HUB or router

[Mercury]

hello there network techs.I am planning to set up a
network consisting four machines. Three of them are
desktops and will have xp pro on them. one will be a
labtop and will have wi-fi enabled. I am also planning to
have internet connection via dsl. In addition to that I
will be remotely accessing my netwotk from home or outside
when needed. My question Is. Is it better to have one
machine set up as a host with ics enabled consisting of
two network cards one for dsl and one for the network.
Having a hub that allows the other two to connect and
having a wirless acces point connected to the hub giving
access to the labtop. also creating a vpn connection to
allow remote access. Or is it better to have a router with
ethernet and wirless capabilities that allows the dsl
modem and all the other computers to connect through the
router. My worry with the second solution is. Will the vpn
still work? and which IP address will I use?. My concern
with the first solution is. Will the internet connection
on the host stay constant or does it need to be reset all
the time it logs off or gets disconnected..and if it does
do the clients need to be reconfigured. and I guess this
can go for the second solution with the router.If you can
see any additional problems with this setup feel free to
state them. Mostly appreciated. Mercury

 

[Chuck]

hello there network techs.I am planning to set up a
network consisting four machines. Three of them are
desktops and will have xp pro on them. one will be a
labtop and will have wi-fi enabled. I am also planning to
have internet connection via dsl. In addition to that I
will be remotely accessing my netwotk from home or outside
when needed. My question Is. Is it better to have one
machine set up as a host with ics enabled consisting of
two network cards one for dsl and one for the network.
Having a hub that allows the other two to connect and
having a wirless acces point connected to the hub giving
access to the labtop. also creating a vpn connection to
allow remote access. Or is it better to have a router with
ethernet and wirless capabilities that allows the dsl
modem and all the other computers to connect through the
router. My worry with the second solution is. Will the vpn
still work? and which IP address will I use?. My concern
with the first solution is. Will the internet connection
on the host stay constant or does it need to be reset all
the time it logs off or gets disconnected..and if it does
do the clients need to be reconfigured. and I guess this
can go for the second solution with the router.If you can
see any additional problems with this setup feel free to
state them. Mostly appreciated. Mercury

Mercury,

IMHO, and without exception, a router is your best choice.

All computers will be safer. The router will block any malevolent internet
traffic. This further protects the internet, from your becoming infected and
spreading the infection.

All computers will run better, with the router blocking the trash infection
traffic.

All computers will run independent of each other. Right now, if you have
internet connectivity on multiple computers, either you are paying your ISP for
multiple connections (a waste of $$$), or you have to have one computer on
whenever you wish to access the internet from any other. With a router, neither
is true.

If you can afford to have more then one computer, and broadband, you can afford
a router. For many reasons.

Cheers,
Chuck
Paranoia comes from experience - and is not necessarily a bad thing.

 

[Hans-Georg Michna]

IMHO, and without exception, a router is your best choice.

Mercury,

just wanted to state that I agree with Chuck.

If you want to use a VPN, you have to get a router with VPN
capability. My recommendation would be one of the DrayTek Vigor
routers like the 2500 We (for ADSL) or the appropriate type for
your particular kind of Internet access.

Hans-Georg

 

[Bob Willard]

Mercury,

IMHO, and without exception, a router is your best choice.

All computers will be safer. The router will block any malevolent internet
traffic. This further protects the internet, from your becoming infected and
spreading the infection.

All computers will run better, with the router blocking the trash infection
traffic.

All computers will run independent of each other. Right now, if you have
internet connectivity on multiple computers, either you are paying your ISP for
multiple connections (a waste of $$$), or you have to have one computer on
whenever you wish to access the internet from any other. With a router, neither
is true.

If you can afford to have more then one computer, and broadband, you can afford
a router. For many reasons.

Cheers,
Chuck
Paranoia comes from experience - and is not necessarily a bad thing.

Agreed. In addition to the reasons Chuck listed, hardware routing is
more robust than software routing. A hardware router is a relatively
simple, single-function device; a software router, running a M$ OS,
is complex, buggy, and insecure.