How to check if an old cable is still good?

Forgive me if this is the wrong forum. We are a conservation non-profit
with 2 buildings. One building was our office space for a few years until
the new building was built 5 years ago. There's a single CAT5 cable that
runs to a "10BaseT Concentrator" (I guess it's a hub) in the old building.
Haven't ever had a need to use it in the 3 years I've been here. Got a
researcher on board who'll be here 6 weeks and wants internet access.
Trouble is I think the cable to that old building might be bad. I've
unplugged and jiggled the cables to no avail. I don't see normal light
on-off activity as I'd expect.

Are there any "household" type tools I can use to see if the cable is still
good. All I can find around here is a small multimeter.

--
Mike Webb
Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust, Inc.
a 501 (c)(3) organization

hub/switch (known working) on one end and a known working pc on the other
end, that's about the best you can do for free

"Mike Webb" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> Forgive me if this is the wrong forum. We are a conservation non-profit
> with 2 buildings. One building was our office space for a few years until
> the new building was built 5 years ago. There's a single CAT5 cable that
> runs to a "10BaseT Concentrator" (I guess it's a hub) in the old building.
> Haven't ever had a need to use it in the 3 years I've been here. Got a
> researcher on board who'll be here 6 weeks and wants internet access.
> Trouble is I think the cable to that old building might be bad. I've
> unplugged and jiggled the cables to no avail. I don't see normal light
> on-off activity as I'd expect.
>
> Are there any "household" type tools I can use to see if the cable is
still
> good. All I can find around here is a small multimeter.
>
> --
> Mike Webb
> Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust, Inc.
> a 501 (c)(3) organization
>
>

A multimeter may tell you if the cable has continuity, but continuity
doesn't mean the signal can be sent through the cable since you have to
test both the sending and receiving pairs.

You can get a cheap cable tester for $30-50 that can tell you if your
cable is good or not. You can also try crimping new connectors on each
end of the cable and see if that helps. If that doesn't, I'd replace
the hub with another unit before I run another cable between two
buildings.

All good advice, thanks.

"redefined" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed) oups.com...
>A multimeter may tell you if the cable has continuity, but continuity
> doesn't mean the signal can be sent through the cable since you have to
> test both the sending and receiving pairs.
>
> You can get a cheap cable tester for $30-50 that can tell you if your
> cable is good or not. You can also try crimping new connectors on each
> end of the cable and see if that helps. If that doesn't, I'd replace
> the hub with another unit before I run another cable between two
> buildings.
>

You've aleady gotten the right reply,..but you really need to get a cable
tester for this type of stuff. They are a wide range of prices,...you get
what you pay for,...if it is real "cheap" then that is exactly what you will
have. Just try to get the best one you can in the range of $$ you can pay.

--
Phillip Windell [MCP, MVP, CCNA]
www.wandtv.com

"Mike Webb" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> Forgive me if this is the wrong forum. We are a conservation non-profit
> with 2 buildings. One building was our office space for a few years until
> the new building was built 5 years ago. There's a single CAT5 cable that
> runs to a "10BaseT Concentrator" (I guess it's a hub) in the old building.
> Haven't ever had a need to use it in the 3 years I've been here. Got a
> researcher on board who'll be here 6 weeks and wants internet access.
> Trouble is I think the cable to that old building might be bad. I've
> unplugged and jiggled the cables to no avail. I don't see normal light
> on-off activity as I'd expect.
>
> Are there any "household" type tools I can use to see if the cable is
still
> good. All I can find around here is a small multimeter.
>
> --
> Mike Webb
> Platte River Whooping Crane Maintenance Trust, Inc.
> a 501 (c)(3) organization
>
>