2.5/5/10Gbe through IDC connectors

[donkmeister]

My home network is all Cat6 solid core cable in the walls, terminating at Cat6 IDC punchdown connectors at the wall boxes, and Cat7 toolless keystones at the patch panels.

Everything runs fine at 1Gbps, but as I have upgraded PCs I've now got some 2.5Gbe NICs. The switches at the panels are still 1Gbe so that is the speed my network is capped at, but as the cost of gear is coming down and I occasionally have to move data sets of up to 100GB between workstation and server I am considering upgrading to 2.5, or possibly even 10Gbe.

My home wiring was all DIY so only continuity tested, I've not done any frequency testing nor do I have access to such equipment. Has anyone been in a similar boat and found faster ethernet working fine on their in-wall wiring? These stretches would only be <10m but if I would eventually like to move my workstation to an outbuilding with a 25m cable run.

[Ransoman]

As long as it is all punched down correctly and done to a reasonable high standard (Meaning, not 5cm of outer sheathing stripped, all pairs untwisted back to the wall and slapped in any old how) then you shouldn't need to worry. CAT6 is the main requirement for +1GBps and you are covered.

Go with 10GB. 2.5 isn't that common, at least not in enterprise IT.

[Zaichik]

mine is all cat5e hard wired in a similar way. 2.5, 5 and 10Gbe all work fine.
Runs are probably max of c10m too.

so your mix of cat6 should be fine.

In practice I prefer 2.5 and 5 because the kit runs cooler and can be passively cooled. 10gbe tends to run very hot and noisy.

[donkmeister]

Thanks chaps, I should be good then as I paid attention to minimal untwisting and used strain relief etc.

[somouk]

TP Link Omada kit is doing more and more 2.5Gb stuff and seems sensibly priced. CAT 6 will generally be fine for it too, can be a little more sensitive if you are running cable tied to a high voltage cable or such madness so worth checking everything is sensible if you do get issues.

[Captain_Morgan]

Just for clarity the ieee standard for cat5e has been updated to cover 2.5Gbe & 5Gbe uses.

There are also numerous online reports of users getting a reliable 10Gbe over shorter distances ~30m (iirc).

Cat6 also covers 2.5 & 5Gbe at 100m & 10Gbe at 30m. 6a is 10Gbe @ 100m.

As already said a lot comes down to the quality of the installation & termination.

[xeny]

I've got a reliable 10Gb copper run over 70m of Cat5, a 10cm Cat 6 patch and a ~15m Cat 6a run. We tried it as a desperate bodge to allow a certain service to be useful for remote work in March 2020, and it has been fine ever since.

You shouldn't count on cable plant working at higher than GigE, but it is often worth trying rather than agonising if it will work.