MS300 Advanced Users Guide
3/3/2005
Page 8 of 65
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Ethernet Connections
The Ethernet jack on the back panel of the MS300 accepts any standard twisted pair
CAT5 Ethernet cable. If you are connecting the MS300 to a home network, you typically
connect a standard Ethernet cable from your Ethernet router or hub to the MS300.
There are different grades, or categories, of twisted-pair cabling. Category 5 is the most
reliable and widely compatible, and is highly recommended. It runs easily with 10Mbps
networks, and is required for 100Mbps networks. You can buy Category 5 cabling that is
pre-made, or you can cut & crimp your own.
Category 5 cables can be purchased or crimped as either straight-through or crossed. A
Category 5 cable has 8 thin, color-coded wires inside that run from one end of the cable
to the other. Only wires 1, 2, 3, and 6 are used by Ethernet networks for communication.
Although only four wires are used, if the cable has 8 wires, all the wires have to be
connected in both jacks.
Straight-through cables are used for connecting computers to a hub. Crossed cables are
used for connecting a hub to another hub (there is an exception: some hubs have a built-in
uplink port that is crossed internally, which allows you to uplink hubs together with a
straight cable instead).
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