Reasons why the cable is damaged
A network cable can be damaged mainly in two places. It can break or damage the cable itself, or any of the two RJ-45 connectors that we have crimped on the cable. Depending on the actions we do, the cable, the connector or both may break.
Connect and disconnect the cable
If we are continually connecting and disconnecting the network cable from our computer, router, switch or NAS server. Little by little the RJ-45 connector with the tab for the «click» will be damaged, and there will come a time when this tab will break. If the tab of the RJ-45 connector breaks, then the network cable can come out with a little pull and even with any moment that we make the cables near the connector, so we can be left without connection to the local network and the Internet. anytime.
In some cases, if we do not have this tab, the Ethernet network cable will come out on its own, this is due to the female RJ-45 connector that we have on the routers, switches or NAS server. We have found on some occasions network sockets where if we do not have the tab on the RJ-45 connector, they do not go in completely well and come out, so we will not have a connection.
There are currently protectors for this tab of the RJ-45 connector, these protectors allow us to take better care of the tabs and not accidentally split them, however, if you are going to connect or disconnect the cable many times, it will end up splitting because it is a tab of pretty thin plastic.
Strains in the network cable
When we pull on the network cable, we can damage both the cable itself inside, such as the cable’s male RJ-45 connector, as well as the device itself where you have connected it. Pulling on the network cable is the worst thing you can do, because you can take away the Ethernet network card or device where you have connected it.
When you pull on the cable, the first thing you will damage is the RJ-45 connector, because one of the twisted pairs could come out of the connector if they are not crimped properly. You could also physically damage the RJ-45 connector because it’s plastic, depending on how you pull it, though. Finally, you could internally damage the network cable with the different twisted pairs two by two.
bend the wire
Bending the Ethernet network cable is also a bad idea, the first thing to keep in mind is that there are more flexible cables than others. For example, Cat 6 UTP cables are much more flexible than Cat 7 cables that are S/FTP, so in the first case, you will be able to bend them and not have many problems of damaging it internally, for this reason Cat 6 UTP cables They are ideal for passing them through different ducts in our home, because they will greatly facilitate this task.
On the other hand, Cat 7 S/FTP cables are much more rigid, and in these cases we could damage the multiple protections that we have in the cable itself, and that is that we could damage the twisted pairs that are shielded. This type of cable is much more complicated to pass through the conduits, because it bends really badly and if you bend it too much you could damage it.
physically harm him
Finally, if you have the cable on the floor and you step on it with a chair, crush it with a device such as a NAS server that is quite heavy, or any other action that damages the cable itself, then logically you should be careful with it, to avoid have to buy another Ethernet network cable.
The most critical part of an Ethernet network cable is the cable itself, because if the RJ-45 connector breaks completely or just the tab, we can change the cable’s RJ-45 connector and be able to use it again without problems, but if the cable is damaged, then you will have to replace it completely.
