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Cabling
Category 7/Class F is only an ISO/IEC 11801:2002 standard
and is not in a draft stage by the TIA. It’s designed to meet or
exceed the requirements of 10-Gigabit Ethernet. The standard
specifies a frequency of 1–600 MHz over 100 meters of fully
shielded twisted-pair cabling.
Category 7/Class F cable consists of four individually shielded
pairs inside an overall shield. It’s called Shielded/Foiled Twisted Pair
(S/FTP) or Foiled/Foiled Twisted Pair (F/FTP). With both, each twisted
pair is enclosed in foil. In S/FTP cable, the four pairs are encased
in an overall metal braid. In F/FTP, the four pairs are encased
in an overall foil shield.
The fully shielded cable virtually eliminates crosstalk between
the pairs. In addition, the cables are noise resistant, making the
Category 7/Class F system ideal for high EMI areas. It’s well suited
for applications where fiber optic cable would typically be used—
but costs less.
Category 7/Class F cable can be terminated with two interface
designs as specified in IEC 6063-7-7 and IEC 61076-3-104. One is an
RJ-45 compatible GG-45 connector. The other is the more common
TERA
®
connector launched in 1999.
Category 7a/Class F
A
is a pending ISO class based on the use
of S/FTP cable to 1000 MHz.
10-GbE and twisted-pair cable.
The cabling industry is developing two different standards that
can be used in 10-GbE applications. One is for use with Category 6
(CAT6) cable, and one is for Augmented Category 6 (CAT6a). These
standards specify requirements for each component in the channel,
such as cable and connecting hardware, as well as for the permanent
link, and the channel.
10-GbE using CAT6. The first set of standards define cabling
performance when using Category 6/Class E cabling for 10-GbE
applications. The TIA/EIA version is the Technical Systems Bulletin
155 (TSB 155). ISO/IEC TR 24750 is a technical report that details
measuring existing Class E systems.
No matter what the cable length is, CAT6 cable must meet 10-GbE
electrical and ANEXT specifications up to 500 MHz. However, the
CAT6 standard now specifies measurements only to 250 MHz, and it
does not have an ANEXT requirement. There is no guarantee CAT6
can support a 10-GbE system. But the TSB provides guidelines
for ways to help mitigate ANEXT. One way to lessen or eliminate
ANEXT altogether is to use shielded cable and equipment, such
as F/UTP cable. Another way is to follow mitigating installation
techniques, such as using non-adjacent patch panels, separating
equipment cords, unbundling horizontal cabling, avoiding areas
of high EMI, etc.
10-GbE using CAT6a. The second set of standards will define
Augmented Category 6 (CAT6a) and Augmented Class E (Class E
A
)
cabling. The newer, augmented cabling systems are designed
to support 10-GbE over a 100-meter horizontal UTP channel.
The TIA/EIA version is in draft as of mid 2007 and will be
published as ANSI/TIA/EIA-568B.2-AD10. It recognizes both UTP
and STP CAT6a systems. It extends CAT6 electrical parameters such
as NEXT, FEXT, return loss, insertion loss, and more to 500 MHz.
It also specifies near- and far-end Alien Crosstalk (ANEXT, AFEXT)
to 500 MHz. It also goes beyond IEEE 802.3an by establishing
the electrical requirements for the permanent link and cabling
components. The ISO Class E
A
standard will be published
in a new edition of the 11801 standard.
Comparison of Categories and Classes
TIA TIA ISO ISO
Frequency
(Components) (Cabling) (Components) (Cabling)
1-100 MHz CAT5e CAT5e CAT5e Class D
1-250 MHz CAT6 CAT6 CAT6 Class E
1-500 MHz CAT6a CAT6a CAT6a Class E
A
1-600 MHz n/s n/s CAT7 Class F
1-1000 MHz n/s n/s CAT7
A
Class 7
A
10-GbE Cabling
Link Segment
Cable Standard Distances
CAT6/Class E
Unshielded TSB-155, ISO/IEC TR-24750 55 (37*) m to 100 m
Shielded TSB-155, ISO/IEC TR-24750 55 (37*) m to 100 m
CAT6a/Class E
A
TIA/EIA-568-B.21-AD10 100 m
Unshielded ISO/IEC 11801 2.1
Class F ISO/IEC TR-24750 100 m
Shielded
NOTE: For S/FTP and F/UTP cable, see blackbox.com.
* TSB-155 allows 37 meters in CAT6 installations without mitigation.
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