home hub

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rexleroy

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Hi all my home hub is connected to my freesat recorder by a earthnet cable .My question is can I also connect to my youview box using a earthnet splitter yours George .Hope this makes sense.George very senior sitizen
 
You can, if you do it properly.

The trick is that a standard Ethernet cable has 8 wires in it, and a standard Ethernet link only needs four of them. This means you can use a special adapter at both ends of the cable, one which connects two ports from your router into the one cable (each port using a different set of four wires) and then another which splits those sets into two separate cables at the other end for connection to your equipment. Note that you will need to use two Ethernet ports on your router (one for your FreeSat and one for your YouView box), despite them being carried over the same length of cable.

You will not be able to do this if you have the thin type of Ethernet cable which only has four wires in it, and you must buy splitter adapters which come as a pair (one for each end) - I have seen so-called "splitters" which were wired in such a way that could not possibly work, and splitters advertised as only needing to be at the far end of the cable - again this cannot work. Buy them as a pair, then you will be able to send them back if they turn out not to work. You will also need four short Ethernet leads, two at each end to connect the equipment to the splitter adapters - so by the time you have bought the splitters and the extra leads, you have to query whether it would actually be no more expensive to add another complete cable.
 
You could also do as I have done and put two RJ45s on one end and another two on the other. But this assumes that you have access to the proper tool to fit them. The colour codes are easy to find.
 
Indeed, or I suppose it might be possible to find ready-made split leads on t'Internet. Splitting the ends of the existing cable yourself is possible by obtaining four RJ45 connectors, but will require a certain amount of DIY ability.

The point I was particularly trying to emphasis is that (contrary to some people's expectations) it is not possible to connect one Ethernet cable that comes from one router port to two remote devices simultaneously, despite the snake-oil I have seen being peddled - you must provide connection to two ports at the router, or have some electronics at the remote end which functions as a local router.

Personally I use a three-port HomePlug unit which communicates with the router via the mains wiring instead of a cable, and has (as the name implies) Ethernet ports for up to three separate devices.
 
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I have purchased those splitters in a pair but they do not work. Too cheap to send back!
I now use a TP-LINK 5 port desktop switch TL - SF1005D. Less than £10 inc p&p from Amazon.
 
Those didn't - but there's no reason they can't (if correctly made).

The switch is an example of what I referred to as "some electronics at the remote end", and is a good solution if you don't mind having another box to plug into the mains. In this case you connect the switch to the remote end of your existing Ethernet cable (connected to only one port of your router), and it provides several Ethernet ports that can then be connected to different items of equipment. The only difference between this and my HomePlug is that the HomePlug uses the existing house mains wiring to communicate with the router rather than an Ethernet cable (and is more expensive).
 
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Agreed, but you will not know until you have them in your hand. If there are pairs out there that do work then they will look externally similar to those that don't.
 
Therefore best to buy from Amazon with reference to the product reviews than buy from eBay - which only has seller ratings and no product reviews.
 
These are available from Amazon and ebay.

2 x Cat5e Ethernet Network Splitter Economiser Adapters.

Reviewers say that they work. I have sent for them but as I do not use wall faceplates I have also sent for RJ45 connectors.
I already have four short ethernet cables from my last attempt.

HTH
 
That one looks OK. I have bought some from Amazon in the past which just replicated all 8 pins on the input socket to both outputs. They worked for me because I just made up cables to suit at each end but most people would find that they didn't work. Probably what 4921 got.
 
OK. To use those with an existing Ethernet cable run, the shopping list will be:

1x MHP 2 x Cat5e Ethernet Network Splitter
2x RJ45 Coupler Cat 5e straight
4x Cat5e RJ45 Ethernet LAN Network Cable UTP Lead 0.5M

That comes to £14.12. Alternatively,

1x TP-Link TL-SF1005D 5-Port 10/100Mbps Unmanaged Desktop Switch
2x Cat5e RJ45 Ethernet LAN Network Cable UTP Lead 0.5M

currently comes to £8.18+p&p, and is a lot more flexible with room for expansion - if you can cope with another mains powered unit.

Conclusion: the cheapest way to achieve what the OP wants is to cobble a DIY split cable with some RJ45 crimp connectors - otherwise fit an Ethernet switch at the remote end of the cable and connect the FreeSat and YouView boxes to that.
 
af123 said:
That one looks OK. I have bought some from Amazon in the past which just replicated all 8 pins on the input socket to both outputs. They worked for me because I just made up cables to suit at each end but most people would find that they didn't work. Probably what 4921 got.
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No, the ones I have replicate the pins on one input (pass through) but completely different on the other. They do not match all the unused contacts in the plug. No idea what they are used for.
 
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