To connect two switches with Auto MDI-X turned off, which cable type is appropriate?

When connecting two switches with Auto MDI-X turned off, a crossover cable is necessary. This is because, in networking, crossover cables are designed to connect similar devices such as switch-to-switch or router-to-router connections.

In this situation, Auto MDI-X functionality, which automatically adjusts the cable type needed for a successful connection, is disabled. Without this feature, the switches would not be able to determine the appropriate wiring configuration for the connection. Consequently, a crossover cable ensures that the transmit pins on one switch align with the receive pins on the other switch, facilitating effective communication between them.

Straight-through cables, on the other hand, are typically used to connect dissimilar devices (like a switch to a computer) and would not perform correctly for a switch-to-switch connection under the given conditions. Patch cable and fiber-optic cable could also serve different purposes or scenarios but do not fulfill the requirement of connecting two switches with Auto MDI-X turned off as effectively as a crossover cable.