OT: Help Wiring Ethernet

[James Knott]

Aaron Vegh wrote:
> Hi there!
> I've just moved into a new home. Now I'm trying to run Ethernet into 
> my office. It's Cat 5e purchased at Home Depot, $25 for a roll of 
> 100m. I also purchased a wire cutting and crimping tool, which came 
> with a selection of RJ-45 and RJ-15 jacks. Finally, I purchased two 
> Cat 5e jacks, which will be mounted in a matching wall plate. Sounds 
> good, but the trick's in the implementation...
>
> On one end of my initial run, I've got the (female) jack. It's a 
> Leviton Multi-Use (data, phone) Cat 5e Jack that has an 8-port 
> terminal on the back. I strip and split out the ethernet to the eight 
> wires, and using the included termination tool, snap them into the 
> connectors.
>
> On the other end, I have a standard RJ-45 plug (male). This is a lot 
> harder to wire: you have to manually line up the wires in the correct 
> order, feed them into the plug, and then crimp it with the crimping 
> tool. It's hard to tell if you have got the wires in the right order, 
> and whether they've been crimped so the wires are in contact with the 
> terminal.
>
> There's also the issue of which wiring scheme to use. T568A is 
> recommended by a site I visited, whereas T568B is used only by AT&T 
> for some reason. So I tried the "A" layout, didn't get it to work, and 
> realized that every Ethernet cable I have is wired using the "B" spec.
>
> So, after re-wiring my cable, I plugged it in and.... NOTHING!
>
> I don't have a continuity tester. I don't know if I made an error on 
> the jack end, plug end, or both. My big problem is I don't know what 
> to try next. Hence my message to this list. There's gotta be a crowd 
> of you here who do this all the time. Can you provide advice on what 
> to look at? Let me know if my methodology is flawed? What's my next step?
>

It doesn't matter whether you use A or B, so long as you use the same at 
both ends of the cable.  If you mix them, you'll wind up with a 
crossover cable.  In fact, as far as the signal goes, the actual wire 
colour is irrelevant, so long as proper pairing is maintained.  Just 
choose A or B as you wish and stick with it.  One common problem with 
the plugs is ensuring the wires are fully into the plug.  You can 
determine this by closely examining the plug, to verify all the wires 
are pushed fully in.   A cable tester is very handy for this sort of 
thing.  I don't know if they still have them, but TigerDirect had a 
pocket sized tester for about $15, a couple of years ago.

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