Ethernet LED meanings

LED basics

• Solid green. Link established. Connection is up.
• Blinking green. Data activity. Normal traffic.
• Amber or orange. Often indicates 100Mbps instead of 1Gbps.
• No light. No link. Check cable, port, or device power.

Cable rules

• Cat5e supports up to 1Gbps at 100m.
• Cat6 supports up to 10Gbps at 55m.
• Cat6a supports 10Gbps at full 100m.
• Bad crimps cause intermittent drops. Re-terminate or replace.

PoE basics

• PoE delivers power over Ethernet cable. No separate power adapter.
• 802.3af provides up to 15.4W per port.
• 802.3at provides up to 30W per port.
• Check switch PoE budget before adding devices.

Recommended gear

Cat6a Ethernet cableShop on Amazon → Ethernet cable testerShop on Amazon → PoE injectorShop on Amazon →