Win98 ICS

[Stealth1024]

Are there any free alternatives (hopefully better) to the integrated Windows 98SE Internet Connection Sharing feature?

I am setting up a home network and I have one old Pentium 120 computer with 24MB set aside with a modem and network card to act as a web server with three other computers on the network needing internet access.

 

[1KrazyFool]

What's wrong with ICS? It runs games just fine through it, you can forward ports to server web pages, etc. There's no (almost none) special configuration needed for access on the clients. Where's the beef?

 

[Stealth1024]

The problem is that after a computer makes a request for something on the Internet you obviously wait for the computer to connect, however after it connects, it retrieves the first page, Email, whatever without problem and then flat lines (gives time out errors) for one minute afterward. Its very annoying having to wait through this. This doesn't happen though on the web server computer so I assume it is something to do with the network or the software.

 

[JellyBaby]

Stealth1024,

Do you perchance have a modem installed on that machine? Has there ever been a modem installed on that machine?

ICS isn't perfect. It has a stupid 5 minute "time-out" period -- any client request after that time takes forever to execute. 🙁

 

[josphstalinator]

what i dont like about ics is that you need TWO ethernet cards in order to share a high speed connection on win98 or winme. one for lan, the other providing the connection. they dont tell you this!!! ive gone through hell and back over this little program. i get everything set up then WHAM my internet connection isnt working on client OR host!! ACK!! whats weird is i havnt had any problems with ics under win2k, not even the requiring two ethernet card problem. i dont have the link but i once serched google and found a site that has a lot of detail about ics and it had solutions/problems for every annoyance ive had with the program.

if your looking for an alternative then get wingate. VERY easy to setup and many useful features. it is in every way superior to ics. never had a problem with it.

 

[hagbard]

Try Proxy from AnalogX, at www.analogx.com. Worked well for me in Win98, and I'll probably go back to it in WinME since WinME just hosed my internet connection using ICS. Oh, and its FREE!

...hag😀

 

[BCYL]

Or you can always try one of those linux routers if your old P120 is a dedicted router... things like FreeSCO and Coyote Linux will be perfect for your application..