Network Issues

[Luke]

Hope someone can help....

I am trying to set-up a small network in my house. Right
now I want to hook up two computers maybe three to a
network. Both of the computers are running on Windows
XP. I have a DSL connection to the internet. I am using
Linksys Router to share the internet connection between
the two computers right now. I have hooked up both of the
computers to the router and they are both able to get to
the internet. I used the network wizard in XP to set-up
the network. I used the selection Computer connects to
the internet through another computer on my network or
through a residential gateway. I finished off naming the
workgroup and the computer. Then the wizard told me that
I would have to restart and do the same procedures on the
other computer, which I did. I rebooted both pc after
performing the wizard. I can't see the other computer
from either of the computer and when I map a drive it
says that the drive cannot be found. I checked and the
drives are shared.

Can someone help me and tell me where I might have gone
wrong. I just want to be able to share my drives between
the two or three computers for right now. I can't see
either computer and can't connect to either. I don't
believe its a hardware issues because I am connected to
the internet on both.

Thanks

 

[Guest]

The key here is, the ROUTER handles the Internet. Your two (or 3) PC's are linked through the same router. Each will get Internet from the router. The following assumes you are getting Internet on each PC now

When you ran the wizard, it thought one PC would get Internet from the other, and that's the way it set them up, which is wrong

To get the PC's to see each other, Right-click My Computer. Ensure each PC has its own name and that both (or all) belong to the same Workgroup. That's got to be spelled the same on each PC, and CaPItals are significant. When done there, [OK]

On each PC, go to My Network Places and right-click it. Under "LAN or High-speed Connection" you'll see something like "Local Area Connection." Right-click that and select Properties or Status. (If you pick Status, then click the Properties button.) Verify your NIC is selected correctly in the window at the top. Each PC needs "Client for Microsoft Networks," "File and Printer Sharing," and "TCP/IP" installed. Highlight TCP/IP and click the "Properties" button. There are two tabs: General and Alternate. On each tab, make sure each option is set to automatic.

After you restart each PC, they should see each other. If not you'll need to go to the General > Advanced tab and make sure the "IP Addresses" box contains "DHCP Enabled.

When done, if you look at the Status of your Locacl Area Connection, the "Support" tab should show address type "assigned by DHCP"; IP Address should be 192.168.1.xxx where xxx is the number the router assigns each PC (it will be different on each PC); subnet mask = 255.255.255.0; default gateway = 192.168.1.1 (that's your router.) You can consult your router's help system and review the settings there to make sure your PC's have the correct settings

Hope this helps; good luck.

 

[Luke]

Where do I find the DHCP settings to change? So after I
check the stuff below and the DHCP settings I should be
good to go..

-----Original Message-----
The key here is, the ROUTER handles the Internet. Your

two (or 3) PC's are linked through the same router. Each
will get Internet from the router. The following assumes
you are getting Internet on each PC now.

When you ran the wizard, it thought one PC would get

Internet from the other, and that's the way it set them
up, which is wrong.

To get the PC's to see each other, Right-click My

Computer. Ensure each PC has its own name and that both
(or all) belong to the same Workgroup. That's got to be
spelled the same on each PC, and CaPItals are
significant. When done there, [OK].

On each PC, go to My Network Places and right-click it.

Under "LAN or High-speed Connection" you'll see something
like "Local Area Connection." Right-click that and select
Properties or Status. (If you pick Status, then click the
Properties button.) Verify your NIC is selected correctly
in the window at the top. Each PC needs "Client for
Microsoft Networks," "File and Printer Sharing,"
and "TCP/IP" installed. Highlight TCP/IP and click
the "Properties" button. There are two tabs: General and
Alternate. On each tab, make sure each option is set to
automatic.

After you restart each PC, they should see each other.

If not you'll need to go to the General > Advanced tab
and make sure the "IP Addresses" box contains "DHCP
Enabled."

When done, if you look at the Status of your Locacl Area

Connection, the "Support" tab should show address
type "assigned by DHCP"; IP Address should be
192.168.1.xxx where xxx is the number the router assigns
each PC (it will be different on each PC); subnet mask =
255.255.255.0; default gateway = 192.168.1.1 (that's your
router.) You can consult your router's help system and
review the settings there to make sure your PC's have the
correct settings.