
Connectivity Rules 4
1000BASE-T Cable Requirements
All Category 5 UTP cables that are used for 100BASE-TX connections should also work for 1000BASE-T, providing that all four wire pairs are connected. However, it is recommended that for all critical connections, or any new cable installations, Category 5e (enhanced Category 5) or Category 6 cable should be used. The Category 5e specification includes test parameters that are only recommendations for Category 5. Therefore, the first step in preparing existing Category 5 cabling for running 1000BASE-T is a simple test of the cable installation to be sure that it complies with the IEEE 802.3-2005 standards.
1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet Collision Domain
Table 4-1 Maximum 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet Cable Length
Cable Type | | | Maximum Cable Length | Connector |
Category 5, 5e, 6 100-ohm UTP or STP | | 100 m (328 ft) | RJ-45 |
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Table 4-2 Maximum 1000BASE-SX Gigabit Ethernet Cable Length |
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Fiber Size | Fiber Bandwidth | Maximum Cable Length | Connector |
| | | | | | | |
62.5/125 micron | 160 MHz/km | | | 2-220 m (7-722 ft) | | LC |
multimode fiber | | | | | | | |
200 MHz/km | | | 2-275 m (7-902 ft) | | LC |
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50/125 micron multimode | 400 MHz/km | | | 2-500 m (7-1641 ft) | | LC |
fiber | | | | | | | |
500 MHz/km | | | 2-550 m (7-1805 ft) | | LC |
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Table 4-3 Maximum 1000BASE-LX Gigabit Ethernet Cable Length |
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Fiber Size | | Fiber Bandwidth | | | Maximum Cable Length | Connector |
| | | | | | |
9/125 micron | | N/A | | | 2 m - 5 km (7 ft - 3.2 miles) | LC |
single-mode fiber | | | | | | | | |
Table 4-4 Maximum 1000BASE-ZX Gigabit Ethernet Cable Length |
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Fiber Size | | Fiber Bandwidth | | | Maximum Cable Length | Connector |
| | | | | | | |
9/125 micron | | N/A | | | 70 km - 100 km | | LC |
single-mode fiber | | | | | | (43 - 62 miles) | | |
Note: For link spans exceeding 70 km, you may need to use premium single mode fiber or dispersion shifted single mode fiber.
100 Mbps Fast Ethernet Collision Domain
Table 4-5 Maximum Fast Ethernet Cable Length
Type | Cable Type | Max. Cable Length | Connector |
| | | |
100BASE-TX | Category 5 or better 100-ohm UTP or STP | 100 m (328 ft) | RJ-45 |
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