Need a 5-inch straight-through Ethernet cable? A 37-foot crossover cable? Tired of miles of extra cable coiled around your desk? Sure, you could probably buy custom cables online, but with a spool of Cat5 and a $10 crimper you can make your own, for less.
Determine which type of cable you need. Newer networking hardware, adapters, NASes, switches and routers are connected with what's called a straight through cable. This is the type of Ethernet cable that generally ships with today's networking devices. In some cases you'll need a cross-over cable for , connecting older devices by their switches switches or connecting two hubs (a technique called daisy-chaining), or connecting two older laptops to each other (for file transferring, for example. Cross-over cables are rarely needed for networking hardware that's only about three or fours years old, thanks to a technology known as Auto-MDIX, which can automatically sense on network ports if a straight through or cross-over connection is needed and will make the appropriate connection. However, if you want to link older equipment, check your device's documentation to see if the connection requires a cross-over cable.
Get the right tools. You will need a spool of Cat5 (Cat5e is now the standard) or Cat6 (if your network is Gigabit Ethernet) cable. Cat5 or Cat6 cable can have plenum or PVC jackets. PVC cable is cheaper, but it also releases a toxic smoke if it catches on fire, so some building codes prohibit it. Plenum, on the other hand, does not release these toxic fumes. If you have no prohibitions preventing the use of PVC and are new to making Ethernet cables, your best bet is to start with PVC coated cable. It's cheaper and easier to work with because the wiring is not as soft as a Plenum cable's. You'll also need RJ-45 plugs or "heads" plastic modular plugs that terminate both ends of the cable, a wire cutter (or a good, sharp pair of scissors), a wire stripper and an RJ-45 crimper. The crimper is used to secure the heads at each end of the wire. You can purchase crimpers, cable and plugs from a slew of online stores or Radio Shack.
Cut the wire to the desired length and strip about an inch of the jacket off, exposing the four twisted pairs of inner wiring. When stripping the cable, be careful not to nick the wires. This can cause problems with the connection. Do this at both ends of the cable.
Prepare your wire for termination or "crimping". Untwist the wire. Arrange your wires based on whether you need a straight through or crossover cable. For a straight through, arrange the wires, on both ends as you are holding and looking at the cable, from left to right: white-orange, orange, white-green, blue, white-blue, green, white-brown, brown. For a cross-over cable, the wire arrangement is different at both ends. At one end, arrange as follows: white-green, green, white-orange, blue, white-blue, orange, white-brown, brown. At the other end, arrange as you would for a straight-through cable: white-orange, orange, white-green, blue, white-blue, green, white-brown, brown.
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