Modern WiFi requires a good quality of data cabling to not only provide good data transmission but also food reliable power over PoE. Here we explain best data cabling practices for WiFi

1. What cablesdo I needforWi-Fi?
Types ofInternet Cablesfor Wi-Fi
There are a fewchoicesof cablingwhenlookingatsupplyWiFi devices.The choice of cable will
dependonthe speedrequirementsandthe type of Wi-Fi productchosen.Firstlywe have alookat
the typesof internetcablesforWi-Fi.These are generallyinthree typesinmainstreaminstallations.
Howeverall cables have alarge amountof similarities
Twistedpairs and RJ-45 connectors
TypicallyTwisted-pairEthernetcablesare constructedof eightcopperinsulatedwiresinaplastic
sleeve.Twowiresare twistedcollectivelyinapairfor fourpairs,and thenthe fourteamsare twisted
togethertostructure the cable.The twistsandcouplesaffectspecificcable’soverall performance
traits.For example crosstalk,attenuation,andelectromagneticinterference (EMI).
Crosstalkoccurswhenan electrical signtransmitted overone wire negativelyinfluencesthe
electrical signal transmittedoveranyotherwire.Attenuationisthe regularlossof intensityof an
electrical signal asittravelsabove the wire.EMIisnoise (unwantedelectricalsignals) generated
betweenthe wiresusingelectrical signalstransmitted.
A clearplasticjack,regardedas an RJ-45 connector,isconnectedtoboth endsof the twisted-pair
Ethernetcable.AnRJ-45 connectorappearsverycomparable toa phone jack (whichrecognize asan
RJ-11 connector)
Twisted-pairEthernetcablingcommonlyreferstoas Ethernet,Cat5e,Cat6,Cat6a, Cat7, or UTP
cable.Technically,Ethernetiswiringandsignallingfashionable thatcoversmanycabling
technologies.Therefore Cat5e forexampleisone categoryof several accessiblecategories.UTPis
one of twofeasible typesregardingoutershieldingandprotection.However,these phrasesare
frequentlyunderstoodtorefertotwisted-pairEthernetcabling.
Categoriesof twisted-paircables
There are quite afewclasses of twisted-paircabling,butonlythree thatregularlyuse forEthernet
networks:Category5e (Cat5e),Category5e (Cat5e,or Cat5 Enhanced).InadditionCategory6(Cat6).
LastlyCat6a or Cat6 Augmented
Cat7 isnowalsostartingto beenseenmore commonlybutitsstill notbeinginstalledinlarge
installationsforofficesandWi-Fi.Howeveritismore commonlyseenindatacentresandfor
specialistinstallationssuchasAudioVisual
The performance characteristicsof Cat5,Cat5e, andCat6 are as follows:
1. Cat5e Data Cabling
Cat5e cablinghasbeenthe minimumstandardforover20 yearsand isstill apopularchoice inmany
installations.Itislimitedtoa maximumbandwidthof 100mhz and an internetspeedof 1 Gigabit.
Thisis applicable forall lengths of cablinginstallationsupto90mwithpatch leadsand100m fora
directcablinglink
2. Cat6 Data Cabling
Cat6 cablingincreasesthe bandwidthcapabilityof Cat5e from100Mhz to 250Mhz. Howeverover
the standardisedindustryratificationitalsohasa maximuminternetspeedof 1Gigabitover90m

2. and 100m. Howeverithasthe capabilityof handling10 gigabitspeedsupto55m. Therefore itis
recommendedwhendesigningastructuredcablinginstallationthatthe whole systemisbasedon
the 90m linkforstandardisation
Structured cablingroutesdon’talwaysfollowthe expectedroutesandonsite changesare frequent.
Therefore youmayfinda designedcablingrunof lessof 55m now exceedsthat.Youthenlose the 10
gigabitspeedstraightdownto1 gigabit
3. Cat6a Data Cabling
Industrywide Cat6adata cablingisthe standardfor10 gigabitspeeds.Itwill alsoatthe ratified
distance of 90m and 100m produce 10 gigabitspeeds.If yourWi-Fi unitsare 10 gigabitenabledor
require 10 gigabitbackbone cablingthenCat6ais the minimumforinstallation
Cat6a cable due toits constructionisalsobetterenabledtohandle PoEpowerdistributiontothe
Wi-Fi unitswhichisa majorpart of all Wi-Fi accesspoints
Unshieldedversusshieldedcables
Twisted-pairEthernetcablingcanalsobe unshielded(standard) orshielded(notsocommon).
Unshieldedtwisted-pair(UTP) cablesare the mostcommonlyinstalledcablinginenterprise
networksandWi-Fi.Itissignificantlycheaperandagreat deal more excellentflexiblethanshielded
twisted-pair(STP) cabling.
STP cablingismore expensive andmuchlesspliable thanUTPcabling.Itis usedmore oftenin
industrial environmentsandnoisyenvironmentssusceptible toexcessive electromagnetic
interference (EMI).The character pairsof wiresinSTPcableswrap infoil oranothermetallic
shielding.Anoutermetallicdefensivemayalsocoverthe entire groupof twistedpairs(beneaththe
outersleeve).
Length and colour of patch cables
Whenchoosingpatchfor your network,youadditionallyneedtoconsiderlengthandcolor:
Length:
Twisted-pairEthernetcablescome inwell-knownlengthssuchas3, 5, 7, and 10 feet.More extended
sizesare available,andyoucanalsohave customizedcable lengthsmade.The distancebetween
your variouscommunitydevicesandyournetworkchange orrouterwill decide the lengthyouneed.
Howeverthe standardsallowfora 90m permanentlinkfromthe cabinettothe device and5mpatch
leadseachend.Howeverwe see longerpatchleadsusedatthe user endwhenmovingdevices

3. whichthenreducesthe overall linklengthallowance.Inmostcasesthiswon’tpresentaproblembut
keepinmindwhenrunninglongerlinkstoWi-Fi accesspoints
Color:
Twisted-pairEthernetpatchcablesare available inmany colors.We advise thatyoursystemsare
colourcodedfor ease of identificationinyournetworkcabinets.Commoncoloursare Blue for
Network,YellowforPhone etc.Inadditionassignaseparate colourforeachof your Wi-Fi access
points.Furthermore when installingthe cablingputthemall ona dedicatedpatchpanel.Thisallows
for easiermanagementof the Wi-Fi network
About NM CablingSolutions - NetworkCabling Specialist
NMCablingisa technologyandstructuredcablingintegratorworkingthroughout the United
Kingdom.
We have createda comprehensive KnowledgeCentre forourindustrywhichcanbe viewed
at https://www.nmcabling.co.uk/knowledge-centre/