CCNA 02 - UTP vs Fiber
UTP vs FIBER
AliContents
In the right corner we have the reigning champion, the UTP cable. In the left corner we have the challenger, the Fiber cable. Let’s get ready to rumble!
Champion: UTP Copper Cable
Our reigning champion is know by many names:
- For the peasants → Ethernet cable (don’t be a peasant).
- For the nerds → UTP as in Unshielded Twisted Pair (don’t be a nerd).
- For the heretics → RJ45 (don’t be a heretic).
Clarifications
- UTP is the twisty cable that allows to send and receive data between devices.
- RJ45 is the connector that allows to connect the UTP cable to a device.
- Ethernet is a collection of protocols that allows to send and receive data between devices.
I cant be bothered put an image of an UTP cable and RJ45 connector here, you know what it looks like. If you don’t, Google it.
Things you should know about UTP cables
- They are cheap.
- They have 8 pins → 4 pairs of 2 pins.
- They can only be used for short distances → 100 meters or less. Mostly used for LANs.
- They are not secure → can be easily tapped into, since they are not shielded.
- They are not reliable → They are prone to electromagnetic interference.
- Electrical signals are used to send and receive data.
UTP cable types
- Straight-through → used to connect different devices.
- Crossover → used to connect similar devices.
I hope you remember that UTP cables have 8 pins. If you don’t, go back and read from the start.
| Device Type | Transmit Pins | Receive |
|---|---|---|
| ROUTER, Firewall, PC/Server | 1 and 2 | 3 and 6 |
| Switch | 3 and 6 | 1 and 2 |
Now that you have learned about the different types of UTP cables, you can go ahead and forget about them. Because nowadays, all devices have Auto-MDIX. This means that they can automatically detect the type of cable and adjust accordingly.
Ethernet Standards for UTP cables
| Speed | Common Name | Street Name | Cable Name | Pins Used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Mbps | Ethernet | 10 BASE-T | Cat 3 | 4 |
| 100 Mbps | FaseEthernet | 100 BASE-T | Cat 5 | 4 |
| 1 Gbps | Gigabit Ethernet | 1000 BASE-T | Cat 5e | 8 |
| 10 Gbps | 10 Gig Ethernet | 10G BASE-T | Cat 6a | 8 |
Challenger: Fiber
New kid on the block is the Fiber cable. It’s a bit more expensive, but it’s faster, more secure and more reliable.
It basically consists of a glass core surrounded by a cladding. The cladding is surrounded by a buffer and the buffer is surrounded by a jacket. The jacket is the outer layer of the cable. BORINGG!!!
Basically its a glass tube with a plastic tube around it and you use lasers to phew phew data through it.
Things you should know about Fiber cables
- Normally not used in LANs, but in WANs.
- They are expensive.
- Light signals are used to send and receive data.
Connectors: Small Form-factor Pluggable (SFP)
As Micheal Scott would say:
Behold the SFP connector
The far less interesting cable
Types of Fiber Cables
| Multi-Mode | Single-Mode |
|---|---|
| Wider (allowing more angles of light wave) | Narrower |
| Cheaper | Expensive |
| Shorter Cable length | Longer Cable length |
| LED base transmitter | Laser based transmitter (phew phew) |
Ethernet Standards for Fiber cables
For the sake of conceive:
- Single-Mode → SM
- Multi-Mode → MM
| Speed | Street Name | Cable Type | Cable Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Gbps | 1000 BASE-LX | MM/ SM | 550m (MM) 5km(SM) |
| 10 Gbps | 10G BASE-SR | MM | 400m |
| 10 Gbps | 10G BASE-LR | SM | 10km |
| 10 Gbps | 10G BASE-ER | SM | 30km |
TLDR
| UTP Cable | Fiber Cable |
|---|---|
| Cheap | Expensive |
| Short | Long |
| Slow | Fast |
| Unsecure | Secure |
| RJ45 | SFP |
| Copper | Glass |
| Electrical | Light |
| LAN | WAN |
OUR NEW Champion is
Champion is…
