How do you hard wire using CAT 5 cable from a router to a Laptop?

Hi
I've just got a Draytek Vigor 2200 USB router/switch (a cool piece of kit!) and connected it to my two PCs downstairs using RJ-45 cable (the two PCs are right next to each other). However, I now want to connect the router/switch to my laptop when in my room which is upstairs. I'm not sure which is the best way to do this or exactly how to do it. I want to install two proper wall mounted network points upstairs on opposite sides of the room. Obviously the output from the router is RJ-45 (ethernet),can I just run an RJ-45 cable straight up through the wall to my laptop upstairs? (can you get network sockets that are both input and output RJ-45?) or will I have to run the RJ-45 cable from my switch/router into a wall socket connected to CAT 5 cable which then runs to the room upstairs where it terminates at the two upstairs wall sockets which connect with RJ-45 cable again which can then connect with my laptop's network card? (Hope you know what I'm getting at!) I'm also not sure about how you wire two sockets terminating on one cable!
Any suggestions woul be much appreciated!
Thanks
Nick

1. RE: How do you hard wire using CAT 5 cable from a router to a Laptop?
lbyard Jul-17-02 01:12 PM
In response to message 0

You can run a single straight-thru cable directly from the router to the laptop as described in http://duxcw.com/digest/Howto/network/cable/cable1.htm. One normally uses a female CT5/5E jack for wall jacks. In a workspace, two jacks are usually specific per outlet box (one for data and one for voice, etc.), but that is not required and one or more than one jack can be installed. A straight-thru cable can be run straight from the router to a jack in the wall. Another straight-thru cable (patch cable) is then used to connect a PC to the wall jack. This is the way I have the two cables running from the 7-port broadband router in my office/shop (converted garage) to my Wife’s and Son’s offices in our house. My other connections are in my office/shop and consist of a single cable with no jacks. Also, the boxes in my Wife’s and Son’s offices have four jacks. In jack in each box is a CAT 5e RJ-45 and is used for the network. The other three are RJ-11 jacks and are used for phone lines. The phone lines are also connected with CAT 5e cable. Straight-thru cables are specified with stranded-core wire and should not be more than 3 meters (about 10 feet) long (http://duxcw.com/faq/network/cablng.htm). I have seen longer ones and have used solid core wire. I would not attempt using stranded-core wire that was longer than 20 feet. Horizontal or riser cabling should be done with solid-core wire and should not exceed 90 Meters. Total wire length between PC and router should not exceed 100 Meters. Local codes may require plenum wire for horizontal/riser wiring. The RJ-45 plugs and jacks should match the core type and category of wire used. Keep wire away from power cables; at least on the other side of stud to which power cables are connected. Other rules are at http://duxcw.com/digest/Howto/network/cable/cable9.htm. CAT 6 cabling just became a standard. You may want to consider using it for possible future upgrades. CAT 5 and 5e cable does support gigabyte (1000 bps) networking, but not as well. I would not bother unless the price was close to 5/5e. Finally one can run a patch cable from the router to a wall jack in the same room, thence to a cable known as a riser that is terminated at both ends with a jack, and then to the laptop with a patch cable. More jacks in a line mean:
more things that can break or go wrong,
more insertion loss there is,
higher cost.
Larry