We all have Ethernet cables at home and they are probably different colors. In my case, I have several yellows, but there are also red, blue, green… What many people do not know (myself included) is that colors are not a whim of the manufacturers, but rather They answer a practical question.
A question of organization
Contrary to what we might expect, the exterior color of an Ethernet cable will not tell us anything about its performance. If what you want is know the category of the cable (that is, the speed it supports), they all come with this detail printed on the cable itself. The color does not tell us if the cable is more or less fast, it is for something totally different: being able to distinguish and organize them better.
In a home it doesn’t make as much sense, but imagine a server or data center where Ethernet cables number in the hundreds or even thousands; If all the cables were the same color it would be crazy to identify them. Colors help manage large networks.
Ethernet cable colors
Although there are some guidelines on cable colors from organizations such as the IEEEand ANSIthere really is no universal color code for Ethernet cables. The meaning of each color can vary depending on the country, the sector and even the company. However, there are many similarities and widely used color patterns. These are the most common uses:
- Grey/white/black: These are the colors that we usually find for general home and office use. We see them in most routers.
- Blue: They are the most used cable for general network connections, servers or workstations.
- Yellow: They are usually PoE (Power over Ethernet) cables, that is, they provide power as well as connectivity. They can be used in IP cameras and VoIP phones.
- Green: to directly connect two devices such as computers, without an intermediate device.
- Red: They are usually reserved for critical connections such as security or emergency systems.
- orange and purple: They are less common colors. According to Cables and Kitsare used to connect systems that require a specific connection not compatible with the usual standards, for example to connect older systems that do not use Ethernet with newer ones that do.
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As we said, the color of the cable does not determine its performance, but rather has a practical purpose for those who manage very large networks. With colors, maintenance time is shortened and serious failures such as the disconnection of critical systems are avoided. At home it can also be useful if you have several devices connected to your router and you want to clearly see which is which.
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The news
The color of your Ethernet cable is not for decoration: it is a key visual language
was originally published in
Xataka
by
Amparo Babiloni
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