Network Cables

OK, I'm not a network guy. I can wire up cables that come with routers, modems etc but I don't neccesarily know which cables are twisted pair or whatever. So I have a Cat 5 RJ45 cable that runs from my DSL modem/router into my computer but I want to run it through my surge protector so I bought another cable Cat 5E but it does not work, even though I read Cat 5E is downward compatible with Cat 5.

Now if I look closely at my original cable it appears the red and green wires are crossed from one end to the other (they are ordered differently inside the plastic connector). But this new patch cable I bought has them in the exact same order at both ends. The new cable packaging is "CAT 5E, ETL verified to ETA/TIA, 568 CAT5e, UTP 4Pairs 24AWG, Patch cable".

So what I would like to know is what is it that I want to order?

Hi TrainableMan

It would be best to use one type of cable > This may help

But that link again makes me believe the CAT5E should be compatible with CAT5 yet when running it through the surge protector didn't work I tried simply substituting this cable for my original cable and it did not work.

So I guess I'm trying to find out if this cable is wired wrong, in which case I want a refund!, or if there is another type, like maybe PATCH cable wires are NOT crossed and "what I need" are crossed and it is my fault I ordered the wrong part?

A patch cable is designed to connect two dis-similar devices (e.g. a NIC and a hub) and a crossover cable is designed to connect to similar devices (e.g. a NIC to a NIC or a hub to a hub). I think This will be of more help

One thing I read said that in some phone related installations (which this is a phone line in and Ethernet out) there may only be a single crossover pair and this does seem to be what my cable is. While standard crossover cables flip both pairs. Man this is fun, I'll probably just forget running it through the surge protector

Probably a good decision on your part, every time I tried that I got some signal loss.

Surge protection on input power is a good idea but the surge protection on cat is a bit naff and as Nibiru says there does seem to be a loss when this is implemented.

Well my old APC UPS used to have phone line surge protection so I ran the input side (regular phone line) of my DSL modem/router through it. This one I upgraded to has ethernet in/out so I was going to run the output side through it and into my computer but it didn't work because I apparently bought the wrong cable.