Networking Computers R R
Do you have two or more computers at home or at your place of business? A standalone computer is limited to programs and data that is available on its hard drive. If however all your computers are networked together, each computer on the network can easily access information on the other computers, just as if all the other hard drives are on a single computer.

Of course, information is only available to all computers if the owner of that information decides to share it. So let's say my computer is part of a network, I can choose to keep parts of my hard drive private, so that no one but I can access them. So invasion of privacy by other users is not an issue. Another neat thing about networking is that you can password-protect resources, so that only those you give the passwords to can have access.

Advantages of networking computers together are numerous. A single printer can be used on a network and all users on the network can print to it. Of interest to most people today is getting all their computers on the internet using a single internet connection. The first step in doing this is to get the computers networked, and then configure the network for internet access. Other uses include playing multiplayer games, broadcasting messages to everyone on the network, etc. On the more advanced side, you could also set up local email, and news servers.

You can network your two computers together in ten minutes flat.

If there are only going to be two computers, you can:

1. network the computers together through the parallel ports.
OR
2. You can use network interface cards.

The following is a step-by-step detail.

Networking through Parallel Ports

Note that this method only allows you to network a maximum of two computers. If you need to network more than two computers, then you need network cards and a hub. I wouldn't suggest this method as a permanent networking solution. Since you're using the parallel ports on both computers, that means you will no longer have a place to connect your printers.

In addition, file transfer can only occur one-way. You setup one computer as the Host (this computer will have the resources you want to access), and the other as the Guest (this will be used to access resources on the host). Data transfer will only be from the host to the guest, and not vice versa. Of course you can later reconfigure the guest to be the host and vice versa, in order to transfer data in the reverse direction, but that would be as convenient as you having to rush home to change your clothes each time you need to switch duties at work.

This method does come in handy if you need to do a quick transfer of large files between computers. For instance you need to install a program available on CD onto one of your computers that does not have a cdrom drive. You can use the parallel port to quickly network this computer to another computer that has a cdrom. You will now have access to the cdrom drive on the other computer.

Another advantage of networking through the parallel port is that it's rapid and does not require you to open up your computer to insert a card.

Here are the steps...

Get the necessary cable from a computer store and connect the two computers together through their parallel ports. Actually, you may already have such a cable. A parallel port has 25 pins... 13 pins on one row, and 12 on the second row.

Host Configuration

On the computer that has the resources you want to access:

Step ONE

  1. Click on Start
  2. Programs
  3. Accessories
  4. Communications
  5. Direct Cable Connection

    If you don't see Direct Cable Connection option, don't panic. It just means it was not installed when windows was installed on your computer. If that is the case, do the following

    • Click on Start
    • Settings
    • Control Panel
    • Double click on Add/Remove Programs icon
    • Click on Windows Setup tab
    • Click on Communications
    • Click on Details button
    • On the new window that pops up, put a check mark in Direct Cable Connection
    • Click on OK twice.
    • Windows will install that option and ask to restart your computer
  6. Continuing from step 5 above, the window below pops up

    and since we are configuring the host computer, put a dot in the Host radio button.

  7. Windows will configure your system and ask you to choose the port you want to use. Choose Parallel cable on LPT1. You could also use a serial port for this networking, but this is risky since com port 1 uses IRQ 4, which may already be taken up by your modem if you have one installed. You need to avoid IRQ conflicts as much as possible. The other reason you don't want to use the serial port is that serial ports transmit data one bit at a time, which means serial ports are much slower than parallel ports.
  8. Click on Next
  9. Click on File and Print Sharing
  10. On the new window under Configuration tab, click on File and Print Sharing button
  11. On the new window put a check mark in I want to be able to give others access to my files
  12. Click on OK. Now you should see File and Print Sharing for Microsoft Networks added to the list

Step TWO

Configuring TCP/IP

Still under the Configuration tab, you should already have TCP/IP installed. If so, skip the step below for adding it, otherwise do the following:

Adding TCP/IP Protocol

Note: In some of the steps below, you may need to scroll down the windows to see the particular option.
  • Click on Add
  • Click on Protocol
  • Click on Add
  • Click on Microsoft
  • Click on Add
  • Click on TCP/IP
  • Click on OK

Configuring TCP/IP cont'd

Ok, whether you had TCP/IP installed already, of you just added it above, you should now have it on the list under Configuration tab.
  1. Click on TCP/IP
  2. Click on Properties
  3. If a warning pops up, click on OK
  4. Click on IP Address tab
  5. You need to be careful in this step. Before you do anything, get out a piece of paper and write down what you see under the IP Address tab. This is important because your present configuration may be specific to some process you currently have on your system. An example is the configuration for a dial up access to your ISP. If you change setting now, you may no longer be able to dial into your isp. If that happens to you later and you're not able to access your isp, just return to TCP/IP Properties and restore the original settings and you'll be fine. Alright, after writing down the original settings as I told you above, click on Specify an IP address radio button
  6. Under IP Address: enter 192.168.0.1
  7. Under Subnet Mask: enter 255.255.255.0
  8. Click on Bindings tab
  9. Make sure there's a check mark in Client for Microsoft Networks, and File and Printer Sharing. Don't pay attention to anything else you see here.
  10. Click on OK
  11. Click on Identification tab
  12. Under Computer Name:, type any name. Use only alphanumeric (letters and numbers) characters, without spaces.
  13. Under Workgroup:, type a name. Note that all the procedures we carried out on this computer will be repeated on the other computer also, and you need to remember what "Computer Name" and "Workgroup" you assigned this computer. So note them down somewhere, should you need to refer to them later.
  14. Computer Description: is optional. Just leave it the way it is
  15. Click on OK
  16. Your computer will configure your system and ask to restart. Reboot your computer and return here to continue this tutorial.
Step THREE

Sharing Drives and Folders

  1. Open up Windows Explorer. (Right click on Start, then click on Explore).
  2. Browse to the Drives and/or folders you want to access from the other computer.
  3. Right click on it and click on Sharing...
  4. Click on the Shared As: radio button
  5. Under Access Type: choose:
    • Read-Only if you want to just read data from this folder without the possibility of modifications
    • Full if you want to be able to read from the folder, write to it, and modify existing files in the folder
    • Depends on Password if you want windows to ask for a password when the other computer tries to access this folder. Of course, you will supply a password for either read-only or full access. If you provide passwords for both options, then the password will determine the type of access from the other computer.
    • Click on Apply
    • Reenter passwords when prompted and click on OK. Note that you can specify a different password for each of the folders you give access to on your hard drive. That way, only those who know the password can access the particular resource.
  6. Click on OK
  7. Repeat the above procedure for all the other drives and folders you want to share
Step FOUR

Activating the Host Computer

Finally,
  1. Click on Start
  2. Programs
  3. Accessories
  4. Communications
  5. Direct Cable Connection
  6. Make sure it still says Host, then click on Next
  7. Make sure Parallel cable on LPT1 is selected, click on Next
  8. If you don't want to require a password, click finish, but if you want to require a password for logging on from the other computer, put a check mark in Use Password Protection, and click on Set Password... Note that this password is different from the passwords we talked about earlier. The password you're about to define will be required for access to this computer. The other passwords we talked about earlier will be required only when trying to access the particular protected resource. So let's say I password-protect the cdrom drive, it means only those with the password can access that drive.
  9. Enter passwords, and click on OK
  10. Click on Finish

    You should now see the window below

Phew! that was a long one. But wait a minute, we're not done yet. We still need to configure the guest computer. Most of it is similar to what we just did though.

Guest Configuration

All of the steps above need to be repeated on the guest computer also, starting from Step ONE, with only minor differences. Here are the differences you need to take into account

  1. In step 6 under step ONE, you will put a dot in the Guest radio button
  2. In step 6 under step TWO, you will enter 192.168.0.2
  3. In step 12 under step TWO, type in a different computer name from what you used for the host computer. It is very important that the host and the guest computers be given different computer names!
  4. You may skip Step THREE entirely, since the Host computer won't be accessing any resources from the Guest computer
  5. In step 6 of Step FOUR, Choose Guest, in place of Host.
  6. You won't be prompted for any passwords this time. Before you click Finish, make sure the Host computer is ready to accept connection from the Guest. After you click Finish you should get this

Now the Guest should connect to the Host and you should be able to access resources on the latter.

To see the resources, click on Network Neighborhood on your Desktop. You should see the names you gave to both computers. If the names don't come up immediately wait a few minutes, and they should come up eventually. If your computers still can't see each other after a few minutes, click on F5 several times to refresh the screens. Once the names appear, you can now double click on the Host (you're now working from the Guest of course), and you'll see all the shared drives and folders. If you defined passwords while setting up the Host, you would be prompted to enter the passwords for each resource at this point.

You're Done!

Networking Using NIC

A better means of networking computers is through the use of network cards. The speed of data tranfer is a lot higher, and your computers can be as much as 500 meters apart.

With only two computers you don't need a hub and if you decide to add more computers later on, the hub can be purchased then. Also you don't need any special software. Windows 95, or better, is already equipped with all you need.

I used two 3com networking cards (one for each computer) that use either the coax 10base2 connectors or the RJ45 crossover cable 10baseT. Notice I said crossover. Your cable has to be a crossover cable, or else it won't work.

If the terms above sound cryptic, don't worry. The store you will go to for the cables will know what you're talking about. But for basic knowledge, there are three types of cables 10Base2, 10Base5, and 10BaseT. The 10 in front of each name indicates that the cable transfers data at a rate of about 10 mega bits per second (this is about 1.2 MBytes/sec). The numbers 2 and 5 indicates how far each type of cable can transfer data. 2 can handle up to 200 meters, while 5 goes up to 500 meters. The T in 10baseT stands for twisted pair cable. It's a type of networking cable that uses BNC plugs.

In addition to the 10base cables, there are also 100base cables. Which, as you must have guessed means the cable can transfer data at 100Mbits per second. So if you want a very fast network, or if you will be transferring a lot of data in real time, then you might want to set up a 100MBit network. A situation where you might need this is if you will be playing games with high level graphics. Of course your network card has to support 100MBit transfer.

I have the RJ45 cable and had one specially made to make sure it was a cross-over cable and it's about 10' long just so I didn't have to go from room to room to see both monitors and computers until I knew it would be set up right. I am ordering a 70' one now so I can have one computer in the living room, and the other in the bedroom.

I had to use the latest drivers that go with the cards because even though W98 installed the correct drivers, they weren't the newest and I had problems getting the computers to see each other so whatever cards you decide to get, make sure you download the newest drivers ahead of time in case what comes with them aren't what you will need. Save yourself the grief I went through.

After the cards and the cable are connected and are set up in the computers, open the Network in Control Panel or right click the Network Neighborhood icon and choose Properties.

On the list that shows up you need to have the following...

  • Client for MS Network
  • Dial Up Adapter
  • The Networking Adapter that you installed,
  • TCP/IP > Dial Up Adapter,
  • TCP/IP > your network adapter,
  • File & Print Sharing.
All of the above must be on the computer that will connect directly to the Internet (the Gateway).

All other computers (the clients) will access the Internet through this one computer, hence you don't need to install the Dial Up Adapter on the clients. There would be no need for them to have modems installed in them either.

If any of the listed items above is missing, do the following...

To add TCP/IP,

  • Click on Add
  • Click on Protocol
  • Click on Add
  • Click on Microsoft
  • Click on TCP/IP in the right window
  • Click on OK
Repeat the above steps, to add IPX/SPX-compatible Protocol.

Finally, repeat the same steps, to add NetBEUI.

If adapter is missing from our earlier list, you must add it.

  • Click on Add
  • Click on Adapter
  • Click on Add
  • Click on Microsoft
  • Click on Dial-Up Adapter in the right window
  • Click on OK
If File and Printer Sharing is missing the list, add it as follows:

  • Click on Add
  • Click on Service
  • Click on Add
  • Click on Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks in the right window
  • Click on OK

Configuring TCP/IP

  1. Click on TCP/IP
  2. Click on Properties
  3. If a warning pops up, click on OK
  4. Click on Add
  5. You need to be careful in this step. Before you do anything, get out a piece of paper and write down what you see under the IP Address tab. This is important because your present configuration may be specific to some process you currently have on your system. An example if the configuration for a dial up access to your ISP. If you change setting now, you may no longer be able to dial into your isp. If that happens to you later, just return to TCP/IP Properties and restore the original settings and you'll be fine. Alright, after writing down the original settins as I told you above, click on Specify an IP address radio button
  6. Under IP Address: enter 192.168.0.1. For the second computer (which you will configure a little bit later) use 192.168.0.2
  7. Under Subnet Mask: enter 255.255.255.0
  8. Click on Bindings tab, and make sure there's a check mark in Client for Microsoft Networks, and File and Printer Sharing Don't pay attention to anything else you see here.
  9. Under Advanced tab put a check mark in Set this protocol to be the default protocol.
  10. Click on OK
  11. Click on Identification tab
  12. Under Computer Name:, type any name. Use only alphanumeric (letters and numbers) characters, without spaces. When you configure the other computer, use a name different from the one you gave this computer.
  13. Under Workgroup:, type a name. Note that all the procedures we carried out on this computer will be repeated on the other computer also, and you need to remember what "Computer Name" and "Workgroup" you assigned this computer. So note them down somewhere, should you need to refer to them later.
  14. Computer Description: is optional. Just leave it the way it is
  15. Click on OK
  16. Your computer will configure your system and ask to restart. Reboot your computer and return here to continue this tutorial. You need to repeat the above steps on the second computer also, noting the slight differences that I pointed out above.

In both computers, after rebooting, do not put in a password unless you want one...click OK to get you back to the desktop and go back into the Network or right click the NN icon, choose Properties, and in the Primary LOGON, use the arrow to choose Windows Logon. You may be asked to restart your computer again.

Sharing Drives and Folders

  1. Open up Windows Explorer
  2. Browse to the Drives and/or folders you want to access from the other computer.
  3. Right click on it and click on Sharing... So let's say you want to access the cdrom drive, you would right click on cdrom drive and choose Sharing...
  4. Click on the Shared As: radio button
  5. Under Access Type: choose:
    • Read-Only if you want to just read data from this folder without the possibility of modifications
    • Full if you want to be able to read from the folder, write to it, and modify existing files in the folder
    • Depends on Password if you want windows to ask for a password when the other computer tries to access this folder. Of course, you will supply a password for either read-only or full access. If you provide passwords for both options, then the password will determine the type of access from the other computer.
    • Click on Apply
    • Reenter passwords when prompted and click on OK. Note that you can specify a different password for all the folders you give access to on your hard drive. That way, only those who know the password can access the resource.
  6. Click on OK
  7. Repeat the above procedure for all the other drives and folders you want to share
Now go to the Printer folder in My Computer, and right click that printer icon and also choose Share from the menu.

Everytime you make a change to one computer and reboot, you will also have to reboot the second computer so that those changes also take place with that computer.

Checking Your Connection

Now you can check the connection...left click the Network Neighborhood icon and see if the computers see each other. If they do, then you have your network configured correctly.

If you want both computers to access the Internet through your single account, see my comprehensive tutorial here. But a summary is given below.

The Main computer will make the connection to the ISP and the secondary computer will be able to connect to the internet using that same connection....BUT you need one more small piece of free software to do that. It is called Proxy and it can be found at http://www.analogx.com

Proxy gets installed on the MAIN computer, and I keep a shortcut to it in my QuickLaunch because it doesn't write anything to your registry and only gets evoked when the secondary computer is going to connect to the internet so the MAIN computer user just clicks the icon to "turn it on" for the other computer. The Internet Explorer setting on the Secondary computer needs a small adjustment in the Connection tab so that it doesn't connect with a modem anymore and connects through the proxy. The instructions are simple and are included with the Proxy program.

That's it.....

I would highly recommend that you use the RJ45 crossover cable for just two computers and get a short one to get you going so the computers are nearby...then you can get a longer one later when the computers are moved farther apart.

Your first computer (basically the slave one) doesn't have to have a modem or an icon for your ISP since the internet connection could be made through your Master computer and you would be sharing the access using the Proxy program I mention. So in the Slave computer, you could also eliminate the need for the Dial Up Adapter and the TCP/IP > Dial Up Adapter entries. Then you would just have the Client for MS Network, the network adapter you have (the NIC card), the TCP/IP > NIC card, and the File and Print Sharing.

Just make sure that for both computers you right click the drives you want to share and choose Sharing...then select the default name that comes up for it and decide if you want selective or full sharing. It's not necessary to map the drives to have access either.

As for the RJ45 crossover cable (looks like a fat telephone cable), I had one made at my local computer shop. The 10' one cost me $2.50 and I just ordered the 70' one and it's costing $17.50 I recommend the RJ45 if your cards support it rather than the coax cable because the data transfer rate is alot faster with the RJ45.

I have a comprehensive tutorial on how to get multiple computers on the internet on a single internet connection. See this page.
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