Linksys EF2H16, EF2H24 manual Planning Your Network, Overview

Instant EtherFast II Series

Package Contents for the EtherFast II 10/100 Hub (16 and 24-Port Model)

•EtherFast II 10/100 Hub

•Rack Mounting Hardware

•AC Power Cord

•User Guide

10/100 Hubs

Planning Your Network

Overview

The rules that govern how nodes and hubs are distributed across a network are important to ensure the integrity of your data. Cabling specifications, dis- tance limits, and other topology rules must be followed in order to avoid col- lisions, data loss, and downed network connections.

The 10/100 Hub is equipped with RJ-45 ports that can automatically adjust to either 10Mbps or 100Mbps speeds. Each port can operate at either speed, completely independent of the other ports’ speeds, and can be connected to a workstation, file server, print server, hub, or another node with twisted-pair cabling.

Although there are different grades of cabling, you must use EIA 568 Category 5 unshielded twisted-pair (UTP), or better, for each connection you make, and each cable should not exceed 100 meters, (328 feet), in length. Category 5 cabling can be obtained at most computer stores, or you can crimp your own. See page 8 for cabling specifications. Here are some impor- tant cabling rules to follow:

·Computers should never be connected directly together on a network. They should always be connected to a hub.

·Only two 100Mbps Fast Ethernet hubs can be cascaded, (or uplinked), together. To cascade more than 2 100Mbps hubs, a switch or a repeater must be used.

·The maximum length for a Category 5 cable between a 100BaseTX or 10BaseT workstation and a hub is 100 meters (328 feet).

·The maximum distance between 2 100BaseTX hubs without a switch is 5 meters (16.4 feet).

·The maximum distance between 2 10BaseT hubs, (or a 10BaseT hub and an Auto-Sensing hub), is 100 meters (328 feet).

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