Basic Network guide

[Mussels]

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[Mussels]

Note: This will eventually go up as an article here on TPU, and will be removed from this section. Wizzard asked me to put it here, since i dont have permission to use the normal review sections yet.

Comments are welcome, but bear in mind this thread and all its comments may be deleted when it is moved.

 

[Deleted member 3]

(Example: If your PC has two network cards, connecting two cables to your router will not make anything faster.)

NIC teaming ftw, link aggregation is the RAID0 of networks.

Also cat5e can handle Gbit already. Plus long cables not only are a waste, if you roll up the extra length you can actually hurt performance since you're creating a spool.

 

[Mussels]

NIC teaming is quite pointless, unless its on BOTH ends. This is about basics, people who say, connect to a 100Mb router twice thinking it doubles internet speed, or someone connecting their router twice to their switch thinking it gives double bandwidth.

I may clarify this more in a reivsion.

 

[Wile E]

You left out 802.11N, well Draft N, or what ever the hell it's called now. lol

 

[Mussels]

I think i need to note here - this is a work in progress, and its about tech people have NOW.

I will be more focusing this on smaller guides compiled together, such as setting up wifi under vista compared to XP, things like that. How many people have 802.11n in their homes today? and of that small number, how many forked out the extra without knowing how to set it up in the first place?

Trying to do the most 'good' with limited time

 

[Wile E]

I just brought it up because you're seeing more and more of them on the shelves. Heck, my iMac has it from the factory. Good article, btw.

 

[Mussels]

I just brought it up because you're seeing more and more of them on the shelves. Heck, my iMac has it from the factory. Good article, btw.

Thanks, i had a friend (female, non-technical) asking me lots of questions about wireless, so originally i was just writing this up for her.

Wireless-N will probably get its own page later, as i dont own any N products i dont want to post any incorrect information on it just yet.

 

[Deleted member 3]

NIC teaming is quite pointless, unless its on BOTH ends. This is about basics, people who say, connect to a 100Mb router twice thinking it doubles internet speed, or someone connecting their router twice to their switch thinking it gives double bandwidth.

I may clarify this more in a reivsion.

Actually, NIC teaming is handy when connecting directly. ie via 2 crosscables. Nowadays quite some mobos come with dual Gbit, link them.

 

[Mussels]

Actually, NIC teaming is handy when connecting directly. ie via 2 crosscables. Nowadays quite some mobos come with dual Gbit, link them.

I updated and changed that section, but truly, can you even max out a gigabit link without running RAID? i barely get 400Mb/s on my home network, 600Mb when i had RAID.


Edit: theres been quite a few updates now, so before anyone comments further, please check those updates.

 

[Mussels]

Update: several pages added, and a wonderful girl by the name of L helped me fix various spelling/grammar mistakes.

Article should be much nicer to read now

 

[ex_reven]

Nice article man. Very good to read over.

Clear cut and concise. Excellent.

 

[Mussels]

thanks, ex-reven.

More updates now, as w1zz explained a few forum codes to me (dot points, etc)

 

[theonetruewill]

Nice concise guide Mussels.
Can I give a suggestion? A small guide on how to share files between computer's securely on a wireless network perhaps. I've got plenty of neighbours who have failed to do this, so it might be a useful addition.

 

[Deleted member 3]

I think you're mixing up hardware and software, for example the crossover section. Setting an IP manually has nothing to do with how the wires are connected. In fact, you don't even have to use TCP/IP, and DHCP works perfectly fine via a crosscable as well.

 

[Dippyskoodlez]

A cool trick mac related that saved my butt a few times, you can enable sharing your NIC via wireless and turn your computer into a mini router... I have yet to be successful duplicating this with windows though.

Also, Ethernet pinout?(I.E. Crossover Vs Patch) Cables are often color coded if you buy them from maybe belkin or blackbox, but a majority aren't. Making your own is also trivial. You also need to note the differences between a ROUTER, a SWITCH, and HUB.

They are quite significant when developing ones home network.

Its not important, but there is a "ethernet over phone" type thing, its a pile of crap, but does "work".. but fiber should atleast get a mention ;D

 

[Wile E]

A cool trick mac related that saved my butt a few times, you can enable sharing your NIC via wireless and turn your computer into a mini router... I have yet to be successful duplicating this with windows though.

You can do it in Windows with the Network Setup Wizard, Dip.

 

[Mussels]

A cool trick mac related that saved my butt a few times, you can enable sharing your NIC via wireless and turn your computer into a mini router... I have yet to be successful duplicating this with windows though.

That feature depends on the wireless card, and you could mean two things.

#1 - windows ICS (internet connection sharing) over your wireless network card, using ad hoc mode

#2 Some wireless cards have an AP (access point) feature, so that they work in normal (Infrastructure mode) for other PC's to connect to that network.

For your mac - i assume its #2, as macs quite love to throw good hardware in, then pretend its an advantage of the operating system.

 

[Mussels]

Nice concise guide Mussels.
Can I give a suggestion? A small guide on how to share files between computer's securely on a wireless network perhaps. I've got plenty of neighbours who have failed to do this, so it might be a useful addition.

I'll be adding a small page on doing this in windows vista soon, since XP is the same with a step or two less, i assume people will figure it out.

 

[Dippyskoodlez]

That feature depends on the wireless card, and you could mean two things.

#1 - windows ICS (internet connection sharing) over your wireless network card, using ad hoc mode

#2 Some wireless cards have an AP (access point) feature, so that they work in normal (Infrastructure mode) for other PC's to connect to that network.

For your mac - i assume its #2, as macs quite love to throw good hardware in, then pretend its an advantage of the operating system.

I had just never been able to get the wireless card to show up as an AP for other computers. (Not saying its impossible)

OS X you just hit share, and BAM, every other computer thinks its a wireless router. This works on -every- mac.

I would really like to see how to do this in windows as effectivly, as my modem+router is a pile of crap!

 

[Mussels]

Its a little more complex on PC, but look up internet connection sharing. I don't have the same hardware as you so i cant test it but it should be fairly straight forward.

#1 - tell XP to share the ethernet port, should auto-share over the other networks (giving out DHCP addresses)

#2 - set other PC's to search ad-hoc channels, not just infrastructure (macs may automatically do this)

P.S - XP and vista have an option to set the order of networking cards - its under the advanced menu. Its possible you will have to change the order to set the ethernet to #1, as i beleive wireless takes that position by default. In XP, right click network places, click properties then go into the advanced menu and select advanced options. Change the order using the up/down arrows.

 

[Dippyskoodlez]

Its a little more complex on PC, but look up internet connection sharing. I don't have the same hardware as you so i cant test it but it should be fairly straight forward.

#1 - tell XP to share the ethernet port, should auto-share over the other networks (giving out DHCP addresses)

#2 - set other PC's to search ad-hoc channels, not just infrastructure (macs may automatically do this)

P.S - XP and vista have an option to set the order of networking cards - its under the advanced menu. Its possible you will have to change the order to set the ethernet to #1, as i beleive wireless takes that position by default. In XP, right click network places, click properties then go into the advanced menu and select advanced options. Change the order using the up/down arrows.

Hm. how do you set the WEP?

 

[Urlyin]

NIC teaming ftw, link aggregation is the RAID0 of networks.

Also cat5e can handle Gbit already. Plus long cables not only are a waste, if you roll up the extra length you can actually hurt performance since you're creating a spool.

more of a chance the bytes will fall out onto the floor ... lost forever

 

[Namslas90]

Plus long cables not only are a waste, if you roll up the extra length you can actually hurt performance since you're creating a spool.

Close; the problem is actually that when an intenet connection cable is "spooled" or "coiled" it creates an additional "inductive EMF"(electo-magnetic field) that contradicts (works against) the inductive field in the cable normally. This inductive field slows down the wires ability to transfer data at high rates of speed. There is also a small increase in resistance, but this is not as much a problem with the newer cables. The reason this occurs is that newer cables(cat 5E and ^) have their "paired" wires twisted, thus creating an inductive field to help propell the data down the line. Adding a "coll" or "spool" contradicts this first inductive field and works against it, thus slowing down the data transfer rate, and reducing overall performance.

 

[Pinchy]

Nice article Mussels.

Just one thing, when you say it is rare for internet to be above 10Mb....

I'm not sure about other countries, but here is Aus (as you should know) we have cable which is a standard 8Mb, then there is the cable extreme which is 30Mb as well as ADSL2 which is 24Mb.