Category 6 cable
Cat 6- Category - 6, (ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-B.2-1) is a cable standard for Gigabit Ethernet and other network protocols that is backward compatible with the Category 5/5e and Category 3 cable standards. Cat-6 features more stringent specifications for crosstalk and system noise. The cable standard is suitable for 10BASE-T / 100BASE-TX and 1000BASE-T (Gigabit Ethernet) connections. It provides performance of up to 250 MHz.
The cable contains four twisted copper wire pairs, just like earlier copper cable standards, although each twisted pair is made up of slightly larger 23 gauge copper wire as opposed to Cat 5's 24 gauge wire. When used as a patch cable, Cat-6 is normally terminated in RJ-45 electrical connectors. If components of the various cable standards are intermixed, the performance of the signal path will be limited to that of the lowest category. As with all cables defined by TIA/EIA-568-B, the maximum allowed length of a Cat-6 horizontal cable is 90m. A complete channel (horizontal cable plus cords on either end) is allowed to be up to 100m in length, depending upon the ratio of cord length:horizontal cable length.
| Pin | Pair | Wire | Color |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 1 |  white/green
|
| 2 | 3 | 2 |  green
|
| 3 | 2 | 1 |  white/orange
|
| 4 | 1 | 2 |  blue
|
| 5 | 1 | 1 |  white/blue
|
| 6 | 2 | 2 |  orange
|
| 7 | 4 | 1 |  white/brown
|
| 8 | 4 | 2 |  brown
|
| Pin | Pair | Wire | Color |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 1 | white/orange
|
| 2 | 2 | 2 | orange
|
| 3 | 3 | 1 | white/green
|
| 4 | 1 | 2 | blue
|
| 5 | 1 | 1 | white/blue
|
| 6 | 3 | 2 | green
|
| 7 | 4 | 1 | white/brown
|
| 8 | 4 | 2 | brown
|
Other categories of network cables
- Cat 1: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Previously used for POTS telephone communications, ISDN and doorbell wiring.
- Cat 2: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Previously was frequently used on 4Mbit/s token ring networks.
- Cat 3: Current cable standard, used for data networks utilizing frequencies up to 16MHz. Popular for 10 Mbit/s Ethernet networks.
- Cat 4: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Provided performance of up to 20MHz, and was frequently used on 16Mbit/s token ring networks.
- Cat 5: Currently unrecognized by TIA/EIA. Provided performance of up to 100MHz, and was frequently used on 100Mbit/s ethernet networks. Suitable for 1000BASE-T gigabit ethernet.
- Cat 5e: Provides performance of up to 125MHz, and is frequently used for 1000BASE-T gigabit ethernet.
- Cat 7: Draft standard, proposed to include four individually-shielded pairs (ScTP) inside an overall shield. Designed for transmission at frequencies up to 650 MHz.