Note the Names Before you attempt the next two sections 1'XP networking' and 'Vista
networking), you need to know what Windows worries about four 'names' associated
with a small network The first three of these names apply to both wireless and
wired networks. * Workgroup name. The name of the workgroup must be the same
for all PCs on your network. The default workgroup name in Windows XP is MSHOME,
and in Windows 2000 and Vista it's WORKGROUP, but you can choose a different
name. * Computer name. The computer name must be different for each PC on
your network. During installation, Vista's default computer name is
<username~-PC, where username represents the name you typed in for your user
account. XP's default computer name is more obscure. Although setup for both
operating systems gives you the chance to change this, you can also change it
from Windows. To change the workgroup and or the computer name in XP or Vista:
Click Start, right-click 'My Computer' (or Computer in Vista) and select
Properties.
in Vista, click the 'Change settings' link in the 'Computer name,
domain and workgroup settings' box.
On the 'Computer Name' tab, click the Change button.
Edit the names you want to change, press OK to clear each
dialog and restart your PC.
Note that XP's Network
Setup Wizard lets you change both these
names, so if you're planning to run the wizard, don't bother
changing the names manually For a PC running Vista, all the PCs on
the network will be visible in the Network folder, no matter what
workgroup they belong to. However, ff any of the PCs runs anode
version of Windows, that PC will only be able to see other computers
(and share their resources) if they belong to the same workgroup it
does. * User account. For network access to the resources on a PC
running Windows 2000,XP or Vista, you may need to have a user
account with a password on that PC, depending on what type of sharing
is set up. For a small network, the username and password are usually
the same as your local logon account. * 551D Service Set
Identification. Wireless jargon for the network name. The SSID, which
only applies for wireless networks, is explained in 'Wireless wizard'
below.
X P N E T W O R K I N G
The Network Setup Wizard is the key to configuring a network in WindowsXR
After configuring your internet connection, you should run this wizard on every
PC on your network. To start the wizard, click Start”> 'My Network Places'”>'Set
up a home or small office network' (under'NetworkTasks' at the left) and follow
the prompts. The main traps are the workgroup name, which the wizard returns to
MSHOME, irrespective of what XP is actually using, and 'File and printer
sharing: The latter may default to Off, but you usually want it On because that
setting shares the folder 'Shared Documents' and all your printers. Finally, the
last wizard screen lets you make a Network Setup Disk you'll only want to do
this if your network includes PCs running earlier versions of Windows. You can
choose any option except the first to opt out of making the disk.
VISTA NETWORKING
In Vista, you access computers on your network and their shared resources from
the Network folder, which you open by clicking Start”> Network. Unlike earlier
versions of Windows, Vista is supposed to automatically configure a connection to
a wired network. How far Vista goes in the configuration process depends partly
on the selection you make on the 'Set Network Location' screen that displays the
first time Vista detects a network, which could be during installation.
Of the three choices, Home and Work have the same effect. However, if you choose
'Public location' (or don't make a choice), vista will disable Network Discovery
and the Network folder won't display any computers or shared resources on the
network. This also works the other way round, so other computers on the network
can't see your Vista PC or any resources you have shared.
In practice,
even if you select Home or Work on the 'Sct Network Location' screen, you may
find that Network Discovery is turned off. If it is, the information bar near the
top of the Network folder will tell you and give you a link for changing the
setting. Even if Network Discovery has been turned on, file sharing may still be
turned off. Again,the first time you open the Network folder, the information
bar will tell you and give you a link to change it.
You'll need to Dick
Start, right-click Network and select Properties to open 'Network and Sharing
Center' to share printers, folders and files. See the step-bystep guide
'Configure networking in Vista' on page 63 for more details.
TALK TO YOUR R O U T E R
A major threat to any PC user today is the large number of malicious software floating around in cyberspace. They not only damage files and cause errors in the system, but also have a potential to permanently delete data from your PC. Therefore, you must scan your computer regularly in order to keep your system free from such malicious content.
WIRELESS WIZARD
If you have one or more PCs
connecting wirelessly to your network, you'll need to get acquainted
with
the Wireless Network Setup Wizard, because you need to run this on at
least one PC in your network. To get the maximum benefit from this
wizard, you should have Service Pack 3 (SP3) applied in XP and at least
SPI in Vista.
In XP, you start the wizard by clicking Start”~
'My Network Places'”> 'Set up a wireless network for a home or small
office' under 'Network Tasks' at the left. To start the wizard in
Vista:
Click Start, right-click Network and select Properties.
0
Click 'Set up a connection or network under Tasks at the left.
43 Click
'Set up a wireless router or access point' and click Next.
When
configuring wireless, it's essential you use the same SSID (or network
name) for every wireless device on your network. The same applies to
the encryption method, where your first choice should be (in order of
security strength) WPA2 (Mimi Protected Access 2), followed by WPA and
finally, WEP furred Equivalent Privacy). Your entire network is limited by
the strongest encryption method supported by every device. If one of your
devices doesn't support WPA2, check the net to see whether there's a
firmware upgrade to add this support. If a device only supports WEE consider
replacing it.
There are two major differences between the wizard in
XP and Vista. Firstly, XP worst run the wizard unless you have a wireless
network card installed, so it makes sense to configure that card first and
use the settings for the other wireless devices on your network. On the
other hand, Vista will run the wizard even if you don't have any wireless
devices installed or attached to your PC. In addition, it will search for a
wireless router and configure that automatically if it can Secondly,
although Vista won't let you access the wireless configuration settings until
you save them to a USB flash drive, XP gives you a range of additional
options including saving to a floppy or any of your hard drives, or not
saving at all.
However, there's a good reason to save the wireless
settings to a USB Flash drive, particularly if your router has a USB
connector that supports Windows Connect Now (originally called Windows Smart
Network Key). if this is the case, you can simply plug the flash drive into
the router, wait for the OK signal and the router will be configured for
your wireless network. Even if your router doesn't support Windows Connect
Now, you can use the flash drive to automatically configure other PCs
running XP or Vista. For previous versions of Windows, you can configure Wi-Fi
manually, using the settings contained in lSMRTNTKY\Wsetting.txt on the USB
flash drive. You can also useWsetting.txt to speed the manual configuration
of your router's wireless settings. See the step-by-step guide opposite and
'Set up wireless in Vista' on page 64 for more details.
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