Ethernet
Ethernet
Random Query, Is the length of an Ethernet link important? For example, would being just 5 feet away from the router give a quicker internet connection instead of being in another part of the house? (30 feet of cable)
Cat 5e and Cat 6 support speeds of 1 Gbps over 100 meters. Cat 6a offers up to 10 Gbps at the same distance. Cat 6 achieves 10 Gbps even in shorter ranges.
When dealing with extended cables or those not suited for high-speed transmission, performance isn't guaranteed to drop as much—it still follows the pace of the weakest connection. Signal weakening over distance leads to packet loss, forcing retransmissions. For TCP, this means data may be lost; UDP experiences general loss. This is why longer runs often result in slower speeds.
No, even using Cat5e connections you can achieve up to 2.5gbps over 100 meters without any packet loss or problems. A small note: cheaper CCA cables—aluminum wires coated in copper—have greater resistance than standard Ethernet cables. For very long runs (like 30 meters or more) and network cards set to "green" mode, which operate at lower power, some packet loss may occur. This can usually be resolved by turning off the green mode setting on those cards.
2.5Gbps and 5Gbps (often grouped as mGig) are still being launched gradually for enterprise and some prosumer devices in specific regions.
Many X570 motherboards support 2.5 Gbps Ethernet cards. For instance, the X570 AORUS XTREME (rev. 1.0) includes a 10 Gbps Aquantia card capable of 2.5 Gbps and another 1 Gb card. The X570 AORUS MASTER (rev. 1.0) features an Intel 1 Gbps chip as the primary and a 2.5 Gb Ethernet Realtek as a secondary option. Other brands like Gigabyte, MSI, Asrock, and Asus also offer multiple options.