Most of the Intel server NICs can be "teamed" to provide outbound
load balancing, and they are not expensive. It (obviously) requires a
co-operating switch to balance theincoming load. I don't think
they care whether you are running a server o/s or a workstation.
Or you can try to subnet two or more segments to isolate traffic
statically, and then use a router or layer3 switch support to route
between the segments as needed. You can enable IP forwarding
on the workstation using the registry hack, but I don't know that
this would be a good idea performance-wise.
There is also a package out there that spoof arps to pseudo-dynamically
load balance traffic. I can't remember the name, but a search should turn
it up.
My own experience is that all of this is largely a waste of effort --
unless you are just completely maxed out on network bandwidth
and are getting constant jams and collisions.
(With Win2K Pro, I can't imagine what scenario would get to this point,
but people do unusual things.)
You can get gigabit backbone switches and a gigabit server NIC
for a few hundred dollars, and this usually is the way to go unless you
have some reasons why this won't fly given your resources and
infrastructure.
Steve Duff, MCSE
Ergodic Systems, Inc.
