Newbie WLAN questions

[imported_and]

Hello,

I have a single home computer that's connected to the internet via ethernet & PPOE.
(If it matters, I'm living in an apartment block with my provider's WLAN basestation on the roof. They connected me directly to the basestation by installing a RJ45 port in my office, which is connected to an ethernet cable which runs up to the basestation on the roof. So I just have a cable between that port and my computer, and connect with PPOE.)

Now I got a laptop with a built-in WLAN adapter and would like to set up a small home network with the laptop sharing my desktop's internet connection.
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316276)

I checked some other threads on these boards and found some faqs (http://www.anandtech.com/guides/viewfaq.html?i=48 and http://www.ezlan.net/faq.html#sharing) but I'm still not clear when it comes to the hardware.

What kind of networking equipment do I need and what do I do with it? Do I buy a wireless router, connect it to the RJ 45 port in the wall, then run a cable between the router and my desktop?
Or do I get an extra NIC for my desktop, and connect the wireless router to the extra NIC?
Am I wrong on both accounts?

Thanks for any help!

 

[JackMDS]

To share an Internet connection between two computers (wire, wireless or both) you usually need a Wireless Cable/DSL Router.

However, you have an uncommon connection and from you description it is not clear how your system authenticate (ID and password) from your decryption it is hard to believe that you have a PPPOE connection (PPPOE is usually used by DSL Provider when logging through the phone line.

You gave to find out what id the nature of the Internet signal that you get and how (if any) the authentication is done.

Hopefully, it is within the realm of regular Wireless Cable/DSL Router.

In sum, usual home Network and Internet sharing looks like this, http://www.ezlan.net/network/router.jpg

In your case, the top of the diagram is set differently you do not have a Cable or DSL Modem.

 

[imported_and]

Thanks for trying to help, I thought that there would just be a quick answer to my original question, that's the reason I asked it on this board. If it's complicated, I don't want to waste anybody's free time, I'll ask the staff at my provider instead.

Anyway I'll try to describe it better.

I'm connected to a WLAN base station that services a number of homes in this area, so normally I would have a WLAN access point connected to my desktop instead of an ethernet connection - but since I live directly under the antenna, I connect to the base station router via a direct ethernet cable. There is too much concrete between my apartment and the roof base station, so I cannot connect my laptop to the base station directly.

They ran an ethernet cable straight from that base station to my office, which is terminated in an RJ 45 jack in the wall. I just connect my desktop to that jack.

Now to the authentication protocol:
Before I they began using PPPOE I just connected via a normal windows LAN connection, static IP settings in the network settings, no further user authentication needed. I turned on the computer and I would have instant internet access. The gateway IP was the IP of the router in the base station.

After they introduced PPPOE, they had me set the old LAN connection to use DHCP settings, and had me set up a PPPOE connection in the Control Panel->Networking screen (English is not my system language so some of the terms may not be completely on, but I will try to make it understandable) via the New Connection wizard, where I entered the username, password and so on.

When I turn on the computer, the LAN connection with DHCP is in use, and the LAN connectivity icon in the system tray has the yellow warning sign that indicates "limited or no connection." Then I manually activate the PPPOE connection and get a second connectivity icon, see: http://img75.imageshack.us/img...7/untitled6copygv8.jpg

Network status for the PPPOE connection:
http://img75.imageshack.us/img...4/untitled8copygw8.jpg

 

[JackMDS]

Since a Router is put between the source of the Internet, and the computers. Wireless Cable/DSL Routers has a special arrangement that takes over the Authentication from the Computer's software.

In principle you should get a Wireless Cable/DSL Router, plug the cable that comes from the roof into the WAN port of the Router (The modem port) and configure the Router to do PPPOE. You would find in the Router's PPPOE menu and entry for the ID and PW.

If your special arrangement is compatible with the common PPPOE it should work.

This page describes the PPPOE configuration, it is not exactly as your setting but it is the same principle.

http://www.ezlan.net/PPPOE.html

 

[imported_and]

Thanks a lot!