What would cause a network cable to go "bad"?

This is odd. I have used a network cable with my Xbox 360 for several years. Lately I haven't been able to connect online. I was thinking great, my network card failed. Well, I changed the cable and it worked fine.

What would cause an ethernet cable to go bad? There's no signs of chewing on it by my cats (or kids), connectors look good. Strange, just curious.

 

Corrosion on the contacts. And some of the catches do not hold the connection tight.

 

If you step on a cable frequently or bend it too sharply (radius of less than a few inches), it might stop working.

 

its a physical object.

the same thing that makes a standing chair collapse after however many thousand years, even if its been untouched. literally, the laws of physics as they relate to the environment.
its the exact some thing on a different scale.

as with all technology, you can learn endlessly about why it exists as it does, or you can naively accept it as an incredibly abstract tool.

 

uhhhh, the other two reasons I an accept, this, is, well, a little off the deep end! LOL. A chair collapses after many thousand years = network cable after a couple years.

Just to accept that something fails because it's an "abstract tool" would have kept us in the stone ages. Root causing and investigation is part of how we expand our knowledge and improve things and ourselves.

Just in this case, it's a $5 cable that's easily replaced. Just seemed odd that it would stop working because it was never abused, pretty much a straight connection, and always in the same spot.

 

Issue is more likely on the connector or contacts. It could have been pulled.

I usually terminate a few inches from the end and re-crimp it.

 

And as much of a geek that I am I actually do not own an RJ45 crimping tool or spare connectors. I should do that. Shame on ME!

 

It's a wire, the metal work hardens over time and cracks. They go bad more often than people think.

Most do not even realize there is two types of cat 5 lan cabling. Solid core and flexible core (braided). Each requires a specific rj-45 connector as well. Though a solid core can work on a flex core, a flex core cannot work on a solid core, and mixing isn't good regardless.

If the cable is moved often or stepped on and such, look into a flexible core cable. They bend in an easier manner and if one strand develops a crack it will continue to work. These are meant for shorter distances usually, such as connecting to a notebook, while a solid core is better served in a wall.

Solid core is more efficient, but not designed for flexibility like a flex core.
Most stores sell solid core, probably because in bulk it is cheaper and is a bit easier to crimp properly.

Find an electronics shops that can make you one if you can't find one. They can be gotten cheap.



Oh and a word about "gold plated" cables... It's BS and can do more harm than good.

It does nothing for the connection quality, AND... if you have a gold plated connector and bare steel connector, the gold will actually cause corrosion. You want similar metals, so steel on steel, gold on gold.

 

entropy rules all

and poor maintenance trumps entropy

and user fiddling along with wear and tear are other variables

seriously, you guys are arguing about what, the random reliability of a fifty cent part?

 

Well, I've had the same phone cord in my house since I moved in nearly 12 years ago. It's 25 feet long, and as cheap as it comes. It's been stepped on, yanked on, bent, bitten by my cats. And it still works fine. Same thing can be said for my network cable from my basement to my main floor access point. The one that broke went from my xbox 360 to my AP/router is 6 feet long, and only a few years old and hasn't been touched by anything. That's why I was perplexed.

I know it's an inexpensive part (btw if you can get me an ethernet cable for fifty cents delivered let me know where) but if you read my original post, I was just curious and noted it's inexpensive to replace.

 

cables are cheap at monoprice.com

I can make a 25' cable for less than 50 cents. But then I always have a spool of cat6 and a box of connectors lying about. I frequently re-use cable by clipping off bad connectors and crimping on a new one.