HowTo: Microsoft: SOHO Network 2: Set up a Router and Workstations using DHCP and Preset TCPIP Ranges for a Small-Office/Home-Office Workgroup on Broadband Internet
Summary: This tutorial shows how to set up a router to feed broadband cable or ADSL/DSL internet to a home, home-office or small office (SOHO) network of computer workstations --and-- how to set up each workstation to accept a TCPIP address assigned by the DHCP server in the router, to form a network of computers that communicate with each other and with the internet.
The following sections were covered on Page 1:
- Section 4: Configuring the computers to receive an IP address from the router [DHCP]
- Section 5: Power up the router & network
Section 6: Check the IP addressing of the computers
At this stage the computers have been powered up and should have received IP addresses from the DHCP server in the router. To check this you open a DOS (disk operating system) window and enter the command ipconfig /all. The DOS window is found at Start -->Programs -->Accessories -->Command prompt for WinXP & Win2K -or- for Win98SE it's Start --> Programs --> ms-dos prompt. After entering ipconfig /all You can now see your TCPIP settings [for Win98SE
] or [for Win2000 & XP
]. The important information is extracted below:
[for my windows 2000 computer]
[for my windows 98SE computer]
The subnet mask for the network is 255.255.255.0 and the IP address of the router is the same as for the DHCP Server [because it's in the router - router is just a name]; i.e. 192.168.2.1. The gateway to the Internet for this computer [& all computers] is through the router via the Default Gateway at router address address 192.168.2.1. Finally the [network card in the] Windows 98 computer has received IP address 192.168.2.105 from the DHCP server in the router while the Windows 2000 computer has received address 192.168.2.101.
Use the ipconfig /all technique to check that all computers are networked properly. The displays should all be the same as the pic above except for the IP address of the [net card in the] computer. This IP address will change its last integer [101 & 105 above] from computer to computer.
Section 7: Configuring the router to connect to the Internet
The router is a device with an IP address. As we've seen above, the router used in this HowTo is at 192.168.2.1. You can view the internals of the router by entering its IP address in your web browser. You'll get a login screen
Notice the factory-default username and password is displayed in the login screen [see "realm" on pic]. If it's not there, it will be in the documentation or on the CD that comes with the router.
After the login you get basically an options/menu screen,
often with a wizard button to streamline the setup. Use that if you have all the info that will be required at hand and have a bit of experience. My ISP has particular settings that don't work via the wizard. I'll take the long way so I can explain what's happening. Your priority is the internet side of the router, i.e. you're looking for WAN settings. In this router they're under general setup
DNS settings: I explained on the bottom of page1 that you would likely need the IP addresses of your DNS servers. They're entered via the menu item DNS (yellow) under WANas follows
The addresses you see aren't general. You need to obtain them from your ISP: here is one random example of how.
The next thing you need is the broadband login screen. It's part of the WAN settings. For ADSL/DSL two common methods are Point to Point over Ethernet PPoE
and Point to Point Tunneling Protocol PPTP
For cable internet in Australia the settings for Telstra are often used [but with entries appropriate to the real ISP - not just Telstra].
Your ISP can direct you more accurately.
Section 8: Web Browser setting to connect to the Internet via a router
In this section we briefly cover connection settings for four common browsers which can be downloaded here: Mozilla, Firefox, Opera and Internet Explorer. The browsers simply need to be told they have a direct connection to the internet as opposed to connections through proxy servers. Here are the buttons and tabs, and the final correct settings for the four browsers:
- Firefox
Tools -->Options -->General -->Connection settings -->Direct connection to the Internet - Mozilla
Edit -->Preferences -->Advanced -->Proxies -->Direct connection to the Internet - Opera
Tools -->Preferences -->Advanced -->Network -->Proxy servers -->Put nothing in there - IE 6
Tools -->Internet Options -->Connections -->Lan Settings -->Automatically detect settings
Go back to page 1 or page 2 or page 3.
Well, that's all folks. Good luck; I'm off for a good lie down after all that!!!
MS Windows Tutorials.
There are five mini HowTo Tutorials in a set. Each HowTo treats a different, independent security program. These are:
Grisoft's AVG Antivirus
virus scanner
Zone Labs' ZoneAlarm
firewall
Lavasoft's Ad Aware
malware cleaner
Javcool's SpywareBlaster
spyware gate
SpyBot's Search & Destroy
registry cleaner
Together, these five quite excellent free programs provide multi faceted and overlapping security not available from single proprietory [i.e. non-free] security package.
Cheers, Swerdna.
