I want to connect 2 ethernet cables to iMac?

[Rhobes]

I don't know if the following can be done, but here goes...

I want to add a new Epson Printer Pro 3880 to my 27" iMac, it uses an Ethernet cable. I also want to connect my iMac via an Ethernet cable to the internet (currently on wifi). The iMac has only 1 Ethernet port on the back.

Can some type of "Y" connector plug both into 1 port? Do I have to select which I am going to use, either internet or printer?

I need about 20' of cable for the iMac, the connection is 50MB/sec download speed, what type do I buy, where?

I also need 13' for the printer. Printer's cable(which is too short) says: Patch Cord 2835 E87647-DG 5U AWM 60 C 30V LL58663 CSA AWM 80 C I A 30V FT1 ETL Verified to TIA/EIA 568A CAT5. Where can I find this stuff?

Couldn't both cables be the same, wouldn't that be better?

TIA

 

[drsox]

I don't know if the following can be done, but here goes...

I want to add a new Epson Printer Pro 3880 to my 27" iMac, it uses an Ethernet cable. I also want to connect my iMac via an Ethernet cable to the internet (currently on wifi). The iMac has only 1 Ethernet port on the back.

Can some type of "Y" connector plug both into 1 port? Do I have to select which I am going to use, either internet or printer?

I need about 20' of cable for the iMac, the connection is 50MB/sec download speed, what type do I buy, where?

I also need 13' for the printer. Printer's cable(which is too short) says: Patch Cord 2835 E87647-DG 5U AWM 60 C 30V LL58663 CSA AWM 80 C I A 30V FT1 ETL Verified to TIA/EIA 568A CAT5. Where can I find this stuff?

Couldn't both cables be the same, wouldn't that be better?

TIA

Get a simple gigabit switch. What is your layout ? I presume there is a router and a modem ? Connect everything to the switch then everything will be able to connect to everything. What has WiFi to do with your layout ?

As far as the cables go, you need a cable for each device, so you might need cables of different lengths. Connect all cables to the switch. Use Cat 5e as a minimum - don't be tempted to get Cat 5.

 

[Jesla]

Google..... Ethernet Hub...

 

[Giuly]

Google..... Ethernet Hub...

You don't do hubs anymore, you do switches. This TrendNet 5-port switch is quite popular, you just connect the 'Internet', printer and iMac to it and off you go.

As far as the cable goes, you'll need Category 5e — like this 30' Belkin.

 

[Rhobes]

Get a simple gigabit switch. What is your layout ? I presume there is a router and a modem ? Connect everything to the switch then everything will be able to connect to everything. What has WiFi to do with your layout ?

The internet cable comes into the house and connects to a box (modem/router?) which has 4 Ethernet outlets. The imac is not plugged into it now, it's wirelessly connected. We upgraded the internet connection to 50MB/s and were told to get that speed we need to connect to the box via Ethernet cable.
So, I connect the iMac to the box, I still need to plug printer into iMac.

----------

You don't do hubs anymore, you do switches. This TrendNet 5-port switch is quite popular, you just connect the 'Internet', printer and iMac to it and off you go.

As far as the cable goes, you'll need Category 5e — like this 30' Belkin.

So using your recommended cable for each & all connections, I could place the switch behind the iMac, plug it & the printer into it and then run a cable from the internet box to the switch, correct?

Thanks so much everyone, I get the switch & Belkin cable

 

[drsox]

The internet cable comes into the house and connects to a box (modem/router?) which has 4 Ethernet outlets. The imac is not plugged into it now, it's wirelessly connected. We upgraded the internet connection to 50MB/s and were told to get that speed we need to connect to the box via Ethernet cable.
So, I connect the iMac to the box, I still need to plug printer into iMac.

No. The box has a built in switch, that's why it has 4 outlets. Just connect the printer to the box also. If the cable length from box to iMac is too long, then to avoid running 2 long cables to the box, then get another switch, put that next to the iMac, connect the printer and the iMac to this switch and then run one long cable from switch to box.

You need to think through locations and distances to get a good solution for you.

 

[Rhobes]

No. The box has a built in switch, that's why it has 4 outlets. Just connect the printer to the box also. If the cable length from box to iMac is too long, then to avoid running 2 long cables to the box, then get another switch, put that next to the iMac, connect the printer and the iMac to this switch and then run one long cable from switch to box.

You need to think through locations and distances to get a good solution for you.

The iMac is 17' from the box, the Printer is 29' from it.

So, would it be best to buy another switch, place it near the iMac and connect iMac to it via 12"+ and printer by 11'. Then switch to box by 17'. I think this would use the least amount of cable & is as close as I can get to the box.

 

[drsox]

The iMac is 17' from the box, the Printer is 29' from it.

So, would it be best to buy another switch, place it near the iMac and connect iMac to it via 12"+ and printer by 11'. Then switch to box by 17'. I think this would use the least amount of cable & is as close as I can get to the box.

Now you're thinking. But, be aware that cables only come in fixed lengths, usually 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 or some variation. See : http://www.ebay.com/itm/PACK-OF-2-1...589?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5aef5d482d. ( Scroll down the page )

 

[Rhobes]

Now you're thinking. But, be aware that cables only come in fixed lengths, usually 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 or some variation. See : http://www.ebay.com/itm/PACK-OF-2-1...589?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5aef5d482d. ( Scroll down the page )

I found these custom sized they are CAT6 but should work fine...
http://www.computercablestore.com/Custom_Cat_6_Patch_Booted_Black_catID2206.aspx

 

[FreakinEurekan]

The iMac is 17' from the box, the Printer is 29' from it.

So, would it be best to buy another switch, place it near the iMac and connect iMac to it via 12"+ and printer by 11'. Then switch to box by 17'. I think this would use the least amount of cable & is as close as I can get to the box.

Do you need to share this printer with multiple computers? If not, you can plug it into the iMac via USB instead of Ethernet.

 

[waw74]

The iMac is 17' from the box, the Printer is 29' from it.

So, would it be best to buy another switch, place it near the iMac and connect iMac to it via 12"+ and printer by 11'. Then switch to box by 17'. I think this would use the least amount of cable & is as close as I can get to the box.

Ethernet cable is good up to 100 meters (about 330 feet)
for that matter USB is good to 10 meters (15 feet) 5 meters (15 feet) so you could just get a long USB cable to run to your printer if it has USB.
(red text is incorrect, i was mistaken, justperry corrected)

i personally would just run 2 cables back to the main router, if it's dressed nicely, it will be less obtrusive than another box with a power plug on or behind your desk.


and...
is your connection 50MB or 50Mb (MB= MegaByte, Mb = Megabit, 1MB=8Mb)
most home internet speeds are given in Mb, the numbers are bigger, and look more impressive.


50 MByte = 400 Mbit
or
50 Mbit = 6.2 MByte

If it really is 50MByte, you will need to make sure you get a gigabit router (gigabit = 1000 Mb)


here are some common network speeds, so you can see where they fall.
as well as your network speed

• 50Mb = 50Mb
• Wireless G = 54 Mb (in theory, a bit less in real life)
• 10/100 ethernet = 100Mb (I'm ignoring the 10 part) (a standard non-gigabit router)
• 50MB = 400 Mb
  [*]Wireless N = 600Mb (also in theory, and with the right hardware, i get about 200-225 on my retina MBpro with 5GHz)
• gigabit ethernet = 1000Mb

If you alt click the wifi icon on your mac, the Transmit rate is the current speed of your wireless.

you can also use "Applications/Utilities/Network Utility" and go to the info tab. you can select your different network interfaces (wireless or wired) and see their speed.

 

[drsox]

I found these custom sized they are CAT6 but should work fine...
http://www.computercablestore.com/Custom_Cat_6_Patch_Booted_Black_catID2206.aspx

Yes, CAT6 is even better, but the cable is thicker. I suggest you don't try too hard to minimise cable lengths as my experience is that cables become too short as soon as any rearranging is required.

 

[justperry]

Ethernet cable is good up to 100 meters (about 330 feet)
for that matter USB is good to 10 meters (30 feet) so you could just get a long USB cable to run to your printer if it has USB.

FYI, "USB" max. cable length is 5 Meters not ten, you probably can go a bit over that 5 Meter length but not double.
You need active USB cables if it's more than 5 Meters and they do not always play well with devices, I have an Alfa USB product and the software on my Mac crashes many times before it works on these cables, like it crashes 10 times and on the 11th time it will work, a direct connection does not do this and works 100%.
Only USB 3 does not specify a Max. Cable length but it has standards as you can see below

Universal Serial Bus

Cabling



A USB twisted pair, where the "Data +" and "Data −" conductors are twisted together in a double helix. The wires are enclosed in a further layer of shielding.
The data cables for USB 1.x and USB 2.x use a twisted pair to reduce noise and crosstalk. USB 3.0 cables contain twice as many wires as USB 2.x to support SuperSpeed data transmission, and are thus larger in diameter.[44]
The USB 1.1 Standard specifies that a standard cable can have a maximum length of 3 meters with devices operating at Low Speed (1.5 Mbit/s), and a maximum length of 5 meters with devices operating at Full Speed (12 Mbit/s).[citation needed]
USB 2.0 provides for a maximum cable length of 5 meters for devices running at Hi Speed (480 Mbit/s). The primary reason for this limit is the maximum allowed round-trip delay of about 1.5 μs. If USB host commands are unanswered by the USB device within the allowed time, the host considers the command lost. When adding USB device response time, delays from the maximum number of hubs added to the delays from connecting cables, the maximum acceptable delay per cable amounts to 26 ns.[45] The USB 2.0 specification requires that cable delay be less than 5.2 ns per meter (192,000 km/s, which is close to the maximum achievable transmission speed for standard copper wire).
The USB 3.0 standard does not directly specify a maximum cable length, requiring only that all cables meet an electrical specification: for copper cabling with AWG 26 wires the maximum practical length is 3 meters (9.8 ft).[46]
[edit]

 

[Giuly]

Or, you could go the easy way and add the printer to your WiFi using a bridge device like the Apple AirPort Express or the Linksys RE1000.

Both plug into the wall outlet and let connect to your printer via Ethernet and your Router via WiFi. Saves you from fiddling around with long cables.

 

[Rhobes]

is your connection 50MB or 50Mb

here are some common network speeds, so you can see where they fall.
as well as your network speed

• 50Mb = 50Mb
• Wireless G = 54 Mb (in theory, a bit less in real life)
• 10/100 ethernet = 100Mb (I'm ignoring the 10 part) (a standard non-gigabit router)
• 50MB = 400 Mb
  [*]Wireless N = 600Mb (also in theory, and with the right hardware, i get about 200-225 on my retina MBpro with 5GHz)
• gigabit ethernet = 1000Mb

If you alt click the wifi icon on your mac, the Transmit rate is the current speed of your wireless.

you can also use "Applications/Utilities/Network Utility" and go to the info tab. you can select your different network interfaces (wireless or wired) and see their speed.

I have 50Mbps dnload & 10Mbps upload.
On my new iMac:
The Transmit rate says 117
Network Utilities says: Link Speed 130 Mbit/s

I have an old 2002 17" iMac connected by Ethernet cable, it says:
Network Utilities says: Link Speed 100 Mbit/s

None of that makes any sense to me, also I thought cable was faster then WiFi?

How can my new iMac have 130 or even 117 Mbps when I only have a 50Mbps connection from Comcast?

I did some reading on wireless G & N, I never heard of it before. For the life of me I spent all day trying to find out what I have to no avail. My Comcast modem is a Arris Model TG862G/CT. I assume the"G" in the model number means just that.

I'm now thinking I ordered ethernet cable for no reason, but none of it makes sense. It will be interesting to see what those numbers read on my new iMac when the ethernet connection is made.

 

[waw74]

None of that makes any sense to me, also I thought cable was faster then WiFi?

good clean wifi is faster than the basic cable internet we have in the states.
The newer 802.11n is actually faster than the 100Mb/s wired ethernet that is still common. but wireless is subject to outside interference, so that depends on how "clean" the signal is.

don't make mistakes like you did with 100 MB/s, it's 100 Mb/s,

sorry perry, i've fixed it, apparently i ******** up again,

How can my new iMac have 130 or even 117 Mbps when I only have a 50Mbps connection from Comcast?

the 50 is what you get from the outside world, the 117 is what you have on your internal network. it's 2 separate things.

think of a city with a wall around it, the city has wide highways running all around inside the wall, but only has one way in or out of town and that is a two lane bridge.
the speed limit in the city is 117 Mph but on the bridge coming in it's only 50 Mph

the only time you wil see the faster speed is moving files between the computers on your network

I did some reading on wireless G & N, I never heard of it before. For the life of me I spent all day trying to find out what I have to no avail. My Comcast modem is a Arris Model TG862G/CT. I assume the"G" in the model number means just that.

not necessarily on the model number, but most routers provided by your internet provider will be G.
in the alt-click of your wifi icon if you look at "phy mode" it will say 802.11n or 802.11g.

I'm now thinking I ordered ethernet cable for no reason, but none of it makes sense. It will be interesting to see what those numbers read on my new iMac when the ethernet connection is made.

the numbers may actually go down to 100, but since it's faster than your internet connection, you won't see a slow down on browsing.

wired is normally the best option, but if wired doesn't make sense, than wireless is a good alternative. if the cables aren't in the way, than stay wired, it's much less prone to outside interference.

 

[Rhobes]

in the alt-click of your wifi icon if you look at "phy mode" it will say 802.11n or 802.11g.

the numbers may actually go down to 100, but since it's faster than your internet connection, you won't see a slow down on browsing.

wired is normally the best option, but if wired doesn't make sense, than wireless is a good alternative. if the cables aren't in the way, than stay wired, it's much less prone to outside interference.

Thanks for your comprehensive explanation to all this, I've learned allot. Surprisingly, my "phy Mode" says: 802.11n
Thanks again-

 

[justperry]

good clean wifi is faster than the basic cable internet we have in the states.
The newer 802.11n is actually faster than the 100MB/s wired ethernet that is still common. but wireless is subject to outside interference, so that depends on how "clean" the signal is.



the 50 is what you get from the outside world, the 117 is what you have on your internal network. it's 2 separate things.

think of a city with a wall around it, the city has wide highways running all around inside the wall, but only has one way in or out of town and that is a two lane bridge.
the speed limit in the city is 117 Mph but on the bridge coming in it's only 50 Mph

the only time you wil see the faster speed is moving files between the computers on your network




not necessarily on the model number, but most routers provided by your internet provider will be G.
in the alt-click of your wifi icon if you look at "phy mode" it will say 802.11n or 802.11g.



the numbers may actually go down to 100, but since it's faster than your internet connection, you won't see a slow down on browsing.

wired is normally the best option, but if wired doesn't make sense, than wireless is a good alternative. if the cables aren't in the way, than stay wired, it's much less prone to outside interference.

Good you help people out but don't make mistakes like you did with 100 MB/s, it's 100 Mb/s, if it was the first it is faster than 802.11n.

Most routers provided by the ISP are G you say, this depends completely on the country, where I am originally from it's n standard for quite some years.

--------

OP Wired networks are more secure then wireless, although if you set a strong password on a wireless network it is also quite secure nowadays, the WPA/WPA2 protocol is much more secure than the old WEP, WEP is easily cracked in minutes.
There is also another solution, Powerline networks are fairly common now, secure and fast as well, convenient since you just plug them in a wall outlet and connect a (short) network cable to the device.

 

[drsox]

I have 50Mbps dnload & 10Mbps upload.
On my new iMac:
The Transmit rate says 117
Network Utilities says: Link Speed 130 Mbit/s

I have an old 2002 17" iMac connected by Ethernet cable, it says:
Network Utilities says: Link Speed 100 Mbit/s

None of that makes any sense to me, also I thought cable was faster then WiFi?

How can my new iMac have 130 or even 117 Mbps when I only have a 50Mbps connection from Comcast?

I did some reading on wireless G & N, I never heard of it before. For the life of me I spent all day trying to find out what I have to no avail. My Comcast modem is a Arris Model TG862G/CT. I assume the"G" in the model number means just that.

I'm now thinking I ordered ethernet cable for no reason, but none of it makes sense. It will be interesting to see what those numbers read on my new iMac when the ethernet connection is made.

Some of the other posts may have already said this but don't confuse Internet cable speeds with local LAN speeds.
If you have big/many files to move around locally (Movies, Multi File backups) or have a difficult WiFi environment (concrete walls, many neighbours, outside power lines), then a local wired network is by far better than WiFi.
WiFi is convenient, but can/will drop out and speeds will be all over the place.
Powerlines devices are convenient but don't expect better than 15% of the rated speed. I've had 200Mbps and 500Mbps devices with 15% results.

I have a CAT6 LAN that I installed 3 years ago and all my other devices sit on that. My MBA, iPhones and iPad are on WiFi and communicate via AEs bridged together on the LAN.

I get 100+MBps (800+Mbps) on the LAN and max 37.5MBps (300Mbps) WiFi but my Internet speed is max 1.5MBps (12.5Mbps).

So give some thought as to what you want to send around your network and that will help with choices.