What is Cat6A?
Cat6A is a category of balanced twisted pair cabling defined in TIA and ISO/IEC standards. The A stands for augmented. It is specified to 500 MHz and has requirements for alien crosstalk, which is interference between neighboring cables, so it can run 10GBASE-T over the full 100 m channel length of a structured cabling run.
Standard Cat6 can support 10GBASE-T only over shorter distances, commonly cited as up to about 55 m depending on conditions. Cat6A cable is usually thicker than Cat6, which affects pathway fill and bend radius. It is available as unshielded and shielded versions, and the choice depends on the environment and the design standard in use.
The 100 m limit applies to the whole channel. In a structured cabling design the permanent link is up to 90 m and patch cords make up the rest. Cabling labelled Cat6A only performs to that level if the cable, connectors, panels and patch cords are all rated for it and installed correctly.
How it shows up in practice
- State the category for every component in the scope: cable, jacks, panels and patch cords.
- Allow for the larger cable diameter when planning pathways, conduit and cable trays.
- Decide on unshielded or shielded cable at design time, along with the grounding and bonding that shielded systems need.
- Require certification testing to the Cat6A limits, and keep the test reports with the as-built documentation.