Quick question on home DSL sharing...

[trots]

If I want to buy whatever equipment is necessary to have my two home PC's share my DSL, does my external DSL modem need to have an Ethernet connector? Mine doesn't, it only has a USB and a phone jack on the back, so am I SOL with this modem? I'm completely ignorant about this networking stuff

 

[sohcrates]

well, there's ways around it.

basically, the computer that the usb modem plugs into will need a network card installed. you can then enable internet connection sharing (ICS) on that network card, and basically use that computer as a "router" to route the internet to your second computer.

you would need a network card in your second computer, and a crossover ethernet cable between the two.

in this configuration, your main computer hooked up to the usb modem would need to be on for the second computer to have internet access.

normally, if you had a non-usb modem, you could just run modem's ethernet output to a router and have the router serve the 'net for every computer...therefore no need to keep one computer on all the time...

but in your case, it's a little wacky, but should be possible.

 

[mgpaulus]

Apparently there is one Router that supports USB modems. It is here: USB Router.. However, you will have to check whether it supports your modem.

 

[trots]

Thanks muchly for the replies.

mgpaulus, the link for the USB Router broke, it's now here. I saw in that review

<< Draytek is testing the Vigor2200USB with others USB-based DSL modems including the Efficient Networks 4060 USB DSL modem. >>

and thought, oh well, the 4060 is my modem. But when I went to the vendor site it says:

<< THE VIGOR2200USB ONLY SUPPORTS THE ALCATEL SPEEDTOUCH USB MODEM AND EFFICIENT NETWORKS 4060 MODEM RIGHT NOW >>

Guess I'm in luck, now I just have to talk the wife into it!

 

[OldGrandad]

I don't know if this helps but this my experience of ICS with cable.

I have a cable modem attached to my PC via an ethernet card (it can also be connected via USB). I bought a two PC network kit last week comprising of two network cards and crossover cable. Installation was a breeze unlike setting up the network! I then setup TCP/IP protocols on both PC's assigning an IP address to the cable PC and letting the 2nd PC obtain an address automatically. Once that was done I used the ICS wizard to finalize settings and that was that. I can only assume it will be the same for you, and I hope it all goes well. This was my very first attempt at networking and I am more the wiser for doing so. As it didn't go as straightforward as first imagined I am now able to at least give some basic tips on what might be wrong if all doesn't go well.

 

[trots]

Update...

I sprang for the Vigor2200USB... they dropped the price $5 for online orders (now $134.00 + (for me) $8.50 shipping). Though $5 isn't much, I guess it was enough to push me off the fence. Shipping was very fast. I ordered Monday morning and it was on my doorstep before lunch Wednesday, but of course I'm only like a 4 1/2 to 5 hour drive from the distributor, Best Systems, in Buford, GA.

I set it up when I got home from work yesterday, and I must say... so far it's been wonderful. It took maybe 10 minutes for yours truly, a total networking idiot, to get it working. I think if anything, it's less trouble than using the Efficient Networks 4060 USB alone... maybe because, rather than your PC having to load the firmware to modem every time you reboot - which occasionally has issues - with this you load the modem's firmware to the router just once upon initial setup.

So now I'm sharing my DSL through my one crummy USB Modem between my two PCs, with room for two more. I highly recommend this router to anyone wanting to do the same, it's really even better than I hoped for!