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First time at installing a home CCTV system. The configuration is as follows

3x 5MP IP Bullet cameras each with a max specified dissipation of 2.3W

PoE Switch rated for 78W

NVR

Cat 5e cable from Konexe

I'm a novice at all this having relied mostly upon various calculators online to come up with the above devices. The single longest cable run is 145 ft. To test the cameras I crimped a short patch-cord - using cat6 cable - about 2ft length.

I'm new to crimping connectors to network cables as well - this project is the first time I am so doing. After crimping the cables I tested the connectors using a simple cable-test tool to verify the connections.

Thereafter I cut the cable for the single longest run i.e. 145ft, crimped the connectors on, and verified the connections. This time however the camera could not be detected by the system. As soon as I changed back to the patch cord the device was detected.

EDIT: I just realised the pairs are not identical between the patch cord, and the longer run. I'll try that first, and see.

Why is my IP camera not detected when connected using a cat5e cable?

EDIT: Castrating the cable, and putting in a new connector with the correct pairing solved the problem. Thank you, all.

Everyone
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    Miswiring the RJ-45 jacks would be a _very_ likely cause of the problem. ;) If that's it, please write that up in the "Your Answer" box down below, then come back to click the check mark later so others know this has been resolved. Self-answered questions are not only allowed, they're expected. – FreeMan Jun 01 '22 at 11:15
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    Also, while the limit for CAT5e is 100m (~300'), some devices can be more sensitive than others and at 145', you're closing in on half distance and that _could_ be contributing to the issue. – FreeMan Jun 01 '22 at 11:19
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    The pairs matter, of course. I doubt very much that it's the length. It is far more reliable to punch down fixed cables to jacks (female) and use factory-crimped patch cables (male-male) from the jack to the device, rather than to crimp plugs onto wall cables. – Ecnerwal Jun 01 '22 at 12:28
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    If you are not practiced at crimping and *purchasing* ethernet cable (which varies wildly in quality) I suggest you first crimp both ends of the 145 foot cable while it's still on the reel, and make sure it works with your specific equipment. THEN cut off one plug, fish the cable and crimp on a new plug again confident now that the cable itself, and one end, are good and you are only now testing your developing skills at crimping one end, already proven at least three times. – jay613 Jun 01 '22 at 17:11
  • Also, you say "Cat 6" .. getting Cat 6 performance takes a lot more knowledge and skill and the cable lengths and turns and twists start to matter more. But none of that should matter to a CCTV camera so hopefully "Cat 6" is not relevant to you. – jay613 Jun 01 '22 at 17:14
  • Not sure what or who "Konexe" is (web search gives no results that appear to make or sell cable), but if it's not counterfeit 5e and it's not CCA (copper coated aluminum, rather than copper) the problem is unlikely to be the cable itself. – Ecnerwal Jun 01 '22 at 17:17
  • Pssst... @jay613, he says _5e_ not _6_. ;) – FreeMan Jun 01 '22 at 17:31
  • Oh I see, it's his little patch cord that is Cat6. But then he practiced crimping with a different kind of cable. Tsk. Anyway ... even if you use crappy cable, as long as it isn't broken or shorted or (most likely) wrongly crimped .... poor cable will result in the devices negotiating down to lower speeds ... lower than 10Gbps that is but a single HD camera will work fine even if they negotiate 10Mbps. – jay613 Jun 01 '22 at 17:33

2 Answers2

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TL;DR Don't make your own cables

Crimping your own connectors on Ethernet cables is possible. But most of the time, for most people, it just isn't practical.

For short connections, use factory-made cables. That works great for up to 25', and for temporary connections even longer - e.g., 50' and 100' cables are readily available.

For long connections, wire up the jacks yourself, not the plugs. For a permanent setup, that means installing a wall jack (or surface mount jack, depends on the type of wall) on each end of a cable that you run, ideally, through the walls/ceiling/etc. If you don't have access to run cables through the walls (in the US, generally easier for commercial than for residential because most homes don't have drop ceilings), staple the cable along the baseboard, up around doors, etc.

The tool to properly attach cables to jacks, a punch tool is much easier for a novice to use than a crimper to attach plugs:

Trendnet punch tool

I hardly ever find problems with jacks after the initial installation. But handmade cables routinely fall apart, and even the factory-made cables can get messed up relatively easily.

The problems with handmade cables include:

  • Incorrect wiring (e.g., flipped pairs) - With a jack you can almost always just pull of the cable, cut a few inches to get clean wires and redo it. But with a plug you normally have to toss the plug and try another one.
  • The little clip breaks of the plug and then the cable won't stay in the jack very well.
  • The wiring (plug or jack) needs to maintain the proper twists very close to the end, more so with each new revision (CAT 3, 5, etc.). If you don't get it just right, you end up with a lower reliable distance (i.e., not the full 100 meters = 328'). With a jack, you can redo it easily if you need to, with a plug you normally have to toss the plug and try another one.
manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact
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  • The pairs were wired wrong on the jack. After I castrated the cable, and put on a new pair of connectors, the camera was detected. There is however another issue now - which I have raised in another question. The camera too has a female connector - hence I had to crimp on a male pair. – Everyone Jun 03 '22 at 09:41
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    @Everyone -- that means you put a jack on the cable then use a short patchcord to bridge the two – ThreePhaseEel Jun 03 '22 at 11:41
  • But the jack would be outdoors in the open. .. – Everyone Jun 03 '22 at 18:51
  • Yes, but it would be filled in by the patch cable. If you mount it vertically (i.e., 90 degrees from the way a typical wall jack is mounted) then it should not be affected by weather much. In any case, the camera itself, with its electronics, is far more vulnerable to the great outdoors than the passive wiring. Actually, depending on where you mount the camera, you might even be able to run a standard patch cable from the camera to a jack inside the building, and then run standard jack-bulk cable-jack to the network switch. – manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact Jun 03 '22 at 19:00
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Recheck your connections chances are that is where the problem lies. Be sure not to bend the cable too much causing issues with the cable or breakage when installing.

Follow the basic code for residential ethernet pairs if doing things in the home. FOLLOW THE DIAGRAM BELOW TO WIRE RJ45 END

Hope that this is helpful you should notice one end or the other end skipping pairs if things are right with your cable tester or jumping around check and double check it is most likely the way you wired your ends!

forlotto
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    Note particularly the *oddball interposition* of blue and green on pins 3-6. It would be very easy to get that wrong. (it's a throwback to telephone design, where the RJ11 had line 1 on the 2 center pins, and line 2 on the next pair outward). – Harper - Reinstate Monica Jun 01 '22 at 20:45
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    @Harper-ReinstateUkraine More than just a throwback to telephone design. It meant that with older Ethernet that only needed 4 pins, the middle pair was unused so you could have things patched such that you could have a phone line *and* Ethernet connected and if you plugged in a phone it would work and if you plugged in an Ethernet patch cable to a computer/printer/etc. it would also work. – manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact Jun 01 '22 at 21:06