lanparty networking

[dkruta]

if its one field im not very skilled in, its networking. thats why i ask you guys: i want to host a lan party for 8-16 people, and i want you to know what you think the best solution is and what other ways to do it exist.
ive done some research on routers, switches, and hubs. so far what ive realized is that although routers are the easiest solution, theyre also the most expensive. ive also heard that hubs are easy, but they suck as far as bandwidth and lag go. and i know very little about switches. basically, i was wondering what you would think the cheapest and easiest way to network a lanparty like this(also, ive heard of connecting routers and switches, so a little explanation on how that works is appreciated too).
thanks in advance for the help.

 

[amdskip]

Just buy a 24 port 10/100 switch. Dell has deals sometimes IIRC. Do you want internet connection capability also? Hubs are slow and just not a good thing in most cases.

 

[dkruta]

i just want it so that X number of people can share files(windows xp shared files) and that they can game together. internet connectivity is not a requirement, but definitely a bonus.

 

[volrath]

Big switch. Router if you want internet (or optionally, dual nic pc).

Router basically shares internet. They have integrated switches. Hubs take data and send it to every other port. Switches take data and send it where it wants to go. Routers are complex, but basically get you to the internet.

Um. Buy a switch.

 

[beverage]

you could always get a "cheap" router and connect it to an additional swtich so you could have internet as well as lots of connections for all your lanparty friends.

 

[Diaonic]

Equipment that you will need:

24port switch
cable/dsl router ( like 50 bucks)
Everyone will need a NIC obviously.
I would have everyone bring there own cat5 cable, then you don't have to worry about it. It's always good to keep extras on hand though.
Make sure people bring headphones to, god I hate it when people show up to a lan an setup speakers.

Drop your broadband connection into the "wan" port on your router. Then setup dhcp on the router configuration page for as many clients as you need. Then uplink the switch into the router an have everyone plug into the switch.

Few things you should make sure of. Everyones machine needs to be set to dhcp. You may have file transfering problems if people have the windows xp firewall enabled. It's always good to put everyone in the same workgroup then you don't have to search for people you want to browse.

I'm sure there are better ways to do it. But this is my take. Don't flame me because this is a different way then some you other guys would do it.

If you have a spare machine its always good to setup dedicated servers for the games you will be playing. You can usally get dedicated server software for games like, HL, CS, ut2k3/4 on there website.

anyway have fun, lans are always a blast.

 

[Cheetah8799]

bah, you don't need your own 24 port switch. Just ask your guests to bring any extra small switches they have. Hopefully you can round up a couple 8 port switches. If your guests are a bunch of noobs, then maybe you need to get a switch, but for the most part I bet you could get people to bring their own extra gear.

A cheap cable/dsl router for DHCP always comes in handy. Also gives you a couple extra network ports for people to use. Maybe someone would be willing to bring theirs so you don't have to buy one just for a one time lan party. You don't need it though, you could just do static IP addresses for everyone. That's a little more complicated though.