by By Hugh N. Ross, Byte Wise Inc.
Published in the August 2000 issue of microCHIP
The word "Network" means many different things. This presentation will only cover local network equipment and software suitable for home or small office.
What would you use it for? Why have one? The primary purpose of a network is to share devices such as a printer, a scanner or other device allowing them to be used from several machines. With Windows 98 a modem can be shared by all the machines on a network. A network can also be used to backup files to the hard drive on another machine (fast). Common data or programs can be shared among several machines. A large hard drive on one machine can be used from a machine with a small hard drive.
In the past there have been several different designs of network hardware and software (Arcnet, Token ring, proprietary twisted pair, Ethernet). Ethernet is now the most popular. It uses either Coax or Twisted pair wiring.
There are two types of wiring in use with Ethernet, each with
advantages and disadvantages.
(Figure 1, below)
Coax bus type wiring is inexpensive but requires the cable to be run from machine 1 to 2 to 3, etc. It may be difficult to move a machine which is in the middle of the sequence requiring rerouting the cables. Also coax wiring is limited to 10Mhz data rate. The data rate limitation is usually not a problem for a home network unless you plan to transfer many large graphic files from one machine to another.
Twisted pair (Cat5, RJ45) wiring is a little more expensive if you have more than 2 machines connected because a hub is required (about $50 to $75). A wire is run from the hub to each machine individually. It is therefore easier to relocate machines because you need only to run a cable from the hub to the machine location without disturbing the other machine connections. With suitable adapter cards the data rate can be 100Mhz. If you are only connecting two machines, you can have the advantages of this wiring without requiring a hub.
Microsoft operating systems Windows for Workgroups 3.11, Windows 95 and Windows 98 all include support for networking. Any computer which can run one of these systems will probably operate properly in a network.
Before purchasing any hardware one must determine what type of card slots are available in each machine so that the proper adapter card can be selected. If a PCI slot is available it should be used, otherwise an ISA slot can be used. Combo adapter cards are available which allow the use of either coax or Cat5 wiring but they are limited to the 10Mhz. data rate.
Ethernet adapter cards from different manufacturers usually require unique driver software. The Windows system has drivers for some of the most popular cards, but if a driver diskette is included with the adapter card it is usually best to use it. A driver is the interface which matches the particular adapter card hardware features to the Windows generic services.
Before installing any new features in a computer it is best to examine the system to be sure there are no problems remaining from installing previous features. Go to Control panel, System, Device manager and examine the list of devices. If there are any dreaded yellow spots indicating problems you should correct these problems before attempting any other installations. Yellow spots usually result from incorrect or incomplete installation of some feature. Correction usually involves uninstalling a device and its software, shutting down and restarting the machine, and then reinstalling the device Note, you MUST uninstall a device before reinstalling it! You may need help to resolve these problems.
Hardware Installation:
The installation of PCI adapter cards is usually simple.
1. Shut down, power off
2. Install the ethernet adapter card
3. Start up the machine, Windows should say new hardware found
4. Answer the questions, use the driver diskette if available.
If you get a message saying that a file cannot be found, use browse
to examine the diskette. There may be folders for Win95, Win98,
WinNT, NetWare, etc. Choose an appropriate folder and let the
system search again. The Windows CD or distribution (.cab) files
may also be needed in order to copy some .dll files.
Installation of ISA adapter cards requires some manual control.
Many of this type of cards are shipped with default parameters
which conflict with other devices. In any case, one must first
determine what addresses and IRQ numbers are available. Go to
Start, Settings, Control Panel, System, Device Manager to explore
the address and IRQ values in use. Some cards have jumpers to
select the address and IRQ. These are easier to install. If the
card has no jumpers, one must use the software utility included
on the driver diskette to set the address and IRQ values.
1. Shut down, power off
2. Install the ethernet adapter card
3. Start up the machine.
4. Insert the driver diskette and run the installation program
or diagnostics.
5. If any errors are found, go to Start, Settings, Control Panel,
System, Device Manager to see what conflicts the system has detected.
If there is a parameter conflict, the Ethernet parameters usually
cannot be changed while the conflict exists. You must eliminate
the conflict by temporarily removing the conflicting card, setting
the Ethernet card parameter to a suitable value, then reinstalling
the other card.
Software Setup:
There are several Windows parameters which must be initialized to suitable values for a network to operate properly. Some of these parameters are initialized when you install the Ethernet adapter card. However several are not therefore we will review the parameters here. Go to Control Panel and click Network. You should get the image shown:
Figure 2
If you then click the Identification tab you should get what is shown below.
Figure 3
Each machine in your network must have a unique name which is entered on this window. Your network needs a name which is entered in the Workgroup field. All machines on your network must have the same Workgroup name. You may enter any desired description of this machine in the description field.
Now click on the Access Control tab which will show this window:
Figure 4
You should choose Share level control. User level control requires managing user names and passwords and is usually not desirable for a small network.
Now click on the Configuration tab to examine other parameters as shown:
Figure 5
Most of these parameters are installed automatically when you install the Ethernet adapter card but you should check the following:
Figure 6
If any of these are not shown, click on the Add button (or the File and Print Sharing button) to install the needed service. After clicking Add, you will get a window where you must choose which type of item to add (client, adapter, protocol, or service). If any items show NetWare names, you should highlight the item and delete it. Netware items are only needed if you have a Novell NetWare server in your system.
Sharing and Mapping drives and devices
Any device which is to be shared must have its properties set to allow sharing. On the machine to which the device is connected select a device to be shared either from 'My Computer' or from 'Windows Explorer'. You may choose any drive, or individual folder to be shared. Right-click on the device. You will get its property window:
Figure 7
Click on the 'Sharing' tab. Click the 'Shared As' spot and fill in a name by which this device will be known in the other machines on the network. You should choose the type of sharing to be allowed (full, read-only, or password). Password may occasionally be appropriate to protect sensitive information.
You will want to map local names on each machine in order to quickly refer to shared devices on other machines. You create a local name on a 'using' machine by going to Windows Explorer, click tools, and map network drive. You will get a window containing two entry fields and a check box. The first field named Drive shows the next available LOCAL drive letter available. You may accept this one or click the down arrow and choose some other letter. The second field named Path is where you specify the path to the device to be shared. If you click the down arrow in this field you will see a list of all the devices on your network that have been made sharable. Highlight the one you wish to map. If this mapping is to be used again check the box labeled 'Reconnect at logon'.
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