DEFINITIONS AND TERMINOLOGY

WARNING: We are not responsible for any errors or omissions or material that has been outdated. You the user or installer take full responsibility for use of this information and any of its content and at your own risk. You must verify all information with the manufacturer of the item before using, or installing it. Do not apply any power to cables or connectors or items other then low voltage cabling voltage that may be recommended by the manufacturer for your particular device or item. Do not connect any cable or components while power/voltage is applied to it. These items are NOT, to be used for or in high voltage or  household type voltage or high voltage applications, they are for low voltage computer networking type applications and you must inquire with the manufacturer as to the voltages and type of circuits the items can be used in.  If you are not sure or do not know exactly what to do or what to use then  you should consider a professional installer, cabler or network integrator. 

Click on alphabet index...
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V

10BASE-T: (IEEE 802.3, 10 Million Bits Per Second)
An IEEE standard for operating Ethernet local area networks (LANS) on twisted-pair cabling using the homerun method of wiring (exactly the same as a phone system does), and a wiring hub which will contain electronics performing similar functions to a telephone switch. 

The full name for the standard is IEEE 802.3 10Bast-T. It defines the requirement for sending information at 10 million bits per second on ordinary unshielded twisted-pair cabling and defines various aspects of running Ethernet on this cabling, such as:

  1. Connector types (Typically eight-pin RJ-45)

  2. Pin connections (1 and 2 for transmit. 3 and 6 for receive).

100VG-ANYLAN: is now a approved standard which was proposed to the IEEE 802.12 committee. The name is based on 100 Mbps,Voice Grade cable; and called ' ANYLAN' for its ability to support both Ethernet and token ring. The protocol is for a 100 Mbps half duplex transmission which allows 100 Mbps on a four pair Category 3 cabling system, but is not based on the 802.12 Ethernet CSMA/CD protocol. (Carrier Sense Multiple Access Collision Detection). It was approved in June 1995.

100BASE-T: (((802.3ab) Provides 100 mbps per second Ethernet over 2 pairs of Category 5 cabling up to 100 meters. It will require minimal ELFEXT and return loss requirements not previously specified in EIA/TIA568-A.

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100 Ohm UTP: is the most universal cabling system and generally the least expensive. It covers almost all applications up to 100 MHz with a minimum of cost. The user must decide which category 100 Ohm UTP cabling system is needed for the application. For voice system Category 3 is usually sufficient. For data cabling systems, Category 5 is highly recommended. category 5e or Cat5e is the cabling recommended today.

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150 Ohm STP Wiring: First there was the 3270 system by IBM based on 92 Ohm RG-62U coax. Then with System 35 computers came Twinax. Now Token Ring has emerged as practically the LAN of choice for IBM.

  • Type 1 is the initial 150 Ohm STP cable and connector for Token Ring. Initially developed for 1 Mbps Token Ring, IBM extended the frequency characterization to 20 Mhz for 4Mbps, and 16 Mbps Token Ring. 

  • Type 1A is a Type 1 system extended to 300 MHz. Most installed Type 1 cable will comply with the extended cable characteristics. But the telecommunications outlet and the telecommunications closet hub must be upgraded to Type 1A components. Proposed for Type1 A applications are Token Ring, FDDI over STP, 155 Mbps ATM, and broadband video.

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1000BASE-T: (Gigabit transmission) Provides one gigabit per second Ethernet over 4 Pair Category 5 cabling up to 100 meters. The approved standard for 100Mbps full duplex Ethernet application on Category 5 and possible TP-PMD-style wiring systems. (100 Base-T meaning based on 100 Mbps, TP-PMD wiring). There are three variations, 100 BaseT-4 for Category 3, 4 and 5; 100Base-TX specifically for Category 5 applications; and 100Base-FX for fiber. If a Category 5 cable is used for a 100Base-T backbone, it cannot exceed 5 meters.

A

ACR - Attenuation/Crosstalk Ratio:
Also known as "Headroom".  This measures the separation between signal and crosstalk.. Essentially this defines the cable's operational bandwidth.

ATM: Asynchronous Transfer Mode. ATM is a high bandwidth, low delay, packet-like switching and multiplexing technique. Usable capacity is segmented into fixed-size cells, consisting of header and information fields. The ATM proposals are being developed by a forum of over 120 application suppliers. A proposed application for a copper network capable of 155 and 622 Mbps. Since this proposal a Low speed transmission specification has also been proposed such as 25 mbps transmission and 51 Mbps transmission specifications. Basically, ATM applications must meet all requirements for Category 5 as specified by TIA-568-A. 

Attenuation: The decrease in the power of a signal, light beam, or light wave. Measured in decibels. Opposite of gain.

AWG: American Wire Gauge. Standard measuring gauge for non-ferrous conductors (ie, non-iron and non-steel). Gauge is a measure of the diameter of the conductor (the thickness of the cable).


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B

Backbone Wiring: The physical/electrical interconnections between telecommunications closets and equipment rooms. Cross-connect hardware and cabling in the Main and Intermediate Cross-connects are considered part of the backbone wiring. 

Bandwidth: The difference between the highest and the lowest frequencies of a transmission channel (path for information transmissions). Identifies the amount of data that can be sent through a given channel. Measured in Hertz (Hz); higher bandwidth numbers mean higher data capacity. There is a fundamental relationship between the bandwidth of a channel expressed in MHz and the information capacity or data rate expressed in Mbps. Like a highway, the bandwidth expressed in MHz (megahertz) and the cars that can travel on it expressed in Mbps (megabits per second) thusly you can add more cars by widening the highway or improve the road surface eliminating the narrowing down of lanes or bottlenecks.

BER: Bit Error Rate.( See Headroom..)

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C

Category Rating System: For UTP Cabling. The categories characterize commercial building wiring systems for 100 Ohm UTP cables.

  • Category 3 = (16 MHz - 100 Ohm UTP- To support applications up to 10 Mbps). Typically voice, ISDN, 4 Mbps Token Ring, and 10Base-T. Maximum suggested allowed untwisting of pairs = 3".

  • Category 4 = (20 MHz - 16 Mbps - 100 Ohm UTP). Typical applications are from voice to 16 Mbps Token Ring. 
    Maximum allowed untwisting of pairs=1".

  • Category 5  = 100 MHz (Originally 100 Mbps, will run ATM and 1000Base-T). Maximum allowed untwisting of pairs= 1/2".
    See below..

  • Category 5e = 100 MHz (1000Base-T & faster ATM). Maximum allowed untwisting of pairs < then 1/2".
    See Below.

  • Category 6  = 200 MHz (beyond 1000 Base-T)

  • EIA/TIA-568-A  does allow 150 Ohm STP (also called Type 1) and 62.5/125 µm multi-mode optical fiber. TSB-53, Extended Specifications for 150-ohm STP cables and Data Connectors," extends the 150 Ohm cabling system from 20 Mhz (Type 1) to 300 Mhz (Type 1A). No extended operation frequency wiring systems for optical fiber are planned. ( as of this writing).

Category 5: 
(100 Mhz - originally 100 Mbps, will run ATM and 1000 Base-T) 
 Although not an actual application, Cat5 is a structured wiring system standard which many other applications and emerging standards require for proper operation. 

The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) established standards for building cabling with the publication of the TIA/EIA 568 Commercial Building Wiring Standard. Subsequently TIA issued TSB-36 and TSB-40(technical service bulletins) which defined the category rating system as it applies to UTP cabling and connectors. Cat 5 as it is commonly referred, is extended to 100MHz wiring system. TIA revision has developed TIA/EIA-568 which incorporated the TSBs into the main body of the standard, now called TIA/EIA-568A.

Category 5e: Another extension (Addendum 5) of the EIA/TIA-568-A cabling system to 100 MHz. As with cat5, the existing worst case two connector (cross connect) topologies compliant with TIA/EIX-568A are expected to meet these requirements, and other topologies are supported as long as they meet the ELFEXT and Return Loss requirements of the document. In addition, Category 5e cabling provides higher performance over a minimally compliant Category 5 channel recognizes advances in cabling technology. 

CDDI: Communications Data-network Designer Installers.

Channel: The end-to-end transmission path between two points at which application-specific equipment is connected.

Coaxial Cable:  A cable composed of an insulated central conducting wire wrapped in another cylindrical conductor (the shield). The whole thing is usually wrapped in another insulated layer and an outer protective layer. A coaxial cable has great capacity to carry vast quantities of information. It is typically used in high-speed data and CATV application.

Connector: A device that connects wires or fibers in cable to equipment or other wires or fibers.

Crosstalk: See Near-End Crosstalk. 

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D

Daisy Chain: In telecommunications, a wiring method where each telephone jack in a building is wired in series from the previous jack. Daisy chain is NOT the preferred wiring method, since a break in the wiring would disable all jacks "downstream" from the break. 

dB (Decibel). A dB is a unit of measure of signal strength, usually the relation between a transmitted signal and a standard signal source. Every 3 dB = 50% of signal strength, so therefore a 6 dB loss = a loss of 75% of total signal strength.

Demarcation Point: ("demarc") The point of interconnection between telephone company facilities and your building wiring. The demarcation point ("demarc") shall be located on the subscriber's side of the telephone company's protector, or the equivalent thereof in cases where a protector is not required. 

Distribution Device: A facility located within the dwelling unit for interconnection or cross connection.

Drop Wire: Outside wire pair(s) from the Telco plant (cable), to a house or building for connection to a protector.

DTMF: Acronym for Dual Tone, Mult-Frequency. Tone dial makes a different sound (in fact, a combination of two tones) for each number pushed. The technically correct name for tone dial is Dual Tone Multi-Frequency. or DTMF.

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E

Electromagnetic Interference (EMI): The interference in signal transmission or reception caused by the radiation of electrical and magnetic fields.

ELFEXT - Equal Level Far End Crosstalk:
 This is a measure of crosstalk interference generated by a far end transmitter, and is important on networks utilizing full duplex transmission such as Gigabit Ethernet.

ETHERNET: A local area network used for connection computers, printers, workstations, terminals, etc. within the same building. Ethernet operates over twisted pair wire and over coaxial cable at speeds up to 10Mbps. Ethernet LANs are being promoted by DEC, Intel and Xerox. (Compare with Token Ring).

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F

FDDI: Fiber Distribution Data Interface. FDDI is a 100 Mbps fiber optic LAN. It is an ANSI standard. It uses a "counter-rotated" Token ring topology. An FDDI LAN is typically known as a "backbone" LAN. It is used for joining file servers together and for joining other LANs together.

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G

Gain: The increase in signaling power that occurs as the signal is boosted by an electronic device. Measure in decibels (dB).

Gigabit Ethernet: ('1000BASE-X') The subsequent IEEE 802.3Z committee is currently working on a draft for gigabit Ethernet applications to run on fiber optic cabling. It specifies operation for three variations of micron fiber to achieve 1000Base-LX applications as follows: 62.5 micron fiber over 550 m cable; 50 micron fiber over 550m cable; 10 micron fiber over 3000 m cable. It also specifies two variations to achieve performance of 1000Base-SX as follows: 62.5 micron fiber over 260 m cable; and 50 micron fiber over 525 m cable. 

Gel Filled Cable: What is gel filled cable?

Even small amounts of moisture or water in the cable will degrade the electrical performance of a Category cable. Use power sum rated cables and gel filled and jacketed with black UV resistant polyethylene, designed for exposure to the elements. This allows you to extend your current network to outdoor satellite structures such as temporary classrooms or trailers in a campus environment. It is also well suited for runs under concrete slab in other wet locations. As with all horizontal cables, the suggested run length is limited to (90 meters) (295 Ft.) per TIA/EIA 5658-B for Category 5, 5e, or 6 operation. Tape wrapped outdoor cable is the emerging outdoor cable design for it does not have the mess of gel and offers the necessary protection.

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H

Headroom: (also called Overhead or Margin) The number of decibels by which a system exceeds the minimum defined requirements. The benefit of headroom is that it reduces the bit-error rate (BER), and provides a performance "safety-net" to help ensure that current and future high speed applications will run a peak accuracy, efficiency and throughput.

Home Run: (Not the baseball type). Phone system wiring where the individual cables run from phone directly back to the central switching equipment. Home run cabling can be thought of as "star cabling". Every cable radiates out from the central equipment. All PBXs and virtually all key systems work on home run cabling. Some LANs (local area networks) work on home run wiring. (See Daisy Chain..)

Horizontal Cabling System: According to TIA-568-A there must be a minimum of two cabling runs from the telecommunications closet to each individual work area. Simply put a horizontal cabling system cable run extends from the equipment closet to the workstation outlet. There are 3 types of cabling recognized for standard compliant installation: 100 Ohm UTP, 150 Ohm STP and 62.5/125 um fiber optic cable. Horizontal closet to workstation outlet for typical four- pair 100 Ohm UTP cable should not exceed 90 meters, (295 feet).  Also see patch cords below..

Hub: The point on a network where a bunch of circuits are connected. Also, a switching node. In Local Area Networks, a hub is the core of a star as in ARCNET, StarLAN, Ethernet, and Token Ring. Hub hardware can be either active or passive. Wiring hubs are useful for their centralized management capabilities and for their ability to isolate nodes from disruption.

Hybrid Connector: A connector containing both optical fiber and electrical conductors.

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IT - Information Technology

IEEE 802.3: IEEE stands for Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, a publishing and standards- making body responsible for many standards used in LANS, including the 802 series. Ethernet and StarLan both folow the 802.3 standard. Typically they transmit at 10 Megabits per second. This is the most common local area network specification.

IDC:  Insulation Displacement Connector. This is the 110 styled punch down you find on a Category 5 connector or the back of a Category 5 patch panel. Category 5 connectors always use and IDC for cable termination.

IDF: Intermediate Distribution Frame. A metal rack designed to connect cables and located in an equipment room or closet. Consists of components that provide the connection between the Main Distribution Frame (MDF) and individual phone wiring. There is usually a large permanent cable running between the IDF and MDF.

Impedance: The total opposition (i.e. resistance and reactance) a circuit offers to the flow of alternating current. It is measured in ohms, and the lower the ohmic value, the better the quality of conductor.

Interconnect: A circuit administration point, other than a crossconnector an information outlet, that provides capability for routing and rerouting circuits. It does not use patch cords or jumper wires, and typically is a jack-and -plug device used in smaller distribution arrangements or that connects circuits in large cables to those is smaller cables. 

Interconnect Company: is one which sells, install and maintains telephone systems for end users, typically businesses.

ISDN: Integrated Services Digital Network. According to AT&T, today's public switched phone network has many limitations. ISDN's vision is to overcome these deficiencies. (ISDN lines.)

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J

JACKS: or connectors, 4 position, 6 position or 8 position. 8 Position is incorrectly sometimes referred to as RJ45 and is most commonly used in data networks ( wired 568B or 568A configurations). Although it is also used in voice networks. 4 position usually used for voice networks as well as 6 position. (See USOC). 

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L

LAN: Local Area Network. A short distance network (typically within a building or campus) used to link together computers and peripheral devices (such as printers) under some form of standard control. 

Longitudinal Conversion Loss: 
This is a measure of cable "balance". A well balanced pair offers improved crosstalk performance and reduced emissions (FCC criteria).

LOOSE TUBE CABLE:
Fiber optic loose tube cable is a loose tube, and provides a compact package for larger fiber counts. Typically used in outside plant contruction where ambient temperatures vary greatly and moisture is present. Containing multiple fibers along with a water repellent gel filling, and is made of a harder material, such as PBT. Typically there are 6 or 12 fibers in each loose tube. Each fiber has a skim coating of colored acrylate to provide a color code. There is no current standard for the diameter of the loose tube, therefore there are many different sizes available in the industry. The tube isolates the fibers from the thermal expansion characteristics of the plastics used to manufacture the cable and the gel protects the fiber from the intrusion of water.

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M

Mbps: Megabits per second. One million bits per second. (See Bandwidth).

MDF: Main Distribution Frame. A wiring arrangement which connects the telephone lines coming from outside on one side and the internal lines on the other. A main distribution frame may also carry protective devices as well as function as a central testing point.

MHZ: MegaHertz. A unit of frequency denoting one million Hertz (1,000,000 cycles per second). As in ex: Category 5 100 MHz cable.

MEGABITS/MEGAHERTZ: The terms Megabits per second (Mbps or Mb/s) and Megahertz (MHz) are sometimes confused. Megahertz (MHz) refers to the upper frequency band on the characterization of a cabling system. Megabits per second (Mbps) refers to the rate that the digital bits are sent between the two pieces of equipment for a specific application.
Kind of like a rivers water flow being the megahertz and the number of row boats sent down the river  being the megabits. 

MULTIMODE - Fiber optic cable. (also see singlemode). Has a larger cord diameter than singlemode and is good at coupling light from inexpensive LED sources. More light can be launched into multimode cores, hoever increase in modes actually decreases optical bandwidth 
(signal is less concentrated.)

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N

Near-End Crosstalk (NEXT):
Electrical noise coupled from one pair of wires to another within a mult-pair cable. Cable manufacturers keep striding for lower near-end and far-end crosstalk in order to reduce the interference on the cable.

Network: A network ties it all together. Computer networks connect all types of computers and computer related things, terminals, printers, modems, door entry sensors, temperature monitors, etc. LANS, connect computer equipment. Long distance networks deal with phones. 

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O

Open: (Fault) - means the circuit is not complete or the cable/fiber is broken.

Outlet: A telecommunications outlet is a single-piece cable termination assembly (typically on the floor or in the wall), containing one or more modular telecom jacks. Such jacks might be RJs, coaxial terminators, fiber optic couplers, etc. 

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P

PATCH CORDS: Patch cords are wired in several ways. They connect your patch panels in the equipment room to hubs and connect the workstation at your desk to the wall outlet. 

  • Straight Through or Reversed? Two basic applications, one for patching between the patch panels the other for voice systems. When used with the patch panel they should be wired "straight-through" - (that's pin 1 to pin 1, pin 2 to pin 2 etc. ). The PC to wall outlet should also be wired this way, but in some cases based on manufacture specifications can also be wired reversed. 
    Click here for picture of straight through connection.

  • Reversed - this is the second type typically used for voice systems. - (Pin 1 to Pin 6), (Pin 2 to Pin 5), (Pin 3 to Pin 4), etc.. If using a 8 position jack in reversed mode then - (Pin 1 to Pin 8), (Pin 2 to Pin 7),, (Pin 3 to Pin 6) etc.. 
    Click here for picture of reversed and straight through comparison...

  • Be certain of your system before wiring the cords check with your manufacturer for correct specification first.

  • Cord length in data applications Horizontal Cabling - it is also suggested that to be compliant with TIA-568-A specifications, patch cords in the equipment room from panel to hubs etc. combined with the patch cord at the work station should not exceed a total length of 7 meters or 28 Feet, with no single cord exceeding 6 meters. Working within this total length combination the workstation patch cord to the wall outlet should not exceed 3 meters or 10 feet.

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PLENUM - a compartment or chamber to which one or more air ducts are connected and that forms part of the air distribution system. Cable that is run in proximity to this type of area is special cable that is plenum rated. If you not sure if you should use PLENUM or NON-Plenum cable then choose the PLENUM. You should always check with your local building code enforcement and for Electrical code requirements before cabling. 

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PBX: Private Branch Exchange. A small privately owned version of the phone company's larger telephone central switching office. Many business' have PBX systems that run all their phones in their offices.

  • PIN OUT or PIN CONFIGURATION: T568A or T568B - T568A is the new pin-out scheme and is generally used for analog voice applications using 2 lines. T568A is commonly used for it is compatible with USOC one or two pair systems. T568B  is the more common pin-out scheme, and is generally used for multi-line electronic key systems and most data applications. Either will comply with most voice and data applications including ISDN, 10BASE-T, 16 Mbps token ring and ATM. 

  • T568B PIN OUT CONFIGURATION. 
    Pair 1 BLUE Pair = White/Blue to Pin 5,  
    Blue/White to Pin 4.

    Pair 2 ORANGE Pair = White/Orange  to Pin 1, 
    Orange/White to Pin 2.

    Pair 3 GREEN Pair = White/Green to Pin 3, 
    Green/White to Pin 6.

    Pair 4 BROWN Pair = White/Brown to Pin 7,
    Brown/White to Pin 8. 
     

  • T568A PIN OUT CONFIGURATION.
     Pair 1 BLUE Pair = White/Blue Pin 5, 
    Blue/White to Pin 4.

    Pair 2 ORANGE Pair = White/Orange Pin 3, 
    Orange/White to Pin 6.

    Pair 3 GREEN Pair = White/Green Pin 1, 
    Green/White to Pin 2.

    Pair 4 BROWN Pair = White/Brown Pin 7,  
    Brown/White to Pin 8.

  • NOTE: Both T5658A and T568B are nearly identical except that pairs 2 and 3 are reversed.

  • NOTE: A modular cord that is wired to a T568A color scheme on both of it's ends is compatible with a T568B system and vice versa.

Click here for a picture of different plug pin outs...

Plug: A male component of a plug/jack connector system in premises wiring.

Polarity: Which side of an electrical circuit is the positive? Which is the negative? Polarity is the term describing which is which.

POTS: Plain Old Telephone.

Power Sum: A test method for four pair cable whereby the mathematical sum of pair-to-pair crosstalk from three pairs to one pair is measured. 

Premises Wiring System: The entire wiring system on the user's premises, especially the supporting wiring that connect the communication outlets to the network interface jack.

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R

RBOC: Regional Bell Operating Company. Seven RBOC's exist, each of which owns two or more Bell Operating Companies (BOCS). The RBOCs were carved out of the old AT&T/Bell System during the divestiture of the Bell Operating companies from AT&T in 1984.

RCDD: Registered Communications Distribution Designer title is given as a rating granted by BICSI for a  members professional rating, (a paid member association the Building Industry Consulting Service International).

Return Loss: A measure of the similarity of the impedance of a transmission line and the impedance at its terminations. It is a ratio, expressed in decibels, of the power of the outgoing signal to the power of the signal reflected back. 

Ring: As in Tip and Ring. One of the two wires needed to set up a telephone connection. (See Tip..)

RJ: Registered Jack. RJs are telephone and data jacks/applications registered with the FCC. Numbers, like RJ-11, RJ-45 etc. are widely misused in the telecommunications industry. A much more precise way to identify a jack is to specify the number of positions (width of opening) and number of conductors, Example: "8-position, 8-conductor jack" or "6-position, 4 conductor jack".

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S

SINGLE MODE - Fiber optic cable. This has a small core for the light path, very focused, high quality signal. Usually requires a laser source to launch light into the cable and usually makes it mores expensive then LED sources used in Multimode fiber optic cable. 

T

Terminate: To connect a wire conductor to something typically a piece of equipment.

Token Ring: A ring topology for a local area network (LAN) in which a supervisory frame, or token, must be received by an attached terminal or workstation before that terminal or workstation can start transmitting. The workstation with the token then transmits and uses the entire bandwidth of whatever communications media the token ring network is using. A token ring  can be wired as a circle or star, with the workstations wired to a central wiring center, or to multiple wiring centers. The most common wiring scheme is called a star-wired ring. Whatever the wiring, a token ring LAN always works logically as a circle, with the token passing around the circle from one workstation to another. The advantage is that media faults (broken cable) can be fixed easily, since it's easy to isolate the faults. 

T1:  (1.544 Mbps per second) A standard for digital transmission in North American. A digital transmission link with a capacity of 1.544 Mbps (1,544,000 bits per second.) T1 lines are used for connecting networks across remote distances. Bridges and routers are used to connect LANs over T1 networks. (See Ring..)

TIP: 1.- The first pair in a pair of wires. (The second wire is called the "ring" wire.) 2.- A conductor in a telephone cable pair which is usually connected to positive side of battery at the Telco. It is the phone industry's equivalent of Ground in a normal electrical circuit.

TP-PMD: Twisted Pair - Physical Media Dependent. 
Technology under review by the ANSI X3T9.5 working group that allows 100 Mbps transmission over twisted-pair cable.

Twisted Pair: Two insulated cooper wires twisted around each other to reduce induction (thus interference) from one wire to the other. The twists, or lays, are varied in length to reduce the potential for signal interference between pairs. Several sets of twisted pairs may be enclosed in a single cable. If greater than 25 pairs, the twisted pairs are grouped and bound together.

Type 1, Type 1A: ( See 150 Ohm Wiring...)

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U

USOC Codes (Universal Service Order Codes): 
Developed years ago by the Bell operation companies to identity service or equipment under tariff. See below descriptions: 

  • RJ11 - Single-line telephone instruments

  • RJ11 - Single-line accessories

  • RJ11 - Connecting modems to telephone lines

  • RJ11 - Answering machines

  • RJ14 - Two-line telephone instruments and accessories

  • RJ25C - Connecting 3 lines to a single telephone set

  • RJ25C - Multiple-line answer/announce systems

  • RJ31X, RJ38X - Burglar and fire alarm circuits

  • RJ45 - Fixed loss loop

  • RJ45 - Programmed data equipment

  • RJ61X - Up to four access lines

  • RJ48 - 1.544 Mbps digital services or other data services

  • USOC Number suffixes - 
    RJ (Registered Jack) numbers end with a letter that indicates the wiring or mounting method. C - Identifies a surface or flush mount jack. W- Identifies a wall mounted jack. X-Identifies a complex multi-line or series type jack.

USOC 1,2 and 3 PAIR PIN OUT BELOW:

  • Pair 1 BLUE Pair = Pins 3 & 4 (These are the center pins)

  • Pair 2 ORANGE Pair = Pins 2 & 5 

  • Pair 3 GREEN Pair = Pins 1 & 6

NOTE: On this type of jack setup you would start with the center pins and work you way out to the outermost pins. 

USOC 4 PAIR SETUP

  • Pair 1 BLUE Pair = Pins 4 & 5 (These are the center pins)

  • Pair 2 ORANGE Pair = Pins 3 & 6

  • Pair 3 GREEN Pair = Pins 2 & 7

  • Pair 4 BROWN Pair = Pins 1 & 8 

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V

VP - Velocity of Propagation:
This is the speed at which digital pulses traverse the cable. We provide this value because installers use it to properly calibrate their portable testers and determine to the "measured wire length" required.

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BRAIN JOGGERS AND TEASERS. 

HOW TO MAKE A SIMPLE NETWORK.... [Back to Top]

DOWN AND DIRTY ETHERNET CABLE INSTALLATION 
"This is what one person did for a fast and simple installation that works fine. They are using Windows 95 and Windows 98 workstations with a Novell server and installing it in a home. "The trickiest part was installation of the server software, the rest was simple."

I'm not going to talk about the server software here except to say that if you pick up a book on Novell installation, easy to find, you can install the software without to much trouble, but you better have some computer savvy if you're going to attempt this.  Enough said..

If it is a new house or an office and you're doing the work and all the walls are open it should not be to hard to run the cable. You may want to leave this to a pro but you can do it yourself.  Be careful though you can't crimp or kink it or tie it off with wire ties to hard. Only use the correct wire ties for the job that are used for cable. You may want to consider Category 5e (Enhanced cat 5), it is high speed with more headroom. You don't want to re-cable anytime soon as things are changing rapidly. If price is a big consideration, it wasn't that much difference. Being sorry later would have cost me much more.

It's simple to plan. A little harder to cable if you don't know how. The hard part was running the cables through the attic into the rooms. But after it was done it seemed worth the trouble. If you plan a network using a hub, you would run your cables to each room of the house at least one data and one voice run to the same intended jack wall outlets. Stay away from electrical wires and wall outlets, appliances and lights and for that matter anything electrical. 
Warning: Remember this is low voltage cabling and has nothing to do with your house electric. 

The voice cable could also be Category 5 (or 5e) if you use dual Cat 5. Category 3 is also for voice, a little cheaper. It is a lower level of cable but then you might have to buy two different types of cable, besides by running two Cat 5's instead of one Cat 5 and one Cat 3, it leaves me the option of hooking two computers in the same room any time I want just by changing the punch down configuration in the closet. Having options is great.  I stuck with the Category 5e bundled together as two cables. That made it easier to pull. I only had to pull one cable that was really two.  However, always use Plenum type cable for all your cable horizontal runs (runs from the workstation through the ceiling to the equipment closet).
The best part is that each voice cable will have 4 pairs. Most phone
systems are 1 pair per line. That will allow you 4 lines per room or a 4 line phone if you use 1 pair for the voice run for each line. For more lines you may consider running two voice pulls. I used a 6 way faceplate in the walls with two of them blanked off. The idea is that if I need 4 lines (1 of the 4 pairs for each line), I can later ad a voice jack and break out each of the lines. Using a 6 port faceplate allowed this option. Besides the faceplate was inexpensive. But for now I will just hook up one pair to the one voice jack which will give me one working line, and leave the other ports in the faceplate blanked off with spacer blanks. 
The Category 5 data run should run back to a central location, perhaps a closet or a separate room. Punch them down onto a patch panel. This is really a time saver and important. No matter what type of set up your going to use the patch panel makes it simple when and if you have trouble and can't figure out what's wrong, and simple to connect computer to computer or computer to hub etc. You'll be thanking yourself later for using a patch panel and patch cords. (More explained later... read on). Make sure the closet is well ventilated. The back of the panels are 110, (that's little blade like thingies that cut right into the wire when you push it in), you simply punch down onto it using a 110 punch down tool. The configuration pattern to connect the wires onto the punch down is  Cat 5 is 568B. Real simple. Punching down is very critical for Category 5 and above if you want to run at high speeds.

IMPORTANT:  You must not strip back the sheath on the cable, only strip it back up to the point of punch down.


Maintain the twist in the pairs, you will see that each pair is twisted,
keep it so, and even twist it a little more if you can when you punch down. The same with the connector at the other end in the rooms where
the workstation will be. Maintain the twist.  The last 1/2 inch it critical to a real speedy system reducing crosstalk.
PATCH CORDS AND HUB AND THE CLOSET:
In the closet, you use a small patch cord that will be maybe 1 to 3 ft
from your hub. Patch cords are made from stranded flexible Category 5 or Category 5e (whichever), if you try to use solid horizontal run cable you may experience problems. Patch cords have to flex and should be a fine point in making sure your system is matched. You don't want to go longer then 10ft for the patch cord if you don't have to. Although you could. A Cat 5 cable run from the workstation to your patch panel should be no longer then 295 Ft.  Unless your house is really large, this should not be a problem. You just have to plug your patch cord from the patch panel in the closet to your hub in your closet. Put them both in the same closet. One patch cord per workstation. With a 12 or 24 port patch panel or even a pop in a port patch panel that has open holes in it but you then have to use jacks instead of an already all in one panel. An 8 port stackable hub, (8 port due to price you should be able to stack and expand). You can run a fine system.  More about panels...

You plug one of the ports from the hub into your computer server NIC card. It's really that simple, (Ethernet). You would also want to use, if you can afford to 10/100 Mbps auto sensing NIC cards for your computer and if  you really want to go big time then 100Mbps hubs. (The cheaper ones are 10Mbps, you may never really know the difference between 10Mbps and 100 Mbps unless you do a lot of data critical graphics and the like and even then). This is also why you would want Category 5e (Enhanced), instead of Category 5. 

SO, TO BOIL IT DOWN TO 5 EASY STEPS:
1) A 2 Port connector kits in the rooms with a 6 Port faceplate with 4 blanks in it for future expansion. This way you can always expand. 

2) A Short patch cord from the room wall-plate to the NIC card of each or your computers, maybe 6 or 10ft. each. and a short 3ft. cord from each port on the patch panel to the hub.

3) A Horizontal Category 5e (Enhanced) run from the workstation wall-plate jacks to the equipment closet. You can also run all your voice lines to a 110 punch down block and then connect that to your incoming phone lines. 

4) Connect your data cable runs to the Category 5 patch panel in the closet and a short patch cord for each run from the patch panel to your hub. 

5) A patch cord from your hub to your server NIC card. I used 10/100 Auto Switching cards in my workstations just in case I go to a 100 Mbps hub later on or a switch.

The use of individual voice runs allows you several choices on a phone
system. Worst case you can always just connect the voice runs together
in your phone closet area. (More flexibility).

I do hope that this helps you somewhat. 

You can also use Pepermint Cat5e 350MHz cable with the 350 Jack and our voice connectors for your voice runs, with some Cat 3 for voice however it may be a better choice to stay Cat5e all the way. 

Note: The wiring method preferred by the Telecommunication Industry Association (TIA) for residential/light commercial premises is the Star Method also called the Home Run. (see Home Run above...) 

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WARNING: We are not responsible for any errors or omissions or material that has been outdated. You the user or installer take full responsibility for use of this information and any of its content and at your own risk. You must verify all information with the manufacturer of the item before using, or installing it. Do not apply any power to cables or connectors or items other then low voltage cabling voltage that may be recommended by the manufacturer for your particular device or item. Do not connect any cable or components while power/voltage is applied to it. These items are NOT, to be used for or in high voltage or  household type voltage or high voltage applications, they are for low voltage computer networking type applications and you must inquire with the manufacturer as to the voltages and type of circuits the items can be used in.  If you are not sure or do not know exactly what to do or what to use then  you should consider a professional installer, cabler or network integrator. 

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