General Q's

[crabbyman]

I am soon going to be getting DSL in my household. I have never played with ethernet or DSL connections of any type. I am going to be build my father's computer shortly and we are going to split the cost of DSL. We are also going to split the DSL between 2 computers. The computers are one floor apart and probably 50 ft. max. distance from each other. This is where my questions come in...

1. What would be the most efficient, low cost networking scheme to use in my house from all the available options?

2. Which would be the "best" way to split the line? Switch or Router? ..and what's the difference?

3. If we have to buy a high speed modem..which modem is your guys/gals favorite?

4. Do you recommend a hardware firewall to complement a software firewall? *using Norton 2002*

5. Any other suggestions/comments?

Thanks for any help..I know I have more questions..its just a lil' late for me to think..its been a long night.. *wipes brow*


-=Will=-

 

[p1800volvo]

1. Fast Ethernet is the cheapest way to go here, although you will have to run the wires. It is also the fsastest, and easiest to maintain. Unlike wireless, it should not require any tweeking after it is installes.

2. A switch will connect two computers, but not the DSL line. The reason for this is that a switch works on a single network, and the router will work between two networks. These two networks will be the trusted/secure network inside the router, and the other, not secure network that is outside the router, mainly between the router nad the DSL unit (everybody calles it a modem, but it's not!)

3. Get the modem that is recomended by your telco. You want the one that they know how to support.

4. Most SoHo/home routers use NAT (network address translation) as a firewall. It is good for most users. If you want a truer fiirewall you can step up to a firewall that has packet inspection. As for a SW firewall, I would go to www.zonelabs.com and get the free version of ZoneAlarm. If you are behind a firewall, you don't need it, but it will tell you what on your PC is trying to use the Internet, and this can be handy from a privacy point of view, as well as a security point of view.

5. Have fun with it!

 

[Xtremetechie]

Dudes,

Dont make the mistake of trusting NAT for security it is not a robust solution, even for the home DSL/CAble user.

this link illustrates this point well

Heres the conclusion from that link:

Conclusions

"NAT, in and of itself, is not a security strategy. Sure it helps by hiding all of your hosts. It closes all the ports that you are not manually opening. But, as I hope I have pointed out, there are still outstanding security issues when using NAT.

Even when you are using NAT, you should have a firewall, a DMZ and an Intrusion Detection System. Otherwise you are flying blind and the first sign that you have been hacked may be when your ISP comes calling asking why your systems are assisting in a DoS attack."

 

[JackMDS]

Internet Connection:

AnandTech - FAQ. Basic Options for Internet Connection Sharing

AnandTech - FAQ. Hubs, routers, switches, DSL, LANs, WANs...?

If you can not use Cables, Primer to Wireless:

AnandTech - FAQ. What do I need for wireless Networking?

On security:

Basic Protection for Broadband Internet Installation.