3Com manual Before You Start, Workstation Connections, Twisted Pair TP Cables, Hub Connections

Before You Start

Your OfficeConnect hub comes with:

■One power adapter for use with the OfficeConnect hub.

■A Product Registration card for you to fill out and return.

■Four rubber feet.

■A stacking clip.

■Two unit labels and eight cable ties.

■An OfficeConnect Network Assistant CD-ROM.

The extra parts mentioned in the next section are not supplied with the hub.

Workstation Connections

To connect workstations or other equipment to your hub, you need:

1One 10BASE-T,

10/100BASE-TX, or	3
100BASE-TX adapter card
for each workstation. 3Com	2

produce a range of	1
easy-to-install network

adapter cards, which

provide your workstations with a suitable connection.

2An operating system (for example, Netware or Windows 95/98) with network support configured, running on your workstations.

3One suitable TP cable for each workstation.

In order to comply with the 10BASE-T standard, ports designed for workstation connections have been marked with the graphical symbol ‘x’. This denotes a crossover in the port’s internal wiring, for example 1x, 2x, 3x...

Twisted Pair (TP) Cables

To connect your workstations and other equipment to the Hub, use ‘straight-through’ TP cables with RJ-45 connectors (all OfficeConnect products use RJ-45 type connectors). A ‘straight-through’ cable is one where each pin of one connector is connected to the same pin of the other connector. Cables can be shielded (screened) or unshielded; we recommend that you use shielded cable. Cables used for 100BASE-TX or 10/100BASE-TX connections must be data grade (Category 5). Your supplier should stock suitable cables.

The maximum length of a single cable is 100m (328ft). Refer to “Fast Ethernet (100Mbps) Configuration Rules” on page 11 for further information on cable lengths in a 100Mbps network.

Hub Connections

To connect other OfficeConnect units to your Hub, you need one suitable TP cable for each unit.

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