Home Networking Soap Opera

[Lmandrake]

Here is my predicament. My son lives with my ex and being 16, he wants to be on the net. However, my ex needs to access her office network at night. The result - open warfare. So I am building a system for him and talked her into getting DSL for one of her existing lines. This inevitably will lead to them sharing the dsl and me setting up a network for them.

Whatever I do needs to be robust and as maintenance free as possible. (I don't like visiting all the furniture I bought).

If I use WIN ICS, I assume the setup would be a NIC in each machine and a crossover or regular cable. The host would have to be on 24/7 but I don't think that will be a problem. Is WIN ICS robust and reliable or is it problematic?

Other option would be a router, costly but theoretically bulletproof if I get the right router. SMC?

Third option would be linux or some other box. How many NICS would I need? 3 or 4? Is this likely to be reliable?

I know lots of these questions have been asked before, but I really want a setup that would be bulletproof, as I would be on call 24/7 to maintain it.

 

[ou812]

I'm not an expert here but I have been using Win ICS (se) for several months now and it's been rock solid. I have a Speedsteam internal DSL modem with 1 NIC in the gateway machine and 3 Win 98 and 1 Win 95 machines linked through a linksys 5 port switch. My understanding is that if you go with an external modem you hace to have 2 NIC's in the gateway machine.

 

[BCYL]

Yes, you will need 2 NICs in the server PC if you are using an external DSL modem. This will be the same whether you are running the server with Linux or Windows.

Windows ICS is quite reliable, but I wouldn't say it is bulletproof. Other alternatives include using 3rd party ICS software like Sygate or Wingate... But if you really want maintance free bulletproof, a router would be the choice... the router also gives you the advantage of a hardware firewall to protect your PCs... It will be much better than using those software firewalls...

 

[evolotion]

Im going to put forward my vote for ICS,for reliability a router is the way to go but I have never had any trouble from ICS..

 

[vi edit]

know linux?(as your name implies), got a 386/486 pc laying around?

Use freesco

All you need is two nics, an old 486, and boom, you are up and running in minutes.

 

[Pauli]

If you want hassle free operation, just bite the bullet and get a DSL router (NetGear, Linksys, others). You won't regret it. Having to deal with a second NIC in one machine and that machine having to be on all of the time is just asking for headaches if you're not around to monitor it. For US$150, you can get the router and forget about it. After you factor in the amount of time you spend configuring the connection box and clients, the cost of the extra NICs, and the extra number of visits you'll make when things go wrong, that $150 is going to seem like a HUGE bargain! Good luck...

 

[vi edit]

not to knock pauli, but....

freesco setup and costs:

old 486 - free(had one laying around)
two PCI nics - $30 (linksys@ $15 x 2)
floppy disk - $.05
time to setup - 10 minutes
time up and running - going on 3 weeks now (hasn't gone down once)
experience gained - invaluable
_________________

$30.05




linksys or cisco router -
at least $150 dollars
setup time - a tad shorter than 10 minutes
_________________

$150

you do the math

 

[fergiboy]

Hmn, sice your ex has to access her works network you may want to make her pc the host machine so there are no conflicts. And best of all hers is the pc that will be vonerable to the net.

 

[Wik]

The router would be the best way to go if you want something that they can set up and use without knowing much about networking. Once setup they will never know the difference. I use a Netgear RT311 and it works great. I set it up and it works. Also easy to through in a bag and take to my friends house for a mini Lan party on the net. And if you search around you could pick one up using either online coupons or even E-bay has some for a good price.

 

[Grant]

I'm also going to vote for the router. I've got the Linksys up and running for since feb. and no problems. If you don't want to be over having to work on the server then this would be the way to go. Spending $150 (approx) compared to maybe $30 for the piece and mind might well be worth it.

 

[Lmandrake]

I would use Freesco and an old 486, but Freesco does not work with dynamic IP - which is what they will have. Also, the only 486 I have right now has 4mb of RAM and uses some bs expensive ram so it won't be upgraded.

Freesco looks great, though.

 

[cavingjan]

How is she connecting to the office? VPN? Some of the routers haev issues with VPN. Or at least certain flavors of VPN. Both people I know with the Linksys router have to connect directly to the modem to be able to do the VPN. I know some others that haev no problem with this router and VPN. It all depends upon the VPN.
Just food for thought. Also, what are they going to run through the router? I know my video conference doesn't work with Linux IP boxes and those of a similar design (last one tried was Gnat Box). Most things just require some set up.

 

[Pauli]

Hey vi, on the surface, your analysis seems pretty sensible but consider Lmandrake's situation. His ex and 16 yr old son (who are novices) will be the ones at the location. There WILL be more problems than your situation because you are very knowledgable and won't f*%k everything up. I'm just trying to spare the guy the pain of visiting his ex ;-)