My NIC supports gigabit ethernet:
$ ethtool eth0
Settings for eth0:
Supported ports: [ MII ]
Supported link modes: 10baseT/Half 10baseT/Full
100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
1000baseT/Full
Supported pause frame use: No
Supports auto-negotiation: Yes
Advertised link modes: 10baseT/Half 10baseT/Full
100baseT/Half 100baseT/Full
1000baseT/Full
Advertised pause frame use: No
Advertised auto-negotiation: Yes
Speed: 100Mb/s
Duplex: Full
Port: MII
PHYAD: 1
Transceiver: external
Auto-negotiation: on
Supports Wake-on: g
Wake-on: d
Link detected: yes
My question in other words: I don't know the LAN I am connected to is whether a fast or gigabit ethernet. It could very well be gigabit ethernet and all that time I would have been using only 100 mbps instead of 1 gbps. But since I am connected to LAN with a CAT5e cable (I don't possess a CAT6 cable), is there any way to tell?