Servswitch CATx KVM Extenders

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One of the most popular structured cabling types for in-house data applications is still Category 5 specified cable.

This cabling type is mainly designed to be used for voice and data applications such as Ethernet. It is relatively inexpensive, flexible and widespread.

That’s why a few years ago, Black Box started to use this standard cable—instead of heavy and expensive proprietary cabling—for KVM extension up to 300 metres.

Nowadays, CAT5 KVM extension is a de facto standard term.

But the standards have been evolving!

New standards have been and are going to be defined with CAT5e, CAT6 and proposed CAT7, mainly to meet the requirements of high-speed data applications. Therefore the internal construction of the cable has been changed slightly, too.

But it is still a four-pair cable—no matter what the category!

And this makes all cables rated higher than CAT5 usable for our existing KVM extender ranges! But there are a few things to mention about the changes to guarantee a high-quality image at the remote end, which will be explained a bit later.

To highlight this compatibility with the different standards, Black Box is now using the term “CATx” instead of CAT5.

Example applications

There are thousands of ServSwitch Brand CATx KVM Extenders in use worldwide—in organisations ranging from small factories to large corporations. Here are just a few of the applications:

Use a Single-Access model to run to a distant station...

Use a Dual-Access model to run to a distant station that contends for a local station...

Or, reach a single distant server and add a passive monitor as much as 300 metres from the server...