Question for network folks who do cabling

[high_revs]

got a cable.. i think it's a 5e (hard to tell right now with the markings). i get inconsistent performance that i noticed before. just kept it around for spare. sometimes i'll get my gigabit download, other times, less than even 100mb. i know it's the cable since i also used a usb 3.0 nic adapter from another laptop whose realtek NIC just also was inconsistent.

i'm thinking.. it is just the rj45 jacks? or does cable really go that bad over time? I'm thinking.. maybe 8 yrs on this thing. kind of stumped of its inconsistent behavior. i re-did the rj45 jacks years back on both ends.

[ibanezfoo]

Are you talking about computer to computer performance or computer to internet or what?

Do you have another cable to test with? They are dirt cheap so if its suspect I'd just throw it out and get a new one. Cables don't really "go bad" but constant moving or unplugging/replugging can either break the cable inside or pull the wires out of the cable ends or loosen them enough to be inconsistent like you are talking about. You can try recrimping them if you have a crimp tool. You could also cut the ends off and put on new connectors. Its not really worth the time though unless you can't find cables for some reason.

Honestly though I'd just toss it and get a new one.

[high_revs]

ibanezfoo..

i'ts computer to internet. i plugged another cable that is even older than this one. and it went much faster. I also checked it against the router's ability to test speed and really just though this cable has gone bad. i'm also thinking of re-terminating it too since i have tools. i think tha'ts how i got it done last time. i hardly fiddle with them once they're in. but i'm thinking of just getting another since maybe tha'ts why my NAS is so slow too. it's old; yes. but only getting <2MBs is kinda silly nas to pc.

[MrRichards]

Re-terminating a network patch cable is iffy at best due to the stranded conductors.

[Buymoreguns]

Short cables are cheap and not worth testing or recrimping. They also tend to get tangled up and you start pulling it out of a pile, that action will over bend parts of it and the cable quality there will get worse. That would cause your cable to get inconsistent performance. 100mbps only use 2 pairs (4 wires) total. 1000mbps uses all 8. It is possible one of the wires is bad so sometimes you can only get 100 and other times more.
I would toss it and buy another. If this was internal building wiring, then different story.

[ibanezfoo]

ibanezfoo..

i'ts computer to internet. i plugged another cable that is even older than this one. and it went much faster. I also checked it against the router's ability to test speed and really just though this cable has gone bad. i'm also thinking of re-terminating it too since i have tools. i think tha'ts how i got it done last time. i hardly fiddle with them once they're in. but i'm thinking of just getting another since maybe tha'ts why my NAS is so slow too. it's old; yes. but only getting <2MBs is kinda silly nas to pc.

If you have jacks in the wall you can replace the keystone jacks for fairly cheap and repunch those. If its all just loose cable toss out all that old stuff and get some new 5e or 6 cables. Home Depot has them for cheap. Monoprice is about as cheap as I've seen thats easily obtainable for non-businesses if you want to buy online.

[Robotron2k84]

[MrFancyPants]

Re-terminating a network patch cable is iffy at best due to the stranded conductors.

No it's not, if done correctly. I've done it many times throughout my career in IT, never had a problem.

However, network cables are a dime a dozen, so it's best to just get a new one. I get all mine for free, but I realize not everybody has that luxury.

[high_revs]

yeah. i'm thinking of just getting a new one from monoprice. i had too many patch cables to do many years ago and i ended up just buying it from monoprice. save my fingers (that single orange? crossover is a pita) and i couldn't find the rj45 that i liked that are snagless. oddly that same cable, i put on mywork laptop and i'm getting 250-280mbps this morning though i went back to wifi since wifi was only another 40mpbs lower.

any comments on 28awg vs. 10awg? i see some slimline that are also nice snagless ends. i don't have much interference to pass by other than the area by the floor where the two UPS runs. i wonder how much interference protection is lost with thinner wires and ultimately thinner copper cables. my internet search doesn't show thinner = less shielding too.

If you have jacks in the wall you can replace the keystone jacks for fairly cheap and repunch those. If its all just loose cable toss out all that old stuff and get some new 5e or 6 cables. Home Depot has them for cheap. Monoprice is about as cheap as I've seen thats easily obtainable for non-businesses if you want to buy online.

i didn't think of the jack either. i'll flip the wires on their respective jacks. have a 4 port in the wall.

[Robotron2k84]

[ibanezfoo]

yeah. i'm thinking of just getting a new one from monoprice. i had too many patch cables to do many years ago and i ended up just buying it from monoprice. save my fingers (that single orange? crossover is a pita) and i couldn't find the rj45 that i liked that are snagless. oddly that same cable, i put on mywork laptop and i'm getting 250-280mbps this morning though i went back to wifi since wifi was only another 40mpbs lower.

any comments on 28awg vs. 10awg? i see some slimline that are also nice snagless ends. i don't have much interference to pass by other than the area by the floor where the two UPS runs. i wonder how much interference protection is lost with thinner wires and ultimately thinner copper cables. my internet search doesn't show thinner = less shielding too.



i didn't think of the jack either. i'll flip the wires on their respective jacks. have a 4 port in the wall.

10awg for ethernet cable? I don't think that is accurate. Or its the difference between stranded and solid wire.... For inside use normal ethernet cables just get whatever is cheapest. Cat6 is a higher spec and presumably better quality (in reality they all seem about the same) so I'd get that. For snagless I always cut off the tabs because ironically they seem to snag a lot more and when they age and the plastic stiffens its hard to get the connector out of a jack because you can't squeeze it.

Why are you using a crossover? Just about everything for the past 10 or 15 years is auto MDIX.

Don't overthink this. Its just ethernet cable. I buy this stuff by the pallet.

[high_revs]

i must've misread the 10awg.. that is much to thick! yeah, i just follow the old standards.

got the new cables today... even my work laptop doubled in download speed (especially during the day). got cat6's. got the cheapest color . yeah. certain colors were more expensive.

i did slimline for the shorter patch to see if that'll speed up my NAS file movements too that hover at 2MBps though it is a 12yr NAS. (thought it's be a gigabit for netgear even back then). but we'll see.

thanks for all the insight! great we got many techies here.

[hermosabeach]

glad to hear it worked out... I was having some quirky internet issues....

A carpet tack had evidently pierced the cable....

a headache to trouble shoot without specific gear... easy to fix once diagnosed

[the86d]

i must've misread the 10awg.. that is much to thick! yeah, i just follow the old standards.

got the new cables today... even my work laptop doubled in download speed (especially during the day). got cat6's. got the cheapest color . yeah. certain colors were more expensive.

i did slimline for the shorter patch to see if that'll speed up my NAS file movements too that hover at 2MBps though it is a 12yr NAS. (thought it's be a gigabit for netgear even back then). but we'll see.

thanks for all the insight! great we got many techies here.

Those flat slimline cables pull right out of the jacks with very little sideways tension, so be careful... had to decommission an unauthorized flat-cable and switch them to wireless at work because they horked one... database access is MUCH slower on wireless for them, but not MY problem, THEIR problem...

[high_revs]

so far ok.. though the speed to my nas moving video files is pretty slow. it varies it seems depending on type of files. i probably didn't need anything more than the ribbon type ethernet cable on that (5e)

oddly with the new cables (cat 6) it was driving me batty! i was so close to formatting my desktop tower thinking i had a vampire-type program and all the worse things that come to mind. i just did a fresh/clean install six weeks ago too. symptoms were - fast (900mbps +) after reboot... then leave it alone.. it drops <100mpbs (usually 90s mpbs).

have changed/bring back to origina
* jumbo frame support
* 100mpbs full duplex
* 1gb full duplex
* uncheck ipv6
* disable "allow pc to put to sleep" or something to that effect for that device
* reinstalled nic driver..
* reinstalled nic to usb3.0 driver (i had that on laptop to get consistent 900mpbs)

i think ultimately it was the silly power save option.. i get more consistent speed now though it fluctuates if i'm working and we use video a big and desktop sharing.

uggh.. maybe i didn't need new cables! oh well.. have more spares.