The edges of cage nuts are designed to bend in and then release, securing the nut with its own tension. They can be installed two different ways depending on the use case. Square holes sparked innovation in tool-less kits. The shape of these holes made it easy to develop rapidly deploy-able rails because of their ability to latch. Because of the new shape, cage nuts were created to allow support for threaded bolts.

kwmobile Cage Nut Insertion/Removal Tool - Cage Nut Tool for

First, you will insert one edge of the clip into the square hole and then you will need to latch onto the other end with your tool. Unthreaded holes were the next popular hole type. They are simply round holes that require a clip nut adapter for any shelves and rails that require threaded screws. These didn’t last long after the adoption of square holes.Cage nuts are built to latch into the square holes of a server, creating the ability for threaded screws to be inserted. They can be installed and removed by hand, but doing so can damage your hand. There are tools to make the process much easier. The three most common types of cage nuts are: 10-32, 12-24 and M6. Each of these work with accordingly sized screws.