[Sergei1142]

I've connected my 2 machines via ethernet connections in an attempt to use only one modem for internet use... however... when trying to establish the network using the windows connection wizard it just dosen't work... it goes through the setup until the point where it tells me that it simply cannot establish a connection for some strange reason... help please!! :confused:

[Delow84]

Are you using a router?

[Sergei1142]

No, no router... was using this same setup and then I had to format the machines... since then trying to set it back up and the doesn't work...

[seahwk83]

Get 1 machine up and working with interent access
And then get other PC up and working and then go from there

[Bluerose]

Same thing here. This computer up and running, second computer not connecting to net. Need more advice on getting second computer on net.

[talaniman]

I use a wireless router, to connect through the internet modem. Works fine.

[seahwk83]

How do you actually have the 2 computers connected

using this same setup

What setup?

[Bluerose]

I have a router but I wanted to connect both computers to one mmodem instead. Is this possible.

[seahwk83]

What you would have to do without using a router is get a crossover network cable and connect to both network cards. This will give you direct conncetion to both computers. But must be a crossover cable and not just the cable you may have been using with your router. They look the same but are not.

[Scleros]

Opinion Comment:

Having a router and it's inherent barrier between your computers and the big bad unsafe Internet makes not using ICS a no-brainer for me. I don't want the only thing standing between my local network and some Chinese hacker to be Window's firewall.

If you insist on using ICS, File and Printer sharing should be unbound from the external adapter if it is an ethernet port (dsl/cable modem) and not dialup (telephone modem), just to be safer. UPnP should probably be disabled too.

Routers are cheap.
Switches are cheap.

Please compute safely.

[jstrike]

Scleros makes some good points but one question that I have not seen asked yet is are either of you using dial up or broadband? If you're using broadband you have no real excuse for not using a router. If your using a dial up modem then you can purchase a 5 port switch for under $20 and not have to worry about a cross over cable. (They're very easy to get confused w/a normal network cable and if it's not properly marked you WILL forget what it is... trust me, you don't want to go there) Make sure that you have a decent firewall program installed and configured on each machine. (MS Firewall is NOT a decent firewall)

Dial-up routers are available but I haven't used any for a very long time so I couldn't make any recommendations, even so a switch is going to be much cheaper.

[Bluerose]

I'm using cable modem. My machine here is fine. I had my grandson's computer connected to the net with a router but he claimed that it was slowing up his World Of Warcraft Game. I thought if I connected his computer directly to the cable modem he might receive a better connection. But it looks like I'll have to check out the router again instead. Thanks all for your help.

[jstrike]

I'm using cable modem. My machine here is fine. I had my grandson's computer connected to the net with a router but he claimed that it was slowing up his World Of Warcraft Game. I thought if I connected his computer directly to the cable modem he might receive a better connection. But it looks like I’ll have to check out the router again instead. Thanks all for your help.

Using the router <typically> won't slow down the game unless there is something wrong with the router.

P.S. Tell him he should be spending time with his grandparents instead of playing a game. ;)

[Bluerose]

He lives with me and he is on holiday from school this week, and we are both on computers. Lol He likes to get on here cause he says the game works better on here... but I want on here! Lol Guess I'll have to sort out the router. Lol

[Scleros]

More opinion comment:

It is especially important to have a hardware firewall or a robust software firewall (running on an old Linux machine for example) between a local network and a cable network. Cable is typically a shared medium; the implications of which mean your neighbor across the street has full access to your computer if there is nothing sitting between your computer and the cable modem. If all the computers on the local network are sharing files, anyone attached to your cable segment has potential access unless you've setup Windows NT-2000-XP-Vista NTFS permissions on your shares to restrict access. The security for Windows 95-98-ME is worse in their default configurations.

With a properly configured router, the only thing visible to anyone outside your network is the external port on the router. The router is your gatekeeper and first line of defense against loss of privacy, identity theft, or having an external entity gain control of your computers by exploiting an unpatched software flaw in Windows or other software running on your machines. Not having a router for an Internet attached network is akin to living in a dense urban apartment complex and not having a front door but just the large opening.

[Bluerose]

Wow! Thank you for that. I really didn't know about any of that.

[chuckhole]

There are many good software based firewalls out there... Zone Alarm comes to mind... but there are many that are also difficult to use... Zone Alarm comes to mind again. If you end up frustrated and confused with the many settings that you are asked to make, then the best of software becomes useless. Therefore, the ones that may not be as dilligent still may be the best ones to use because the really good one that gets disabled is still not as good as the easier one that ends up being used.

[seahwk83]

Have you set your firewall up to allow sharing
If you have antivirus that monitors network activity, make sure that it is setup also to allow communication between networks