Cisco ASA 5512-X, ASA 5515-X, ASA 5525-X, ASA 5545-X, and ASA 5555-X Hardware Installation Guide

Identifying Cable Pinouts

This chapter describes pinout information for 10/100/1000BaseT ports, console the RJ-45 to DB-9 ports, and the Management 10/100/1000 Ethernet ports.

This chapter includes the following sections:

• 10/100/1000BaseT Connectors
• Console Port (RJ-45)
• RJ-45 to DB-9
• MGMT 10/100/1000 Ethernet Port
• Gigabit and Fibre Channel Ports

10/100/1000BaseT Connectors

The ASA supports 10/100/1000BaseT ports. You must use at least a Category 5 cable for 100/1000baseT operations, but a Category 3 cable can be used for 10BaseT operations.

The 10/100/1000BaseT ports use standard RJ-45 connectors and support MDI and MDI-X connectors. Ethernet ports normally use MDI connectors, and Ethernet ports on a hub normally use an MDI-X connector.

Use an Ethernet straight-through cable to connect an MDI to an MDI-X port. Use a cross-over cable to connect an MDI to an MDI port, or an MDI-X to an MDI-X port.

Figure 1 shows the 10BaseT and the 100BaseTX connector (RJ-45).

Figure 1 10/100 Port Pinouts

Figure 2 shows the 10BaseT, 100BaseTX, and 1000BASE-T connector (RJ-45).

Figure 2 10/100/1000 Port Pinouts

Console Port (RJ-45)

Cisco products use the following types of RJ-45 cables:

• Straight-through
• Crossover

Note: Cisco does not provide these cables, yet they are widely available from other sources.

Figure 3 shows the RJ 45 cable.

Figure 3 RJ-45 Cable

To identify the RJ-45 cable type, hold the two ends of the cable next to each other so that you can see the colored wires inside the ends, as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4 RJ-45 Cable Identification

Examine the sequence of colored wires to determine the type of RJ-45 cable, as follows:

• Straight-through—The colored wires are in the same sequence at both ends of the cable.
• Crossover—The first (far left) colored wire at one end of the cable is the third colored wire at the other end of the cable.

Table 1 lists the rolled (console) cable pinouts for RJ-45.

RJ-45 to DB-9

Table 2 lists the cable pinouts for RJ-45 to DB-9 or DB-25.

MGMT 10/100/1000 Ethernet Port

The MGMT 10/100/1000 Ethernet port is an Ethernet port with an RJ-45 connector. You can use a modular, RJ-45, straight-through UTP cable to connect the management port to an external hub, switch, or router.

Table 3 lists the cable pinouts for 10/100/1000BASE-T Management Port Cable Pinouts (MDI). (See Figure 2 for an illustration of the pinouts.)

Gigabit and Fibre Channel Ports

Table 4 lists the types of SFP modules and connectors used in the ASA.

Table 5 lists the SFP port cabling specifications for the SFP modules and connectors used in the ASA.