What type of cabling must be used for 10 Gigabit Ethernet connections?

Cabling for 10 Gigabit Ethernet connections needs to meet specific standards to ensure reliable transmission speeds over longer distances. The correct choice is Cat6a or higher, which is designed to handle the higher frequencies and reduced crosstalk associated with 10 Gigabit Ethernet.

Cat6a can support 10 Gbps speeds over distances up to 100 meters, making it ideal for most networking needs in commercial environments. Furthermore, cables rated Cat6a are carefully constructed to minimize interference, making them suitable for high-performance networking applications.

While other cabling types such as fiber optics can also be used to achieve 10 Gigabit speeds, the essential aspect of the question focuses on twisted pair copper cabling options, which makes Cat6a or higher the correct choice. Lower categories, such as Cat5 or Cat6, do not meet the performance requirements for reliable 10 Gigabit connections, especially as they cannot support high speeds over significant distances.