OKAY!... wow can I get a straight answer?

[Genesis15]

I know nothing about networking... so NAT/ICS/ etc. don't mean anything to me... I went to staples and bought 2x cat5e cables, NETGEAR FA311 adapter and a REALTEK adapter. I currently have the NETGEAR and an ONBOARD ethernet adapter in PC#1 and the REALTEK in PC#2 I have them all configured with lights coming on....

But I don't have an ACT light on my PC#2 just a LINK light that is constantly lit up... people are telling me I now need a router and crossover cables after I was just told that a HUB would serve the purpose fine.. I don't care about security I just want these two PC's working on my cable connection.

Will somone please help me in a logical and legitimate way without making me do all of these proceedures, everything seems to be running fine just PC#2 wont get an ACT light on and it wont connect, it gets packets sent but not received in the connection monitor.

 

[cleverhandle]

You don't want ICS.

You do want a router.

You don't need crossover cables.

You should care about security, unless you really want some keyloggers on your machine swiping your credit card numbers and sending them off to a server in Russia.

Get router, plug cable modem into router, plug PC's into router. Configure router according to the (usually simple) manufacturer's instructions.

 

[JackMDS]

Originally posted by: Genesis15
I know nothing about networking... so NAT/ICS/ etc. don't mean anything to me

So how do you expect to be helped by Network people if you do not speak their language?

Option One. Buy a book and learn.

Option Two. Get a Pro to do it for you.

The pages below were written a while ago. Ignore the prices and the Hardware recommendations, stick to the principles.[/i]

AnandTech - FAQ. Basic Options for Internet Connection Sharing

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

AnandTech - FAQ. What do I need for wireless Networking?
(Ignore the prices in the above link).

 

[Lemon law]

To genesis 15,

I have been following this thread---and if you decided to not use a simple network I understand---I can't help you---nor do the other people who advoacated you try it their way seem to be stepping up to the plate and helping you when something is wrong.--but it does not look like you took their advice and bought a router--instead I am guessing you let some idiot salesman talk you into buying something else---and too many electronic store salesmen could not plug in a toaster correctly--much less be expected to understand anything about networking--or actually having any experience setting one up.

But I looked at the links they posted last night---and when you came back and posted you ran ALL the troubleshooting they advocated in just a few hours---you just are not credable.
That might be doable in that time frame by someone really expert in networking---for a newbie---we are talking days of work.---and you seem to have learned nothing about networking iin the process.

JackMDS is right-------either hire someone to do the job--------or expend the effort to learn.---you are just wasting time and money meanwhile.

But even then--if you want help---you have to be highly specific about exactly what you have---maybe a few people know exactly what a Netgear Fa311 adapter is and the precise specifications of that model----but I have no idea from your vague description of what basic equipment you have and exactly how its wired.---other than some lights light up and other don't. And above all what sort of ip addresses your network is assigning---what you can ping---and what you can't---and do you have all the needed network protocols installed on both computers---and those are tcp/ip, file and printer sharing for microsoft networks, and client for microsoft networks.---what kind of modem do you have---internal--external--dialup--dsl--cable?

What troubleshooting steps have you taken?----have you downloaded and run a winsock fix on your mom's computer?---what possible problem areas can you prove are not the problem?

 

[Cloud Strife]

Didn't you already post a similar thread about this?

Found it

Lemon law, Windows ICS is probably even more complicated to set up than a router. You're stuck to having only 2 computers on the internet unless you add another NIC to your host PC. I don't think there's a better investment than a $20 router IMO.

 

[Cloud Strife]

I'll try to keep this as simple and in plain english as possible.

1) Return your Realtek adapter (you only need one)
2) Buy a Linksys router
3) Connect the cable/DSL modem to your Linksys router's WAN port
4) Connect PC#1's onboard ethernet to your Linksys router's LAN 1 port
5) Connect PC#2's ethernet to your Linksys router's LAN 2 port
6) Return the cables you have left over

 

[PELarson]

Originally posted by: Genesis15
I know nothing about networking... so NAT/ICS/ etc. don't mean anything to me... I went to staples and bought 2x cat5e cables, NETGEAR FA311 adapter and a REALTEK adapter. I currently have the NETGEAR and an ONBOARD ethernet adapter in PC#1 and the REALTEK in PC#2 I have them all configured with lights coming on....

But I don't have an ACT light on my PC#2 just a LINK light that is constantly lit up... people are telling me I now need a router and crossover cables after I was just told that a HUB would serve the purpose fine.. I don't care about security I just want these two PC's working on my cable connection.

Will somone please help me in a logical and legitimate way without making me do all of these proceedures, everything seems to be running fine just PC#2 wont get an ACT light on and it wont connect, it gets packets sent but not received in the connection monitor.

On the PC that won't connect to the Internet.

Start > CMD > ipconfig, if it shows a IP address beginning with 169. the adapter isn't installed correctly. if this is the case you need to go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > System > Hardware > Device Manager and look at the entry(ies) under Network Adapters. If there is a problem it will show with a yellow ! or if there are no entries there look for a undefined entry. If there is a problem delete the entry and reboot. It should look for the correct driver when it reboots.

 

[Lemon law]

Excellent point PElarson,

If the NIC on the mothers computer shows problems with its driver---by showing yellow in device manager,--or worse yet, not showing at all--- that could by itself kill the network. And maybe deleting any existing drivers could cause windows XP to find a better driver from the existing files on the PC--or windows MIGHT need internet access to find a better driver.

But a little catch 22 here---as far as we know---mom's computer can't access the internet---and certainly can't in its present unworking networked state.---so if that is the case---a driver might need to be downloaded from the NIC manufacters website---using a PC that CAN access the internet.---and then burned to a CD so it can be installed on mom's computer.---the driver might fit on a floppy also.

But if the NIC driver is the problem---better have a plan B if plan A don't work.

 

[Lemon law]

Originally posted by: Cloud Strife
I'll try to keep this as simple and in plain english as possible.

1) Return your Realtek adapter (you only need one)
2) Buy a Linksys router
3) Connect the cable/DSL modem to your Linksys router's WAN port
4) Connect PC#1's onboard ethernet to your Linksys router's LAN 1 port
5) Connect PC#2's ethernet to your Linksys router's LAN 2 port
6) Return the cables you have left over

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While I may quibble on how easy ICS is to set up---Genesis 5 has most of the stuff to set up a working network---and only lacks a router---and since inpatiece exists---and too mant cooks spoil the broth---I agree he should put himself in concensus groups hands---and get a router.---and those are indeed simply instructions. Where does that assumtion come from that he has an external cable/dsl modem?

Just one minor question---do we even know what kind of modem he has?---what if its a dial up---or internal--how does he connect that to the wan port of the router then?

We need to find out what exactly he has before we just assume.---and tell him to buy a pile of hardware that just won't work. It seems to me we are collectively putting carts before horses for our own ego's sake.

 

[Cloud Strife]

I don't know any ISPs that give out PCI modems and doubt they exist anymore.

 

[PELarson]

Originally posted by: Lemon law
But a little catch 22 here---as far as we know---mom's computer can't access the internet---and certainly can't in its present unworking networked state.---so if that is the case---a driver might need to be downloaded from the NIC manufacters website---using a PC that CAN access the internet.---and then burned to a CD so it can be installed on mom's computer.---the driver might fit on a floppy also.

The PC#2 that is giving the OP problems has a recently purchased Realtek card so one must assume that the CD with the drivers that is included with the card is still around.

 

[Lemon law]

To Cloud Strife,

Go online---you can buy 56 K PCI modems all day long---Wal-mart has them too---I would love to go dsl or cable but I live in a rural area---those just are not options for me or my wife at the present time---the nearest wireless hot spot is tens of miles away.----but it sure comes as news to me that my ISP just does not exist anymore.---they service thousands of people in my area.

Maybe next year I might get DSL----but this thread is not about you or I---its about helping Genesis 15 get his network going----and we need to know what he has in the way of a modem before we go off half-cocked assuming he has what you have.--or what I have.---what matters is what he has.--and what hardware will be needed to link it into the network.

So Genesis 15, please describe your modem as accurately as possible.

 

[Cloud Strife]

I was thinking of broadband PCI cards. Do they even exist?

 

[Lemon law]

You can find a few dial up routers on ebay also. You don't want to know what some of them bring---believe me I checked.

My $18.00 ICS network is looking better and better everyday.