectors are used to terminate UTP cable. The installation process involves stripping cable, arranging wire pairs, crimping the RJ-45 connector, and testing the cable. Solid core cable is for fixed runs while stranded core is more flexible for patch cables. Proper tooling and technique are required to make reliable network cables.

1. Cables
(Install Network Hardware)
By: Ronesh Chandra

2. Twisted pair properties
• Twisted pair is made of insulated copper wires
that have been twisted around each other to
form wire pairs
• Twisted-pair cabling is divided into two
categories
– Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)
– Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)

3. Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)
• UTP is a set of twisted pairs within a plastic
sheath
• The common use for this type of cable is
telephone wiring and LAN communications
• Two popular UTP cabling types are Category 3
and Category 5 UTP
• Newer types include Category 5e and
Category 6

4. Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)

5. UTP installation
• During UTP installation hardware connectivity
generally is accomplished by using an RJ-45
connector

6. Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)
• STP includes a protective sheathing around
the copper wire
• The twisted pair is wrapped in foil to cut down
on outside interference and electromagnetic
radiation

7. Cross Over and Straight Through
• Cross-over: A cross-over cable is used to connect two computers via
their NICs, without using a hub or switch. (Note: You can only
connect two computers at one time, connecting three or more will
require a hub or switch of some sort).
• Straight-through: A straight-through network cable is just what the
name implies, a cable that passes data straight through from one
end to another. Straight-through cables are used for a variety of
connections. (e.g. connecting a computer to a hub or switch,
connecting a computer to a cable/ISDN/DSL modem, and linking
switches and hubs together.)
(Refer to your handout for standards)

8. Solid and Stranded Wire
• Solid wire cable means that each one of the 8
wires inside the cable consists of one solid
copper alloy wire.
• Solid wire cable is usually used for wiring
inside walls as it does not flex very easily and
is intended for wires that will never move.
• It has better conductivity than stranded
cable, which means you can run Ethernet over
farther distances with solid core.

9. • Stranded wire cable means that each one of
the 8 wires inside the cable consists of a few
dozen very fine hair-like strands that bend and
flex very easily.
• Stranded wire cable is usually used for making
patch cables because of its flexibility (the
wires won't break as easily from being moved
around and twisted frequently).

10. RJ-45 Connectors
• RJ-45 connectors - They usually come in bags of
50, 100 etc. Pay attention to the type of RJ-45
connector you get and make sure it is intended
for the type of Cat5 wire you're using.
• There are two different kind of RJ-45 connectors,
depending on whether you use them with solid
or stranded wire cable as mentioned above.
• Using the wrong kind with the wrong cable will
most likely result in a bad connection.

12. Network Tools
• Crimping tool - While this is the expensive
part of making your own cables, it's only a
one-time startup cost
• A good crimping tool has a pair of wire cutters
built in, as well as a blade to strip insulation.
• It also might support crimping of other
connectors such as RJ-11.

14. LETS GET STARTED NETWORK ENGINNERS

15. Step 1
• Cut a piece of Cat 5 as long as you need.
When you cut, remember the old saying:
Measure twice, cut once.
• Make sure the cut on each end is clean and
straight

16. Step 2
• Strip about an inch of the insulation off the cable.
Cut it back nice and square. Some crimping tools
such as the one used in this article come with a
built-in wire stripper.
• You put the cable in to a stop on one side of the
cutter. It will cut the jacket the right length to
make a perfect crimp.
• It is extremely important that you only cut the
plastic insulation/jacket and not the wire.
• Damaging one of the 8 wires, even if you just nick
it or partially cut it, will ruin your cable.

18. STEP 3
• Untwist the wires. You'll notice that there are
4 pairs of multi-colored wires inside. Sort the
pairs by color.
• You should end up with wires color coded as
follows: blue/blue-white, orange/orange-
white, green/green-white, brown/brown-
white.

19. Get the wires lined up and nice
and straight. Then clip off the
top millimeter so that they are
all the same length and stick
out about half an inch from the
insulated part.

20. STEP 4
Insert the wire in to the RJ-45 Connector.

21. WRONG

22. Step 5
• Double-check one last time that the wires are
aligned correctly and all the way in. Then
insert the RJ-45 connector into the
appropriate opening of the crimping tool.
• Give the handle a nice, tight squeeze without
crushing the RJ-45.

23. TEST
• Once your cable is finished, you should test it
to make sure it works.
• Insert the two ends of the cable into the jacks
on the tester and watch the lights.
• If they all light up, you have a good connection
for each wire and the cable checks out

24. • NOW YOU CAN REPEAT THE SAME PROCESS
TO MAKE A CROSS-OVER CABLE.