How to test/debug bad network wiring?
- by Jack Lloyd
I recently bought a place already wired with Cat 5E (8 ports, leading to a central closet). However attempting to get link, nothing works. On closer examination, it was obvious that the ends in the closet were wired backwards (brown on pin 1, etc). The jacks that I've pulled out of the wall do look to be correctly done. However, testing with a network cable tester shows zero link between any of the jacks and any of the ports in the closet - I had expected to just see a 1/8, 2/7, ... 8/1 mismatch, but instead get nothing at all.
The runs are accessible and look neat, though they take some bends that seem quite sharp and are in some cases much longer than they need to be (the person who put this in was a professional electrician but I suspect this was the first time he ran network cabling).
My best guess at this point is that he either bought bad cable, or put so much tension on it that he snapped wires. Though it seems surprising/unlikely that I wouldn't get at least one active wire on one of the 8 lines.
So, my question: is there anything else I should try or test before I go ripping out everything and running new cable?
