Vista Ultimate x64 > XP Pro x86

  • Thread starter Thread starter Jim Morrison
  • Start date Start date
J

Jim Morrison

hello, does anyone know where to find a good step-by-step idiot frendly
tutorial how to connect my home computer (vista ultimate x64) with my laptop
(win xp pro x86) to be able to access internet with my laptop through my
home computer. i have d-link adsl router. i assume i can plug my laptop
network cable directly into router but what other settings must be applied?

thx!
 
Jim said:
hello, does anyone know where to find a good step-by-step idiot frendly
tutorial how to connect my home computer (vista ultimate x64) with my
laptop (win xp pro x86) to be able to access internet with my laptop
through my home computer. i have d-link adsl router. i assume i can plug
my laptop network cable directly into router but what other settings must
be applied?
Click to expand...

I'm a little confused by your post. Are you asking how to get the Internet
on both machines or are you asking how to share files/printers between the
two computers? I'll give you some suggestions below but if my Crystal
Ball(tm) was cloudy, please post back with clarification of what you
actually want to know.

For the first possible question - A router enables you to share an Internet
connection between multiple computers and at the same time create a Local
Area Network where you can have file/printer sharing. You can connect to
the router either wired or wirelessly (assuming it is a wireless router and
your computers have wireless network adapters, of course). To connect
wired, simply plug one end of an ethernet cable into one of your router's
LAN ports and the other end into your computer's ethernet network adapter.
To connect wirelessly, set up a wireless network. If you need help with
this, please let me know and I'll give you the details.

For the second possible question - Here are general network troubleshooting
steps. Not everything may be applicable to your situation, so just take the
bits that are. It may look daunting, but if you follow the steps at the
links and suggestions below systematically and calmly, you will have no
difficulty in setting up your sharing.

Excellent, thorough, yet easy to understand article about File/Printer
Sharing in Vista. Includes details about sharing printers as well as files
and folders:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb727037.aspx

For XP, start by running the Network Setup Wizard on all machines (see
caveat in Item A below).

Problems sharing files between computers on a network are generally caused
by 1) a misconfigured firewall or overlooked firewall (including a stateful
firewall in a VPN); or 2) inadvertently running two firewalls such as the
built-in Windows Firewall and a third-party firewall; and/or 3) not having
identical user accounts and passwords on all Workgroup machines; 4) trying
to create shares where the operating system does not permit it.

A. Configure firewalls on all machines to allow the Local Area Network (LAN)
traffic as trusted. With Windows Firewall, this means allowing File/Printer
Sharing on the Exceptions tab. Normally running the Network Setup Wizard on
XP will take care of this for those machines.The only "gotcha" is that this
will turn on the XPSP2 Windows Firewall. If you aren't running a
third-party firewall or have an antivirus/security program with its own
firewall component, then you're fine. With third-party firewalls, I
usually configure the LAN allowance with an IP range. Ex. would be
192.168.1.0-192.168.1.254. Obviously you would substitute your correct
subnet. Refer to any third party security program's Help or user forums for
how to properly configure its firewall. Do not run more than one firewall.
DO NOT TURN OFF FIREWALLS; CONFIGURE THEM CORRECTLY.

B. For ease of organization, put all computers in the same Workgroup. This
is done from the System applet in Control Panel, Computer Name tab.

C. Create matching user accounts and passwords on all machines. You do not
need to be logged into the same account on all machines and the passwords
assigned to each user account can be different; the accounts/passwords just
need to exist and match on all machines. DO NOT NEGLECT TO CREATE
PASSWORDS, EVEN IF ONLY SIMPLE ONES. If you wish a machine to boot directly
to the Desktop (into one particular user's account) for convenience, you
can do this. The instructions at this link work for both XP and Vista:

Configure Windows to Automatically Login (MVP Ramesh) -
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/Autologon.htm

D. If one or more of the computers is XP Pro or Media Center, turn off
Simple File Sharing (Folder Options>View tab).

E. Create shares as desired.


Malke
 
Due to its graphics effects, Windows Vista is very heavy on your system and

causes slow speed even after upgrading the hardware. Here are a few tricks and
tips to enhance performance of Windows Vista.

Disable useless start up items

Some applications like Windows Sidebar, Windows media player, Nero check
Realplayer message centre and other applications loaded at the start up of
Windows Vista are useless and consumes a lot of RAM and CPU usage.

Disable services which you don't require:

Go to Start » Run and type Services.msc at command prompt.

There are several services you can disable to help improve performance.

Disable UAC (User Account Control)


Disable Network Printer Search:

Explorer can slow down when browsing through shared folders and network computers on local network for printers. This sounds like a great feature and may be useful but you can get maximum performance by disabling it.
 
Malke said:
I'm a little confused by your post. Are you asking how to get the Internet
on both machines or are you asking how to share files/printers between the
two computers? I'll give you some suggestions below but if my Crystal
Ball(tm) was cloudy, please post back with clarification of what you
actually want to know.

For the first possible question - A router enables you to share an
Internet
connection between multiple computers and at the same time create a Local
Area Network where you can have file/printer sharing. You can connect to
the router either wired or wirelessly (assuming it is a wireless router
and
your computers have wireless network adapters, of course). To connect
wired, simply plug one end of an ethernet cable into one of your router's
LAN ports and the other end into your computer's ethernet network adapter.
To connect wirelessly, set up a wireless network. If you need help with
this, please let me know and I'll give you the details.

For the second possible question - Here are general network
troubleshooting
steps. Not everything may be applicable to your situation, so just take
the
bits that are. It may look daunting, but if you follow the steps at the
links and suggestions below systematically and calmly, you will have no
difficulty in setting up your sharing.

Excellent, thorough, yet easy to understand article about File/Printer
Sharing in Vista. Includes details about sharing printers as well as files
and folders:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb727037.aspx

For XP, start by running the Network Setup Wizard on all machines (see
caveat in Item A below).

Problems sharing files between computers on a network are generally caused
by 1) a misconfigured firewall or overlooked firewall (including a
stateful
firewall in a VPN); or 2) inadvertently running two firewalls such as the
built-in Windows Firewall and a third-party firewall; and/or 3) not having
identical user accounts and passwords on all Workgroup machines; 4) trying
to create shares where the operating system does not permit it.

A. Configure firewalls on all machines to allow the Local Area Network
(LAN)
traffic as trusted. With Windows Firewall, this means allowing
File/Printer
Sharing on the Exceptions tab. Normally running the Network Setup Wizard
on
XP will take care of this for those machines.The only "gotcha" is that
this
will turn on the XPSP2 Windows Firewall. If you aren't running a
third-party firewall or have an antivirus/security program with its own
firewall component, then you're fine. With third-party firewalls, I
usually configure the LAN allowance with an IP range. Ex. would be
192.168.1.0-192.168.1.254. Obviously you would substitute your correct
subnet. Refer to any third party security program's Help or user forums
for
how to properly configure its firewall. Do not run more than one firewall.
DO NOT TURN OFF FIREWALLS; CONFIGURE THEM CORRECTLY.

B. For ease of organization, put all computers in the same Workgroup. This
is done from the System applet in Control Panel, Computer Name tab.

C. Create matching user accounts and passwords on all machines. You do not
need to be logged into the same account on all machines and the passwords
assigned to each user account can be different; the accounts/passwords
just
need to exist and match on all machines. DO NOT NEGLECT TO CREATE
PASSWORDS, EVEN IF ONLY SIMPLE ONES. If you wish a machine to boot
directly
to the Desktop (into one particular user's account) for convenience, you
can do this. The instructions at this link work for both XP and Vista:

Configure Windows to Automatically Login (MVP Ramesh) -
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/Autologon.htm

D. If one or more of the computers is XP Pro or Media Center, turn off
Simple File Sharing (Folder Options>View tab).

E. Create shares as desired.


Malke
Click to expand...


hi, many thanks for the prompt and detailed answer. sorry if my question was
a bit confusing, i am actully looking to get internet access on both
machines. file and printer sharing is only optional at this stage. my home
computer (vista ultimate x64) is connected to the internet via d-link
ethernet router (wired). the router has 2 lan slots so i have pluged my
laptop into the second slot. however i need help setting up the wired
network. many thanks in advance!
 
Jim said:
hi, many thanks for the prompt and detailed answer. sorry if my question
was a bit confusing, i am actully looking to get internet access on both
machines. file and printer sharing is only optional at this stage. my home
computer (vista ultimate x64) is connected to the internet via d-link
ethernet router (wired). the router has 2 lan slots so i have pluged my
laptop into the second slot. however i need help setting up the wired
network. many thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

OK, thanks for the clarification. As I said, there is nothing to setting up
a wired network. Just plug in ethernet cables and go. The Vista machine
will ask you whether this is a private or public network. You want to
choose "Private" since this is a home LAN. There is nothing to install and
nothing else special to do.

If you decide to go wireless on the laptop (after all, this one of the
greatest things about laptops is their mobility), here are some general
instructions:

To configure the router:

Have a computer connected to the router with an ethernet cable. Examples
given are for a Linksys router. Refer to your router manual or the router
mftr.'s website for default settings if you don't have a Linksys. Open a
browser such as Internet Explorer or Firefox and in the addressbar type:

http://192.168.1.1 [enter] (this is the router's default IP address, which
varies from router to router so check your manual)

This will bring you to router's login screen. The default username is left
blank and the Linksys default password is "admin" without the quotes. Enter
that information. You are now in the router's configuration utility. Your
configuration utility may differ slightly from mine.

Click on the Administration link at the top of the page. Enter your new
password. WRITE IT DOWN SOMEWHERE YOU WILL NOT LOSE IT. Re-enter the
password to confirm it and click the Save Settings button at the bottom of
the page. The router will restart and present you with the login box again.
Leave the username blank and put in your new password to get back into the
configuration utility.

Now click on the Wireless link at the top of the page. Change the Wireless
Network Name (SSID) from the default to something you will recognize. I
suggest that my clients not use their family name as the SSID. For example,
you might wish to name your wireless network "CastleAnthrax" or the
like. ;-)

Click the Save Settings and when you get the prompt that your changes were
successful, click on the Wireless Security link which is right next to the
Basic Wireless Settings link (where you changed your SSID). If you have a
newish computer, you will be able to set the Security Mode to
WPA2-Personal. Do that and enter a passphrase. The passphrase is what you
will enter on any computers that are allowed to connect to the wireless
network. WRITE IT DOWN SOMEWHERE YOU WILL NOT LOSE IT.

At this point, your router is configured and if the computer you were using
to configure the router is normally going to connect wirelessly, disconnect
the ethernet cable and the computer's wireless feature should see your new
network. Enter the passphrase you created to join the network and start
surfing.

Malke
 
Due to its graphics effects, Windows Vista is very heavy on your system and

causes slow speed even after upgrading the hardware. Here are a few tricks and
tips to enhance performance of Windows Vista.

Disable useless start up items

Some applications like Windows Sidebar, Windows media player, Nero check
Realplayer message centre and other applications loaded at the start up of
Windows Vista are useless and consumes a lot of RAM and CPU usage.

Disable services which you don't require:

Go to Start » Run and type Services.msc at command prompt.

There are several services you can disable to help improve performance.

Disable UAC (User Account Control)


Disable Network Printer Search:

Explorer can slow down when browsing through shared folders and network computers on local network for printers. This sounds like a great feature and may be useful but you can get maximum performance by disabling it.



None of which have anything to do with the OP's question..


--
Mike Hall - MVP
How to construct a good post..
http://dts-l.com/goodpost.htm
How to use the Microsoft Product Support Newsgroups..
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=newswhelp&style=toc
Mike's Window - My Blog..
http://msmvps.com/blogs/mikehall/default.aspx
 
Mike said:
"hafizahmad" <[email protected]> wrote in message
Click to expand...
(snip "hafizahmad's" post)
None of which have anything to do with the OP's question..
Click to expand...

Mike, he's posted this stuff in a couple of other groups as well as more of
the similar with an URL (spam, which I reported). I suspect that what we
have here is just an incompetent spammer. We should probably be grateful
for his incompetence and hope he goes away soon. ;-)

Best regards,

Malke
 
Jim Morrison said:
hello, does anyone know where to find a good step-by-step idiot frendly
tutorial how to connect my home computer (vista ultimate x64) with my laptop
(win xp pro x86) to be able to access internet with my laptop through my
home computer. i have d-link adsl router. i assume i can plug my laptop
network cable directly into router but what other settings must be applied?f
Click to expand...

To get to the Internet, you probably need to do nothing more than plug
the second machine into the router.

To be able to access files and printers on the desktop from the
laptop, you'll first have to share them from the desktop. Right-click
the directory you want to share, click "Properties" and look for the
network settings tab. You'll be able to assign a sharename for the
directory which will be available from the other machine.

The procedure is similar for printers. Go to Start|Printers and Faxes,
right-click the machine you want to share, click "Sharing".

You'll also have to make sure that both machine are on the same
workgroup.
 
Tim Slattery said:
To get to the Internet, you probably need to do nothing more than plug
the second machine into the router.

To be able to access files and printers on the desktop from the
laptop, you'll first have to share them from the desktop. Right-click
the directory you want to share, click "Properties" and look for the
network settings tab. You'll be able to assign a sharename for the
directory which will be available from the other machine.

The procedure is similar for printers. Go to Start|Printers and Faxes,
right-click the machine you want to share, click "Sharing".

You'll also have to make sure that both machine are on the same
workgroup.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(Shell/User)
(e-mail address removed)
http://members.cox.net/slatteryt
Click to expand...



i have tried pluging the second machine in the router and nothing. i get the
notification that lan is connected but i cannot access internet. i have even
tried sharing my interent connection on the home computer but no success. i
am going slightly mad....
 
Jim Morrison wrote:

i have tried pluging the second machine in the router and nothing. i get
the notification that lan is connected but i cannot access internet. i
have even tried sharing my interent connection on the home computer but no
success. i am going slightly mad....
Click to expand...

It is very difficult to troubleshoot issues like yours without being
on-site. Obviously something is set up wrong, but it will be impossible for
people who can't see your equipment to know what that is. Have a local
computer professional come on-site. I don't recommend using a
BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of place.

I'm sorry that I was unable to help you.

Malke
 
If you have Vista Premium or above you have a great new tool called Snipping Tool. It enables you to freeze. Read more
 
Malke said:
Jim Morrison wrote:



It is very difficult to troubleshoot issues like yours without being
on-site. Obviously something is set up wrong, but it will be impossible
for
people who can't see your equipment to know what that is. Have a local
computer professional come on-site. I don't recommend using a
BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of place.

I'm sorry that I was unable to help you.

Malke
Click to expand...



Solved the problem! Just reseted my router to original settings (always
connected), plugged the laptop and it works. Thanks for your help and
efforts!
 
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