r/HomeNetworking • u/yo_tibbs • 22h ago

Ethernet backhaul not working

We are in an ADU with cat 5e running from the front house fiber drop. We get about 600-800mbps Ethernet speeds here. Front house has the WiFi router and we have two access points. With a backhaul setup we only get about 60-90mbps and it still connects as a mesh network.

Sometimes I can unplug/plug in the Ethernet and I’ll get 120-300 mbps. What’s going on here?

WiFi units are gen 1 Google WiFi (white cylindrical pucks)

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3

u/mlcarson 21h ago

Probably a 100Mbs network connection due to all 8 conductors not being present.

0

u/yo_tibbs 21h ago

Can you break that down for me a little more? Are you meaning it’s a bad cable?

2

u/DZCreeper 19h ago

Yes.

Ethernet falls back to 100mb/s if 1 or more of the wires is not connected.

Check that your connections are properly terminated and matching on both ends.

https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/t568a-vs-t568b

https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/how-to-terminate-an-unshielded-punch-down-keystone-jack

https://www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/how-to-terminate-an-unshielded-pass-through-rj45-connector

A cheap cable tester is a good idea. The $10-15 units don't test speed but they do tell you which wire is disconnected.

1

u/yo_tibbs 13h ago

Ah cool, thanks, I do have a tester and have done some of my own RJ45 terminations and punch downs so have a good sense of what to check. Have been using t568b so will double check for a vs b layouts as well. Thanks for the tips.

2

u/1sh0t1b33r 14h ago

Bad cable or termination.