Make an Ethernet Cable: Wire Order

Straight-through wire order

For a straight-through cable, the wires should go into the RJ-45 connector in the following order:

Pin 1Orange/WhiteOrange/White
Pin 2OrangeOrange
Pin 3Green/WhiteGreen/White
Pin 4BlueBlue
Pin 5Blue/WhiteBlue/White
Pin 6GreenGreen
Pin 7Brown/WhiteBrown/White
Pin 8BrownBrown

Crossover wire order

For a crossover cable (which you use to connect two computers together without needing a hub), the wires should go into the RJ-45 connector in the following order:

Pin 1Orange/WhiteGreen/White
Pin 2OrangeGreen
Pin 3Green/WhiteOrange/White
Pin 4BlueBlue
Pin 5Blue/WhiteBlue/White
Pin 6GreenOrange
Pin 7Brown/WhiteBrown/White
Pin 8BrownBrown

To see what the wires shouls look like, both for straight-through and crossover cables, take a look at these graphics.