If you are planning to build your own CCIE Lab rack, consider making your own network cables. Making your own network cables is a good way to save money if you need to make a lot of them. At $7 for a 3ft patch cable, you can spend quite a bit of money if you need, say 30 cables.
For a CCIE Lab rack, you will need the following:
12 x straight-thru cables
18 x crossover cables
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30 cables x 3 ft = 90 ft of Cat5 cable needed. You can buy 100ft for $50 or less.
2 x Boxes(of 50) RJ-45 connectors $2-3
Wire cutter/Stripper and Crimping tool $20
See pinouts below:
Demonstration:
Hope this helps!
